69. Strengthened expertise in these areas will be brought to bear to overcome implementation gaps and will provide the basis for OHCHR to work on technical cooperation, advocacy, training, policy development, analysis and advice to partners. It will facilitate the development of methodology for human rights work and the identification of good practices. Such expertise will also draw on and contribute to the work of the special procedures and treaty bodies.

70. Priority areas will be reviewed periodically to ensure that OHCHR is equipped to address emerging human rights challenges. The policy and planning unit being established, as described below, will assist us in priority-setting.

5. Research and policy analysis

71. OHCHR and many others involved in human rights activities have invested the majority of their research efforts in cataloguing and describing human rights problems rather than in proposing human rights solutions, and too little attention has been given to identifying trends that will in future impact on human rights. Substantial existing research capacity in OHCHR is devoted to preparing studies and reports for United Nations human rights bodies, many of which by their nature are of little practical value or in any case are not always put to good use.

72. The research capacity of the Office will be strengthened and it will increasingly rely on its own initiative to identify priority human rights issues for analysis. The aim will be to bring forward practical suggestions for addressing the knowledge gap and other human rights problems. One way to do so is through releasing existing research capacity. The discussion on a new Human Rights Council or a reformed Commission on Human Rights provides an excellent opportunity to rationalize the studies, reports and notes that OHCHR is asked to produce. The High Commissioner will undertake an inventory, with suggestions, in this regard.

73. In stepping up work in this area, we will rely on close collaboration with the many and diverse academic and research institutions worldwide, including in the United Nations system, and will seek to build collaborative processes with Governments, civil society groups and all concerned actors to address the knowledge gap.

74. Closely linked to a more active research programme is policy development. Putting forth suggestions to address human rights problems requires a careful consideration of the legal and policy issues involved. Consistency of approach and rigour in analysis will be essential for credibility, and to this end OHCHR requires a central policy approval function to ensure consistency and quality in positions advanced, which will be allocated to a new Policy and Planning Unit.

C. Leadership

75. In today’s world, numerous social, economic and political issues are decided through international processes but have profound consequences for human rights locally. Though engagement with countries is key, OHCHR must also be active at the global level, shaping and contributing to the international debate on issues relevant to the protection of human rights. OHCHR must be especially active in the United Nations system and meet the challenge of fully integrating human rights issues into the core of the United Nations agendas for development and security. For this reason also, OHCHR must build its thematic expertise, and step up work on specific human rights issues.

1. Human rights, development and the Millennium Development Goals

76. The United Nations Millennium Declaration opens with an affirmation that freedom and equality are fundamental values essential to international relations in the twenty-first century. It pledges Member States to respect, protect and promote all human rights for all people, to defend the vulnerable and to strengthen the rule of law. In affirming the right to development, the Declaration recognizes that States have both an individual and a collective responsibility to uphold the principles of human dignity, equality and equity at the national and the global levels. The Millennium Development Goals require rich countries to assist poor countries in meeting mutually agreed targets for poverty reduction, and all States pledged themselves to respect human rights in pursuing these targets. Properly understood, the Millennium Development Goals are themselves human rights aspirations.

77. In order to help turn these pledges into reality, OHCHR will considerably enhance its work in this area by establishing a unit dedicated to working on the Goals. We will seek to engage in global discussions to ensure that due attention is paid to human rights, both in the process and in the outcomes of the implementation of the Goals. We will focus on promoting rights-sensitive poverty reduction strategies and the application of rights-based approaches to development, and advancing the right to development. In so doing, we will emphasize the free, active and meaningful participation of rights holders, the accountability of duty bearers, non-discrimination at all levels and the political and economic empowerment of those that development seeks to lift out of poverty. In addition, we will use the human rights framework to buttress and solidify pledges made by the richer countries.

2. Protecting economic, social and cultural rights

78. Despite repeated pledges as to the indivisibility of human rights and the need for the United Nations to pay due attention to all human rights, economic, social and cultural rights are still questioned by some, including regarding their justiciability — as seen in the discussions to create a procedure for hearing individual complaints of violations of the rights spelled out in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. These rights still enjoy a lesser status in law in most countries. Some believe that the principle of progressive realization of these rights creates special difficulties regarding accountability. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and many of the special procedures have addressed the legal issues involved and, over the past few years, have added much to our understanding of the scope and content of economic, social and cultural rights. Much work remains to be done, however, including in convincing often sceptical publics and Governments that human rights truly are interdependent and indivisible.

3. Human rights, peacebuilding and peacekeeping

79. In his above-mentioned report, the Secretary-General drew attention to the role of OHCHR in conflict prevention efforts and in deploying human rights officers to crisis situations, and called on the High Commissioner to play a more active role in the deliberations of the Security Council and the proposed Peacebuilding Commission.

80. In regard to human rights crises, as noted above, OHCHR stands ready to deploy human rights officers through its own stand-alone offices and to conduct fact-finding and investigation missions. Also, we will continue to work with the humanitarian community to integrate human rights into their work and programmes. Where United Nations peace operations are deployed, greater effort is needed to ensure that all their components, especially civilian police and military, contribute through their action to the advancement of human rights.

81. Concerning conflict prevention, much of the existing United Nations human rights information could be used more extensively in United Nations preventive diplomacy. Information alone will be insufficient, however. The task is to ensure that it is analysed and brought to the attention of those with a responsibility to act. One clear implication of greater OHCHR country engagement is that the Office will be much better equipped to anticipate looming human rights crises and to highlight the human rights implications of unfolding crises.

82. OHCHR needs to increase its capacity to contribute expert legal and policy input on human rights matters to conflict resolution efforts. Increasingly, OHCHR is called upon to assist countries emerging from conflict and periods of widespread abuse, including through procedures to uncover the truth about what happened, to investigate and verify massive human rights violations, to vet public officials and to reform and rehabilitate the justice system. To these ends, OHCHR will increase efforts with a host of partners, pursuing complementary action within peace missions, United Nations country teams and United Nations Headquarters-based policy and coordination bodies. Addressing impunity and the crimes of the past figure prominently, but there are many other human rights issues that need to be considered in order to build a sustainable peace. In addition, an expanded OHCHR field presence may itself help to create conflict resolution opportunities since engagements with belligerents on human rights issues create space for discussion of political issues.

83. In these areas, there is a clear need for OHCHR to expand its capacity, including especially in its New York Office, so as to ensure that it provides an effective input into both country and thematic issues.

4. Strengthening the rule of law

84. The rule of law has long been a principal focus of OHCHR. Based on international human rights, humanitarian and criminal law standards, a set of justice sector tools and manuals has been developed by OHCHR and used in many countries. We must increase efforts to assist countries in adopting laws and building the institutions necessary to give effect to international standards.

85. The work of OHCHR in this area draws on its expertise concerning international human rights law, based on its experience and close and unique relationship to the bodies established by treaty to oversee the application of that law, and to the special procedures. This international legal expertise is diffusely spread throughout OHCHR, however, and the time has come to consolidate it and provide it with greater resources. Doing so would allow the coordination of in-house legal expertise and ensure the provision of expert advice, within and outside the United Nations, on the compliance of national law and practice with international human rights obligations — an expertise that is likely to be in greater demand with an enhanced country engagement. The establishment of a central function along these lines would also allow OHCHR to be more proactive in defending international human rights standards when their scope and applicability is challenged, and suggesting future directions for and advice on their development.

5. A global human rights report

86. OHCHR will research and publish on an annual basis a thematic Global Human Rights Report. This will be an important policy and advocacy tool, through which we will be able to identify, analyse and build support for priority human rights issues, point to both positive and negative trends affecting human rights and highlight successful policies. It will be a vehicle for promoting human rights, spearheading new thinking and approaches and bringing to light diverse efforts to achieve human rights. Such a report will provide an authoritative source of information regarding human rights trends in selected thematic areas.

87. Experience in other United Nations agencies shows that global reports are useful but also require a significant investment of resources. Collaboration with others, including academic and research centres worldwide, will enhance the value of such a report.

6. Outreach and communication

88. OHCHR will not be successful in pursuing its goals and strategies unless it is able to communicate them effectively. As OHCHR concentrates on implementation — when the emphasis is on improving people’s enjoyment of human rights — there is a need for a much more vigorous communications strategy. Such a strategy will be essential to improve overall knowledge of human rights and to create support for the work of the United Nations and OHCHR in this area. It will also allow OHCHR to engage more effectively in building public support for human rights principles. This will require a more proactive engagement with the media, and more accessible and targeted dissemination through printed and web-based media.

D. Working with United Nations human rights bodies

89. The High Commissioner is explicitly required to propose ways of overcoming obstacles to the effective enjoyment of human rights and to suggest ways of improving and making coherent the functioning of the United Nations human rights machinery. In order to fulfil these tasks, she needs to take a more proactive and engaged role with the United Nations human rights bodies. Strengthening these bodies and working more closely together with them will ensure a more effective overall effort to address implementation gaps.

1. Commission on Human Rights

90. The Secretary-General has proposed the replacement of the Commission on Human Rights by an upgraded Human Rights Council. As this is under active discussion, the High Commissioner wishes to use this opportunity to set out a few points.

91. It is essential that a new body find effective means to carry out its supervisory responsibilities, which will necessarily entail some system for measuring States’ human rights obligations against their actual practice. The present system for country scrutiny in the Commission is, all agree, unsatisfactory. At the same time, there must be some system in place for considering the actual human rights situation in countries.

92. For this reason, I strongly support the proposal that country scrutiny be exercised through a system of peer review, whether in a new Human Rights Council or a reformed Commission on Human Rights. This system should be built on the principle of universal scrutiny, whereby all States submit to a review of law and practice concerning their human rights obligations. For such a system to be credible and gain the confidence of all, it will be essential that a fair and transparent method be developed to compile information upon which to base the peer review. As the Secretary-General has emphasized, a new Human Rights Council should also continue the practice of the Commission regarding access for non-governmental organizations and preserve the independent role of the special procedures.

93. It is difficult for OHCHR to speculate in detail how the creation of a Human Rights Council would impact on our work since so many of the details concerning the scope, power and composition of the body are still under discussion. Certainly, a standing body that would be able to meet regularly throughout the year, although a welcome development, would also place new demands on OHCHR and we would need the capacity to respond. The precise details of the peer review will need to be worked out, and in particular it will be important to distinguish a system of peer review by other States from reporting to expert treaty bodies.

94. With respect to either a new Human Rights Council or the Commission on Human Rights, OHCHR intends to step up its efforts to play a more active role, in a spirit of partnership, in identifying means of strengthening efforts to protect human rights.

2. Treaty bodies

95. The United Nations human rights treaty system is one of the Organization’s great achievements. The treaty bodies were set up to monitor progress in implementation and provide authoritative guidance on the meaning of treaty provisions and the measures needed to protect rights at the national level. Their work has had a direct impact, leading to changes in national law and policy and bringing redress for individual victims. All States are parties to at least one of the seven treaties, and more than 75 per cent of States are parties to four or more, including the two covenants. The reporting process should be seen as a means for States to assess achievements and identify implementation gaps. Ideally, this process informs national debates on human rights issues and creates new constituencies in support of human rights. This is, indeed, its raison d’être.

96. The problems with the current system are well documented and there is a large degree of consensus on the basic defects. States find it onerous to report separately to different treaty bodies, often on very similar or overlapping issues (though agreement on an expanded core document would reduce this burden). Reports are delayed or, when submitted, are often inadequate and there is insufficient time to consider them. The concluding observations adopted by the treaty bodies often lack the precision needed to guide reform efforts and are too often given insufficient attention by States.

97. Analytical and organizational support is crucial. Since 1996, significant new resources, raised outside the regular budget, have been devoted to staffing the branch dealing with the treaty bodies. At the same time, compared with other international monitoring procedures, the human rights treaties operate on a shoestring.

98. A considerably enhanced programme of country engagement will assist in ensuring that the treaty body review process is better supported and is more relevant to processes of human rights reform at the national level. Geographic desks and staff deployed in the field can work with Governments and other stakeholders to engage in the reporting process and follow up the recommendations made by treaty bodies and decisions on individual complaints.

99. Enhanced country engagement, however, will not address all the other problems identified. Inefficiencies in the system will worsen if, as is hoped, universal ratification is achieved. Since the Secretary-General’s call in 2002 for harmonized reporting requirements and the possibility of submitting a single report, treaty bodies have begun drafting harmonized guidelines on reporting. These should be finalized and implemented so that the treaty bodies can begin to function as a unified system. In the long term, however, it seems clear that some means must be found to consolidate the work of the seven treaty bodies and to create a unified standing treaty body. This is a matter for States parties, but the High Commissioner intends to submit options of treaty body reform for consideration at an intergovernmental meeting to be held in 2006.

100. A unified treaty body system would only be possible if all committees were able to function in partnership, which presupposes that they are supported in their various mandates by the same office, ensuring a holistic approach as well as jurisprudential coherence. The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the treaty body monitoring the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, is the only human rights treaty not supported by OHCHR. The Committee is supported by the Division for the Advancement of Women. It would seem an opportune moment to consider transferring responsibility for supporting the Committee to OHCHR.

3. Special procedures

101. The various rapporteurs, working groups and experts appointed by the Commission on Human Rights are an essential element of the efforts undertaken by the United Nations to protect human rights. Their strength includes their independence, concerted focus on an issue or situation, ability to engage directly through country visits, ongoing accessibility to victims and advocacy role in identifying implementation gaps.

102. At the same time, increasing politicization in the Commission affects the special procedures. Acrimonious debates often precede the establishment or renewal of mandates, undermining the credibility of the procedure. Coordinating the work of the rapporteurs becomes more difficult as the number of mandates rises — quite rapidly in recent years. The mandate holders and their working methods are increasingly criticized by Member States, often for contradictory reasons.

103. The more than 100 reports submitted by the special procedures to the Commission at its sixtieth session, in 2004, included reports on human rights developments in 39 countries, prepared on the basis of visits conducted by mandate holders assisted by OHCHR staff. The same year, more than 1,300 communications were sent to 142 Governments, addressing 4,448 individual cases. There is very little follow-up, however, to these reports and communications, and the rapporteurs themselves (who serve in a volunteer, part-time capacity) are not in a position to follow up, especially concerning individual cases.

104. Strengthened geographic desks and a focus on country engagement should allow OHCHR to give greater support to the special procedures, including when they seek follow-up concerning their recommendations or individual cases. One important aspect of support will be to ensure that country visits are adequately prepared. Since 2000, significant new resources, raised outside the regular budget, have been devoted to giving increased support to the special procedures, but it is still inadequate.

105. This will not address, however, some of the underlying problems, in particular related to coordination, overlapping mandates and the increase in the number of procedures (currently more than 40) without a corresponding increase in the capacity of OHCHR to support them or the capacity of the Commission to consider their recommendations in a meaningful way. The Commission has requested OHCHR to hold two specific meetings in 2005 to consider reform and rationalization proposals. The High Commissioner believes this offers an excellent opportunity to address some of these problems.

E. Working with United Nations agencies and civil society

106. The community of those interested in human rights is growing rapidly, including activists, scholars, a diverse range of civil society representatives, professional associations and members of parliament. At the international level, there is growing interest in human rights principles in development agencies, international think tanks and, through mainstreaming, in all areas of the United Nations system. OHCHR must increase its outreach activities and partnerships at both the national and international levels. The overall goal must be to build global reform alliances that combine learning, activism and practice to overcome implementation gaps.

1. Working with United Nations partners

107. OHCHR is committed to implementing the reforms launched in 2002 to build strong human rights protection systems at the national level. The action 2 programme aims at building the capacity of United Nations country teams to support Member States in developing such systems. It focuses on strengthening the rule of law through institutional capacity-building and assistance in reforming national legislation; enhancing the realization of the rights of vulnerable and marginalized groups; ratification of human rights treaties and cooperation with treaty bodies and special procedures mechanisms; and developing a culture of human rights, including through human rights education. It also aims to integrate human rights into United Nations development and humanitarian activities.

108. As part of the action 2 programme, OHCHR is called on to support country teams with advice and training. Experience to date has shown that OHCHR advice and support to country teams is most effective when OHCHR is present in the country and can enter into direct cooperation. OHCHR believes, therefore, that its strategy to enhance country engagement and step up field and subregional presences will better equip OHCHR to offer support to United Nations country teams. At the same time, strong commitment from the United Nations country teams leadership and support from the team are crucial for the success of action 2.

109. As action 2 moves into the implementation phase, human rights advisers to country teams will assume a greater role, backed by substantive guidance and support provided by OHCHR. In addition, OHCHR will further strengthen its capacity to provide training and develop learning packages in cooperation with our agency partners, bearing in mind the need for follow-up support.

2. Engaging civil society

110. A strong civil society able to operate freely and that is adequately knowledgeable and skilled with regard to human rights is a key element for securing sustainable human rights protection at the national level. OHCHR has been actively engaged with civil society for many years. It needs to strengthen this engagement and ensure it is comprehensive, proactive and strategic in order to best utilize and empower civil society in efforts to implement human rights. This would be fully in line with the recommendations made in the report of the Panel of Eminent Persons on United Nations-Civil Society relations (see A/58/817) that civil society be more meaningfully engaged in the work of the United Nations.

111. The Organization’s own human rights efforts must be seen in the context of a much larger civil society movement. OHCHR can benefit from the support, analysis and expertise of civil society and in turn may provide support, education and advice on approaches to United Nations bodies. Importantly, we can work to create conditions for the empowerment of civil society.

112. We will step up our efforts to provide direct protection for civil society groups in peril and those facing threats on account of their peaceful and lawful defence of human rights, both through strategic use of field presence and through interventions at the international level. This should include focused attention on strengthening legal protection for civil society actors at the national level. The good offices function of the High Commissioner can also provide important support for these groups. In addition, the United Nations has a unique bridge-building ability to bring together civil society and Governments, creating opportunities for building trust.

113. We will create a specific senior civil society support function to ensure leadership on this issue in OHCHR.

114. OHCHR must also draw on the considerable and increasing academic interest in human rights issues, as well as practical policy work being done by NGOs and governmental institutes. Indeed, both empirical and conceptual research that is being undertaken can greatly assist in addressing implementation gaps, and we must draw on this outside expertise.