Strengthening national human rights protection systems through the UPR

“The UPR is the best tool to domesticate human rights norms and to strengthen national protection systems. Accepted recommendations create entry points for action that increase national compliance with international human rights obligations.”

On 28 September 2023, UPR Info co-sponsored a side event during the 54th HRC session to discuss the role of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in strengthening national human rights protection systems, organized by the Group of Friends on the UPR. Overall, the event highlighted the importance of the UPR in promoting the implementation of human rights standards at the national level. 

Mona M’Bikay, UPR Info’s Executive Director, opened the event and highlighted the importance of having a robust national protection system, for States to respect, promote, and fulfil human rights obligations. She underscored that the UPR mechanism can contribute to advancing such obligations. 

“The UPR is still a diamond in the rough. To polish this jewel, we need to strengthen national systems for the protection of human rights.”

H.E. Mr. Federico Villegas, Chair of the UPR Group of Friends and Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Argentina, delivered the opening remarks. He referred to the UPR as the crown jewel of the UN Human Rights Council and reiterated the critical need to strengthen national systems for the protection of human rights through the UPR. Furthermore, he explained that the UPR has been successful in establishing a common language among States, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders. He emphasized the importance of integrating UPR recommendations into national policies. 

Recommendations that are made in the framework of the UPR, create entry points for progress leading to greater protection of rights and accountability for violations. In line with this, throughout the last cycles of the UPR, many good practices could be observed. Mr. Gianni Magazzeni, UPR Info Board Member, highlighted throughout the discussion how the UPR helped to facilitate the passing of legislation to advance human rights and the importance of the repository of good practices published in 2022, by the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR), United Nationals Development Program and the Development Coordination Office. He also pointed out that finding ways to create a dialogue between National Mechanisms for Implementation, Reporting and Follow-up (NMIRF) and development actors to fund the implementation of recommendations could greatly advance human rights and thus create more resilient societies.

Throughout the event, speakers concurred on the significance of involving national stakeholders such as parliaments, national human rights institutions (NHRIs), and civil society organizations (CSOs), or the media in the UPR process. Particularly, Mr. Simon-Pierre Kinkuba, President of the Commission des Droits de l’Homme du Parlement in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), emphasized the importance of involving parliaments in the UPR. According to Mr. Kinkuba, in the last review, more than half of the recommendations made to the DRC required parliamentary action. He also highlighted the priority laws that were set forth and the action plan put in place for the coming laws that derive from recommendations that were recently adopted. 

“UPR recommendations have helped to give visibility to several human rights challenges which can lead to the passing of legislation.”

Dr. Damian Etone, Senior Lecturer in International Human Rights Law at the University of Stirling, provided examples of UPR contributions to the national human rights framework in South Africa. He identified ways in which the UPR contributed to relevant human rights issues such as xenophobia and gender-based violence through national action plans that were put in place by actors at the national level. Furthermore, the NHRI in South Africa played a significant role in monitoring, investigating, and litigating legislation to uphold the protection of human rights and the implementation of recommendations of the UPR. NHRIs are mandated State bodies that protect human rights domestically and directly impact the UPR process at all stages. 

Further, Ms. Magali Lafourade, General Secretary of the Commission Nationale Consultative des Droits de l’Homme (CNCDH), suggested that there are several ways in which the UPR can be improved. Firstly, parliaments are essential for the UPR process and national implementation and should therefore be better involved in the UPR process. Moreover, she argued that engaging national media outlets could contribute to sharing information on the importance of the UPR in all countries. Finally, she highlighted the need for independent national mechanisms to monitor the implementation of recommendations.