The UPR and other Human Rights Mechanisms
The UPR, a Human Rights Mechanism
The UPR is one of many entry points for UN engagement on human rights. As a peer-review process, UPR recommendations are issued by fellow States and complement or reiterate other recommendations issued by UN expert human rights bodies such as the Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures of the HRC and OHCHR.
When put together, these three mechanisms are mutually reinforcing and complement one another to drive progress in the field of human rights.
What are the Special Procedures?
The Special Procedures (SP) are independent human rights experts with mandates to investigate, report and advise on human rights from a thematic or country-specific perspective. They can be an individual - a “Special Rapporteur” or an “Independent Expert” - or a working group composed of five members, one from each UN Regional Group. The system of special procedures can cover all human rights themes: civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights.
With the support of OHCHR, Special Procedures mandate-holders conduct the following activities:
- Undertake country visits (at the invitation of UN Member States);
- Act on individual cases of reported violations and concerns by sending communications to States, or occasionally, to non-State actors;
- Develop human rights standards and guidelines;
- Conduct annual thematic studies, seek information from calls for input and convene expert consultations;
- Engage in advocacy, raise public awareness, and provide advice for technical cooperation.
All mandate-holders report annually to the HRC and can issue recommendations to States under review.
UPR and Special Procedures
Unlike the Treaty bodies and the UPR, the Special Procedures are not cyclical in nature. Moreover, not all UN Member States are examined by mandate-holders. Special Procedures are the most suited mechanism to address urgent issues, as they are the only UN Human Rights mechanism that can issue urgent appeals.
Within the framework of the Special Procedures, mandate-holders collect information on the human rights situation from various stakeholders, including civil society organisations. They also issue recommendations and calls for action, to which States are summoned to reply or provide information. Currently, there are fourty-five thematic and thirteen country mandates. Therefore, many Special Procedure mandates can overlap with UPR recommendations.
How you can integrate outcomes from the Special Procedures into your UPR work
At all stages of the UPR, when reporting on, advocating, or monitoring one or more UPR recommendations covering a specific human rights issue, you should integrate and refer to relevant recommendations stemming from the Special Procedures. This will add weight to your UPR work and avoid duplication.
For example:
- When drafting a UPR report or mid-term report, mention whether Special Procedure mandate-holders visited the country under review and issued specific calls for actions/ recommendations;
- When advocating a particular human rights issue, make sure you check whether this issue was also raised by Special Procedure mandate-holders;
- When monitoring UPR recommendations, include any similar recommendations made by Special Procedure mandate-holders.
More information
What are the Treaty Bodies?
Treaty bodies are committees of independent experts that monitor the implementation of the core international human rights treaties and their optional protocols. Each treaty is monitored by a group of independent experts, nominated and elected for fixed renewable terms of four years by State parties. There are currently ten monitoring UN Treaty bodies.
Treaties are thematic and cover the following issues: racial discrimination, civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights, discrimination against women, torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment and punishment, child rights, the rights of migrant workers and their families, enforced disappearances, and the rights of persons with disabilities.
UPR and Treaty Bodies
Both mechanisms include implementation/compliance reporting procedures, a review process and recommendations. In addition, the UPR and Treaty Bodies both aim at advancing human rights in UN Member States.
UPR recommendations are issued by peer States, while Treaty Body recommendations are issued by independent experts with recognised human rights expertise. As a result, Treaty Body recommendations tend to be a bit more specific and detailed. Recommendations from these two mechanisms can therefore be implemented, monitored and used simultaneously to hold governments accountable.
How can you integrate outcomes from the Treaty Bodies into your UPR work?
At all stages of the UPR, when reporting on, advocating, or monitoring one or more UPR recommendations covering a specific human rights issue, you should integrate and refer to relevant recommendations stemming from the Treaty Bodies. This will add weight to your UPR work and avoid duplication.
For example:
- When drafting a UPR report or mid-term report, refer to relevant Treaty Body recommendations and reports covering the same issues;
- When advocating a particular human rights issue, it is worth mentioning whether it was also raised by the Treaty Bodies;
- When monitoring UPR recommendations, include similar recommendations made by Treaty body experts.
More information
To learn more about treaty bodies: