UN Special Procedures Watch — Weekly Summary (27 August — 2 September 2018)
Week in Numbers
5 mandates issued statements
5 statements issued
4 countries subject to statements
Mandates in Action
Five mandates (all thematic) issued five statements during the week, including two press release announcing upcoming visits. These mandates are (name of country concerned in parentheses; * indicates country visit, ** indicates joint statement):
1. Debt (Sri Lanka*)
2. Disappearances (International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances)
3. Judges and lawyers (El Salvador)
4. Toxics (Samsung)
5. Trafficking in persons (Nigeria*)
The statements issued during the week concerned four countries, one corporation, and one thematic issue. Two country visits to Nigeria and Sri Lanka will commence on 3 September. The concerned countries are (name of mandate who issued statement concerning that country in parentheses, asterisk indicates country visit):
1. El Salvador (judges and lawyers)
2. Nigeria (trafficking in persons*)
3. South Korea/Samsung (toxics)
4. Sri Lanka (debt*)
Special Procedures mandate holders took up various issues this week, including electronics workers’ exposure to toxic substances, enforced disappearances, and the selection process for appointment judges to the Supreme Court in El Salvador.
The latest Special Procedures communications report has been published, ahead of the upcoming 39th session of the Human Rights Council. Between the reporting period from 1 March 2018 to 31 May 2018, 46 Special Procedures mandate holders sent a total of 174 communications to 78 countries and other non-State actors to which 66 replies were received from 39 countries and other actors until 31 July 2018. Of the 78 countries that received Special Procedures communications raising individual cases or thematic issues, the countries receiving the most number of communications are:
1. India (nine communications, no reply)
2. Russia (seven communications, five replies); United States (seven communications, no reply)
3. China (six communications, five replies); Guatemala (six communications, two replies)
4. Egypt (four communications, no reply); France (four communications, three replies); Mexico (four communications, no reply)
During the period, Special Procedures also sent 26 communications to ‘Other actors’, such as businesses, international bodies, agencies and non-State actors to which 13 replies was received. Most of these cases are also the subject of communications sent to States in whose territory the situations took place or involving non-State actors domicile in those States.
Public Consultation
The Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights has issued a call for submissions for his official visit to the United Kingdom from 6 to 16 November 2018. Deadline for submissions is 14 September 2018.
The Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences has issued a call for submissions ahead of her first official country visit to Nepal, from 19 to 29 November 2018. Deadline for submissions is 24 September 2018.
The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders is calling for responses to a questionnaire for his thematic report to the 40th Session of the Human Rights Council, focusing on the situation of women human rights defenders in the world. Deadline for responses is 28 September 2018.
The Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice has issued a call for responses to a questionnaire for its upcoming thematic report on women deprived of liberty to the 41st session of the Human Rights Council in June 2019. Deadline for responses is Monday 1 October 2018.
Nomination, Selection and Appointment
The President of the Human Rights Council has proposed the appointment of two female experts to be the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Belarus and the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Eritrea.
There are ten candidates (8 female, 2 male) for the vacancy of the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, member from Western European and other States. The names of these candidates and their applications forms are available on this page (scroll down towards bottom).
List of statements issued during the week (hyperlinked to full text)
1. Samsung decision to compensate sick electronics workers welcomed by UN expert, urging action by all firms (27 August 2018)
2. International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances 30 August 2018 (28 August 2018)
3. UN expert on debt and human rights visits Sri Lanka (29 August 2018)
4. El Salvador: the Legislative Assembly must ensure the prompt selection of Supreme Court judges (29 August 2018)
5. UN human rights expert to assess trafficking in persons in Nigeria (31 August 2018)
