US embassy cable - 05GENEVA1452

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 GENEVA 001452 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR IO/SHA, DRL/MLA, L/HRR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM, UNCHR-1, UNCHR 
SUBJECT: UN-CHR REFORM DISCUSSION IN GENEVA; MODALITIES FOR 
AN ECOSOC-APPROVED INFORMAL SESSION 
 
 
1. This is an action request. Please see paragraph 3. 
 
2. ECOSOC's approval on June 9 of the revised version of 
CHR-61 decision 2005/116 -- now calling for an informal, open 
ended 2-day session to discuss Commission on Human Rights 
(CHR) and UN reform in Geneva -- opens the door for 
Secretariat and Bureau planning of this event.  The 
 
SIPDIS 
Secretariat has proposed June 16 and 17 for the meeting, as 
 
SIPDIS 
these are "cost-free" days for conference services, and has 
distributed the text of the decision as adopted (repeated in 
paragraph 4) and a note on the proposed modalities for the 
meeting (repeated in paragraph 5).  The text of the decision 
and the note on modalities, both written some weeks ago, 
refer to a June 15 deadline for the transmittal of a Chair's 
Summary of the session to the President of the General 
Assembly (GA).  The CHR Chair will inform his ECOSOC 
counterpart that he will forward his summary to GA Chair Ping 
by 21 June, the date on which Ping has apparently scheduled a 
formal GA session to discuss his latest draft proposal. 
 
3. ACTION REQUEST: Mission requests guidance on whether to 
attend this session, as well as guidance on any statement(s) 
that may be deemed necessary in connection with this meeting. 
 
4. Begin text of ECOSOC-approved decision: 
 
The Economic and Social Council, bearing in mind the General 
Assembly resolutions A/59/145 and A/59/291 which, inter alia, 
requested the President of the General Assembly to continue 
to hold open, inclusive and transparent consultations with 
all Member States, with a view to reaching the broadest 
possible agreement on all major issues relating to the 
High-level Plenary Meeting in September 2005,  and also 
taking note of the Commission on Human Rights decision 
2005/116 of 22 April 2005, decides to request the Chairperson 
of the sixty-first session of the Commission on Human Rights 
to organize, an open-ended informal consultations of up to 2 
days, to reflect on the recommendations on human rights 
contained in the report of the Secretary General (A/59/2005), 
with a view to contributing to the intergovernmental 
deliberations on the proposed reforms of the United Nations 
in the General Assembly, and to this end, decides to 
authorize the Chairperson to prepare a summary of the 
consultations by June 15, 2005 to be 
transmitted to the President of the General Assembly through 
the President of ECOSOC. 
End text of decision. 
 
5. Begin text of note on modalities for the meeting: 
 
Proposed modalities for informal consultations on the 
recommendations on human rights contained in the SG reform 
report (A/59/2005) 
 
Note from the Secretariat 
 
     1.     Date and location: The 2-day informal 
consultations will, if the relevant decision is approved by 
ECOSOC, take place on 9 and 10 June 2005 in Rooms XXVI and 
XVIII, respectively. (NOTE: These dates have been replaced by 
16 and 17 June, as ECOSOC did not approve the decision until 
after COB Geneva-time on 9 June.) 
 
     2.     Participants: Further to the ECOSOC (draft) (now 
adopted) decision, the Chairperson is expected to organize an 
'open-ended informal consultations of up to 2 days'. 
Accordingly, all participants to the CHR session should be 
able to attend and participate in the informal consultations. 
As is the case for Intergovernmental Working Groups, this 
would include Member States and all Observers, without any 
distinction. 
 
     3.     Speaking time limits: Given the emphasis made on 
the words 'informal' and 'consultations', it is considered 
that there should be no formal speaking-time limits but that 
participants should be encouraged to be as brief as possible 
to enable everybody to make a contribution to the debate and 
to enhance the interactive and informal nature of the meeting. 
 
     4.     Programme of work: The ECOSOC (draft) (now 
adopted) decision indicates that the consultations should aim 
at reflecting on 'the recommendations on human rights 
contained in the report of the SG (A/59/2005). Such 
recommendations can be found in paragraphs 140 to 147 and 181 
to 183 of the report. It would thus be logical to structure 
the discussion along the following three main issues 
mentioned in the report: 
 
I.    CHR reform / new Human Rights Council (A/59/2005, 
paras. 146 and 181 to 183) 
 
-     Status and composition of the new body (elections by 
the GA; location; standing body; rules of procedure; agenda; 
organization of work; participation of observers;...) 
-     Role and functions of the new body (peer-review system; 
emergency situations; global report; normative and 
implementation functions; reporting lines to the GA; etc.) 
-     Status/continuation of existing mechanisms and 
arrangements (rules of procedure/working methods; CHR agenda; 
special procedures; 1503 procedure, Sub-Commission; 
consultative arrangements with NGOs,...) 
-     Transitional arrangements/timeframe (interim period and 
arrangements; timeframe in transition to the new body; etc.) 
 
II.   OHCHR / HC Plan of Action (A/59/2005, paras. 140 to 145) 
 
-     strengthening the Office / resources and staff 
-     more active role in Security Council/proposed 
Peacebuilding Commission 
 
 
III.  Treaty bodies reform (A/59/2005, para. 147) 
 
-     Harmonized guidelines on reporting; 
-     Unified system of treaty bodies 
 
 
     5.     Conduct of the meeting: In order to facilitate 
the preparation and conduct of the meeting, a group of 
friends of the Chairperson has been established, the 
composition of which is similar to that of the Expanded 
Bureau. The conduct of the meeting will be organized by the 
Chairperson and will involve the facilitating of the meeting 
by two members of the group. 
 
     6.     Outcome of the meeting: According to the (draft) 
decision, the Chairperson is authorized, with a view to 
contributing to the intergovernmental deliberations on the 
proposed reforms of the United Nations in the General 
Assembly, to prepare a summary of the consultations by 15 
June. Given the timeframe envisaged, the summary will contain 
an account of the main issues discussed during the meeting 
distributed along the main issues envisaged above but without 
attribution to a particular country or a group of countries. 
End text of note. 
Moley