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COUNTRY & OTHER VISITS/MISSIONS
OF SPECIAL PROCEDURES MANDATE HOLDERS - SPECIAL RAPPORTEURS, INDEPENDENT
EXPERTS +
Mandate holders carry out country
visits to investigate the situation of human rights at the national level.
Mandate holders typically send a letter to the Government requesting to visit
the country, and, if the Government agrees, an invitation to visit is extended.
Some countries have issued standing
invitations, which means that they are, in principle, prepared to receive a
visit from any special procedures mandate holder.
During such
missions, the experts assess the general human rights situation in a given
country, as well as the specific institutional, legal, judicial, administrative
and de facto situation under their respective mandates. During the country
visit the experts will meet with national and local authorities, including
members of the judiciary and parliamentarians; members of the national human
rights institution, if applicable; non-governmental organizations, civil
society organizations and victims of human rights violations; the UN and other
inter-governmental agencies; and the press when giving a press-conference at
the end of the mission. After their visits, special procedures' mandate-holders
submit a mission report to the Human Rights Council including their findings
and recommendations.
Mandate
holders at times also visit various International Organizations that have
cross-cutting themes with the mandates. For example, official visits were made
to the World Bank, FAO, World Trade Organization, World Health Organization
etc. and reports on recommendations arising from the visits have been issued.
Terms
of Reference for Fact-finding missions by Special Procedures
The terms of
reference for country visits were adopted at the fourth annual meeting of the
special rapporteurs (E/CN.4/1998/45) and are intended to guide Governments in
the conduct of the visit. During fact-finding missions, special procedures of
the Human Rights Council, as well as of United Nations staff accompanying them,
should be given the following guarantees and facilities by the Government that
invited them to visit its country:
(a) Freedom
of movement in the whole country, including facilitation of transport, in
particular to restricted areas;
(b) Freedom of inquiry, in particular as regards:
(i) Access to all prisons, detention centres and places of interrogation;
(ii) Contacts with central and local authorities of all branches of government;
(iii) Contacts with representatives of non-governmental organizations, other private institutions and the media;
(iv) Confidential and unsupervised contact with witnesses and other private persons, including persons deprived of their liberty, considered necessary to fulfil the mandate of the special rapporteur; and
(v) Full access to all documentary material relevant to the mandate;
(c)
Assurance by the Government that persons, whether officials or private
individuals, who have been in contact with the special
rapporteur/representative in relation to the mandate, will not, as a result,
suffer threats, harassment or punishment or be subjected to judicial
proceedings;
(d) Appropriate security arrangements without, however, restricting the freedom
of movement and inquiry referred to above;
(e) Extension of the same guarantees and facilities mentioned above to the
appropriate United Nations staff who will assist the special rapporteur before,
during and after the visit.
_________________________________________________________
Website of Reports of Country Visits
of the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Women/SRWomen/Pages/CountryVisits.aspx
Requests for Country visits:
Azerbaijan
Colombia
Cuba
Israel
Nepal
Palestine
South Africa
Turkmenistan
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Zimbabwe
_____________________________________________________
Forthcoming
UN Multiple Special Procedures Country Visits 2013
Last Update: 12 September 2013
MANDATE |
COUNTRY |
DATES |
SR
on freedom of religion |
Hashemite
Kingdom of Jordan |
Confirmed
2 to 12 September 2013 |
SR
on extreme poverty |
Republic
of Moldova |
Confirmed
9 to 13 September 2013 |
Sr
on trafficking in persons |
Italy |
Confirmed
12 to 20 September 2013 |
WG
on transnational corporations and other business enterprises |
Russian
Federation |
Confirmed
21 September to 1 October 2013 |
WG
on disappearances |
Spain |
Confirmed
23 to 30 September 2013 |
SR
on truth |
Uruguay |
Confirmed
30 September to 4 October 2013 |
SR
on human rights defenders |
Togo |
Confirmed
7 to 11 October 2013 |
SR
on indigenous peoples |
Canada |
Confirmed
12 to 20 October 2013 |
WG
on discrimination against women in law and in practice |
Chile |
Confirmed
21 to 31 October 2013 |
SR
on cultural rights |
Vietnam |
Confirmed
18 to 29 November 2013 |
WG
of Experts on People with African Descent |
Brazil |
Confirmed
4 to 13 December 2013 |
SR
on food |
Malaysia |
Confirmed
9 to 18 December 2013 |