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PLATEFORME
EPU UPR PLATFORM
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membres du CCIG! Pour plus d’informations,
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Third International Catholic Center of Geneva and UNESCO Etxea United Nations Human Rights Mechanisms Training Programme
International Catholic
Center of Geneva’s (ICCG)
third week long training
session on United Nations
Human Rights Mechanisms
was held from 16-20 September
2013, in cooperation with
UNESCO Etxea. The five day
programme was composed of
presentations by human rights
experts and participation
in the 24th Session of the
Human Rights Council (HRC).
Participants from NGOs
based in Spain were eager
to learn more about human
rights discourse, including
right to water, environment
and human rights and right
to peace. A major goal for
many was to better understand
how the UN Human Rights
Mechanisms work and develop
an effective lobbying strategy
within the UN, especially
the Human Rights Council.
The role of NGOs vis-à-vis
treaty bodies, the Universal
Periodic Review (UPR) and
Special Procedures was a
focus that many speakers
touched upon, emphasizing
that human rights mechanisms
are only as good as the
civil society members that
monitor implementation.
The open discussion and
interactive presentations
allowed participants to
delve into topics they were
most interested in or were
currently working on in
their own organizations,
such as sustainability,
education and cultural rights.
Amongst presentations
and participation in the
24th Session of the Human
Rights Council events, ICCG
hosted a UPR practical exercise
for participants, which
helped in better understanding
UPR language, format and
the submission process for
civil society actors. As
NGOs can contribute multiple
times within the UPR process,
understanding how to make
a submission was crucial
for many organizations and
also for UPR process as
they are first-hand accounts
and information that is
not already available through
United Nations resources.
The Universal Periodic
Review (UPR) process was
a constant theme throughout
most presentations, with
the speakers often discussing
how the UPR is a public
mechanism for civil society’s
participation, calling it
the ‘first vehicle for human
rights.’ Every four and
a half years the UPR process
begins anew with the examination
of all UN Member States
regarding domestic human
rights situation and implementation
of previous commitments.
The training programme
is the latest held in collaboration
with UNESCO Etxea, with
the goal of helping organizations
make a change for the better.
The week’s activities also
sought to help Human Rights
Defenders better understand
the framework they work
in, while respecting their
wealth of experiences, which
were shared during the programme.
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Education
as a Right
CCIG Seminar
on Education within the
UN System
 On
3 September 2013, CCIG held
the Seminar on the Right
to Education, with the participation
of 12 different organizations
interested in educational
issues, but also specialized
in several fields of expertise,
such as women’s rights,
children’s rights, migration,
social exclusion and development.
The seminar was held as
a response to a call from
members during a previous
General Assembly of CCIG,
where members asked for
the center to undertake
initiatives to build upon
NGOs’ capacities regarding
UN treaty bodies.
The two speakers were
Christian Courtis of the
Human Rights and Economic
and Social Issues Section
(OHCHR) and Nosy Ramamonjisoa
of the Human Rights Treaty
Bodies Division (OHCHR).
Mr Courtis spoke about the
scope of relevant provisions
and indicators on the right
to education. Ms Ramamonjisoa
presented an overview of
the treaty bodies system
and spoke about ways in
which civil society organizations
can contribute in particular
to the reporting system
of the Committee on Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights
(CESCR). The intersectional
issue was presented from
multiple perspectives to
give all participants a
broader and multifaceted
understanding of the right
to education and its implementation.
Education
as a Right
Mr
Courtis’ overview on the
right to education covered
relevant international legal
provisions and clarified
the scope and interpretation
of such provisions by UN
bodies. As an expert in
direct implementation of
this right, Mr Courtis’
experience gave an insightful
perspective for attending
NGO representatives. Issues
regarding education were
discussed such as fundamental
education regardless of
age, and the delicate transition
from primary education to
secondary and higher education.
Moreover, availability,
accessibility, acceptability,
adaptability and other obligations
associated with providing
and maintaining education
were addressed. The inclusion
of human rights education
in curricula was also mentioned,
since basic awareness of
human rights can help better
ensure effective implementation
of the right to education.
Universal
Periodic Review (UPR) and
Treaty Bodies: “Complementary”
The
second part of the seminar
was presented by Nosy Ramamonjisoa,
whose work with the CESCR
provided an opportunity
to delve into aspects of
the treaty bodies’ functioning,
with special attention given
to the role of NGOs’ participation.
Noting that most of the
NGOs attending were already
engaged in working with
the UPR, Ms Ramamonjisoa
emphasized that UPR and
treaty bodies are “complementary”
and should both be utilized
to make as much of a change
in the world as possible.
Ms Ramamonjisoa encouraged
participants to take the
best from both the UPR and
the treaty body system to
continually strive for efficiency
in the implementation of
human rights.
The seminar was the most
recent materialization of
CCIG’s response to support
the work of NGOs at the
UN while valuing experiences
of Human Rights Defenders
on the ground. By bridging
the gap between the local
and international, CCIG
hopes to enhance the work
of its member organizations
and make their actions within
the UN system more effective,
with the ultimate goal to
bring a change for the better
in the lives of so many
people whose rights, including
the right to education,
are continuously violated.
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CCIG
facilitated meeting with
delegates from the Pontifical
Council for Promoting Christian
Unity at the World Council
of Churches.
 On
Monday, 18 February 2013
an impressive number of
representatives of the CCIG
member organizations and
Catholic NGOs that are in
some way or other related
to the CCIG accepted the
invitation to attend Catholic
Vespers followed by a reception
on the premises of the World
Council of Churches (WCC).
As a member of the board
of the CCIG the Catholic
Consultant to the WCC, Prof.
Dr. Annemarie Mayer, had
issued this invitation in
order to give the delegation
from the Pontifical Council
for Promoting Christian
Unity (PCPCU), that came
from Rome to visit the WCC,
the chance to meet with
those working for the many
Catholic organizations present
in Geneva and to get to
know the richness of Catholic
life in this city and its
surroundings. The PCPCU
delegates paid a three days’
visit to the WCC in preparation
of being Catholic delegated
observers at the 10th Assembly
of the WCC at Busan, Republic
of Korea, by the end of
October/ beginning of November
2013 dedicated to the theme
“God of life, lead us to
justice and peace”.
Sister Georgeanne Mary
Donovan, Superior General
of the Missionary Sisters
of the Society of Mary,
led the Catholic Vespers
in the Chapel of the Ecumenical
Centre, a “beau moment d’œcuménisme,
en cette fête très
catholique de sainte Bernadette.”
Thus the feedback of one
of the Catholic participants
reads. It was very impressive
to see so many Catholics
and so many staff members
of the World Council of
Churches and the other organisations
in the Ecumenical Centre,
as the Lutheran World Federation
or the Globeethics Project,
pray together in that ecumenical
chapel and even join in
singing the “Salve regina”.
Monsignor Tomasi, Apostolic
Nuncio to the UN, honoured
the gathering with his presence
and gave the blessing at
the end of the Vespers.
During the reception
that followed the PCPCU
delegates from Rome got
the chance to introduce
themselves and their work
in and for the Catholic
Church. This was followed
by greetings from the President
of CCIG, Jean Benoit Charrin,
and from the Moderator of
the Commission of World
Mission and Evangelism,
Bishop Geevarghese Mor Coorilos
from Kochin, India. Thus
the two main organizations
that had facilitated the
meeting got the opportunity
to briefly explain their
aims and work.
But the evening provided
also an opportunity to present
the important work of the
Catholic organizations present,
both to the members of the
PCPCU delegation as well
as the staff of WCC. There
was the possibility to disseminate
material concerning the
work of these organizations,
by displaying leaflets,
posters etc. But most important
was the personal encounter.
“Cette réunion a
permis de rencontrer, outre
les personnes de connaissance,
les représentants
du Vatican et de nombreuses
OIC qui, sur le terrain,
luttent pour faire triompher
l’amour et la fraternité.”
This feedback suggests
that the support of CCIG
in facilitating this event
was very much appreciated,
not only on the side of
the PCPCU delegates as well
as on that of the ecumenical
organizations in the Ecumenical
Centre but also by the CCIG’s
own member organisations.
This event truly provided
an occasion for exchange
and a chance for building
and renewing our ecumenical
collaborations.
And
in some cases this is already
bearing first fruits.
Meeting of the UPR Platform members with the OHCHR
 The International Catholic
Center of Geneva (CCIG)
organized a meeting between
the UPR Platform members
and representatives of the
OHCHR.
The meeting took
place on Wednesday, December
12th, 2012 and was
attended by representatives
of 13 NGO members of the
UPR Platform.
The meeting
was led by Mr. Christophe
Peschoux, Chief UPR team/Field
Operations and Technical
Cooperation Division (FOTCD)
OHCHR, and a group of Human
Rights Officers: Ms. Marlene
Alejos, Mr. Juan Pablo Vegas,
and Ms. Speideh Mohadjer.
Given the new challenges
raised by the 2nd UPR cycle,
the goal of this meeting
was to provide the members
of CCIG UPR Platform with
key information to improve
their contribution within
the UPR as well as to share
with the OHCHR difficulties
encountered by NGOs while
working with this specific
mechanism.
The meeting was structured
around a list of questions
prepared by the members
of the UPR Platform.
The
main issues of the discussion
were: criteria for preparation
of the OHCHR Summary  Report
of stakeholders’ submissions,
the differences between
the working group report
and the outcome report,
trends in States’ performance
during review sessions,
how to ensure the effective
monitoring of UPR recommendations
on the ground, and how stakeholders
can best prepare UPR submissions.
Moreover, the platform members
discussed some of their
concerns about the UPR process
and the challenges that
they face.
The OHCHR representatives
responded to these concerns
and introduced strategies
to deal with the difficulties
of the process. They also
emphasized the importance
of the role of civil society
members in the UPR process
and encouraged their continuous
involvement.
International Catholic Center of Geneva (CCIG) and UNESCO ETXEA
Training on United Nations
Human Rights Mechanisms
The International Catholic
Center of Geneva (CCIG)
hosted a one week training
session on United Nations
Human Rights Mechanisms,
in cooperation with UNESCO
ETXEA. The training took
place from the 24th to the
28th of September 2012 and
was attended by representatives
of NGOs from the Basque
country. This training was
the second in a series of
training sessions starting
in June 2011. Read
more .....
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