| Programme : Presentation on Day
1 Text version of a PowerPoint Presentation:
Monitoring Under
the Convention - Where are We Now?
Presented by: Andrew Byrnes
Faculty of Law, UNSW, Australia
Slide 1
UN ESCAP Workshop on Regional Follow-up to the Seventh
Session and Preparation for the Eighth Session of the Ad Hoc Committee of
the General Assembly on the Elaboration of a Convention on the Rights and
Dignity of Persons with Disabilities
Bangkok, Thailand, 20-21 July 2006
Monitoring under the Convention – where are we now?
Andrew Byrnes
Faculty of Law, UNSW, Australia
2
What are the issues in relation to implementation and monitoring?
- Implementation and monitoring at the national level
- Monitoring at the international level
- Relationship between national and international monitoring mechanisms
3
Current provisions in the draft Convention
Article 33 (National implementation and monitoring)
- States must designate focal point(s) within government with
responsibility for matters relating to implementation of the Convention
- States must have an independent mechanism to promote, protect and
monitor implementation (mechanism to be fashioned with regard to the Paris
Principles relating to national human rights institutions
- Role of civil society also recognized
4
Outstanding issues
- Major issue is the nature, composition and powers of an international
monitoring mechanism
- Background: concern about the limitations of the existing treaty body
system and a desire to avoid problems, and the desirability of
establishing a new committee while major reforms to the system are being
considered
- Nevertheless, seems to be strong support for a new treaty committee,
at least until a proposed unified standing treaty body is established
5
Latest documentation
- Chair’s questions on an international monitoring mechanism
- Compilation of proposals on a monitoring mechanisms (12 May 2006)
- Draft elements for a monitoring mechanism of the international
convention on the rights of persons with disabilities, non-paper prepared
by Mexico (15 June 2006)
- Discussion Text proposed by the Chair on Monitoring at 7th session
- [Response by the NHRIs to questions posed by the Chair on
international monitoring]
6
Chair’s questions
Outstanding issues are largely captured in the Chair’s questions
- On what basis should members of the Committee be selected?
- How large should the Committee be?
- How long should the term of office of the Committee be? Should
re-election be a possibility?
7
Reporting procedure
4(a) How should States Parties report to the Committee?
4(b) Should there be Periodic Reporting?
4(c) Should the Committee have the flexibility to decide on when
reports should be submitted, and to request that States Parties report on
specific issues?
8
Possible complaint and inquiry procedures
- Should the Committee be able to receive individual communications?
- Should there be an inquiry procedure?
- Should there be an Inter-State complaints procedure?
9
Other monitoring mechanisms
- Should there be other processes such as regular conference of States
Parties?
- Should there be any additional monitoring mechanism such as a
disability Rights Ombudsman?
OTHER ISSUES?
10
Finally…
Relationship to the process of treaty body reform
- Need to align committee with past lessons and current efforts to
harmonise and streamline
- Need to provide for possible incorporation of new committee in unified
standing body and to ensure that disability expertise and representation
will not be lost
Return to top |
