Committee on the Rights of Persons with disabilities, 9th session
15-19 April 2013, Palais Wilson, Ground Floor Conference Room
Note on Civil Society Participation
What is a UN human rights treaty body? - http://goo.gl/5qmti
There are several ways in which civil society actors can engage with the Committee and its work, in particular 1) in the course of States reporting cycle, 2) under individual communication procedure, 3) under the Investigations mechanism. NGOs and other stakeholders do not need any ECOSOC consultative status to use these opportunities.
I. Consideration of Country Reports
At its forthcoming 9th session in April 2013, the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities will examine, in public meeting, the report of the following country on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities:
The Committee will also adopt lists of issues on the following countries (the adoption will take place in a private meeting):
- Australia
- Austria
- El Salvador
For more detailed information on the work of United Nations human rights treaty bodies read the chapter in the Handbook for Civil Society - http://goo.gl/fc3bI
II. Documentation
The reports of countries, the provisional agenda and other documents for the session are available at:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CRPD/Pages/Session8.aspx
III. Reports by Civil Society Organizations
To ensure it is as best informed as possible, the Committee welcomes civil society organizations (e.g. local, national, international) to provide country-specific information on issues relevant to the implementation of the Convention in the months prior to the adoption of the LOIs or the examination of the State party’s report. All submissions should:
- Identify the full name of the organization.
- Indicate the country to which the information relates.
- Indicate whether or not the submission can be posted on the Committee website.
- Be submitted in one of the languages of the Secretariat - in English, French or Spanish.
- Submissions of documents in Braille are encouraged.
Suggestions:
- Written information should be concise, specific, reliable and objective as possible.
- Highlight priority concerns and suggest possible country-specific recommendations to facilitate the work of the Committee.
- "Alternative reports," which follow the same form of presentation as reports submitted by countries, are especially welcome.
- Reports prepared by coalitions of organizations are encouraged.
Deadlines:
- Paraguay – 15 March 2013 (Electronic version)
- Australia, Austria, El Salvador – 15 March 2013 (Electronic version)
Due to the large volume of information received, the Secretariat does not photocopy submissions.
For accessibility purposes the information/report shall be electronically submitted to the CRPD secretariat in both PDF and Word 97/2003 formats: crpd@ohchr.org
IV. Attending the Session
Civil society representatives wishing to attend the session of the Committee are required to be duly accredited, and are welcome to attend public (open) meetings of the Committee as observers (i.e. will not be given the opportunity to address the Committee) during its meetings with country delegations.
Meetings and Lunchtime Briefings
During the forthcoming 9th session Civil society representatives will have the possibility of addressing the Committee in formal (with interpretation) country-specific meetings. These meetings are set out in the programme of work and normally take place during the 1st day of the Session.
Civil society representatives may also organize informal (without interpretation) coffee briefings with Committee members. These meetings are usually organised from 13h45 to 14h45 on the day prior to the examination of a particular country. There will be a designated room for these briefings.
Please contact the Secretariat (crpd@ohchr.org) before 29 March 2013 to confirm attendance at a formal briefing and/or coffee briefing with the members.
To find out the schedule of informal meetings, contact the Secretariat (crpd@ohchr.org).
Accessibility
The United Nations is committed to making its conferences as accessible as possible to persons with disabilities. If you have a disability and may require reasonable accommodation in order to participate in the meetings, please contact the Secretariat (crpd@ohchr.org) well in advance of the session. The Secretariat will assess requests on a case-by-case basis and within existing resources.
V. Accreditation
Please complete the online accreditation form for the 9th session by 29 March 2013 by accessing the OHCHR website, sign and send it by fax to 0041-22-917 9008, or by e-mail to crpd@ohchr.org. All participants are responsible for making their own arrangements relating to travel and accommodations as well as visas to enter Switzerland.
VI. Additional Competence of the Committee
Under the Optional Protocol to the Convention, the Committee is given additional competences, namely:
- to receive and consider individual communications from or on behalf of individuals or groups of individuals claiming that their rights under the Convention have been violated. Communications are only received when they concern a State Party to the Optional Protocol. All individual complaints should be sent to : TB-petitions@ohchr.org and registry@ohchr.org
- to conduct inquiries, including visits to the State Party concerned, in cases of reliable information indicating grave or systematic violations of the rights established under the Convention in the State Party. All information should be sent to: crpd@ohchr.org and registry@ohchr.org
VII. Additional Information
For more detailed information on the work of United Nations human rights treaty bodies read the chapter in the Handbook for Civil Society - http://goo.gl/fc3bI
Contact information:
Secretariat of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Tel. +41.22.917.90.00
Fax. +41.22.917.90.08
Email: crpd@ohchr.org
Mailing address : UNOG-OHCHR, CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Visiting address: Palais Wilson, 52 rue des Pâquis, CH-1201, Geneva, Switzerland
Email addresses: