OAS » Inter-American Commission on Human Rights » Strengthening Process » Reform Process 2013 » III. Draft Reform of Practices

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Reform Process 2013

I.    Annual Report

II.   Web Page

III.  Activities to Schedule in the Strategic Plan and in the Annual
Plan of Operations

IV.  Reports, Digests and Studies

V.   Meetings

VI.  Friendly Settlements

VII. Precautionary Measures

As a result of its reflection on strengthening, the Commission has decided to adopt the following measures concerning institutional practices, which will be subject to the availability of funds in a sustainable and foreseeable manner.

1. ANNUAL REPORT
   1. Align the Annual Report with the Results Measurement System (see Recommendation 1.f), that is, to include all the indicators in the statistics and elements of follow-up;
   2. Include the following information in the Annual Report (see Recommendation 1.g):
      1. The number of working groups within the Commisison’s Executive Secretariat, their functions and staffing (see Recommendation 1.g);
      2. Subject to requests for confidentiality, reasoned decisions taken on the question of whether to grant precautionary measures as from the entry into force of the new Rules (see Recommendation 2.a);
      3. Redesign the section concerning management of resources received (see Recommendation 7.a.)
   3. Include all Rapporteurship reports in a single chapter of the Annual Report (see Recommendation 1.a.h) and send to the General Assembly, together with the Commission’s Annual Report, all the thematic or regional reports produced or published during the year by all the Rapporteurships, Special Rapporteurships and Thematic Units.
2. WEB PAGE
   1. Subject to request for confidentiality, publish the resolutions granting precautionary measures on the web page, as from the entry into force of the new Rules (see  Recommendation II.a).
3. ACTIVITIES TO SCHEDULE IN THE STRATEGIC PLAN AND IN THE ANNUAL PLAN OF OPERATIONS
   1. Activities to promote universal ratification of the American Convention and other inter-American human rights treaties (see Recommendation I.2.a);
   2. Activities to encourage ratification of the Protocol of San Salvador (see Recommendation I.2.d);
   3. A meeting in 2013 with the Permanent Council to present the report on universal ratification (see Recommendation I.2.a);
   4. The programming of public hearings on universal ratification during the 147, 148 and 149 Sessions  (see Recommendation I.2.a);
   5. An electronic campaign to disseminate the inter-American treaties, possibly in partnership with other areas of the OAS (see Recommendation I.2.a);
   6. Issuance of a pocket edition of the American Declaration, the American Convention and other inter-American human rights treaties (see Recommendation  I.2.a).  Subject to the availability of additional funds, the Commission may issue these materials in other formats to promote the accessibility to other populations, such as the illiterate, the blind or speakers of other languages;
   7. A program of reprinting of thematic reports, and of translations to languages other than Spanish and English.  Subject to the availability of additional funds, the Commission may issue these materials in other formats to promote the accessibility to other populations, such as the illiterate, the blind or speakers of other languages;
   8. Continued participation in the working group on ESCR (see Recommendation I.2.d);
   9. Holding of an annual conference on the Commission’s Strategic Plan (see Recommendation I.2.e) with the Member States and civil society (see Recommendation I.2.f);
   10. Request presentation of the Annual Report to the Permanent Council and an extended time period for presenting its report to the General Assembly (see Recommendation I.2.e);
   11. Schedule a meeting with civil society at each period of sessions (see Recommendation I.2.e); and
   12. Schedule a cycle of workshops on friendly settlement for members of the Commission (if requested) and the staff of its Executive Secretariat, to take place in the first half of 2013 (see Recommendation IV.2.f).
4. REPORTS, DIGESTS AND STUDIES
   1. Issue a report on the effect of non-universal ratification of the American Convention and other inter-American human rights treaties (see Recommendation I.2.a).
   2. Issue a digest (for example, a Guide to Practices) that systematizes and explains the standards used for precautionary measures, summaries of doctrine, and best practices.
   3. Issue a guidebook concerning exhaustion of remedies under domestic law.
   4. Issue a report on the impact of friendly settlements (see Recommendation IV.2.a) and publish on the Commission’s web page (see Recommendation IV.2.e).
   5. Issue a Manual or Instructive to document and give make transparent the relevant norms and practices followed to establish the procedures and duties of Rapporteurs (see Recommendation VI.g).
5. MEETINGS
   1. Arrange a schedule of meetings with the Member States (at least one each year for every Member State) with, at a minimum, the following purposes:
      1. provide information to all officials designated by the State, concerning the procedures and mechanisms by which the Commission operates;
      2. review the entire portfolio of petitions and cases;
      3. review the entire portfolio of precautionary measures, and
      4. explore cases for possible friendly settlements.
6. FRIENDLY SETTLEMENTS
   1. To place itself at the disposal of the parties with a view to reaching a friendly settlement as soon as a petition’s processing is initiated (already implemented as of May 2012; see Recommendation  4.a);
   2. adopt the practice, where pertinent, that working visits by Commissioners include meetings with representatives of States and petitioners in those cases where the parties have expressed an interest in starting a friendly settlement procedure.  In such meetings, Commissioners could mediate and promote friendly settlement procedures (see Recommendation IV.b);
   3. the Commission shall develop a proactive program for the establishment of mediation teams under its supervision, which could include any experts whose work could be useful to facilitate  the friendly settlement process;
   4. promote the adoption of laws that facilitate compliance with friendly settlement agreements in Member States.
7. PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES
   1. Adopt the practice of having the working visits made by country Rapporteurs include visits with State representatives and beneficiaries.  At these meetings, the country Rapporteur could promote implementation-related issues and evaluate situations that raise questions about whether the precautionary measures are being maintained (see Recommendation 2.d);
   2. Subject to staffing increases, put into practice the periodic review protocol (see Recommendation 2.d); and
   3. As part of the follow-up to precautionary measures granted and deadlines given to the States, in particularly complex matters adopt the practice of requesting a work plan or timetable for implementing measures in the short-, medium- and long-term (see Recommendations 2.d and 2.j).

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