UN rights council starts new session, reviewing 16 countries

Geneva - The United Nations Human Rights Council was set to pass judgment on a total of 16 countries, as it started its seventh regular session Monday. Over the next 11 days, the following countries are to be reviewed in this session: Qatar, Nicaragua, Italy, El Salvador, Gambia, Bolivia, Fiji, San Marino, Kazakhstan, Angola, Iran, Madagascar, Iraq, Slovenia, Egypt, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Universal Periodic Review mechanism, instituted along with the formation of the council in 2006, checks each member-state's human rights record once every four years.

It allows the government, the UN and non-governmental groups to all file separate reports on the state's activities to the council, which then issues its own report with recommendations to the capital.

The rights council is planning to finish the first round of reviewing all 192 member states by 2011.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/308045,un-rights-council-starts-new-session-reviewing-16-countries.html.