The UPR is a unique process which involves a review of the human rights records of all 192 UN Member States once every four years. The documents on which the reviews are based are: (i) information prepared by the State under review (national report); (ii) a compilation of UN information on the State under review prepared by the OHCHR, and (iii) a summary of information submitted by other relevant stakeholders, also prepared by OHCHR.
The UPR is a process consisting of several steps:
The review itself takes place in Geneva in the Working Group on the UPR, composed of the 47 Member States of the HRC. The Working Group meets for three two-week sessions each year.
At each UPR working group meeting, 16 States are reviewed. The review takes the form of an interactive 3-hour dialogue held between the State under review and the Member and Observer States of the HRC. The Working Group is assisted by groups of three States (“Troika”, selected by the drawing of lots among members of the HRC) which lead the review of each State.
The Working Group adopts an outcome document for each State which is then presented to the next regular session of the HRC. The outcome document includes recommendations which have been made by individual States and which the State under review may accept or not.
The regular session of the HRC devotes one hour for each UPR working group report, allowing for interventions by HRC member States, observer States and NGOs.
For further information on Universal Periodic Review, please click here.
Universal Periodic Review
The UPR is a unique process which involves a review of the human rights records of all 192 UN Member States once every four years. The documents on which the reviews are based are: (i) information prepared by the State under review (national report); (ii) a compilation of UN information on the State under review prepared by the OHCHR, and (iii) a summary of information submitted by other relevant stakeholders, also prepared by OHCHR.
The UPR is a process consisting of several steps:
For further information on Universal Periodic Review, please click here.
The OHCHR has provided information on NGO participation in the UPR process: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/UPR/Pages/NgosNhris.aspx and http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/UPR/Pages/NoteNGO.aspx
NEW: Calendar of UPR meetings in 2010 and Calendar of UPR meetings in 2010 (Accessible version)
For detailed information on recent sessions of the UPR, please click the links below:
1st Session, April 2008 (reports reviewed by Human Rights Council (HRC) in June 2008)
2nd Session, May 2008 (reports reviewed by HRC in June 2008)
3rd Session, December 2008 (reports reviewed by HRC in March 2009)
4th Session , February 2009 (reports reviewed by HRC in June 2009)
5th Session , May 2009 (reports reviewed by HRC in September 2009)
6th Session , November-December 2009 (reports which will be reviewed by HRC in March 2010)
7th Session, February 2010 (reports which will be reviewed by HRC in May-June 2010)
Forthcoming sessions:
8th session (3 to 14 May 2010): Kyrgyzstan, Kiribati, Guinea, Laos, Spain, Lesotho, Kenya, Armenia, Guinea Bissau, Sweden, Grenada, Turkey, Guyana, Haiti, Kuwait and Belarus. 9th session (22 November to 3 December 2010): Liberia, Malawi, Mongolia, Panama, Maldives, Andorra, Bulgaria, Honduras, United States, Marshall Islands, Croatia, Jamaica, Libya, Micronesia, Lebanon and Mauritania.
The list of troikas available at: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/UPR/Pages/UPRMain.aspx