Human Right Committee Opens One Hundred and Forty-Sixth Session
The Human Right Committee this morning opened its one hundred and forty-sixth session, during which it will examine the reports of Austria, Cameroon, Jamaica and Rwanda on their implementation of the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Antti Korkeakivi, Chief of the Human Rights Treaties Branch, Human Rights Council and Treaty Mechanisms Division, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and representative of the Secretary-General, said that it was a pleasure to open the session, which marked the sixtieth anniversary of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. He said he particularly looked forward to the event that would bring the two Committees together on 6 November to commemorate this occasion jointly.
Mr. Korkeakivi said this milestone provided an opportunity to recognise the indispensable work that the two Committees had carried out over the decades to bring the rights enshrined in the Covenants to life, guide States in fulfilling their obligations and strengthen the protection of human rights for people around the world. Over the past 60 years, the two Covenants had shown that they were living instruments that continued to provide guidance in responding to a changing world. Their achievements and enduring relevance were ensured through the important monitoring work that the Committee carried out to encourage progress in addressing current and emerging human rights challenges.
Among today’s emerging challenges were the opportunities and risks presented by artificial intelligence and other new technologies, Mr. Korkeakivi said. The Covenant established State obligations to respect human dignity, protect fundamental freedoms, prevent discrimination, and uphold transparency and accountability, including with respect to new technologies. The world seemed to be crossing a new frontier where shared facts could no longer be relied on. The potential consequences for democratic institutions and processes were immense and the role of the Committee was pivotal. Its general comment 37 on the right of peaceful assembly made clear that this right did not apply only to traditional assemblies where people convened physically in person but also to online assemblies. These were only two examples of the ways in which the value of the international human rights framework and the importance of having a sound treaty body system were being reinforced with every new human rights challenge.
The Human Rights Council commemorated this key anniversary by holding a high-level panel at its sixty-third session last month, attended by the Committee’s Chair and other distinguished speakers. The enormous interest in the Covenants and the reaffirmation of their continued relevance was clearly in evidence, Mr. Korkeakivi said.
The Committee’s work had never been more essential, yet treaty bodies continued to face unparalleled constraints, he warned. In 2026, the liquidity crisis resulted in the loss of approximately 40 per cent of the meeting time allocated to treaty bodies, leading to more cancelled sessions and the postponement of a cumulative 51 State party reviews and over 100 individual communications across the treaty bodies. The loss of meeting time, combined with reduced resources and staff support, caused a serious decline in the treaty bodies’ capacity to discharge their mandates. Delays in the submission of State party reports created an additional obstacle to the Committee’s ability to fulfil its mandate. Never in the past 60 years had the functioning of the treaty bodies system been so seriously curtailed. The Office of the High Commissioner had not yet received confirmation regarding the financial outlook for treaty body sessions in 2027, but the liquidity situation and the funding environment in general was expected to remain challenging, Mr. Korkeakivi said.
This situation impacted all stakeholders, particularly those for whom the Committee worked, the right-holders whose rights the Committee sought to protect. State parties, civil society organizations, national human rights institutions and other stakeholders received confirmation of reviews at a late stage, limiting their opportunities to engage effectively in the sessions. Mr. Korkeakivi commended civil society organizations and national human rights institutions for the essential support they provided to the Committee’s work despite challenging circumstances. For this session, they submitted more than 150 contributions to the Committee, in addition to approximately 250 submissions made in connection with the preparation of the general comment on the right to freedom of association.
Mr. Korkeakivi reported that the Office of the High Commissioner continued to explore ways to ensure solid support to the Committee and to strengthen the treaty body system. It had presented a working paper with a proposal to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the system through three complementary measures, which could be implemented gradually in a staggered manner. These proposals complemented other initiatives that were already being pursued, including in the area of digital case management.
First, he said, the working paper proposed consideration of decentralised and clustered dialogues, through which States parties would engage at the regional level with task forces comprising experts from participating Committees, to bring the dialogues closer to stakeholders. The Committees would continue to hold plenary sessions in Geneva to adopt concluding observations and carry out other mandated functions. The second proposal envisaged an integrated, multilingual online reporting platform that would enable States to submit, update and manage treaty-related information securely in one centralised location. The third proposal sought to strengthen the nomination and election of treaty body members through an online application platform, while fully preserving the authority of States parties to nominate and elect experts. The Office was currently working to unpack these proposals in more detail, including with a view to consider pilots to test the ideas outlined. It looked forward to hearing the Committee’s initial reflections on these proposals, which could eventually be implemented only with support from States parties and treaty bodies.
Mr. Korkeakivi reported that during this reduced session, in addition to holding constructive dialogues with four States parties, the Committee would also continue with the second reading of its draft general comment 38 on freedom of association. He concluded by expressing deep appreciation for the Committee’s dedication and commitment, which was indispensable, particularly in these challenging times.
Changrok Soh, Committee Chairperson, in opening remarks, said this was the first time that the Committee was meeting at the Palais des Nations. He expressed hope for a successful session, and thanked Mr. Korkeakivi for his inspiring statement and support during this difficult time.
Wafaa Ashraf Moharram Bassim, Committee Vice Chair and chair of the working group on communications, then presented the report on the working group’s activities for the one hundred and forty-sixth session. She said the Committee could not hold its summer session and the current session was being held under ongoing stringent financial constraints. However, the working group was able to meet from 12 to 16 October 2026, when it had a very busy session with extremely rich and interesting discussions.
Ms. Bassim said the cases examined were submitted between 2018 and 2023 and covered 20 States parties from different regions, as well as different themes ranging from non-refoulement, discrimination, right to privacy, death penalty, arbitrary detention, fair trial, and right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. Of the 29 drafts covering 66 communications adopted, the working group submitted 14 inadmissibility proposals, one View on a non-violation and 14 Views on violations. It had one draft remaining to be finalised in the margins of the current session. In closing, Ms. Bassim thanked the members of the working group and all staff who had supported their work.
The Committee then adopted the working group’s report. It also adopted its agenda and programme of work for the session during the meeting.
The Human Rights Committee’s one hundred and forty-sixth session is being held from 19 October to 6 November 2026. All the documents relating to the Committee’s work, including reports submitted by States parties, can be found on the session’s webpage. Meeting summary releases can be found here. The webcast of the Committee’s public meetings can be accessed via the UN Web TV webpage.
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CCPR26.010E
The Committee will next meet in public at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, 20 October to begin its consideration of the sixth periodic report of Austria (CCPR/C/AUT/6).