Brazil to undergo its second Universal Periodic Review this Friday

On 25 May, 2012, during the 13th session of this second cycle of the Working Group of the Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva, the Brazilian State will be examined for the second time regarding the situation of human rights in the country, in the context of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR).

The UPR is a mechanism of the Human Rights Council which regularly monitors the compliance in each of the 193 UN Member States with their human rights obligations and commitments. All Member States of the United Nations must undergo this multilateral examination every four and a half years. It aims to improve the situation of human rights on the ground.

The examination is conducted by a working group composed of 47 Member States of the HRC, with the help of a troika of three members selected by States, which prepares the final report and bases its exam on three key documents (found here):  

• Information prepared by the State concerned, which in most cases takes the form of a national report.
• A compilation, prepared by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), including information in reports of human rights mechanisms of the UN bodies including treaty monitoring bodies, special procedures and other organs.
• A summary, also prepared by OHCHR, the information provided by other relevant stakeholders, for example, NGOs, national human rights institutions, women´s groups, unions and religious groups.

A key part of this review is the three-and-a-half-hour interactive dialogue set forth in the Working Group on the UPR between the State examined and other Member States and UN observers. During this dialogue, Member States may raise questions and make recommendations to the State under review.

The result will be a report consisting of a summary of the proceedings of the review process, findings and/or recommendations, and the voluntary commitments by the State under review.

Additional information:

Documents prior to Brazil´s second Review

Brazil´s first Universal Periodic Review (2008)

Webcast of the UPR sessions

Media information and accreditations Email: uprpress@ohchr.org

Universal Periodic Review