Durban Watch

The Ad Hoc Committee on the Elaboration of Complementary Standards was established by the Human Rights Council in its Decision 3/103 on December 8th, 2006. The Council decided: "To heed the decision and instruction of the 2001 World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance [the "Durban" Conference] by establishing an Ad Hoc Committee of the Human Rights Council on the Elaboration of Complementary Standards, with the mandate to elaborate, as a matter of priority and necessity, complementary standards in the form of either a convention or additional protocol(s) to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, filling the existing gaps in the Convention and also providing new normative standards aimed at combating all forms of contemporary racism, including incitement to racial and religious hatred."

The decision was adopted by a vote of 33 in favor (Algeria, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brazil, Cameroon, China, Cuba, Ecuador, Gabon, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tunisia, Uruguay, Zambia) to 12 against (Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, Switzerland, United Kingdom), with 1 abstention (Ukraine).

Documents

• Report of the Second Session (October 19-30, 2009)
  

Documents from the Third session of the Ad Hoc Committee (April 11-21, 2011)

• Programme of Work, as adopted on April 11
  
• Introduction of the proposed topics distributed by the Chair, Ambassador Jerry Matthews Matjila of South Africa, on April 11
  
• Proposal by the United States concerning "Means by which states can combat intolerance, discrimination, and violence against persons based on race, color, descent, or national or ethnic origin ("race")", April 14, 2011
  
• Revised Programme of Work, April 19
  
• Preliminary Discussion Note on Topic 1: Xenophobia, April 19, 2011
  
• Preliminary Discussion Note on Topic 6: Establishment, designation or maintaining of national mechanisms with competences to protect against and prevent all forms and manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, April 20, 2011
  
• Draft Report, April 21, 2011
  
• Report of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Elaboration of Complementary Standards on its third session, September 6, 2011
  

Additional Sessions of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Elaboration of Complementary Standards can be found here.