Survey results -- what do NGOs think of the treaty bodies?

I posted a brief survey for NGOs at the end of 2014. The turnout was less than I had hoped (only 10 responses). I will use some different approaches next cycle to try to get a better response rate. Please note – I am not claiming this is a statistically valid sampling.  However, it still seems the results are interesting and useful in seeing the treaty body strengthening topic from the NGO perspective.  The sampling of NGOs who did respond also seems to be a fairly representative cross section of the NGOs who participate in the treaty body system – 60% international NGOs, 40% local/regional NGOs. Eight of the 10 Committees in the system were followed by one or more of these NGOs.  

Question 1

Answer Choices–	Responses–
– Human Rights Committee (CCPR)	60.00% 6
– Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Racism (CERD)	30.00% 3
– Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC)	40.00% 4
– Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESC)	40.00% 4
– Committee Against Torture (CAT)	90.00% 9
– Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture (SPT)	10.00% 1
– Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)	30.00% 3
– Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)	40.00% 4
– Committee on the rights migrant workers and their families (CMW)	0.00% 0
– Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED)	0.00% 0
Total Respondents: 10

Question 2

Answer Choices–	Responses–
Extremely satisfied	30.00% (3)
Moderately satisfied	50.00% (5)
Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied	10.00% (1)
Moderately dissatisfied	0.00% (0)
Extremely dissatisfied	10.00% 1
Total	10

Question 3

Answer Choices–	Responses–
Extremely well	10.00% (1)
Quite well	40.00% (4)
Moderately well	40.00% (4)
Not at all well	10.00% (1)
Total	10

Question 4

·        

Question 5

Answer Choices–	Responses–
Better scheduling announcements so it is more clear when events concerning my country are coming up	40.00% (4)
More focus on implementation	80.00% (8)
More time, space and consideration given to NGO input	40.00% (4)
More practical information on "know your rights" and "how to implement treaty body recommendations"	30.00% (3)
More information on the current status of follow up of particular concluding observations and Views (case decisions) with my country	40.00% (4)
Improved webcasting	20.00% (2)
Improve individual complaint mechanisms and the information on how to use them	40.00% (4)
more effectively drafted concluding observations	40.00% (4)
Improve the questioning practice and the time allocation between states and committee members during the review of reports	50.00% (5)
more focus on late and missing reports, and more criticism of reports which fail to respond to the issues raised but are over the page limits	40.00% (4)
better UN press release coverage	20.00% (2)
Responses Other (please specify) 1. Other means for NGOs to follow up with provision of updated information 2. Subscriber mailing lists to follow particular committees or issues.	20.00% (2)
Total Respondents: 10

Question 6

Answer Choices–	Responses–
Reduce the backlogs	40.00% (4)
Harmonize procedures & working methods between treaty bodies	50.00% (5)
Improve access to information and documentation at the UN treaty body website	40.00% (4)
Establish a clear focal point in each treaty body for persons who have experienced reprisals after testifying or submitting information to the treaty body system	30.00% (3)
Improve implementation of treaty body recommendations	100.00% (10)
Improve the questioning procedure and time allocation during the dialogue with states, so that less time is wasted on unnecessary information	20.00% (2)
Improve the meeting room set up and signage information to make it easier to find and attend a committee meeting	0.00% (0)
Responses Other (please specify) 1.      Increased attention on substantive coherence across the treaty bodies 2.      Where a state party has received criticism from treaty bodies, it would be good for the treaty body to have a monitoring of NGO and news stories that highlight continued breaches and incidents of abuse, etc.	20.00% 2
Total Respondents: 10

Summary

This survey would seem to suggest that NGOs are satisfied on the whole with what the treaty bodies are trying to accomplish, but improvement would be very welcome too. The suggestions made by some NGOs in the individual responses to questions 5 and 6 were also very interesting.  The emphasis on the need for more implementation also comes through in the results.  What do you think of this survey? Do you agree or disagree with these results? Any suggestions on how to make a NGO survey process like this more successful would be very much appreciated. 

New human rights treaty ratifications

There have already been several new ratifications of human rights treaties since the first of the year. Part of this is attributable to the entry of South Sudan into the system, but there have been other developments as well.

Here is a summary by treaty instrument:

International Covenant on Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (CESCR)

• Belize ratified the treaty (Mar 9)
• South Africa ratified the treaty (Jan 12)
• France ratified the optional protocol on complaint mechanism (Mar 18)
• Italy also ratified the optional protocol (Feb 20)
• Luxembourg ratified the optional protocol (Feb 3)

The treaty now has 164 ratifications. The optional protocol has now been accepted by 20 countries. 

Convention Against Torture & its Optional Protocol (CAT, OPCAT)

• South Sudan has ratified the treaty (Apr 30)
• Viet Nam has ratified the treaty (Feb 2)
• Mongolia has ratified the optional protocol on a national preventive mechanism (Feb 12)
• South Sudan has also ratified the optional protocol (Apr 30)

There have been no new ratifications of the individual complaint mechanism under the treaty, provided for in article 22.  The treaty has now been ratified by 158 countries, the optional protocol by 78 countries, and the complaint mechanism under article 22 by 64 countries. 

Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)

• The treaty has been ratified by South Sudan (Apr 30)
• The optional protocol on a complaint mechanism has also been ratified by South Sudan (Apr 30)

The treaty has now been ratified by 189 countries and the optional protocol by 106 countries. 

Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

• The treaty has been ratified by South Sudan (Jan 23)
• The optional protocol on a complaint mechanism has been ratified by Argentina (Apr 14)
• The optional protocol has also been ratified by El Salvador (Feb 2)
• The optional protocol has also been ratified by Uruguay (Feb 23)

International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (CMW)

• The article 77 complaint mechanism has been accepted by El Salvador (Jan 23). 

The individual complaint mechanism under the Migrant Workers Convention has not yet received the 10 ratifications that would allow it to come into effect.  There are currently 4 ratifications of the mechanism, and 47 ratifications of the treaty as a whole. 

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)

• Kazakhstan has ratified the treaty (Apr 21)
• Marshall Islands has ratified the treaty (Mar 17)
• Viet Nam has ratified the treaty (Feb 5)
• Turkey has ratified the optional protocol on a complaint mechanism (Mar 26)
• El Salvador withdrew its reservation on conflicts with its Constitution (Mar 18)
• Thailand withdrew its reservation on conflicts with its national laws, regulations or practices (Feb 5)

The two reservations were broad sweeping exceptions to the treaty. It is good to see both withdrawn. The treaty has now been ratified by 154 countries and the optional protocol, by 86 countries. 

International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (CED)

• Malta has ratified the treaty (Mar 27)
• Mongolia has ratified the treaty (Feb 12)

No new ratifications have occurred to the treaty's individual complaint mechanism (Article 31).  There are now 46 ratifications of the treaty and 18 ratifications of the individual complaint mechanism. 

Summary 

There have been no new ratifications to the remaining international human rights treaty instruments (the Conventions on racism, civil & political rights and the optional protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child dealing with child soldiers and sale/pornography of children).

In total, there have been 21 new ratifications so far this year -- 13 treaty ratifications and 9 ratifications of individual complaint mechanisms.  This represents a slightly higher pace than last year, which experienced 59 ratifications for the year, or about 19 ratifications over the same time period.

The treaty body system as a whole now has 2,189 ratifications, of which 1,704 are treaty ratifications and 485 are individual complaint ratifications.

Here is a table showing the current figures:

treaty	total	complaint mechanism	subject
CERD	177	55	racial discrimination
CCPR	168	115	civil, political
CESCR	164	20	econ, social, cultural
CAT	158	64	torture
OPCAT	78		torture prevention
CEDAW	189	106	women
CRC	195	17	children
OPSC/CRC	169		child pornography
OPAC/CRC	159		child soldiers
CMW	47	4	migrant workers
CRPD	154	86	disabilities
CED	46	18	disappearances
TOTALS	1704	485