On the 17 and 18 October 2017, a technical workshop took place in Brussels organised by the United Nations Human Rights Regional Office for Europe (OHCHR), the International Disability Alliance (IDA), the European Disability Forum (EDF) and the European Network of Equality Bodies (Equinet). The workshop targeted especially organisations of persons with disabilities of European countries coming soon for review by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD Committee).
The objectives was to increase participants’ understanding of the human rights mechanisms of the United Nations (UN) and to provide them with tools to engage with the CRPD Committee. The workshop included three different workshops with practical exercises on:
- drafting alternative reports and replies to the list of issues;
- monitoring the implementation of Concluding Observations;
- filing individual complaints.
Participants included representatives of organisations of persons with disabilities from 13 different countries in Europe, such as Greece, Malta, Norway, Poland and Slovenia, among others.
IDA Human Rights Officer, Juan Ignacio Pérez Bello, and EDF Human Rights Coordinator, An-Sofie Leenknecht, co-facilitated a workshop session on how to draft alternative reports to the CRPD Committee. Silvia Quan, IDA Senior Human Rights Advisor, explained ways of following up on the concluding observations at the national level and closed the workshop by emphasising the importance of engaging with the CRPD Committee and the UN human rights mechanisms in this regard.
EDF wants to thank the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights – Regional Office for Europe, the European Network of Equality Bodies, and the International Disability Alliance for its support in the organisation and facilitation of this workshop.
Read also IDA’s web article on the workshop
Learn more about how countries are reviewed by the CRPD Committee here