INFO NOTE ON UN SPECIAL PROCEDURES – FEBRUARY 2020
This is the 28th monthly info note by ILGA World on UN Special Procedures and sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex characteristics (SOGIESC).
This issue includes:
Call for inputs: Arbitrary detention; business enterprises; development; discrimination against women; education; freedom of expression; freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; internally displaced persons; mercenaries; violence against women
Upcoming country visits: Botswana, Costa Rica, Denmark, Japan, Malaysia, Maldives, Mexico, New Zealand, Paraguay, Peru, Romania.
Call for inputs
Mandate | Call | Deadline | Additional Info |
NEW!!! Special Rapporteur on the right to education | Call for inputs for the thematic report on cultural dimension of the right to education (for the 44th session of the HRC, Jun 2020) | 20 Feb 2020 | Read more |
NEW!!! Working Group on business and human rights | Call for inputs for the thematic report on “Connecting the business and human rights and anti-corruption agendas” (for the 44th session of the HRC, Jun 2020) | 21 Feb 2020 | Read more |
NEW!!! Working Group on discrimination against women | Call for inputs: country visit to Romania (24 Feb to 6 Mar 2020) | 21 Feb 2020 | Read more |
Special Rapporteur on the right to development | Call for inputs: Financing for Development – International and Regional Level Practices | 29 Feb 2020 | Read more |
NEW!!! Special Rapporteur on freedom of assembly and association | Call for inputs: thematic reports to reflect on the past decade and setting a vision for the mandate’s future agenda (for the 44th session of the HRC, Jun 2020) | 29 Feb 2020 | Read more |
NEW!!! Special Rapporteur on internally displaced persons | Call for inputs: thematic report on the protection of internally displaced persons with disabilities (for the 44th session of the HRC, Jun 2020) | 1 Mar 2020 | EN | FR | ES |
NEW!!! Special Rapporteur on violence against women | Call for inputs: thematic report on violence against women journalists (for the 44th session of the HRC, Jun 2020) | 10 Mar 2020 | Read more |
NEW!!! Working Group on mercenaries | Call for inputs: thematic report on the role of private military and security companies in immigration and border management and the impact on the rights of migrants | 17 Mar 2020 | Read more EN | FR | ES |
NEW!!! Working Group on mercenaries | Call for inputs: thematic report on the evolving forms, trends and manifestations of mercenaries and mercenary-related activities | 17 Mar 2020 | Read more EN | FR | ES |
NEW!!! Working Group on arbitrary detention | Call for inputs on arbitrary detention relating to drug policies | 1 Apr 2020 | Read more EN | FR | ES |
NEW!!! Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression | Call for inputs: thematic report on academic freedom and the freedom of opinion and expression (for the 75th session of the GA, Sep 2020) | 30 Apr 2020 | Read more |
= requests information on LGBTI persons.
Country visits by the Independent Expert on SOGI
The UN Independent Expert on SOGI, Victor Madrigal-Borloz, undertakes 1 to 3 fact-finding country visits per year.
He visited Ukraine in 2019, and Georgia and Mozambique in 2018. In 2017, his predecessor Prof. Vitit Muntarbhorn visited Argentina.
In March 2018, Victor Madrigal-Borloz made 12 country visit requests. On 4 July 2018 Malta invited the Independent Expert to visit their country. On 8 October 2019 the Independent Expert requested a visit to Japan, and on 19 November 2019 to Tunisia.
In this section, you may find information about current status of the requests. Up-to-date information about country visits may be found here.
If your country is planned for the Independent Expert’s visit and you wish to engage with ILGA on this, please contact us ([email protected]).
Country | Current Status |
Argentina* | Visit conducted on 1-10 Mar 2017 End of Mission Statement: English – Spanish Press Release: English – Spanish Country visit report: E / F / S / A / C / R |
Armenia* | Request to postpone (17 April 2018) |
Burkina Faso | Visit request (26 Mar 2018) |
Cambodia | Visit request (26 Mar 2018) |
Georgia* | Visit conducted on 25 Sep to 5 Oct 2018 End of Mission Statement: English – Georgian Press Release: English – Georgian Country visit report: E / F / S / A / C / R |
Ghana* | Visit request (26 Mar 2018) |
Japan* | Visit request for second half of 2020 (8 Oct 2019) |
Kenya* | Visit request (26 Mar 2018) |
Malta* | Invitation Country Visit (4 Jul 2018) |
Nepal | Visit request (26 Mar 2018) |
Mozambique* | Visit conducted on 3-10 Dec 2018 End of Mission Statement: English – Portuguese Press Release: English – Portuguese Country visit report: E / F / S / A / C / R |
Poland* | Request to postpone (15 May 2018) |
Sri Lanka* | Request to postpone to 2020 (2 Oct 2019). Background note |
Thailand* | Visit request (26 Mar 2018) |
Tunisia* | Visit request from 6-17 Apr 2020 (19 Nov 2019) |
Ukraine* | Visit conducted on 30 Apr to 10 May 2019 End of Mission Statement: English Press Release: English – Russian |
* Countries with standing invitations. A standing invitation is an open invitation extended by a Government to all thematic special procedures. By extending a standing invitation States announce that they will always accept requests to visit from all Special Procedures.
Upcoming country visits by other mandates
This information is regularly updated by the OHCHR here. To find out how you can support the visits, please contact the respective mandate-holder at their email, available here.
Country | Mandate | Dates |
New Zealand | Housing | 10-20 Feb 2020 |
Japan | Leprosy | 12-19 Feb 2020 |
Romania | Discrimination against women | 24 Feb – 6 Mar 2020 |
Peru | African Descent | 25 Feb – 4 Mar 2020 |
NEW!!! Maldives |
Freedom of expression |
1-8 Mar 2020 |
New Zealand |
Older persons |
2-12 Mar 2020 |
NEW!!! Denmark | Indigenous people | 10-19 Mar 2020 |
Costa Rica | International solidarity | 16-27 Mar 2020 |
Botswana | Persons with disabilities | 16 Mar – 3 Apr 2020 |
New Zealand | Health | 24 Mar – 3 Apr 2020 |
Malaysia | Freedom of religion | 26 Mar – 8 Apr 2020 |
NEW!!! Mexico | Trafficking | 11-19 May 2020 |
NEW!!! Paraguay | Minority issues | 3-14 Aug 2020 |
NEW!!! Mexico | Internally dispaced person | 5 -13 Oct 2020 |
= Mandate frequently considers LGBTI issues.