Cooperation with civil society, a key pillar to Arab League reform
Published on Wed, 2012-04-11 08:39
The development and reform of the Arab League requires the adoption of serious steps, on top of which a new vision for its relationship with civil society, in line with the traditions and experiences established by similar regional groupings as well as the United Nations, suggested 37 organizations, some of them members of Social Watch, of nine Arab countries. This proposal was part of a memorandum sent to Mr. Nabil Al Arabi, Secretary General of the League of Arab States, and Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi, Chairman of the Arab League committee charged with the preparation of the reform plan presented to the recent Arab Summit, held in Baghdad. The memo indicated that the development of the relationship between Arab League and the civil society organizations requires a revision of the standards approved by regional bloc regarding awarding consultative status to NGOs. These standards constitute a stumbling block hindering human rights organizations – and other active groups in different fields – from obtaining this status, which is contingent upon two conditions, namely the consent of the Headquarters State and that the organization in question had been granted legal authorization. However, most of the countries where NGOs operate still impose severe restrictions on freedom of assembly and of association, reported the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR). The memo called for the adoption of formal procedures and mechanisms allowing non-governmental organizations to attend the meetings and formal sessions of Arab League bodies, and enabling them to express their views through these meetings. The memo also requested the development of mechanisms to ensure that NGO’s opinions regarding issues on the agenda of various meetings are heard and taken into consideration. The memo stressed also that the promotion of the role of Arab League Standing Committee on Human Rights entails a far-reaching review of the Committee’s role and mechanisms of action. The memo proposed in this context that the Committee develops mechanisms for the appointment of special rapporteurs or specialized and thematic working groups with the competence to receive complaints and petitions, and investigate human rights problems within their jurisdiction, pursuant to United Nations and African Union norms. The memo urged Arab League to incorporate the Arab Commission for Human Rights in in the process of institutional reform, which is assigned to monitor the commitment of Arab governments with their obligations by virtue of the Arab Charter for Human Rights. It is necessary in this instance to develop mechanisms for positive interaction between the Commission on the one hand and NGOs on the other. The memo recommended that such mechanisms ensure NGOs view reports submitted by governments to the Commission, provide the Commission with information and reports that would assist in reviewing government reports, and that NGO’s are provided with the opportunity to attend review sessions of the said reports, which should necessarily be public. The memo called for the development of the Commission’s website so that it would be possible to read its core documents, mechanisms of action, the rules it adopted for reporting, and its main findings and closing remarks during review sessions of government reports. The memo also expressed the aspirations of the undersigned organizations for the Arab Parliament to play an active role in promoting and protecting human rights. The memo proposed in this regard that the Arab Parliament takes on the responsibility to set guidelines helping governments in the necessary revision of their legislation, in line with their international obligations arising from the ratification of international human rights conventions. The Arab Parliament should also revise legal rules adopted by the League through the frameworks of joint Arab action, to ensure they are consistent with human rights standards. The memo also called for reconsidering the rules of procedure of the Arab Parliament, to ensure openness to non-governmental organizations, and the adoption of mechanisms ensuring an active NGO presence in Arab Parliament sessions. The undersigned organizations of the memorandum, some of them members of Social Watch, are the following: Regional Organizations: Egypt: Bahrain: Morocco and Western Sahara: Saudi Arabia: Sudan: Tunisia: Libya: Lebanon: Yemen: More Information Source
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