UN HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE FIELD up on cases requiring urgent attention. As a result of OHCHR’s work and in accordance with recommendations it made in various reports, the Ministry of Justice prepared a list of all cases of long preventive detention and provided OHCHR with regular updates; women lawyers were engaged to extend pro bono legal assistance to poor women, pregnant women and women with children; doctors committed to providing regular free medical consultations; and the Ministry of Justice pledged to attend to the needs of children who are in prison with their mothers. UN HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE FIELD Participation (P) P1 – Women participate more in representative assemblies. In one country, the number of selected policy areas that comply with international human rights norms and standards has increased. With support from the Office, policies and practices were established to protect the right to participate and to enhance civic space. In partnership with the Department of Human Rights of the Ministry of Justice of Senegal, OHCHR helped to establish a coalition of human rights groups, known as the Platform for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (PPDH). A series of meetings were organized between PPDH and relevant authorities. The first meeting focused on the preparation and submission of the periodic report of Senegal under CAT. During the meeting, NGOs urged the Director of the Department of Human Rights to, among other measures, take steps to broaden the definition of torture contained in the Criminal Code. In a second meeting, civil society actors reiterated their willingness to work collaboratively with State actors to seek a solution to the alarming situation of child abuse. A third meeting was held to discuss the use of social media as an early warning mechanism in cases of human rights violations. Overall, the meetings contributed to strengthening PPDH, including by enabling greater coordination of their efforts through the sharing of information about various human rights initiatives and activities taking place, offering a space for human rights organizations to discuss current issues with STRENGTHENING REPORTING TO UN HUMAN RIGHTS MECHANISMS IN WEST AFRICA “Thanks to the train the trainers session, I am in a better position to identify the needs of the people I train,” Julien says. “With the expertise acquired, I have greatly contributed to Senegal’s efforts to overcome all the delays so far suffered in the submission of State reports to the UN human rights mechanisms. Gaps have now been filled, which I am very proud of,” he adds. the National Commission was fulfilling this task, thus impeding its aspiration to become independent from the Government. “In September, with support from UN Human Rights, I conducted a training of the newly established governmental structure, the Interministerial Committee, in charge of reporting to UN human rights mechanisms,” Arlindo adds. “The train the trainers session has enhanced my expertise and my ability to transfer knowledge to colleagues and to governmental counterparts,” Arlindo acknowledges. The National Commission on Human Rights and Citizenship (the Cabo Verde national human rights institution) is undergoing intense reform to become independent from the State. “After the train the trainers session, myself and the Chair of the National Commission on Human Rights and Citizenship engaged in intense advocacy for the establishment of a governmental structure in charge of presenting State reports to UN human rights mechanisms.” Until then, given the lack of capacity of the Government to do so, “Another result of the train the trainers session has been my enhanced capacity to strengthen our national structure in charge of reporting to the UN human rights mechanisms. The direct result has been the entry into force of the ministerial decree strengthening the national mechanism on reporting and follow-up in Senegal,” Julien adds. 222 UN HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2018 relevant State institutions and promoting the exchange of information and good practices on the promotion and protection of human rights. Mechanisms (M) M1 – Three countries submit overdue reports to the treaty bodies. OHCHR sought to increase the number and timeliness of reports submitted to the treaty bodies and the UPR through capacity-building and advocacy activities. As a result of direct assistance provided by the Office, the following reports were submitted in 2018: Cabo Verde under ICRMW and Senegal under ICCPR and ICESCR. Moreover, OHCHR facilitated interaction between the Gambian Ministry of Justice and the Human Rights Committee, which enabled the Government to prepare and submit its replies to the list of issues that was sent by the Committee. M1 – In four countries, the national mechanism for repor ting and follow-up (NMRF) is established or strengthened; NMRFs set out a plan for implementing recommendations. Mechanisms for integrated reporting and/or implementation of treaty bodies, special procedures and UPR recommendations were developed or strengthened following technical guidance provided by the Office. In Côte d’Ivoire, the members of the NMRF took up their functions in October and the Office strengthened their capacity in relation to treaty body reporting. The Office also trained members of the NMRF in Burkina Faso on human rights and the SDGs, and the development of human rights indicators for the adoption of an implementation plan. Following years of advocacy undertaken by OHCHR, Senegal revised its decree on the NMRF, which included provisions to extend its functions, allocate a budget and clarify its membership and leadership. In addition to the above, OHCHR promoted the establishment of mechanisms, legal frameworks and policies to protect the rights of migrants and the rights of children in countries of the subregion under the Non-Discrimination pillar. Following the adoption of General Assembly resolution 68/268 in 2014, more than 350 State officials from 135 countries became trained trainers through training of trainer sessions similar to the one attended by Arlindo and Julien. UN HUMAN RIGHTS REPORT 2018 223