REPORTING TO THE UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS TREATY BODIES TRAINING GUIDE: Part I — Manual Elaboration of general comments (a) A general comment could be adopted by one Treaty Body or more, jointly. (b) The decision to draft a general comment would be made in plenary. (c) A note describing the consultation process for general comments would be shared with State parties and made publicly available for other stakeholders (national human rights institutions, civil society, academia, international organizations). (d) Each time a Treaty Body initiated the drafting of a general comment, a working group composed of Treaty Body members or a rapporteur would be appointed and entrusted with the process of drafting the comment. (e) Advance versions of draft general comments would be shared with other Treaty Bodies and with relevant special procedures mandate-holders for input, comment or feedback, with a view to strengthening the coherence of treaty law interpretation. (f) Advance versions of draft general comments would be posted on the OHCHR website to make them accessible to State parties and a broad range of stakeholders. (g) Input, comment or feedback received from State parties, special procedures, national human rights institutions, civil society organizations and other stakeholders would be given due consideration by the Treaty Body, as appropriate. (h) The Treaty Body would lead the consultation process and decide on the content and adoption of the general comment. Implementation of human rights instruments, Note by the Secretary-General, A/70/302, 2015, available at: https://goo.gl/88t2Dd TABLE 3 THE HUMAN RIGHTS TREATY BODY SYSTEM Treaty Body 14 Founding treaty (or instrument) Optional protocol(s) to founding treaty Functions of the Treaty Body Number of experts Human Rights Committee (HRCttee) International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR, 1966) • Optional Protocol to the ICCPR (1966) • Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR aiming at the abolition of the death penalty (1989) • Monitoring the implementation of the treaty by reviewing the State parties’ reports (Art. 40) • Considering individual complaints (OP) • Handling inter-State complaints (Art. 41) 18 Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR, 1966) ECOSOC Resolution 1985/17 Optional Protocol to the ICESCR (2008) • Monitoring the implementation of the treaty by reviewing the State parties’ reports (Art. 16) • Considering individual complaints (OP) • Conducting inquiries (OP) • Handling inter-State complaints (OP) 18