C. T he international human rights system 1. Treaty bodies When a State accepts a human rights treaty through ratification or accession, it becomes a State party to that treaty and takes on the legal obligations set out in it. The treaties provide for the creation of international committees of independent experts (human rights treaty bodies) to monitor the implementation of their provisions in those countries that have ratified or acceded to them. Treaty bodies review this implementation. To this end, States submit reports to them in accordance with the schedule set out in the treaty. Given their obligations and experience on the ground, NHRIs can improve the reporting process by working with those responsible for preparing reports, either by contributing to analyses or reviewing and commenting on drafts. National human rights institutions are increasingly playing a more direct role by providing information to treaty bodies. As a result, treaty bodies rely on NHRI input in assessing the reports submitted by State parties. In turn, NHRIs are encouraged to use the recommendations and comments of treaty bodies to inform their own national programming so that these recommendations and comments are followed up. 2. Special procedures “Special procedures” are the mechanisms established by the Human Rights Council to address either specific country situations or thematic issues that transcend national borders. National human rights institutions can be instrumental in this process in several ways: – Nominations: NHRIs may suggest candidates as special procedure mandate holders; – Information: NHRIs can provide information on human rights to mandate holders, which may then result in urgent appeals; – Human Rights Council: NHRIs may attend the presentation of special procedures reports at the Council’s sessions and take the floor in the dialogue that follows. An NHRI can encourage the Government to extend a standing invitation to all thematic mandate holders and bring specific human rights developments to their attention. When warranted, they can encourage mandate holders to request a country visit to the Government. During the preparations or during the actual visit, NHRIs can provide reliable and relevant interlocutors. They can also provide the visiting mandate holders with relevant background information/materials, including annual or thematic human rights reports. Visiting mandate holders are generally encouraged to routinely include in their schedule a meeting with the NHRI, which might also be requested to assist in the organization of the “unofficial” part of the agenda. Following the visit, NHRIs should translate and widely disseminate the mandate holder’s report to their national contact network, including to Government officials, Members of Parliament and civil society. The information garnered by the NHRI should then form the basis for follow-up activities and be taken into account in preparing workplans or supporting national human rights action plans. Further examples of follow-up are: (a) Using regional networks of NHRIs to mobilize public opinion to address particular human rights issues; 132