The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a new and unique mechanism of the Human Rights Council (HRC) which started in April 2008. It consists of the review of every State in the world (192) by other States once every four years. This means that 48 States are reviewed per year, divided into three sessions of two weeks. The subject of the review is the States’ human rights practices and the respect for their human rights obligations.

The Universal Periodic Review is a three-stage process:

1. The first stage involves the State being reviewed in a three-hour Working Group. The outcome of this Working Group (WG) is a document containing recommendations by States and voluntary commitments by the State under Review (SuR).
2. The second phase is the adoption of this document within the two weeks of the WG session but not earlier than 48 hours after the State was reviewed.
3. Finally the third phase is the adoption of that document during a plenary session of the HRC.

The Working Group (WG) is composed of all UN member-States of the HRC (each country can decide about the composition of its delegation) and chaired by the President of the Council. The WG is assisted by the troika responsible of the drafting of the Report of the Working Group

The session of the WG is structured as follows:

1. Presentation of SuR report: In this first phase the State under Review (SuR) presents its national report as well as the answers to the written questions and issues it had received in advance. Those questions/issues have to be submitted in advance by States to the Troika. The Troika then relays the list of questions to the Secretariat which transmits them to the SuR no later than ten working days prior to the review.
   Those questions/issues should also be circulated to States before the WG session, unless the SuR or the State that raised them are opposed.
2. Interactive dialogue: During this stage States take the floor to ask more questions and to make recommendations about the documentation provided on the SuR’s human rights practices as well as on the human rights situation in the country. During this phase, member-States of the HRC have a speaking time of three minutes and observer States of two minutes.
3. Concluding remarks: In the last phase, the SuR presents their concluding remarks. The SuR’s overall speaking time throughout the session of the WG is of 60 minutes.

The SuR can respond to recommendations made by other States during the session of the WG, as well as any time between the session of the WG and the plenary of the Human Rights Council included.

The basic purpose of this new mechanism is that the human rights situation in each country is reviewed and discussed in the Human Rights Council every four years. The UPR process offers unique opportunities for NGOs to advocate and lobby for human rights protection. For example, in the case of States under review perpetrating enforced disappearances, NGOs can campaign, lobby and/or submit information about this practice at these points of the process:

1. Before the session of the Working Group States are encouraged to prepare information for the UPR process through a broad consultation process at national level. This is an opportunity for NGOs to run a national campaign to attract attention to the most pressing matters and the UPR process. NGO’s are also encouraged to submit a report on the human rights record in their countries. Information provided in this reports is used to contrast information provided by the State. This creates another opportunity for NGOs to denounce poor human rights policies. See the General Guidelines for preparation of the report. Finally NGO can focus the attention of their State on specific issues by making questions or making recommendations during the session or lobby to obtain specific recommendations to be made.
2. During the review NGO’s can be present during the session, but they are not allowed to take the floor. However NGOs are allowed to hold parallel events during the session of the Working Group.
3. In the days after the review NGOs can conduct assessment meetings, in order to evaluate the review and the extent to which some issues have (or not) been addressed, and to prepare the follow-up. Press conferences and press releases on the reviews are also a possibility to bring the attention of the public over the process and the results.
4. During the plenary it is possible for NGOs to make oral and written statements. NGOs can take the floor for 20 minutes during the plenary session to make a statement. Also written statements can be submitted under any item. Written statements have less impact than the oral ones, but they become official United Nations documents.
5. Last but not least NGOs can play a great role in monitoring efforts made by governments in the four year period between two reviews by making UPR recommendations public and making sure they are implemented by the State.

Regarding countries where enforced disappearances are being committed organisations make use of the UPR mechanism to denounce the practice of this crime, and lobby for the adoption of mechanisms for protection like the International Convention for the Protection against Enforced Disappearances. The document Recommendations on Enforced Disappearances produced by the organisation UPR-Info shows the list of recommendations made per country on the issue of Enforced Disappearances.