TWN Info Service on UN Sustainable Development (Feb25/01)
19 February 2025
Third World Network

UN: HRC’s “think tank” holds its 33rd session from 17 to 21 February
Published in SUNS #10165 dated 19 February 2025

Penang, 18 Feb (Kanaga Raja) — The UN Human Rights Council (HRC)’s Advisory Committee, which serves as the human rights body’s “think tank”, is holding its 33rd session in Geneva from 17 to 21 February.

The Advisory Committee, comprised of 18 independent experts, was established in 2008, pursuant to resolution 5/1 to provide studies and research-based advice, as requested by the Council.

Meeting twice a year, the Committee’s work is implementation-oriented and follows thematic issues linked to the mandate of the Council, namely, the promotion and protection of all human rights.

The Committee interacts with States, national human rights institutions, non-governmental organisations, and other civil society representatives.

During its one-week session from 17 to 21 February, the Committee is expected to continue its work as well as hold discussions on the following mandates and topics:

* Human rights implications of new and emerging technologies in the military domain;

* Impact of disinformation on the enjoyment and realization of human rights;

* Technology-facilitated gender-based violence and its impact on women and girls;

* Implications of plastic pollution for the full enjoyment of human rights; and

* Impact of artificial intelligence (AI) systems on good governance.

The Committee is also slated to discuss a revised draft study on the human rights implications of new and emerging technologies in the military domain.

A draft report on human rights implications of new and emerging technologies in the military domain (NTMDs), dated 13 February 2025 (A/HRC/AC/33/CRP.1), states that the life cycle of NTMDs presents unique challenges for the protection and promotion of human rights.

Many NTMDs have a dual-use nature, as technologies developed for military purposes may also be deployed in civilian contexts, complicating the legal obligations of states and other actors, it noted.

The draft report said that a robust life cycle approach is essential to address these challenges effectively, ensuring human rights are safeguarded at every stage – from development and training to deployment, operational use, and eventual disposal or de-commissioning.

As NTMDs move into operational use, the potential for human rights violations becomes more pronounced, the draft report emphasized.

It said that it is vital to establish stringent legal standards that ensure human dignity, meaningful human control, transparency, and accountability at all stages of deployment and use.

This is especially important in scenarios where automation and AI may lead to a loss of meaningful human control, automation bias, or the misuse of technology in ways that violate International Human Rights Law (IHRL) or International Humanitarian Law (IHL), it added.

The draft report reiterates that NTMDs pose significant challenges to the current human rights framework.

“While compliance with IHRL and IHL is essential, critical gaps must be addressed to ensure human rights protection in this context.”

It said there is still an absence of international human rights standards that specify in the context of NTMDs what existing IHRL requires both from States and non-state actors.

Furthermore, it said that at the national level, NTMDs remain largely unregulated, lacking legislative or policy frameworks to guide the industry and developers in the design, development, and testing of NTMDs, ensuring that clear protective barriers, consistent with IHRL and IHL obligations, are established.

The resulting report is scheduled to be submitted to the Human Rights Council during its 60th session, taking place in September-October 2025.

Furthermore, the Advisory Committee is slated to consider outlines of its studies on disinformation and human rights, and on technology-facilitated gender-based violence.

It will be engaging in panel discussions with expert panellists on the topics of artificial intelligence systems and good governance, the implications of plastic pollution for the full enjoyment of human rights, and technology- facilitated gender-based violence and its impact on women and girls.

During the session, the Committee will also be holding discussions on its methods of work and on research proposals that could be submitted to the Human Rights Council, as well as on reflection papers.

The 33rd session of the Advisory Committee precedes the upcoming 58th regular session of the Human Rights Council, which is scheduled to be held from 24 February to 4 April.

The 58th session of the Council includes a high-level segment on 24-26 February, with more than 100 dignitaries expected to participate. +