Towards Integration of United Nations Human Rights Treaty Body Recommendations: The Rights-Based Approach Model

The seven principal United Nations-sponsored human rights treaties stipulate that states parties submit periodic reports to the respective treaty monitoring bodies on their implementation of the treaty obligations. Following a report review, the treaty body in question issues a set of 'Concluding Observations' containing its collective assessment of the state's record and recommendations for enhanced implementation of the rights in question. This chapter analyzes the weaknesses of the current system of uncoordinated recommendations between the seven UN treaty bodies, and highlights the need for integration of the recommendations. Failure to do so could give rise to 'clashes of approach' and cases of 'inconsistent or contradictory recommendations'. Integration of the approaches of the treaty bodies based on a human rights-based approach can enhance the structure and fulfilment of the obligations under the main human rights treaties, including the ICESCR, as well as the work of the respective Committees, including the ESCR Committee.