The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is the only universal mechanism, established under the UN Human Rights Council (HRC), that reviews the human rights situation in all 193 UN Member States once every five years. The UPR and the HRC were created on 15 March 2006 by the UN General Assembly in resolution 60/251.
Since the first UPR session was held at the UN Office in Geneva in April 2008, all UN Member States have to date undergone at least two cycles of the UPR, and the third cycle of the UPR began in 2017. Singapore participated in the first, second and third cycles of the UPR on 6 May 2011, 27 January 2016 and 12 May 2021 respectively.
The fourth cycle of the UPR will begin in late-2022. 14 UN member States are reviewed at each session of the UPR Working Group which meets three times a year. Singapore’s fourth UPR is scheduled for April/May 2026 during the 52nd session of the UPR Working Group.
Singapore welcomes the UPR process as a conversation with our citizens, civil society organisations, and fellow UN Member States on our achievements and challenges in the area of human rights.
In its preparations for the National Report, the Singapore Government conducted broad consultations with local stakeholders from government and non-governmental organisations active in the promotion of human rights.
Each cycle of Singapore’s UPR is conducted on the basis of three documents:
The Actual Review
During the review, Singapore will appear before the UPR Working Group, which is chaired by the President of the HRC. During a three-and-a-half-hour session, Singapore will present its National Report and engage in an interactive dialogue with member and observer states of the HRC. The session will be open to accredited media and civil society organisations (CSOs), which can observe but not participate in the proceedings.
The UPR Working Group Report will consist of two sections:
The Report (without the summary of the statements by States and presentation by Singapore) will be adopted by the UPR Working Group after Singapore’s review by the UPR Working Group.
At a subsequent HRC Plenary Session, Singapore, HRC Member and Observer States, as well as CSOs, will be allotted time, within a total of one hour, to express their views and make general comments. The UPR Working Group Report will then be formally adopted by the HRC. This Report will in turn form the basis for Singapore’s review at the fourth UPR cycle.
All UPR sessions are broadcast live via webcasts on the OHCHR website.
Links to more information on the UPR
UPR page on OHCHR website:
https://www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies//hrc/home
UPR Info:
Singapore at the UPR:
1. About Singapore
2. Socio-economic rights
3. Rights of Special Groups
4. Political and Civil Rights
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