What is ARIS ?

ARIS is a non-profit, non-sectarian, non-governmental organisation (NGO), founded by Kati David in 1992 in Geneva, Switzerland. In 1997, ARIS was accorded Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.

 

From Geneva, where the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is located, ARIS serves national and regional non-governmental organizations (NGOs), human rights groups and individuals that are not represented at the United Nations.

Often, these groups are unaware of the fact that their own country has been or will be discussed by the CERD expert panel and that they have the right of access to the work of the CERD.

ARIS serves human rights groups and individuals by :

1. Making official United Nations documents available to them;

2. Informing them when their countries' reports are to be discussed at a forthcoming session of CERD and of the possibilities of submitting information to the expert members of the Committee;

3. Assisting them (in the countries that have ratified the Convention and are overdue in presenting reports to CERD) in their lobbying efforts with governments;

4. Reporting to them on the outcome of the discussion of their governments' reports. Apart from the country report prepared by ARIS after the session of CERD, they may also ask for the official report that has been adopted by the UN General Assembly;

5. Encouraging human rights groups in the countries that have not accepted Article 14 of the Convention (which allows individual complaints) to exert pressure on their governments to do so;

6. Informing human rights groups (in those countries that have accepted Article 14 of the Convention) of the procedure to be followed in filing individual complaints with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights;

7. Sending UN press releases, immediately after discussion by CERD, to the major news media in the countries concerned.

ARIS works on an entirely voluntary basis, without overhead costs for staff. Contributions have been received from the European Human Rights Foundation, the Governments of the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, as well as the World Council of Churches Anti-Racism Programme, and the Canton of Geneva has provided an office. In 1997, ARIS was awarded the Human Rights Prize of the French Republic.

ARIS welcomes contributions from other sources, including interested individuals, and invites payment of an annual membership fee of US$25. Donations can be made to the
ARIS bank account: