A/HRC/37/55/Add.1 I. Introduction 1. The Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights visited Serbia and Kosovo 1 from 3 to 14 October 2016. The purpose of the visit was to identify, in a spirit of cooperation and constructive dialogue, good practices in and possible obstacles to the promotion and protection of cultural rights. 2. The Special Rapporteur addressed key issues related to the rights of people to participate in cultural life, including the right to access and enjoy cultural heritage, without discrimination and irrespective of group affiliations. She was eager to visit Serbia and Kosovo to address in a comprehensive way and using a human rights approach cultural heritage issues that are of interest to all, including the fate of the cultural heritage of the Serbian Orthodox Church in Kosovo and accountability for past destruction of cultural heritage. The present report also contains her observations relating to other cultural rights issues in Serbia and in Kosovo. 3. The Special Rapporteur visited various sites of cultural, historical and religious significance, in Serbia and in Kosovo, without any impediment. They included churches and monasteries, mosques, historic centres and old bazars, as well as an art gallery, hammams and many important cultural landscapes, including sites that had been damaged or destroyed in 1999 and 2004. She met people having connections with these sites and addressed their human rights with respect to this heritage. In Serbia, she spent time in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Novi Pazar and Niš. In Kosovo, she was able to visit Mitrovica/Mitrovicë, Peć/Peja, Prizren and Pristina. 4. The Special Rapporteur met government officials, at the national and municipal levels, including those in the areas of foreign affairs, culture, cultural heritage, gender equality, human rights and education. In Serbia, she met with the Minister of Culture and Media as well as the Minister of Foreign Affairs; the State Secretary at the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development; representatives of the Office of Human and Minority Rights, the Office of Kosovo and Metohija and the National Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments; several ombudspersons and representatives of national councils for minorities. In Kosovo, she met with representatives of the Kosovo authorities, including the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the First Deputy Prime Minister, as well as governmental experts in the field of cultural heritage and the protection of monuments, the environment and spatial planning, and gender equality. She regrets that despite several requests, she was unable to meet the Minister of Culture. She discussed issues with members of the Parliamentary Committee on Youth, Sports and Culture and with municipal authorities, representatives of the Kosovo police and of the Kosovo Force (KFOR). 5. During the visit, she met with artists, academics, educators, diverse members of civil society, including Serbs, Albanians, Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian people; Serbian Orthodox, Muslim and Jewish leaders; human rights defenders, including women human rights defenders; peace activists; and cultural heritage experts and defenders. The Special Rapporteur sought to discuss issues with stakeholders from many diverse backgrounds so as to hear their narratives and understand their perspectives. 6. The Special Rapporteur extends her thanks to the United Nations Office in Belgrade and the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) for their assistance. She also expresses gratitude to the authorities in Belgrade and Pristina for the level of access to relevant officials and agencies she was granted, and for full access to places and sites. 1 Any reference to Kosovo, whether to the territory, institutions or population, is to be understood in full compliance with Security Council resolution 1244 (1999) and without prejudice to the status of Kosovo. 3