A/60/399 religious communities that are facing difficulties, regardless of their capacity, to report to the United Nations system. 35. The Special Rapporteur is very concerned that the States which cooperate with her mandate in the context of in situ visits are not always those where there is a serious concern with regard to the situation of freedom of religion or belief. There are a number of countries where the situation with regard to freedom of religion raises serious concern but which do not cooperate with the mandate as far as country visits are concerned. As a result, there is a risk that the picture of the worldwide situation with regard to freedom of religion of belief as it appears through reports on country visits may not correspond to the reality. While she re-emphasizes that her requests for invitations are made on the basis of various criteria, she is of the opinion that special procedures should soon consider the creation of a new mechanism to deal with the human rights situation in those States where serious concerns exist but which do not cooperate in situ visits. 36. The cooperation from States should not be limited to extending an invitation; cooperation is needed for the whole duration of a visit as well as with regard to the recommendations made by the Special Rapporteur following the visit. During the visit, in addition to allowing free access to the persons she wants to meet or to the places she wants to visit, the authorities should make all necessary efforts and take all relevant measures to provide the Special Rapporteur with the information she requires (including reports, legislation and other official documents) in order to enable her make a proper and objective assessment of the situation. 37. Besides State cooperation, the assistance of United Nations country teams is paramount for the successful realization of in situ visits. In addition to all the necessary logistical arrangements, the country teams can assist with the practical organization of meetings with religious leaders and members of the civil society as well as providing the facilities to organize a press conference for the Special Rapporteur at the end of her visit. At the same time, United Nations country teams should support the independent character of her mandate. 38. Finally, like her predecessor, the Special Rapporteur has tried to strike a geographical balance with respect to the countries visited. This approach is not due to a formal policy but to the fact that hardly any country is spared difficulties concerning religion or belief. While States may address these problems in different ways, religion or belief remain an essential part of human nature and the problems that arise are essentially universal. The Special Rapporteur wishes to continue such an approach in carrying out her mandate in the future. V. Substantive issues 39. The substantive issues developed in the present chapter are not the only issues of concern for the mandate on freedom of religion or belief, but refer to situations that have been raised in the context of the activities carried out by the mandate in recent months. Moreover, the observations made hereafter by the Special Rapporteur are of a preliminary nature and need further elaboration. 13