This is a confidential procedure that enables individuals, groups and NGOs to inform the UN of any human rights situation that may reveal a consistent pattern of gross and reliably-attested violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms. This is not a procedure for dealing with individual complaints, and complaints do not have to be submitted by the victims themselves. This procedure has universal applicability, irrespective of ratifications of human rights treaties by the state concerned. The 1503 Procedure (named after the ECOSOC Resolution by which it was established in 1970) refers to rights and freedoms that are considered as common standards for all states, most importantly the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Individuals, groups or NGOs who claim to be the victim or victims of, or who have direct and reliable knowledge about, human rights violations may submit a communication under the 1503 Procedure. The information must be reliable and the communication must be submitted in good faith. The contents of the communication must not be inconsistent with the principles of the UN Charter, the UDHR or other human rights instruments. A communication must not be anonymous and will be found inadmissible if it shows political motivations, or if the language is abusive or contains insults directed towards the state in question. The communication should outline the facts and refer to the human rights and minority rights standards that have allegedly been violated. Complaints should contain evidence to support allegations made and it is advisable to focus on a group or series of cases. The evidence supplied should support the argument that there is a consistent pattern of gross and reliably-attested violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms in a state. The complaints are scrutinized in confidence, initially by the secretariat. NGOs will be informed if their complaint passes initial screening by the secretariat. It will be sent to the government concerned for comments and passed for consideration by working groups of the CHR and its Sub-Commission. After that point, you will not be informed of any further progress of the complaint, nor will you receive information about the government response. The member states of the CHR consider, in private meetings, communications submitted to them by the working groups, and concerned governments are invited to answer questions. Following this the CHR may recommend one of the following actions: • to keep the situation under review in light of information submitted by the government concerned and from any other source; • to keep the situation under review and appoint an IE or ask the Secretary-General to appoint an SR to collect more information from the government and the people and report back to the Commission; • to decide to discontinue the case and place it under a public procedure; or 34 MINORITY RIGHTS: A GUIDE TO UNITED NATIONS PROCEDURES AND INSTITUTIONS The Caucus of Minorities The 2003 WGM saw an important new development. For the first time, the WGM turned the meeting room, including interpreters, over to minority NGOs for a two-hour closed meeting in which the NGOs formulated detailed recommendations for the WGM to consider. The idea came from a discussion between several NGOs who proposed to the WGM that all NGOs present be given time to meet. There was opposition from some governments who objected to an NGO meeting taking place within the ordinary time of the WGM and using the UN translation facilities. Others objected to the possibility that NGOs might write the recommendations of the WGM. However, the chair supported the proposal and stressed that all recommendations submitted to the WGM would be carefully considered by the members. The first ever ‘Caucus of Minorities’ produced some interesting discussions on ways to strengthen the mechanisms for the protection of minority rights in the UN system and submitted extensive recommendations to the WGM. Many of these recommendations were taken up by the WGM in their own recommendations issued at the end of the session. The Caucus met again during the 2004 session. The 2004 Caucus reported its conclusions to the WGM and some issues were included by the WGM in their recommendations. It is important that this positive step is built on in future sessions of the WGM. The more that minority NGOs work together, the stronger their voice becomes. Afro-descendants in the Americas, and aimed to provide concrete practical recommendations for the WGM and OHCHR. The seminar in Thailand focused on cultural diversity and development. Reports from the regional seminars are available on the OHCHR website. NGOs have welcomed and encouraged regional seminars. One of the main objectives of regional seminars, apart from discussion of the particular theme, is to reach out to NGOs and other experts in those regions who are unable, for practical reasons, to travel to Geneva. This illustrates how keen the WGM is to ensure that it roots its discussions in the realities faced by minority communities. The WGM envisages holding a follow-up seminar on Afro-descendant issues and another, organized with the Council of Europe, on Roma issues that would include participation of Roma from non-European countries. 4.5 Complaints under the 1503 Procedure