International Human Rights and the International Human Rights System A Manual for National Human Rights Institutions 4. SPECIAL PROCEDURES COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE257 4.1. Making a complaint Some of the SPs, but not all, intervene with States on behalf of individuals whose human rights are allegedly being violated.258 The intervention can relate to a violation that has already occurred, is occurring or has a high risk of occurring. This process is less formal than the HRC’s complaint procedure and the rules governing it are more flexible. Complaints should include the standard basic information: • the name of the alleged victim(s) • the name of the alleged perpetrator(s) • the name of the person(s) or organization(s) submitting the communication • the date and place of the incident that is the subject of the complaint • a detailed description of the circumstances of the incident. 4.2. Admissibility The various SPs have different criteria for deciding whether and how to intervene. Generally those criteria include: • the reliability of the source of the information • the credibility of the information itself • the detail provided. Unlike the HRC’s complaints procedure, the SPs’ criteria do not require: • a systemic pattern of violation • the exhaustion of domestic remedies • the exclusion of other UN complaints procedures. SPs accept individual complaints without having to establish that they are part of a systemic pattern of violation. They deal with individuals and the experiences of individuals. They can accept and act on a complaint even if it is a matter that is unique and if, in all other respects, the State has a very good human rights record. A complaint can be made to an SP while a remedy is still being pursued domestically or even if a domestic remedy has not been sought. This makes the SPs very well suited for urgent action where a violation is threatened or is continuing. They are able to act immediately, without waiting for the domestic system to deal with a matter. The complainant can then pursue the matter domestically while at the same time ensuring that it is under international oversight and monitoring. A complaint can be made to more than one SP at the same time, if the subject matter of the complaint is relevant to more than one SP. Under these circumstances, the relevant SPs may decide to act jointly on the complaint rather than acting individually, with the risk of duplication and delay. SPs can also accept complaints that are already being investigated by some other UN complaints system. So a complainant can pursue a complaint through several international mechanisms by first lodging the complaint with the HRC complaint procedure and having it accepted there as admissible 257 For information about the special procedures’ complaints system, see: www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/Pages/Communications. aspx. 258 The ability of an SP to take up individual complaints depends on the specific mandate. Some mandates do not include the function to take and investigate or inquire into complaints of actual or threatened human rights violation. Only those whose mandates permit this role are able to exercise it. 90 | Chapter 13: International complaint procedures