INTERNATIONAL POLICY ANALYSIS| FES GENEVA New Prospects for Human Rights? The Human Rights Council between the Review Process and the Arab Spring THEODOR RATHGEBER March 2012 n The UN Human Rights Council’s review process has resulted in very limited pro­gress. Unfortunately, more forceful tools for a better operational functioning have not been taken up. Judged in normative terms and on the basis of the corresponding expectations of rights holders and victims, the outcome of the review does not con­tain any fundamental novelties. n Contrary to the shortcomings of the review, the actual evolution of the HRC’s functioning within the context of the Arab Spring reveals a bundle of new or modified procedures that are potent enough to bring the HRC’s functioning more into line with its mandate. n The UN Security Council has shown it is able to incorporate human rights assess­ments in its considerations of conflict situations, with some diverging views and difficult discussions among its members, given the generalised national interest per ­spective. Its work should be further developed in terms of systematically taking on more human rights monitoring and it should refer relevant complaints on serious violations of human rights and humanitarian law to the International Criminal Court. n Comparing the activities of the HRC and UNSC, better interaction is required to im­prove substantially the protection of human rights. The comparison between the HRC and UNSC demonstrates that their tools should be more appropriately used in terms of complementary action, rather than as a mere scale of escalating mechanisms. n The independence and dissent shown by certain African states towards their regio­nal and like-minded groups engenders hope for a continuously improving commit­ment, at least with regard to the HRC protecting human rights more effectively. It would be a tremendous contribution too if»human rights champions« in other parts of the world would follow such a self-critical approach.