REDRESS' work is focused on a very specialised area of human rights (reparation for torture and other serious international crimes). This work requires us to closely monitor national and international developments in this field, which makes us well placed to comment upon and assess the state of the law and any developing trends, and to work with regional and international experts on various standard setting initiatives.

Certain standard setting exercises at the international level help to clarify and systematise the law in areas where jurisprudence and legislation has developed haphazardly and it is difficult to locate the state of the law. They can also help to identify gaps and further advance trends in international law aimed at improving the exercise of rights at the national and international level.

In other cases, we are involved in the development of rules and procedures of key international institutions such as the International Criminal Court. As many are looking to this Court as a beacon for international justice, work on the Court's procedures has an impact upon the practices of other national and international processes.

REDRESS is involved in a number of standard setting projects. The most recent examples of our work in this area include:

• UN Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to Reparation
  
  Leading a coalition of human rights groups (the Reparation Coalition), REDRESS supported the United Nations Commission on Human Rights adoption process of the "UN Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to Remedy and Reparation for Victims of Gross Violations of International Human Rights Law and Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law". As part of its activities, the Reparation Coalition organized a series of seminars with experts, delegates and NGOs as well as prepared background materials highlighting the importance of the Principles and Guidelines in implementing the right of victims to reparation.
  
  The Principles and Guidelines are the first international instrument that codifies the norms on the right to reparation for victims of grave abuses and contains a detailed description of the mechanisms, procedures and forms of adequate redress. Their adoption by the 61st Session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights is a significant contribution to the consolidation of international law and practice governing the right to a remedy and reparations.
  
  See: The final text of the Principles (UN Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to Reparation)



• The ICC Trust Fund for Victims
  
  REDRESS has long advocated for a strong and effective trust fund for victims, to ensure a reparative justice for victims that is complementary to the prosecutions work of the International Criminal Court. We were heavily involved in the negotiations of the Assembly of States Parties on the establishment of the Trust Fund, and ever since, have worked for the adoption of a vision of the Trust Fund that reflects the complex nature of the crimes under investigation by the Court (to date, the Democratic Republic of Congo; Uganda and Darfur [Sudan]). The Regulations of the Trust Fund were adopted in December 2005 at the session of the Assembly of States Parties in The Hague.
  
  See: The final text of the Regulations of the Victims Trust Fund [page 320 of document]
  
  VRWG, Draft Regulations of the ICC Trust Fund for Victims Comments on the Proposals Submitted By Australia, Canada, Croatia, Japan, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom (September 2005)
  
  REDRESS & Forensic Risk Alliance, ICC Trust Fund for Victims: Analysis and Options for the Development of Further Criteria for the Operation of The Trust Fund for Victims (December 2003)



• Set of principles for the protection and promotion of human rights through action to combat impunity
  
  REDRESS provided input and commentary to Professor Diane Orentlicher, the independent expert appointed by the UN Commission on Human Rights to update the impunity principles.
  
  See:
  • Text of the updated principles
  • Commentary on the principles



• The Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture


The Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture aims to prevent torture and other forms of ill-treatment through the establishment of a system of regular visits by independent international and national bodies to places of detention.

REDRESS played an active role in the long negotiations of the UN Working Group that was created to draft the Optional Protocol. In November 2001 REDRESS submitted its comments on the Draft Optional Protocol to Mrs. Elisabeth Odio Benito, the Chairperson of the Working Group on the draft. In January 2002, during the 10th session of the UN Working Group on the draft Optional Protocol, REDRESS participated in meetings with government delegations, international NGOs and other interested parties. During this session REDRESS joined other NGOs in calling for the speedy adoption of the draft. A Coalition of NGOs continued to work together, with subsequent statements and joint papers, up to the 58th Session of the Human Rights Commission, when the text for the Optional Protocol was adopted.

On 18 December 2002 the UN General Assembly adopted the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture by a majority of 127 in favour, 4 against with 42 Abstentions. The Optional Protocol was opened for signature and ratification on 4 February 2003. To enter into force the Optional Protocol will require 20 ratifications. REDRESS continues to support the ratification and effective implementation of the Optional Protocol.

See: The text of the Optional Protocol