COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS BEGINS DISCUSSION OF ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS

Commission on Human Rights
57th session
2 April 2001
Evening and Night









Concludes Debate on Question of Human Rights Violations
Anywhere in World



The Commission on Human Rights took up consideration this evening of economic, social and cultural rights, hearing from a series of countries contending that economic globalization was leaving too many nations and people behind, that more must be done to ease the foreign-debt burdens of least-developed countries, and that the HIV/AIDS pandemic was creating an economic and social disaster, especially in Africa.

China, echoing statements made in previous years, charged that an “irrational international economic order” was depriving developing countries of decision-making power and equal participation in international financial matters, leaving them further marginalized by globalization. The total foreign debt owed by the developing countries had reached $ 250 billion, a Chinese Representative said, adding that low-income countries, which constituted more than half the world's population, accounted for only 6 per cent of the world's income, while the developed countries, which had only one-sixth of the world's population, possessed about 80 per cent of the world's income.

A Representative of Swaziland remarked that the paradox of globalization was that by definition it was an all-inclusive process but it had resulted in so much exclusion.

Earlier in the evening the Commission completed its debate on the question of human-rights violations anywhere in the world -- annually one of its most contentious agenda items. A series of non-governmental organizations raised allegations of human-rights abuses in numerous countries and regions. Among the themes mentioned repeatedly were that international economic embargoes and sanctions amounted to human-rights violations of the populations of the targeted countries; that more had to be done to realize freedom of religion around the world; and that more attention had to be paid to violations of the rights of minorities.

Representatives of Sweden (on behalf of the European Union), Senegal, Norway, Brazil, China, Swaziland, Nigeria, El Salvador, Chile, Sri Lanka, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the United Nations Environment Programme, and the World Bank addressed the meeting.


The following NGOs spoke: International Human Rights Association of American Minorities; Medecins du Monde; National Union of Jurists of Cuba; International Fellowship of Reconciliation; Norwegian Refugee Council; Freedom House; Robert F. Kennedy Memorial; Netherlands Organization for International Development; Federacion de Asociaciones de Defenca y Promocion de los Derechos Humanos; Women’s International Democratic Federation; North-South XXI; African Commission of Health and Human Rights Promoters; Centro de Estudios Eurpeos; International Association for Defense of Religious Liberty; South Asia Human Rights Documentation Centre; Pax Romana; International Federation of Women Lawyers; Centre Europe - Tiers Monde; International League for the Rights and Liberation of Peoples; International Commission of Jurists; Afro Asian People’s Solidarity Organization; Federation of Cuban Women; International Association for Religious Freedom; Worldview International; Indian Movement “Tupaj Amaru”; Franciscans International; Liberation; Commission of the Churches on World Affairs; Third World Movement against the Exploitation of Women; International Association of Democratic Lawyers; Movement against Racism and for Friendship among Peoples; World Alliance of Reformed Churches; World Federation of Democratic Youth; Association Tunisienne des droits de l’enfant; World Muslim Congress; Interfaith International; International Confederation of Trade Unions; Transnational Radical Party; International Movement against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism; New Human Rights; and Center for Justice and International Law.

Ethiopia, Cuba, India, Malaysia, Iran, Swaziland, Italy, and Pakistan spoke in exercise of the right of reply.

The Commission will reconvene at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 3 April, to continue its discussion of economic, social and cultural rights.


Statements on the Violation on Human Rights Anywhere in the world

COLIN MC NAUGHTON, of International Human Rights Association of American Minorities, said he was deeply disturbed by the recent custodial killing in the Indian-occupied Kashmir of the District Secretary, Jalil Ahmed Shah, as well as the unprovoked killing of six innocent Kashmiris, during a peaceful demonstration protesting against the murder of the Secretary.

In Northern Ireland there were violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms committed by the British Government.

GRACIELA ROBERT, of Medecins du Monde, said grave and massive human rights violations continued to be committed in Chechnya. In Ingushetia, displaced persons suffered different forms of psychological trauma. The situation of displaced persons outside combat areas had not improved in recent months. Russian troops had not ceased targeting the civilian population. The frequency of cleansing operations had been on the rise recently.

Fifty per cent of health structures had been totally destroyed as a result of the conflict. In Grozny, which had become a ghost city, civilians were often forced to hide in basements and risked being arrested by Russian forces when they went out in search of food. In Chechnya, land mines were wreaking enormous damage. Medecins du Monde urged that measures be taken to implement Commission resolution 2000/58.

RAUL SANTIAGO MANTILLA RAMIREZ, of National Union of Jurists of Cuba, said that for over 40 years, Cubans had been experiencing hardships caused by the blockade imposed by the United States. Cuban lawyers had demonstrated through their efforts their opposition to the unjust blockade against the Cuban people.

Millions of dollars had been spent to divert Cubans from their just struggle, but the struggle would continue.


TSERING YANGKEY, of International Fellowship of Reconciliation, said that since the General Assembly Resolutions of 1959, 1961 and 1965 deploring the denial of human rights and fundamental freedoms of Tibetans, including the right to self-determination, UN Member States and NGOs had repeatedly expressed concern about the gross human rights violations by China against the Tibetans. For many years resolutions had been tabled in the Commission. However, China had always blocked debate on this issue by means of a no-action motion, a technical devise which was never intended to be used to prevent debate on human-rights violations.

Recent well-documented reports from credible organizations that had investigated the situation had once again described beatings, the application of electric shocks to sexual organs and other sensitive parts of the body of nuns and monks, and other forms of torture inflicted upon hundreds of political prisoners in Tibet. These people were in prison for nothing other than the exercise of their right to hold and express their opinions and religious beliefs. For five decades, Tibetans had been deprived of their fundamental human rights and of their right to live as Tibetans, practice their Buddhist religion and determine their own destiny.

C. BEAU, of Norwegian Refugee Council, said Croatia warranted continued assessments by the Commission as well as by the Special Rapporteur on the former Yugoslavia because, more than five years post-Dayton and post Erdurt, it had failed to significantly dismantle its conflict-era legal regime. As confirmed by the Special Rapporteur, the failure was apparent in the policies, practices, regulations and laws pertaining to the return of persons and property; these measures had not been brought into accordance with human rights standards, contrary to the expectations of the international community, in particular after the election more than one year ago of a new government.

Whereas in Bosnia and Herzegovina it was primarily the failure to properly implement the law that impeded refugees' access to rights, in Croatia both the law and its lack of implementation confounded the exercise of rights.

ROBERT PINEKEA, of Freedom House, said that this year's list of the worst of the worst human-rights violators included Afghanistan, Burma, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Iraq, Libya, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria and Turkmenistan. These 11 States were joined by the territories of Chechnya and Tibet. These were societies in which State control over daily life was pervasive and intrusive, where independent organizations and political opposition were banned or suppressed, and where fear of government retribution was rooted in reality.

In China, violations included repression against a broad range of groups and individuals pressing for democratic change. In its ongoing crackdown, the Chinese authorities continued to employ the inhumane institution of re-education through labour, an arbitrary form of administrative detention that suspended any due process rights. The Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea was one of the most repressive regimes whose people were cut off from the rest of the world. Another consistent violator of human rights was Cuba, where the situation continued to deteriorate.

MARGARET HUANG, of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial, said that since the violent repression of peaceful democracy advocates in China in June 1989, the international community had struggled over how best to promote improvement in China's human-rights record. It was an ongoing debate. The prevailing belief appeared to be that bilateral diplomatic steps were more effective than a UN resolution. But that approach had already been tried and had clearly failed.

The severe repression of the Falun Gong was a reminder that torture and repression were systematic problems in China. Some 50,000 Falun Gong practitioners were reportedly in detention. Over 100 individuals had allegedly died as a result of torture and ill-treatment, and many others had been given extremely harsh sentences of up to 20 years. There were other Chinese citizens whose human rights had been violated by the Government. China had also been unwilling to eliminate the widespread use of administrative detention, which had been determined to be inherently arbitrary.

Mr. AGUSWANDI, of Netherlands Organization for International Development Cooperation, said the Indonesian province of Aceh had suffered from grave human-rights violations for the past 12 years, even though the military operation zone had been abolished in 1998. Thousands of cases were documented by NGOs, but these were just the bare statistics; nothing had ever been done to bring the perpetrators to justice. Demands that the perpetrators face justice had been ignored by the Government. Nor had the National Human Rights Commission made serious efforts to thoroughly investigate human rights violations in Aceh.

Impunity had been enjoyed for too long by the violators of basic human rights in Aceh. If this situation was allowed to continue, the sufferings of the Acehnese would only get worse, and the conflict that had raged for more than 12 years would threaten not only Aceh but also stability in the rest of Indonesia and throughout Southeast Asia.

CLARA LOPEZ DE LETONA, of the Federacion de Asociaciones de Defenca y Promocion de los Derechos Humanos, said her group was concerned about the situation in Equatorial Guinea. The Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Equatorial Guinea did not say much on the real state of affairs. The Government was the main violator of human rights. The President himself had continued to perpetrate human rights violations against his people. The democratic process had stagnated for many years now.

The international community should work in favour of a democratic process which would enable the people of the country to enjoy their fundamental freedoms and human rights. The people had been so thoroughly silenced that they could not demand more than the very poor conditions in which they now lived. The country had natural resources which would enable it to come out of poverty if its leaders were willing to create a climate of peace and reconciliation.

DORA CARCANO, of Women's International Democratic Federation, said the organization hoped the new Millennium would be characterized by the realization of respect for human rights for all. It was imperative to have a life of dignity, a life of health, a life of liberty and a life of peace. How was this possible when there was violence against the people of Palestine, or violence caused by paramilitary groups in Colombia, or economic sanctions imposed by the United States that strangled Cuba?

In Cuba, in spite of the blockade, there was not a single case of aggression. What could Cuba have achieved if it were given equal rights? The Commission should speak out aggressively against those who condemned Cuba.

LYNA AL TABAL, of North-South XXI, said the human rights situation of the Palestinians had deteriorated and had become alarming. Since the intifada, acts of violence had increased not only against Palestinians in the occupied territories but also against Palestinians in Israel. The racial discrimination between Jews and Arabs practised by Israel had involved even the citizenship of Israel. The crimes committed by Israel against the Palestinian people in the occupied territories constituted a grave violation of human rights and international humanitarian law, particularly of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Israel’s policy had demonstrated that is was meant to increase the violence. It was time the international community acted to protect the Palestinian people.

DJELY KARIFA SAMOURA, of African Commission of Health and Human Rights Promoters, said many NGOs were talking about human rights violations all over the world. In spite of the critical nature of their speeches, the NGOs were not working against their Governments.

The NGOs of the south, especially African ones, relied on support from northern NGOs. Civil society throughout the world should try to correct the corrupt images that had been attached to Africa. Certain NGOs had become masters of human rights.



LAZARO T. MORA SECADE, of Centro de Estudios Eurpeos, said that by insisting on a resolution against Cuba in the Commission, the United States was attempting to strangle the people of Cuba. It was known that in Cuba there were no human rights abuses and no extra-judicial killings. All should prepare to accept responsibility for their acts in the Commission.

In Iraq, about 250 people were dying every day because of the economic sanctions imposed by the United Nations. The international community should correct the injustice imposed against the people of Iraq.

WILFRED WONG, of International Association for the Defense of Religious Liberty, said the systematic atrocities committed by the Burmese military against the Karen, Karenni and Shan minorities continued, creating a massive humanitarian disaster. There were over 300,000 internally displaced Karen, 42,000 internally displaced Karenni and more than 300,000 internally displaced Shan inside Burma. Many were hiding from the Burmese military in the jungle and were killed on sight when found. Those not killed by Burmese soldiers ran the real risk of dying from starvation or disease or from stepping on landmines.

The Burmese military had deliberately created conditions of widespread starvation which had already resulted in the deaths of many internally displaced persons.

PETRA DE LEEUW, of South Asia Human Rights Documentation Centre, said Bangladesh had signed a declaration on "Tolerance and Diversity" during the Millennium Session of the General Assembly, but its report six months later to the Committee against Racial Discrimination told a different story; the report described Bangladesh as a "post racial discriminatory society" and further stated that the categorical distinctions of "race or 'ethnic origin' per se had ceased to exist for the Bangladeshi people". Such statements indicated a stubborn refusal to acknowledge the existence of diversity within the country and, by implication, racism. According to the 1991 census, minorities constituted a significant 12 per cent of Bangladesh's population and included Hindus, Buddhists, Christians and Animists. Local and international human-rights associations had documented cases of discrimination based on ethnic and religious orientation.

There were, among other things, land disputes between Bengalis and non-Bengalis; a slow progress of implementation of the 1997 Chittagong Hill Tracts peace accord; slow processing of indigenous peoples' land claims; and a Vested Property Act which discriminated in particular against Hindu religious minorities. Bangladesh needed to bring its domestic legislation into line with its international human-rights obligations.

PARINYA BOONSIDERSTHAIKUL, of Pax Romana, said the organization welcomed the report of the Special Representative on Equatorial Guinea. The present Government, while being under the technical assistance programme of the High Commissioner's Office, had regrettably refused to receive the Special Representative within its territory.

However, the situation of human rights had hardly improved, particularly the condition of detainees subjected to inhuman treatment, torture and all kinds of pressure, including extortion.

MARIA TERESA BAIGES ARTIS, of International Federation of Women Lawyers, said there were massive violations of the rights of women in Afghanistan; the Taliban controlled 95 per cent of the country; the remaining 5 per cent was controlled by the "northern alliance" whose members were no more respectful of women's rights. Women's rights in the country had been virtually abolished. Some Western countries, including France and the United States, had instigated talks and diplomatic contracts with the Afghan Government, which was in contravention of Security Council resolution 1333.

Unless Afghan women turned into statues, it appeared they were not going to get much attention from the international community. The Commission should extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on Afghanistan, should pressure Governments not to normalize relations with the Taliban until the Taliban ceased such reprehensible activities, and should consider the possibility of declaring an arms embargo as a way of furthering peace in the country.

MALIK OZDEN, of Centre Europe - Tiers Monde, said embargoes were illegal; they violated conventions and protocols. But that did not prevent the practice from continuing. And the protection of human rights could not be used to justify embargoes.

In Iraq, for example, the sanctions were felt by the Iraqi people, and it was leading to their destruction. How could the United Nations justify this when it was clear it was in violation of international law? The United States kept imposing its sanctions against Cuba. This blockade was intended to hunt down Cuban produce wherever it might be. Despite many resolutions against this, the United Nations appeared powerless to force the United States to end its embargo.

BRUNO VITALE, of International League for the Rights and Liberation of Peoples, said during the Viet Nam war, the United States distributed over 72 million litres of highly toxic defoliants on the Vietnamese forests, including the famous "Agent Orange", containing dioxin; 25 years after the war, people were still dying from the effects of these toxins; children were still born with grave, sometimes deadly, malformations; entire regions were not fit for life or agricultural exploitation. How could this be consistent with the principle that everyone had the right to life, liberty and security of person?

Furthermore, the Unite States had used depleted uranium projectiles during the Gulf War; more than 400 tons of depleted uranium were spread over a large belt of the battle front, a good deal of which evaporated and was spread around by the wind. The dangers of this action for the general population were known, yet the weapons were used anyway; US leaders deliberately chose to forget what they knew. The scenario was then repeated in Bosnia, with more than 7,000 depleted uranium bombs dropped around Sarajevo and in Serbia, including Kosovo. How could the United States justify this? What could it say to the populations of Iraq, Bosnia, and Serbia?

NATHALIE PROUVEZ , of International Commission of Jurists, said the ICJ welcomed the endeavours of the Russian Government to build and promote democracy in the Russian Federation and to improve further the authority and the effectiveness of its judicial system. Unfortunately, none of the national bodies set up by the Government had the capacity nor the attributes required to take sufficient, effective and adequate steps towards bringing perpetrators of human rights violations to justice.

In order to put an end to impunity in Chechnya, the necessary resources must be committed by the Russian Federation to conducting effective criminal investigations.

MASOOMA R. ALI, of Afro-Asian People's Solidarity Organization, said the past decade had seen the mushrooming of violent, fanatical and extremely repressive armed groups who, in the name of jihad, were spreading their tentacles across the world. Much had been said already about the terrorism inflicted by such groups in Jammu and Kashmir, in Kenya and Tanzania. But what happened when a nation, seeking to further its own ambitions, subverted the tenets of religion to violent ends? The Taliban, the Harkat ul Mujahideen, the Lashkar e Taiba, the Harkat ul Jehad e Islami and the cadres that supported Osama Bin Laden shared a common ideology that was inculcated in the religious seminaries that dotted the landscape of Pakistan.

Pakistan was well-experienced in religious violence, having used its army to commit some of the most unpardonable atrocities in history against Bangladesh in 1971. This same army and its intelligence wings now supported and sustained the activities of groups like the Taliban and Lashkar e Taiba. This tarnishing of the Muslim faith was a sad thing; Islam was a noble religion and in its true version was not used as a pretext for territorial ambition or to destroy the treasures of the world or to subvert democracies.

MARIA A. SANTANA CALDERIN, of Federation of Cuban Women, said despite the sanctions by the United States, the women of Cuba had participated in society and had made an impact. Still, there were problems. The situation of poverty in which many lived, the high rate of illiteracy, the high dropout rate of girls, the increase in girls in the labour market were areas of concern. The 21st century had started with abysmal poverty.

While across the world there was the feminization of poverty, in Cuba, there was the feminization of science. Women accounted for 66 per cent of technical workers in Cuba. The Ministry of Science and Technology was headed by a woman. All of this came to be because of respect for human rights by the Government of Cuba, including human rights for women.

GIANFRANCO ROSSI, of International Association for Religious Freedom, said more attention should be paid to violations of the right to freedom, thought, and religion; there had been progress over the last 20 years in implementation of the relevant declaration, but in some countries violations were widespread. In China, all religious groups were required to register and were exposed to intrusive surveillance and extensive interference by the State. There were Catholics and other Christians in the country who felt obliged to meet in secret; they were subjected to major discrimination and several thousand were in prison. Chinese Catholics were not allowed to have formal contacts with the Pope. Buddhists in China were subjected to "patriotic education" programmes, and the Falun Gong Movement had been declared officially illegal.

In Saudi Arabia, those of faiths other than Islam were authorized to practice their religions, but only in private; they could not manifest their faith in public. There were more than half a million Christians in Saudi Arabia and they deserved the right to practice their right to religion completely. Religious symbols and icons also deserved protection; that had not been the case in the destruction of statues by the Taliban in Afghanistan or in the absurd transformations carried out in that part of Cyprus occupied by the Turks, where Orthodox churches had been turned into stables for animals.

SEIN WIN, of Worldview International, said that since the inception of the Burmese democracy movement, it had upheld dialogue as an integral part of the democratization process. Consecutive UN resolutions affirmed that the best means of promoting national reconciliation and the full and early restoration of democracy in Burma was through a tripartite dialogue between the democracy forces, true representatives of the non-Burman ethnic peoples, and the State Peace and Development Council representing the military.

Given the urgency of addressing the needs of the people, it was time for all political actors in Burma to put the interests of the people and the country above all other interests and seek a workable solution for the process of nation rebuilding.

LAZARO PARY, of the Indian Movement "Tupaj Amaru", said the Cuban blockade was a denial of Cuba’s place in the international arena. It was inhuman, cruel and a continued violation of the human rights of the Cuban people. It was economic aggression from the part of the United States. The products of North American countries had been prevented from arriving in Cuba through illegal legislation by the United States. The economic and financial losses had been enormous. The cultural and traditional identity of Cubans had been damaged by the economic blockade which had a negative impact on the revenue of the 12 million Cubans. The economic blockade amounted to an act of genocide according to the definition of the term.

The international community should also pay attention to the economic sanctions imposed against Iraq and the aggressive war being waged against its people. The sanctions had brought hunger and humiliation to the Iraqi people. The international community should work to bring the sanctions to an end and should act to alleviate the sufferings of the people of Iraq.

IMANUEL YOUSAF, of Franciscans International, said the situation of human rights in Pakistan was very serious at all levels of society. There were more and more examples of curtailment of freedom of expression and of speech. Political leadership and martial law regimes used Islam to legitimize their rule to the disadvantage of religious minorities. In recent years, this had led to ethnic and sectarian violence among Muslims and the imposition of discriminatory and repressive laws against religious minorities. While it was recognized that the new structure of local government reserved seats specifically for women, minority women were not eligible for those seats.


Moreover, in Pakistan, cultural pressure was so strong that women could not realistically participate in the election process. For example, in the first phase of the election, many of the seats reserved for women remained vacant. In Pakistan, discrimination against women, who represented 50 per cent of the population, was rampant. Furthermore, minority women were not considered equal to Muslim women, as evidenced in the new structure of local government. Violence against women was prevalent, and so was the practice of honour killings.

PAUL BARBER, of Liberation, said his group was concerned about the lack of progresses in challenging impunity and strengthening justice in Indonesia and East Timor. There were considerable political obstacles preventing trials in Indonesia of those responsible for crimes against humanity in East Timor. In East Timor itself, progress in investigating cases had been painfully slow. The absence of justice was seriously undermining reconciliation and the repatriation of the 100,000 or so refugees remaining in West Timor.

It was more than one year since the International Commission of Inquiry recommended an international tribunal for East Timor and nearly two years since some of the crimes were committed. The excessive delay was grossly unfair to the victims.

JOHN RUMBIAK, of the Commission of Churches on International Affairs of the World Council of Churches, said a major concern was the presence of large numbers of security forces deployed in West Papua. This had resulted in an increase in human-rights abuses, as the security forces remained beyond the scope of the law. The recent investigation of human-rights abuses by the Indonesian Commission on Human Rights had been hindered by the non-cooperative attitude of the security forces.

Indonesian authorities had failed to bring the perpetrators of human-rights violations to justice despite repeated representations. This had resulted in a culture of impunity. The Commission of Churches called on Indonesian authorities to immediately stop human-rights violations and enter into a dialogue with community leaders in West Papua; to order the release of the 22 prisoners of conscience; and to bring to trial before courts of law those who had perpetrated human-rights violations.

KELUA HENDARI, of Third World Movement Against the Exploitation of Women, said the continuation of serious human rights abuses in parts of Indonesia was fuelling separatist tensions, making accountability for past abuses even more difficult. The inability of the civilian Government to exercise authority over the armed forces had resulted in the continuation of politics of violence. That contributed to widespread violations by omission by the State in the alarming communal conflict in areas such as Molucca and Borneo, as well as to violations by commission in the areas where armed groups were active. That had led to current humanitarian crisis involving about 700,000 internally displaced persons.

The Movement was doubtful about Indonesia’s commitment to proceeding against those responsible for gross violations of human rights in East Timor.

PER SOLGI, of International Association of Democratic Lawyers, said the Special Representative's report on the human rights situation in Iran was very telling. The report talked about the mass suppression of human rights. Information revealed about 200 executions had been carried out in the year 2000 -- where was the reduction of the number of executions that the delegation of Iran had claimed earlier today? The report also said there were serial murders and disappearances.

The Special Representative was not satisfied with how the Government had handled investigations of these matters. And these were simply a portion of the abuses mentioned in the report. Only 80 days had passed so far this year, but already 75 executions had been reported, including three stoning sentences. Hangings were broadcast, and another 800 people were condemned to die.

HAMID REZA ESHAGHI, of the Movement Against Racism and for the Friendship Among Peoples, said that while the situation in Iran was deteriorating, it was impossible to present a full account of the crimes committed by the regime in place.

According to the report of the Special Rapporteur, it was mentioned that the President had failed in his manipulation aimed at giving the illusion of reform of the medieval theocracy. The Teheran regime continued to carry out executions, and the number of executed in the year 2000 had been estimated at 200. Since January 2001, 80 new executions had been carried out, according to the local press. In addition, on 16 January, the Iranian news agency had announced that 800 death sentences had been confirmed by the judiciary.

MIREILLE BENKABOUCHE, of World Alliance of Reformed Churches, said violations in Equatorial Guinea were well-documented in the Special Representative's report. It was a difficult task because the regime was hostile to any openness. There were many cases of abuses at roadblocks in the country. There were few newspapers and the doors to the press association had been closed in February. The country was rich in oil but the population was living in extreme poverty. Justice was non-existent.

The judiciary was run at the will of the president. The public was tried in military procedures. There was no professional bar association. In education, there was institutionalized corruption, and the dropout rate of women was high. Regarding health, there was a lack of equipment, medication and trained staff. AIDS was a growing crisis among youth, and there was increasing prostitution. The practice of torture was almost systematic during police interrogations.

G. ABDELBAGI, of World Federation of Democratic Youth, said the situation of human rights in Sudan had undergone serious setbacks during the year 2000 and the first quarter of the current year. That negative development had dashed all hopes for the return of political pluralism, democratic governance and the rule of law. It belied the Government's claims about securing national reconciliation or negotiating a peaceful end to the armed conflict that had engulfed many parts of the country, especially the southern, eastern and south-eastern regions.

Recent measures taken by the Government had proved that the current regime was still committed to implementing its totalitarian fundamentalist agenda in a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi-religious country. That in effect excluded the majority of the Sudanese political forces from any meaningful participation in the political and social life in the country.

HABIB ACHOUR, of Tunisian Association for the Rights of Women and Children, said economic and social rights were no less important than political and civil rights. All of these rights were violated daily throughout the world. How many people died from famine every day?

Everybody recognized that one could not be free without economic and social development. Violations of both types of rights must be combatted. That must be done without regard to the States that had a large lobbying influence, or were regional powers The work of combatting violations of human rights required a constructive dialogue. This was an appeal for a real partnership for human rights.

MAQBOOL AHMAD, of World Muslim Congress, said Kashmiris felt disillusioned by the fact that the situation of human rights in the UN-recognized disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir was not considered by the Commission as an exclusive agenda item. That had been taken as a major victory by the oppressor. The Kashmiris were also disappointed that there was no visible effort by the Commission to ease Indian oppression. The reports of leading human-rights organizations were ample testimony to the gravity of the situation in Indian-occupied Kashmir. Kashmiri society had been brutalized by the ubiquity of Indian soldiers, an occupation force composed exclusively of elements from outside Kashmir -- one soldier for every seven Kashmiris.

The grim situation of human rights in Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir had worsened since the last session of the Commission. The offer for talks by the Kashmiri freedom movement last July for a peaceful solution had thwarted by Indian intransigence and unreasonable prerequisites.

ALI ALI AL-ADHADH, of Interfaith International, said the situation of human rights in Iraq was still a major preoccupation. The torture, extrajudicial killings, forced displacements of populations and all the other violations of human rights which this Commission had condemned still continued. The Commission was requested to continue its efforts to oblige the regime to stop these practices. The grave violation of human rights in Iraq should have made the Special Rapporteur hesitate before presenting the extremely watered-down recommendations in his report. Many of the report’s recommendations were not relevant to the subject matter -- which was oppression, arbitrary executions and the regime's violation of political, social and economic rights.

If the Special Rapporteur expected that his approach would succeed and the regime would allow him to visit Iraq, the drafting of this report, with its compliant spirit, would open the door wide to further concessions to the Iraqi regime vis-a-vis its human rights record.

M. T. BELLAMY, of the International Confederation of Trade Unions, said the group condemned China for its non-respect for international standards for labour and human rights, and for its repression of workers who attempted to create their own trade unions. The imminent entry of China into the World Trade Organization would be closely observed by the group, and it would monitor the conditions of private enterprises which employed young women between the ages of 16 and 25 and who were working in the production of 85 to 90 per cent of China’s goods for export.

In Myanmar, the Government was violating the international code of labour and workers were tortured. In addition, women and children were treated cruelly and their fundamental rights had been violated by the regime. In Belarus, Morocco, Swaziland, Venezuela, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Libya, Sudan, Equatorial Guinea, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Djibouti, People's Democratic Republic of Korea, Republic of Korea, Australia Pakistan, Turkey, Romania and the United States problems with trade union rights had taken place in varying degrees.

OLIVIER DUPUIS, of Transnational Radical Party, said human rights violations were everywhere, and should be punished equally everywhere.

In Italy, a country known to the world as a mature, developed democracy, there had been 367 condemnations by the European Court of Human Rights. That was about an average of one per day. Italy was a State where there was the rule of law, but there were many who acted in defiance of the law. They were creating the law day by day. This was a country where legislation led to the destruction of the rights of citizens.

LAIA LUTHI, of International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism, said the overall human rights situation in the Balkans, including Kosovo and its surroundings, continued to give rise to serious concerns. It was of utmost importance that the international community bear particularly in mind the situation of the Roma in the region, as they were often left out of context when protection of minority rights was at stake. Effective measures had to be taken to respect and guarantee the rights of Kosovo Roma, and to ensure their security and integrity.

It was hoped that equal opportunity could be secured so that Roma could participate in all the central and local public bodies for reconstruction of society and civil administration.

BEHZAD NAZIRI, of New Human Rights, said last 19 March, Agence France Press reported there had been a scene of public hanging of a 30-year-old woman in Iran. Despite the pleading of this young woman, the judge ordered the woman hanged on the spot. The reason that was used was drugs. The picture was published on the front page of a newspaper. Scenes of hangings had been broadcast on State television during prime time.



This new wave of oppression, which marked a worsening of long-running violations, could be explained by the social situation in the country. Iran was going though a critical period. During 2000, 700 demonstrations were recorded -- an unprecedented figure. How could there be talk about the well-being of citizens when people were killed for protesting the lack of clean water? Nowhere in the Koran were there justifications for these actions.

GABRIELA GONZALEZ, of Centro para la Justicia y el Derecho Internacional, said that in Mexico, the victims of human rights offences were not compensated and impunity had continued. Military justice had not been wholly eradicated. A profound reform had not taken place in the judiciary. Indigenous peoples were severely affected by poverty. Although negotiations had been started with the representatives of Chiapas’s indigenous peoples, the relevant Constitutional provision had to still be revised.

The new Government should take further measures to alleviate poverty and other difficult conditions facing vulnerable groups in Mexican society.


Rights of reply

A Representative of Ethiopia, speaking in a right of reply, said there had been unwarranted allegations made against the country. The present administration of Ethiopia was open to scrutiny by the Ministry of Justice. Ethiopia rejected the baseless allegations made against it.

A Representative of Cuba speaking in the right of reply, said the NGO Freedom House would be better renamed "the White House" because it was an agent of the United States. Since it was established, the NGO had never talked of apartheid, or Israeli repression or the Cuban blockade. It was financed by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and carried out subversive activities.

A Representative of India, in a right of reply, said Pakistan was unable to rein in its hostility and its invectives against India. The situation in Kashmir was the result of terrorism planned, funded, and aided by Pakistan. The Prime Minister of India had travelled to Pakistan in February 1999 in search of peace and in return there had been armed opposition. In Pakistan, there had been an upsurge in killings of political opponents. India rejected Pakistan's propaganda. Pakistan should realize that no terrorism was no solution. India’s democracy had the strength to overcome Pakistani terrorism.

A Representative of Malaysia, in a right of reply, said that in response to a statement made by an NGO, Malaysia wished to report that the case of the former Prime Minister was still in the hands of the judiciary and the delegation was not going to comment. With regard to ethnic conflict, the Government was committed to maintaining order in the region where ethnic groups had been fighting on the basis of various misunderstandings.

A Representative of Iran, in a right of reply, said some unfair and unjust remarks had been made by NGOs. Iran strongly denied these remarks, which were politically motivated. Truth was found in action, not in words. During the last 21 years, more than 20 elections had been held. That showed the commitment of the authorities. The majority of Iranian people who participated in the last presidential election could clearly say that Iran was committed to a democratic structure, with fair and free elections, an independent judiciary, and a free media. Everybody knew that Iran was a transitway for drugs produced in neighbouring countries. Iran was a party to many international covenants. No country could claim that it had reached the end of evolution. Iran was trying to progress.

A Representative of Swaziland, in a right of reply, said that in response to a statement by the International Confederation of Trade Unions that it was necessary to say that the Government respected international labour standards and the alleged of repression of trade unions was untrue. The detention of a certain trade-unionist was also unfounded; the individual was free.


A Representative of Italy, in a right of reply, said the Representative of the Transnational Radical Party had again attacked Italy. Last year, on 29 August, the Permanent Representative of Italy had made available to the Commission all the regulations cited by the Transnational Radical Party at last year's session. There was impartiality and fairness to information in Italy. The Italian judicial system guaranteed fairness, although sometimes trials took a long time.

A Representative of Pakistan, in a right of reply, said Pakistan rejected the statement of the Indian delegation which was aimed at diverting attention from the real situation in Jammu and Kashmir. The situation was that Indian forces in Indian-occupied Kashmir oppressed Kashmiris and depriving them of many rights. The accusation that Pakistan was supporting terrorist activities across the border was unfounded. With regard to the statement by the delegation of Canada, Pakistan had no lessons to learn form Canada. Instead, Canada should continue its cooperation to ensure the success of the forthcoming World Conference against Racism.


Statements on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

JOHAN MOLANDER (Sweden), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the two International Covenants on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and on Civil and Political Rights provided the framework for achieving the ideal that all human beings should enjoy freedom from fear and freedom from want. These two sets of freedoms were linked to each other. International norms on economic, social and cultural rights were largely in placed today. The challenge lay with their implementation. Still, amongst others, minorities and indigenous peoples were often disadvantaged with regard to their enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights. Further, in many countries, women were discriminated against. States must comply with their obligations under human rights treaties and relevant provisions of international law.

The EU supported the development indicators and benchmarks being developed to gauge progress towards the worldwide implementation of economic, social and cultural rights. The EU believed that such tools could contribute decisively to making economic, social and cultural rights more operational and thus to serve to ensure their realization. Extreme poverty was an affront to human dignity, and its prevalence prevented the effective enjoyment of human rights. Poverty meant low income, poor nutrition, poor health, lack of education and lack of adequate housing. The EU urged all Governments to cooperate with UN human rights mechanisms in their efforts to promote and protect human rights. It called on all Governments to allow visits to their countries by relevant UN human rights mechanisms. It believed that such cooperation would contribute to the full achievement of a common goal -- the elimination of all human rights violations in all parts of the world.

IBOU NDIAYE (Senegal) said that three decades after the adoption of the International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, one could say that more tangible political and civil satisfactions had been obtained rather than economic, social and cultural rights. In that regard, the international community found itself confronted with more complicated challenges concerning differences in living standards among nations and within nations. The gap between the rich and the poor had marginalized a number of people and had amplified injustices. Despite the efforts of the United Nations and its member States, the international community was still below the standards of all international instruments in that regard.

How could the ideals of human rights and democracy be realized while in less than one-fourth of a century, the world's population had grown from 7 to 8 billion, and while half of that population lived below the poverty line? How could one ensure an equitable income, decent housing, education, health, a healthy environment? During the ‘80s and ‘90s, many countries had attempted to readjust their economies and to promote free markets. However, these reforms did not allow those countries to benefit through sufficient economic growth. The sacrifices paid in that regard had instead weakened the authority of the State.


SVERRE BERGH JOHANSEN (Norway) said there were many examples of the interdependence of the different rights. It was very difficult to imagine a situation where one set of rights could prosper and thrive if the other was violated. The two Covenants had equal status and were equally binding upon State parties. The two sets of rules were twins that needed the same attention. Ignoring the one set of rules would be harmful to the other. Norway welcomed the report of the Special Rapporteur on Education. Her report highlighted the interdependence of the different rights and particularly stressed the role of education as a master key for unlocking the door to other human rights. She said education operated as a multiplier, enhancing the enjoyment of all individual rights and freedoms where the right to education was effectively guaranteed, while depriving people of the enjoyment of many rights and freedoms where the right to education was denied or violated.

It was importance to have adequate international assistance for creating an environment more conducive to development efforts. The international community was working towards this aim in the appropriate fora -- the WTO, the Bretton Woods Institutions and the United Nations. This year, many events, such as the Conference on the Least Developed Countries, would address human rights in the broad sense. The level of poverty in these 48 countries was so severe that even the most basic needs of their populations were not being fulfilled. The UNAIDS and HABITAT special sessions would also address essential concerns on the human rights agenda. It remained clear, however, that the ratifying State, regardless of its economic situation, had an obligation to create an environment in which individuals were enabled to meet their own needs. International assistance could only be truly effective in such an environment. Development cooperation promoted human rights by assisting recipient countries in fulfilling their obligations with regard to human rights, including economic, social and cultural rights.

CELSO L. N. AMORIM (Brazil) said realization of the principles of human rights depended on the capacity of the international community to fulfil its moral obligations. The situation of HIV/AIDS was one example where such moral support was needed. The maintenance of the moral and physical health of a population was essential for realizing economic, social and cultural rights. According to the Joint Programme of the United Nations on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the number of persons who had died from the pandemic had reached 21.8 million while 36 million people were infected.

It was essential to continue to fight acts of discrimination against persons infected by the disease. All victims should be treated without discrimination. Some countries had been able to reduce the number of deaths while in other countries, because of the high price of the medicines required, many had been dying. Access to cheap medicine had been a problem for many countries, and this was a violation of the right to health. The price of imported medicines was not affordable for many poor countries.

JIANG WEI (China) said economic, social and cultural rights figured prominently among all human rights and fundamental freedoms and thus deserved concerted attention from all Governments and the international community. Although they had made tremendous efforts in promoting and protecting these rights over many years, the developing countries were still faced with an uphill task in genuinely realizing these rights due to various constraints and difficulties. As a result of the irrational international economic order, the developing countries did not have decision-making power or the right to equal participation in international economics, specifically in the international economic and financial organizations. This had led to their being further marginalized by globalization. The total foreign debts owned by the developing countries had reached $250 billion. Low-income countries, which constituted more than half the world's population, accounted for only 6 per cent of the world's income. The developed countries, which had only one-sixth of the world's population, possessed about 80 per cent of the world's income.

China all along had valued the principle of the universality of human rights. Thanks to unremitting efforts over many years, China had found a correct approach to promoting and developing human rights in line with China's national conditions. In recent years, China's economy had been growing in a sustained, healthy and rapid manner, with the reform programme proceeding in depth, resulting in tremendous changes across China's vast social domains. The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

was extensive in content and had a bearing on all aspects of China's economic and social life. China's relatively short duration for completing the legal procedure of approving the Covenant fully demonstrated China's commitment to promoting and protecting human rights and carrying out international cooperation in the field of human rights.

CLIFFORD S. MAMBA (Swaziland) said that while the global economy continued to gain strength in the year 2000, with a world output growth estimated at 4.7 compared to the 3 per cent it had attained in 1999, developing economies continued to be in a difficult position. The paradox of globalization was that by definition it was an all-inclusive process but it had resulted in so much exclusion. The biggest challenge was how to make it work for Africa and other developing countries. Furthermore, a significant number of countries continued to experience serious economic problems, emanating mainly from natural disasters and adverse movements in commodity prices. The HIV/AIDS pandemic continued to pose severe human and economic challenges. It was a profound concern that by the end of 2000, some 36.1 million people were living with HIV/AIDS and of those infected, 95 per cent were living in developing countries, and 16.4 million were women.

Swaziland was one of the countries that were worst affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. For a country with a population of close to 1 million, it was unimaginable that an estimated 22 per cent of the population was infected. That situation rendered the Government's efforts to progress as a nation very difficult.

S. A. ADEKANYE (Nigeria) said regrettably the principle of the equality of economic, social and cultural rights and civil and political rights had often been more honoured in the breach than in the observance. This was evident in the fact that one-fifth of the world's population was afflicted by poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy and insecurity. Undoubtedly, States had the primary responsibility for the promotion for human rights, but they could best do so in an environment in which democracy thrived, and the dividends of democracy were guaranteed. Today, many developing countries were severely constrained despite the best efforts of their leaders, in providing food, housing, education and other social services for their peoples. They were saddled with so many constraints and obstacles, including the negative consequences of globalization, debt burdens and the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

The Commission's commitment to effective approaches for the implementation of the economic, social and cultural rights should never be in doubt. Nigeria believed the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, as well as the Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, had an important role to play. Both bodies should further explore how best these rights could be implemented. The process should involve the provision of more information by member States. Finally, the Nigerian delegation had given careful thought to the idea of the suggested draft optional protocol for strengthening the mechanisms for the promotion and enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights. Nigeria did not believe the proposal was ripe for consideration at this particular time. As the report of the recent workshop on the optional protocol clearly indicated, further exchanges of views were desirable. It was only thereafter that Member States would be in a position to evaluate and take a position on the subject.

HELENA PEJIC, of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said it was almost a platitude to note that armed conflict was a major cause of denial of food or access to food given the obvious link between war and the malnutrition, disease and death war usually left in its wake. The ongoing international debate on the right to food had unfolded largely without reference to either armed conflict as a key reason for lack of food or to international humanitarian law as a body of rules intended to ensure food in armed conflict situations.

If the common goal was to comprehensively prevent and alleviate human suffering when such suffering was caused by lack of food, then international humanitarian law should be seen as an essential component of the applicable legal framework. While international humanitarian law contained no mention of the "right to food" as such, it was obvious that that body of law should be seen as complementary to international humanitarian rights instruments dealing with the right of food.
FRITS SCHLINEMANN, of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) said many of the fundamental rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights had significant environmental dimensions. Environmental conditions co-determined the enjoyment of basic rights such as the right to life, health, adequate housing and food, traditional livelihoods and culture. There were also the right to access to information about the environment; the right to express opinions about environmental issues; the right to environmental education; the right to associate peacefully with others for the purpose of protecting the environment; the right to participate in decisions affecting the environment; and the right to administrative or judicial redress for violations of protected rights.

Environmental dimensions anchored the full realization of human rights in an open and just society.

ALFREDO SFEIR-YOUNIS, of the World Bank, commenting on the various reports submitted to the Commission, said that it was not always evident to the Bank how the distinction was made between the justification of any given right and the outcomes the authors would like to see as a result of the development process. Many reports drew on the same body of knowledge, analytical frameworks or jurisprudence, and often used similar concepts. In some cases, the conceptual approach looked different even in a case where there was overlapping of a given mandate. The reports seemed to have a marked preference for an "administrative" or "institutional" response, rather than for an operational one. There were many studies or assessments suggesting that one needed to find new operational avenues to resolve some of the fundamental issues at stake.

Some reports did not bring sufficient facts to bear to their main conclusions; and some conclusions could have been arrived at without any major interaction with the other institutions. The Bank was extremely concerned about the lack of time and dialogue on the issues involved. To have Rapporteurs presenting their reports and, then, having the speakers replying in five minutes to all the reports at once, benefited no one.

MIGUEL ANGEL ALCAINE CASTRO (El Salvador) said the country had suffered two earthquakes this year which had affected almost the entire population. Further, the rainy season would begin in May, and that would increase the risk of landslides. This situation had had a devastating effect on human life and on the economy. Natural disasters could effect the enjoyment of human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights. Hurricane Mitch had devastated the enjoyment of these rights two years ago. Such disasters affected education, health and housing, as well as sanitation and transportation. Those affected mainly had the lowest income, and already suffered from the perils of poverty.

El Salvador was committed to protecting and promoting all human rights. It had managed to put an end to armed conflict through the 1992 peace accord, and it had built a democratic infrastructure. The natural disasters had brought to the forefront the strength and spirit of the people, and El Salvador would approach reconstruction with vigour.

PEDRO OYARCE (Chile) said countries had limited alternatives and financing, and that must be kept in mind. There should be a rigorous analysis of financial resources and their impact on economic, social and cultural rights. In several of the reports before the Commission, reference had been made to the programmes of international organizations, including the World Bank and the IMF.

There was an openness to these institutions, and Chile would welcome more input from these organizations about the realization of economic, social and cultural rights. In the future, there would be a need for more analytical dialogue.

SUGEESHWARA GUNARATNA (Sri Lanka) said it had been universally accepted that widespread and extreme poverty inhibited the full and effective enjoyment of human rights. The Independent Expert on extreme poverty who presented a report to the Commission last year wrote that surmounting extreme poverty constituted an essential requirement for the full enjoyment of political, civil, economic, social and cultural rights.
It had become a norm for every Government in Sri Lanka to launch special programmes at the national level with the aim of eradicating poverty. The benefits were visible. Life expectancy was 73.3 years and infant mortality was 17 per 1,000 live births. Sri Lanka had 99.9 per cent enrollment in primary education age groups, and an adult literacy rate of 91.1 per cent.


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