Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination starts adopting conclusions on reports of Uganda and Morocco

CERD
62nd session
19 March 2003
Morning

The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination started to adopt this morning conclusions and recommendations on the second through tenth periodic reports of Uganda, welcoming the country's continued anti-discrimination efforts, including its establishment of human rights institutions.
The Committee cited, among other things, the creation of the Ugandan Human Rights Commission, which it said represented a positive step toward combating violations of human rights. However, the panel expressed concern about the absence of an explicit penal provision in Ugandan legislation prohibiting organizations and propaganda activities that advocated racial hatred; and an insufficiency of information on the participation of minorities in the economic and social development of the country.
The Committee invited the Ugandan Government to continue its efforts to restore peace in the northern region of the country, where armed conflict was going on, and urged it to protect the human rights of vulnerable groups, notably tribal groups and children.
Also this morning, the Committee began adopting conclusions on the fourteenth to sixteenth periodic reports of Morocco, welcoming the State party's continued efforts to promote a culture of human rights; the establishment of an Ombudsman (Diwan Al Madhalim); and the increased attention being paid to the Amazigh culture, including through the establishment of a Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture.
The Committee invited Morocco to consider the possibility of constitutional recognition of the Amazigh component of the population; and also to recognize Amazigh as one of Morocco’s national languages and to introduce teachings on the Amazigh at all levels of the education system.
The Committee recommended that Morocco release without delay all persons detained in connection with the Western Sahara conflict and that it resolve the problem of disappeared persons.
Uganda and Morocco are among the 167 States parties to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and are obligated to present periodic reports on their efforts to eliminate racial bias.
When the Committee reconvenes at 3 p.m., it will meet in private to consider communications received from individuals or groups of individuals. Only States parties recognizing the Committee's competence to receive and consider such communications may be subject to the procedure. At present, 42 States parties have made the relevant declaration under article 14 of the Convention.
Conclusions and Recommendations on Reports of Uganda
In response to the second to tenth periodic reports of Uganda, the Committee welcomed, among other things, the establishment of the Ugandan Human Rights Commission, which represented a positive step towards combating violations of human rights and promoting the implementation of the Convention. It noted with satisfaction that the State party enacted a new Constitution in 1995 which incorporated the basic provisions of the Convention, particularly the right to equality before the law and the prohibition of racial discrimination.
The Committee further took note of the adoption of legal measures to redress past cases of racial discrimination, namely those concerning compensation for Ugandans of Asian origin who were arbitrarily expelled and their property expropriated after 1971; and it noted the considerable investments made by the Government in the area of education and welcomed the information provided by the delegation regarding the extension of the Universal Primary Education programme to all children of school-going age.
Among factors and difficulties impeding the implementation of the Convention, the Committee acknowledged that the severe political, economic and social difficulties facing the State party had a negative impact on the situation of the most vulnerable parts of the population, notably children, refugees and minorities. In particular, the Committee noted that poverty, internal armed conflict in the north, and the HIV/AIDS pandemic had added to the difficulties which might already exist in respect of implementing the Convention.
While noting with satisfaction the legislative measures and the judicial mechanisms in place to ensure the return of property to persons of Asian origin, the Committee regretted that such measures had not been fully carried out, due mainly to insecurity in the country and a lack of adequate administrative measures. The Committee invited the State party to submit in its next periodic report additional information regarding further possible measures or mechanisms which might be adopted to fully indemnify all victims of such expropriations and to address the increasing number of applicants.
The Committee noted with concern that no information on cases relating to the offences of sectarianism, incorporated in the Penal Code in 1998, had been provided in the report; expressed concern about the absence of an explicit penal provision in the State party's legislation prohibiting organizations and propaganda activities that advocated racial hatred; and regretted the insufficiency of information on the participation of minorities in the economic and social development of the country. The Committee said it was concerned by reports of a difficult human rights situation among the Batwa people, particularly in relation to the enjoyment of their rights over lands traditionally occupied by them, and requested information with regard to that issue in referece to General Recommendation XXIII.
While noting efforts made by the State party to resume dialogue with rebels of the Lord's Resistance Army in the north of the country, the Committee remained concerned about the reports of grave acts of violence committed during internal strife against different tribes in the Gulu and Kitgum districts; it invited the State party to continue its efforts to restore peace in the region and to protect vulnerable groups from human rights violations, notably tribal groups and children.
The Committee, while acknowledging the efforts deployed by the State party to fight HIV/AIDS, was concerned about its rapid spread that affected the population throughout the country, particularly marginalized ethnic groups; and it recommended that the State party continue to develop strategies in that regard and that due consideration be given to the specific situation of women.
The Committee recommended that the State party take into account the relevant parts of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action when implementing the Convention in its domestic legal order.
Conclusions and Recommendations on Reports of Morocco
Among positive aspects to the fourteenth to sixteenth periodic reports of Morocco, the Committee welcomed with satisfaction the State party's continued efforts to promote a culture of human rights, including the objectives of the Convention; the establishment on 15 April 2000, by the Ministry of Human Rights, in cooperation with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and UN Development Programme (UNDP), of a human rights documentation, information and training centre; the establishment of an Ombudsman (Diwan Al Madhalim); the increased attention being paid to the Amazigh culture, with the establishment of the Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture; and the steps taken by the State party to make the declaration provided for in article 14 of the Convention.
While taking into account the State party's explanations concerning the difficulties encountered in determining the ethnic composition of the population, the Committee noted with regret that there was still a complete lack of information on that point in its reports; and invited the State party to provide information on the ethnic characteristics of the population of Morocco in its next report.
The Committee invited the State party to consider the possibility of constitutional recognition of the Amazigh component of the population in its territory; and also invited the State party to recognized Amazigh as one of the national languages and to introduce the teachings of Amazigh at all levels of the education system. It requested the State party to take appropriate steps to put an end, once and for all, to the practice of prohibiting the entering of Amazigh first names in the civil register.