COUNCIL DISCUSSES REPORTS ON FOREIGN DEBT, MERCENARIES, HOUSING, EDUCATION, TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATIONS AND COUNTER-TERRORISM

Human Rights Council

25 September 2006




Also Hears Questions and Comments on Report on Sale of Children


The Human Rights Council today heard the presentation of reports on the effects of structural adjustment policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights; the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination; the right to adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living; the right to education; human rights and transnational corporations; and the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism.

Bernards Andrew Nyamwaya Mudho, Independent Expert on the effects of structural adjustment policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights, said three considerations were crucial if debt relief was to raise the expected benefits. Firstly, resources provided by the donor community by way of debt relief should be truly additional to existing and future development aid. Secondly, recognition ought to be made to the fact that each country bore the primary responsibility for its own development and realisation of human rights. Thirdly, civil society and independent national human rights institutions ought to continue to play an active role in monitoring the budgeting and spending of resources of additional heavily indebted poor countries and Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative. Mr. Mudho also presented reports on his mission to Mozambique.

Juan Miguel Petit, Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, presented his report at the end of the afternoon on Friday, 22 September and the Council also heard questions and comments on his report today in the absence of the Special Rapporteur.

Speaking as concerned countries on the reports on the sale of children and on economic reform policies and foreign debt were the representatives of Albania, Greece, Mozambique and Iraq.
Participating in the interactive dialogue on the sale of children and on economic reform policies and foreign debt were the representatives of Cuba, Sri Lanka, Uruguay, Philippines, Finland on behalf of the European Union, Slovenia, Bangladesh, Mali, Russian Federation, Argentina, Costa Rica, Pakistan, Japan, United States, Peru, Sudan and Ecuador. The following non-governmental organizations also took the floor: World Organization against Torture, in a joint statement with several NGOs1, Indian Movement “Tupaj Amaru” and World Young Women's Christian Association.

Amada Benavides de Perez, Chairperson of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of people to self-determination, underlined two elements present in the new mandate of the Working Group. First, the mandate went beyond the traditional concepts on the use of mercenaries, as the Working Group had been asked to follow the activities of private firms offering military assistance, advice and security services in the international market. Second, the mandate dealt with the effects of this thematic focus on all human rights. The Working Group continued to deal with issues that had been undertaken by prior Special Rapporteurs with relation to the new definition of mercenaries and the consolidation of the international legal framework for the prevention and punishment of activities on recruitment, use, financing and training of mercenaries. The Working Group wished to put emphasis on the primary responsibility under international and national law by States to maintain public security, law, and order.

Speaking as concerned countries on the report on mercenaries were Ecuador and Honduras.

Participating in the interactive dialogue on mercenaries were Cuba and the Russian Federation.

Honduras exercised its right of reply.

Miloon Kothari, Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, said forced evictions and displacement were taking place in countries world wide, from democratic to authoritarian States. The vast majority of forced evictions grossly violated a wide range of human rights and indicated a systematic disregard for recognised human rights standards on the part of States. The report presented an analysis of several identified obstacles to the effective realisation of housing and land rights for women, including homelessness among women, violence against them, discriminatory cultural and social norms and family or personal laws, multiple discrimination, participation of civic services and unaffordability of housing for women, and the impacts of natural disasters, forced evictions and HIV/AIDS on women. The Special Rapporteur spoke about his country visits to Iran and Cambodia.

Vernor Munoz Villalobos, Special Rapporteur on the right to education, said it was very important to contribute to the debate on the advancement attained on the realization of the right to education on girls’ education, in view of the first assessment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). States had to increase their efforts to eliminate attitudes and discriminatory stereotypes, as well as customs and persistent practices that relegated women to an inferior position. Education was key to the elimination of these practices. It was worrisome to note that no State had been able to eliminate the gender gap comprising all aspects of social life. He also carried out a mission to Botswana.

John Ruggie, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, said the mandate touched on foundational questions in the evolution of modern international law and governance: to what extent, and how, should they be modified in order to manage the impact of non-State actors, in the case at hand, business enterprises? The stakes for people everywhere could not be higher -- previous eras of globalization had unravelled because they failed adequately to embed market forces within frameworks of rules and values that secured the needs of human community and the desire for social justice. The success of this mandate could help make globalization work for all. His bottom line was that the last thing victims needed was more unenforced declarations -- they needed effective action.

Martin Scheinin, Special Rapporteur on the protection and promotion of human rights while countering terrorism, said he had identified five “current trends” in counter-terrorism measures that entailed a risk of human rights violations, including the well-established trend of States resorting to the notion of “terrorism” to stigmatise political, ethnic, regional or other movements they simply did not like, and the recent trend of the international community risking to become indifferent to the abuse of the notion of terrorism, and instead calling for effective measures against “terrorism” without defining the term. There was also a most alarming trend of questioning or compromising the absolute prohibition of torture and of all forms of cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment. He had conducted his first country visit to Turkey.

Speaking as concerned countries on housing, education, transnational corporations and counter-terrorism were Iran, Cambodia, Australia, Botswana and Turkey.

Participating in the interactive dialogue on housing, education, transnational corporations and counter-terrorism were Switzerland, Chile, Morocco, Nicaragua, Finland, Argentina, China, Republic of Korea, United States, Portugal and Costa Rica.,

Zimbabwe exercised its right of reply.

The Council today held an extended meeting from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. The next meeting of the Council will be held at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, 26 September when it will conclude its discussion on issues relating to housing, education, transnational corporations and counter-terrorism before taking up the reports of the Special Procedures on the situation of human rights in Somalia, Cuba and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.


Reports Presented to the Council

The Council has before it a report (E/CN.4/2006/46) entitled report of the Independent Expert on the effects of economic reform policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, which reviews the latest developments on the G-8 debt relief initiative, and possible implications for the debt sustainability framework currently employed by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. He welcomes the political commitment towards 100 per cent debt cancellation of multilateral debts owed to these institutions for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) completion point countries, as a step forward towards broader and deeper debt relief. The international community needs to ensure that these and other debt relief initiatives represent truly additional resources, and to consider additional measures and initiatives aimed at ensuring long-term sustainability through increased grant-based financing, full cancellation of other official multilateral and bilateral debt of HIPCs, as well as significantly more debt relief for low- and middle-income non-HIPC developing countries.

The Independent Expert also highlights the need to explore new mechanisms to comprehensively address the debt problems of these countries. He suggests that an independent peer review mechanism be instituted to determine, or provide alternative views on, a country’s debt sustainability situation. Such a peer review would serve as an accountability mechanism, with participation of independent national human rights institutions.

The report concludes with the following interim recommendations and proposals for the next steps in further elaborating guidelines: (a) welcoming the political commitment of the international community represented, in particular, in the G-8 initiative and taking note of recent developments with respect to debt sustainability; (b) extending by one year the time frame for the elaboration of draft guidelines and calling for holding an expert consultation; (c) urging States, international organizations, civil society and other stakeholders to submit their views and suggestions on possible elements for consideration in the draft general guidelines; and (d) encouraging the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue working on the issues of indicators as well as to cooperate with the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs, the World Bank and the IMF to integrate human rights considerations into MDG-based assessment of debt sustainability.

The Council is considering a report of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of people to self-determination (E/CN.4/2006/11) which presents the results the Group’s first session, held from 10 to 14 October 2005 in Geneva. The Working Group met with representatives of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and consulted States and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations on implementation of the Group’s mandate. Concerning its methods of work, the Working Group addressed the frequency of meetings, meeting location, whether the meetings should be private or public, the periodicity of the chairpersonship, the establishment of a complaint mechanism, and consultation with private sector actors and field missions. The Working Group decided to hold its second session in early 2006.

Concerning substantive areas of work, the Working Group agreed to concentrate initially on two issues: first, the role of the State as the primary holder of the monopoly of the use of force, and related issues such as sovereignty and State responsibility to protect and ensure respect for human rights by all actors. Second, the Group intends to address governmental agreements that provide private military and security companies and their employees with immunity for human rights violations.

An addendum to the above report (E/CN.4/2006/11/Add.1) presents the results of a meeting, held from 13 to 17 February 2006 in Geneva, which completed the Working Group’s first session, held from 10 to 14 October 2005. The Working Group reviewed several country situations and considered appropriate action. The members also agreed to proceed with establishing a network of academics working on the study of mercenaries and mercenary-related activities; to undertake a comparative analysis of relevant national and regional legislation; and to recommend the convening of a high-level round table under United Nations auspices to discuss the role of the State as primary holder of the monopoly on the use of force.

The Council has before it a report (E/CN.4/2006/41 entitled report of the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context, which underlines a number of key areas where enhanced work will be needed in the future, by a range of actors, such as on land and property concerns and the impact of natural disasters and humanitarian emergencies on the right to adequate housing. Finally, the Special Rapporteur provides guidelines for States on development-based evictions, as a practical tool for implementation.

The Special Rapporteur confirms his use of an approach stressing the indivisibility of human rights, without which the right to adequate housing loses its meaning. Whereas this approach initially meant focusing on the interface between adequate housing as an economic, social and cultural right, and relevant civil and political rights such as the right to information and the right to the security of the home, the work of the Special Rapporteur has demonstrated repeatedly that the existing interlinkages go far beyond. An in-depth analysis of the multi-layered content of the human right to adequate housing necessitates the exploration of linkages with other related rights such as the rights to land, food, water, health, work, property, equality, inheritance, security of the person, and protection against inhuman and degrading treatment, with non-discrimination and security of tenure at the core.

In his recommendations the Special Rapporteur, in the context of the continued global housing crisis, requests the Council to continue the mandate on adequate housing, to initiate a process of adopting the guidelines on forced evictions that the Special Rapporteur has proposed, to consider recognition of land as a human right and to request States to arrest urban and rural apartheid and segregation and to control unbridled property speculation and land confiscations.

The Council is reviewing a report by the Special Rapporteur on the right to education (E/CN.4/2006/45) on girls’ right to education which addresses the socio-cultural context of gender discrimination by defining the concept of patriarchalism, which underpins discriminatory behaviours. He denounces the negative impact on education, and especially on girls’ education, of the persistent consideration of education as being a service rather than a human right and insists on the importance of ensuring not only girls’ access to school but also their completion of the education cycle. The report identifies obstacles to education for girls, such as early marriages and pregnancies, child labour (especially domestic work) and armed conflicts. The Special Rapporteur draws attention to aggravating factors and highlights the key role of human rights education and its concrete implementation at the classroom level to combat gender discrimination and stereotypes. The report also summarizes replies received to the questionnaire sent to different stakeholders to solicit information on the realization of the right to education for girls, extracting major trends from the replies and validating his findings. The report provides a set of recommendations based on the four elements identified as components of the right to education, namely, availability, accessibility, acceptability and adaptability.

An addendum to the above report (E/CN.4/2006/45/Add.1) contains an account of the Special Rapporteur’s mission to Botswana.

The Council is taking up an interim report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises (E/CN.4/2006/97) which is intended to frame the overall context encompassing the mandate as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General sees it, to outline the general strategic approach taken, and to summarize the current and planned programme of activities.

And the Council is today taking up a report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Martin Scheinin (E/CN.4/2006/98). Chapter I summarizes the activities of the Special Rapporteur since he took up his mandate in August 2005, pursuant to Commission resolution 2005/80. Chapter II gives an overview of the communications sent by the Special Rapporteur and replies received thereto from Governments between 15 August and 15 December 2005. In chapter III, the Special Rapporteur makes some preliminary observations on elements of a definition of terrorism as to the relevance of this issue for human-rights-conform responses to terrorism. Chapter IV consists of an analysis of the role of human rights in the review of Member State reports to the Counter-Terrorism Committee of the Security Council and sets out possible forms of cooperation between the Special Rapporteur and the Counter-Terrorism Committee. Chapter V contains brief reflections by the Special Rapporteur on certain issues of major importance that will require further elaboration in subsequent reports. The conclusions are contained in chapter VI.

An addendum to the above report (E/CN.4/2006/98/Add.1) contains a summary of communications sent to Governments and responses received. And an addendum to the above report (E/CN.4/2006/98/Add.2) contains an account of the Special Rapporteur’s mission to Turkey.
Presentation by Independent Expert on Structural Adjustment Policies and Foreign Debt

BERNARDS ANDREW NYAMWAYA MUDHO, Independent Expert on the effects of structural adjustment policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights, said during the last year, the debt situation of poor developing countries had only slightly improved. Overall debt burden of this group was still estimated at about $ 500 billion, and debt service had continued to undermine the economic policy space of these countries, and their ability to use internal and external resources in a way that was conducive to full achievement of all human rights and the Millennium Development Goals. However, some progress had been attained over the last months. Donors had approved debt relief of $ 56 billion for 28 countries, under the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI). Admittedly, this was a modest amount compared to the $ 500 billion debt burden poor countries were saddled with, and the short term impact would probably be rather limited since the initiative involved only a restricted number of poor countries and only three financing institutions. Nevertheless, it should be welcomed as an important first step.

Three considerations were crucial if debt relief was to raise the expected benefits. Firstly, resources provided by the donor community by way of debt relief should be truly additional to existing and future development aid so that their positive effects are not offset by a reduction in traditional bilateral or multilateral cooperation programmes contributing to Millennium Development Goal achievement. Secondly, recognition ought to be made to the fact that each country bore the primary responsibility for its own development and realisation of human rights and by carefully managing the additional policy space created by debt relief, beneficiary countries needed to ensure that the resources provided translated into real progress towards the realisation of the human rights of their citizens. Thirdly, civil society and independent national human rights institutions ought to continue to play an active role in monitoring the budgeting and spending of additional HIPC and MDRI resources, in order to support their utilisation in coherence with human rights and Millennium Development Goal priorities.

At the invitation of the Government of Mozambique, the Independent Expert had undertaken a mission to the country in July 2005. Despite the high rate of economic growth in recent years, the country remained near the bottom of the UNDP human development index. There was also wide regional disparity within the country in terms of progress in poverty reduction. The mission had been informative in developing an understanding that economic growth and macroeconomic stability were necessary, but not in themselves sufficient, conditions for the reduction of poverty and the realisation of human rights. The Independent Expert welcomed the strengthening of a participatory Poverty Observatory in Mozambique that was designed to monitor and evaluate all actions carried out in the poverty reduction process, and recommended further capacity strengthening of non-Governmental stakeholders, in particular the Parliament and civil society to scrutinise public budget to the end that human rights considerations were duly taken into account.

Statements by Concerned Countries on Sale of Children and Structural Adjustment Policies and Foreign Debt

SEJDI QERIMAJ (Albania), speaking as a concerned country, congratulated Juan Miguel Petit, Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography, for his report. Albania thanked the Special Rapporteur for his effort and work to draft a realistic and detailed report of his visit to Albania from 31 October to 7 November 2005. Taking into account the report and its recommendations, Albania three months after the Special Rapporteur’s visit to the country, signed with Greece the Agreement on the Protection and Assistance of Children Victims of Trafficking.


The Ministry of Justice, also upon recommendation of the Special Rapporteur, established a working group to prepare the necessary changes concerning the rights of children in the Penal Code. With reference to national strategies, Albania had set up different national strategies, particularly the Strategy on the Amelioration of Living Conditions of the Roma Community. This Strategy was established in 2001, and was considered an effective measure concerning the protection of vulnerable individuals to trafficking.

FRANCISCOS VERROS (Greece), speaking as a concerned country on the report of Juan Miguel Petit, the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, said that during Mr. Petit’s visit to Greece he had met with the representatives of the Government and civil society. His report contained description of this visit and recommendations to the Government. The Government attached primary importance to the protection of children, including to prevention and assistance to victims of trafficking in human beings and non-accompanied children. As stressed by the Rapporeteur, because of its economic growth, Greece had become a magnet attraction for migrants, which had incited the Government to adopt measures to face the new situation. During the last five years, Greece had adopted, in conformity with international standards, new laws on trafficking on human beings, and on protection of vulnerable groups. The new legislation on trafficking on human beings was accompanied with a national plan of action. Very recently, adequate programmes and special services for minor foreign children had been put in place with the aim of providing them with a better service and social integration, including simplified access to medical treatment.

Great efforts had been made to put in place measures to inform the public about trafficking in persons. Seminars and conferences had also been organized in cooperation with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organization for Migrants. Agreements of cooperation had also been signed with 16 non-governmental organizations and civil societies. The authorities were encouraged by the Rapporteur’s positive evaluation of the situation in Greece.

MANUEL CARLOS (Mozambique), speaking as a concerned country, said in his report, the Independent Expert described the effects of external debt, adding his accounts to the effort and the commitment of the Government and all of Mozambique’s society to face the daily challenges of the debt. During his mission to Mozambique, the Independent Expert discussed issues in depth with concerned authorities, such as the Ministry of Finance.

Mozambique had taken note of the recommendations of the report, and the Government was committed to continuing to work towards the improvement of the situation of all its citizens.

SAAD FATEHALLAH (Iraq), speaking as concerned country, thanked Juan Miguel Petit, Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography and Bernards Andrew Nyamwaya Mudho, the Independent Expert on the effects of economic reform policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights. Iraq was heavily affected by its foreign debt in spite of the efforts made by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to alleviate it. Iraq was also burdened by war compensation disbursements to Iran and Kuwait. These tough economic conditions had a special negative impact in the lower-income earning sector of society.

Interactive Dialogue on Sale of Children and Structural Adjustment Policies and Foreign Debt

YURI ARIEL GALA LOPEZ (Cuba), with reference to the report of the Independent Expert on the effects of economic reform policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, said Cuba attached great importance to the subject dealt with by the Expert, particularly with foreign debt. The issue of external debt was of great concern to developing countries because it was hampering their full social and economic developments. The payment of external debt had now reached an unbearable level for many developing countries. What did the Expert think about the idea of the general guidelines to reflect a shared responsibility among the developed countries, the developing countries and the international financial institutions.

HIRANTHI LEYEMANNE (Sri Lanka) said with regards to the report of Mr. Petit, Sri Lanka was among the first countries to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and a National Child Protection Authority was established in 1998 with a special police unit responsible for investigations in relation to sexual abuse and exploitation of children, including the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. Sri Lanka had, last week, ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, as well as the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime, and believed the ratification of these would strengthen the legal framework to further promote child rights and deal effectively with transnational organised crime.

On concerns regarding the high incidence of violence against women, current reported information on gender-based violence revealed low figures. This could also be due to cultural barriers, but measures had been undertaken to establish Women and Children Police desks to improve reporting as well as law enforcement, and Sri Lanka was hopeful that this would lead to more reporting and better legal follow-up, protection, and support for vulnerable girls and women.

ALEJANDRA DE BELLIS (Uruguay), speaking as a concerned country, thanked Juan Miguel Petit, Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography, for his report. Uruguay found it very adequate that the Special Rapporteur had put the emphasis in his report on the commercial sexual exploitation of children. The increasing and indiscriminate use of the Internet for the dissemination of child pornography was without any doubt playing an important role in the spread of this behaviour. Uruguay asked the Special Rapporteur how to increase preventive measures to combat the commercial sexual exploitation of children, including national education campaigns and the social reintegration of victims.

HENDRIK GARCIA (Philippines), referring to the reports on the sale of children and on foreign debt, first asked the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography about the efforts of governments to criminalize and raise awareness abut the sex tourism which resulted in the reduction of incidents of child exploitation. With regard to the report of the Independent Expert on the effects of economic enjoyment of all human rights, he supported his linking of debt relief with the fulfilment of the Millennium Development Goals.

KIRSTI POHJANKUKKA, (Finland), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said on the presentation by Mr. Petit, the European Union welcomed his report. Full protection of the rights of the child was an important part of the European Union’s human rights agenda, which remained deeply concerned about violence against children, including its most depraved forms such as child prostitution, and child pornography. What could improve institutional follow-up on the rights of the child, and how could the complementarity of the main instruments be ensured, the speaker asked, also inquiring what kind of activities would be undertaken by the Special Rapporteur to ensure improved assistance to child victims and their protection; and what concrete plans he had for joint activities.

ANDREJ LOGAR (Slovenia) thanked Juan Miguel Petit, Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography, for his report. Slovenia recalled the importance for countries to implement the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Slovenia asked the Special Rapporteur to provide further information with reference to the experience of more than 30 States which had passed legislation to deal with offenders and difficulties encountered by these countries in implementing such policies.

MUSTAFISUR RAHMAN (Bangladesh), referring to the report of Mr. Mudho on the effects of economic reform policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, said that the suggestions to bring in human rights perspectives in the economic policies and debt servicing was an appealing and novel undertaking. No one would disagree, foreign debt burden implicated social programmes of many developing countries and affected achievement of fundamental economic, social and cultural rights. He asked the Expert, from his experience in Mozambique, if he had seen any remarkable benefit of the debt relief initiative in that country. What were the impediments?

FATOUMATA DIALL (Mali) said with regards to the report of Mr. Petit, a number of West African countries had signed a multilateral cooperation agreement to combat child trafficking, including Mali. Mali had also withdrawn its reservation to the Convention on the rights of the child. The protection and promotion of rights of the child and those of children was one of the main axes of the Government’s policy to promote human rights.

GALINA KHVAN (Russian Federation) thanked Juan Miguel Petit, Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography, and Bernards Andrew Nyamwaya Mudho, Independent Expert on the effects of economic reform policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, for their respective reports. Russia asked Juan Miguel Petit if there was new information concerning good governance and other governmental recommendations made in response to his first report dealing with child pornography and the Internet. In addition, the Russian Federation asked Mr. Petit about the distinction he made in his report between compulsory and voluntary prostitution in the current context of globalization.

SERGIO CERDA (Argentina), referring to the report of the Independent Expert, Mr. Mudho, said that the Expert had mentioned the need to draw indicators, which were essential to quantify development.

ALEJANDRO SOLANO (Costa Rica) said the report of Mr. Petit brought to light important information, including that trafficking in children continued, which was a scandalous situation. All possible efforts should be made to stop military officials from working in situations linked to child trafficking. The international community should install international norms to criminalize more effectively trafficking.

TEHMINA JANJUA (Pakistan) thanked Bernards Andrew Nyamwaya Mudho, Independent Expert on the effects of economic reform policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, for his report and oral briefing. Pakistan agreed with the Special Rapporteur on the crushing effect of foreign debt on developing countries. It was also important to focus on the effect of the debt on low and middle-income countries, in particular to the diversion of resources from the social arena, particularly dealing with women and children, to the payment of the foreign debt. Pakistan believed that standard prescription to deal with the debt was not effective. Rather, Pakistan considered more effective the implementation of home grown solutions to the foreign debt.

SHIGERU ENDO (Japan) said commercial sexual exploitation of children was a violation of the fundamental rights of the child, and was a global problem. Japan believed that the issue of demand for exploitative commercial sexual services was of crucial importance in addressing child prostitution and had taken legal measures at the domestic as well as the international level.

Japan believed that any countermeasures against child prostitution and pornography could not be successfully achieved without cooperation among the countries concerned. Japan was determined to continue to work for the eradication of child prostitution and child pornography.

WARREN W. TICHENOR (United States) said with regards to Mr. Petit’s report, additional attention was needed to the crucial aspect of the problem that was the commercial exploitation of children. The report’s mention of the problem of child sex tourism, a shameful assault on the dignity of children and a form of violent child abuse with devastating consequences for its victims, was appreciated, and the Special Rapporteur should expand on his views of the measures that States should take on a priority basis in this area. Further, he should elaborate on his plans to coordinate with Ms. Sigma Huda, the Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons.

INTI ZEVALLOS (Peru) thanked Juan Miguel Petit, Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography, for his report and visit to the country. Peru had taken some measures aimed at combating the sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography, such as an information campaign that put the emphasis on the commercial sexual exploitation of children and penalties for offenders, including the written media, radio. In addition, the Criminal Court had made amendments to penalize offences of the rights of children. The police had set up a special unit to deal with child-related crime.

HAMATO MUKHTAR MUSA (Sudan) said that Sudan had listened carefully to the reports presented and had a few comments. Only 10 per cent of the debt of developing countries had been eliminated. A strategy had been developed by developed countries for developing countries, which tended to ignore the importance of good governance. Policies for poverty alleviation should take into account the status of governance.

GALO LARENAS SERRANO (Ecuador) said on the report of Mr. Petit, human rights began with the rights of the child, which were elements which generated society and the State, and therefore it was of capital importance that the international community ensure protection, and that international law provide protection for children. Thirty-four communications had been sent to Governments of 25 countries relating to different cases, and Ecuador took note with alarm that barely four answers had been received, one eighth of those sent. Effective immediate action should be taken to ensure that these communications were responded to.

RENATA SCHENK, of World Organization against Torture, in a joint statement with several NGOs1, said that, while conscious of the need to mainstream children’s rights into the entire human rights system, children had specific needs and concerns that necessitated the adoption of an explicit children’s rights focus by the Council. This statement was their call to action by the Council on four specific children’s rights issues: violence against children; the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography; children affected by armed conflict and displacement; and children in conflict with the law. The organization also looked forward to the innovative creation of a specific space to allow children themselves to participate in the work of the Council.

LAZARO PARY, of Indian Movement “Tupaj Amaru”, said on economic, social and cultural rights, the balance sheet of structural adjustment programmes was sad and sombre. External debt was increasingly burdensome, with phenomena building up fertile terrain for racial hatred and terrorist acts, among others. From the establishment of the IMF to the World Bank to today, perverse acts had created problems for the world, with abuse of the IMF’s recommendations, based on the flexibility of markets and advocating the liberalisation of trade, freezing of salaries, cutting budgets for health and education and unbridled privatisation of companies and services that were the property of the state, with poverty and extreme poverty growing.

CARINA SODERLUND, of World Young Women's Christian Association, said that more than two million children were victims of sexual exploitation worldwide. Child pornography was a growing problem on the Internet. Women’s Christian Association urged States to take action against child abuse, and bring child-abuse offenders to justice. It also supported enhancing international cooperation among the police, and improving the sharing of information concerning the commercial sexual exploitation of children in a systematic way.

Concluding Statement on Structural Adjustment Policies and Foreign Debt

BERNARDS ANDREW NYAMWAYA MUDHO, the Independent Expert on the effects of economic reform policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, responding to questions and comments on his report, said that he would like the representative of Mozambique to convey his gratitude for all the help he had received to the Government. He had made a recommendation that the Council might wish to extend the period for elaborating the guidelines. In that context, he wished to thank the delegation of Mexico, for supporting that recommendation, as well as the only four countries that had so far responded to his request for questions and comments ­­­­-- Cuba, Mexico, the Russian Federation and South Africa. It would now be clear why he had stated in his report that it would not be really representative of the views of the Council if he were to proceed with the completion of the draft guidelines.

With respect to the comment by Iraq, Mr. Mudho acknowledged that it was true that the report focused on the heavily indebted poor countries. He was indeed aware of the devastating effect of the conflict on Iraq and on its ability to fulfil its international obligations. He had recommended measures to alleviate debt burdens of countries should not be limited to those that were most heavily indebted, but also those who were coming out of conflict. Regarding the suggestions of Cuba, he agreed that the guidelines should take into account the work of the General Assembly and the various summits, as well as the various organs, including the Human Rights Commission, and now the Council. He agreed that the concept of shared responsibility was one that had to be taken into account. The suggestion of so-called aid for debt was another interesting alternative. As noted in his report, debt relief, in and of itself, was not enough.

Presentation of Report on Mercenaries

AMADA BENAVIDES DE PEREZ, Chairperson of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of people to self-determination, said that the Working Group, since its inception, had consulted with States, regional organizations, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, as well as other stakeholders. During its first session, the Working Group had adopted its working methods and considered specific country situations.

She underlined two elements present in the new mandate of the Working Group. First, the mandate went beyond the traditional concepts on the use of mercenaries, as the Working Group had been asked to follow the activities of private firms offering military assistance, advice and security services in the international market. Second, the mandate dealt with the effects of this thematic focus on all human rights. The Working Group continued to deal with issues that had been undertaken by prior Special Rapporteurs with relation to the new definition of mercenaries and the consolidation of the international legal framework for the prevention and punishment of activities on recruitment, use, financing and training of mercenaries.

The Working Group wished to put emphasis on the primary responsibility under international and national law by States to maintain public security, law, and order. The Working Group encouraged States to ratify the 1989 Convention dealing with recruitment, use, financing and training of mercenaries. In addition, the Working Group urged States to undertake a discussion on the fundamental question of the role of the State as the primary holder of the monopoly of the use of force. The Working Group warned about the growing phenomenon in which States handed over essential military and security tasks to private companies, and expressed particularly concern that military companies and private security companies, in armed conflict areas, were committing violations of human rights with impunity. While the responsibility of non-state actors was still under discussion, the Working Group considered that private companies, including any other entity of society, these actors had to abide by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The Working Group received information concerning the link between the activities of some private military companies or private companies and groups of mercenaries. This information included the group involved in the attempt of coup d’etat in Equatorial Guinea, which was composed of mercenaries and managers of private security companies. In Papua New-Guinea, former soldiers from Fiji were alleged to have been recruited to undertake security operations in Bouganville without the appropriate visas. The Working Group also received information on the violation of human rights, perpetrated in the Abu Ghraib prisons in Iraq, by private military and security company employees.

Statements by Concerned Countries on Report on Mercenaries

GALO LARENAS SERRANO, (Ecuador), speaking as a concerned country, said the concern of Ecuador for human rights was reflected in its invitations to Special Rapporteurs and other mechanisms. The important points raised by Dr Benavides de Perez had been taken into account, as had her comments during her visit. An early-warning signal was seen in the form of the awareness of various measures and procedures to cover up the activities of mercenaries, which activities were illegal, as they flouted both domestic legislation and international law.

The review and consideration of the procedures by the international community through the Human Rights Council set a legal and moral precedent for dealing with reform, and called for serious follow-up.

J. DELMER URBIZO (Honduras), speaking as a concerned country, said that, in general, the work of the Working Group had been most commendable. Honduras had taken some preliminary steps to ensure that these verbal reports were not considered definitive, and indeed they were just provisional. He had been surprised that, in referring to Honduras and Ecuador, the first paragraph mentioned them in the context of the recruitment of mercenaries, which appeared to infer that just those two countries had breached international laws in that respect. Honduras looked forward to the final report, because at this moment they did not have the ability to defend themselves against the implications of that paragraph of the Working Group. It was necessary to look into the roots of such activities, for example, looking into the coalition that intervened in Iraq to discover where the resources came from for the recruitment of mercenaries. When the official report came out, the Government of Honduras would conduct or complete any investigations on such allegations.

Interactive Debate on Report on Mercenaries

MARIA DEL CARMEN HERRERA (Cuba) said with regards to the report of the Working Group on mercenaries which had already carried out a significant amount of work in fulfilment of its mandate, it had been very effective. Note had been taken with interest and seriousness of the recommendation to have three sessions instead of one. The magnitude and extent of the mandate required clarification, as did the activities planned for future work of the Group. There should be a high-level roundtable to deal with the issue, and the Chairperson should give further information as to what this could include.

ALEXEY AKZHIGITOV (Russian Federation) welcomed the report and the recommendations in it. The Working Group should pay attention to stress the accountability of the mercenaries with regard to territorial integrity of State.

Concluding Statement by Chairperson of Working Group on Mercenaries

AMADA BENAVIDES DE PEREZ, Chairperson of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries, responding to questions and comments, said that all the points included in the paper, first of all, had been worked on very conscientiously, and that, regarding what was said by Honduras, in no place in the paragraph he had referred to did the report seek to set out conclusions. It merely alluded to a general phenomenon in the region, which the Working Group had been able to establish thanks to its visits to the two countries mentioned. The reference to Ecuador and Honduras was only owing to the fact that that had been where the country visits of the Working Group to that region had taken place. But the phenomenon was to be understood as applying to the region.

Ms. Benavides de Pérez explained that the Working Group was requesting three annual meetings because of the critical issue of mercenaries and private military security companies acting as non-State actors and violating human rights. The resolution called on the Working Group to prepare guidelines for international standards to cover such private military security companies, which was an increasing concern. The Special Representative of the Secretary-General on human rights and transnational corporations had been called upon to work jointly on the issue, as it was one on which the two mandates had common concerns. It was necessary for the Working Group to have three meetings to cover all the work involved. They had already received a number of offers from countries to host the meetings. The idea was to hold regional round tables as a preliminary to a general round table on the issue of the yielding to private actors of the use of force by States.

Right of Reply

J. DELMER URBIZO, (Honduras), speaking in a right to reply, said the Working Group had of course done its work, but the inclusion of these points in the paragraph were objected to - there should be a separate paragraph listing countries that supported the issue. There should be a legal effort to clarify the point. If the name of Honduras was not withdrawn from the paragraph and moved to a separate paragraph, then Honduras would lodge a complaint.

Presentation on Reports on Adequate Housing, Education, Transnational Corporations and Counter-Terrorism

MILOON KOTHARI, Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, said in his work he had adopted an indivisibility of human rights approach - this had allowed him to use the range of human rights related to the right to housing including the right to security of the person and home, freedom from inhuman and degrading treatment, and the right to information and participation, allowing him to tackle one of the most pervasive and increasingly destructive violations of the right to adequate housing, the practice of forced evictions. Forced evictions and displacement were taking place in countries world wide, from democratic to authoritarian States. Many were so-called development-based evictions, including evictions often planned or conducted with the justification or under the pretext of serving the “public good”. Evictions were also on the rise due to the reluctance of States to control speculation in housing and property.

The vast majority of forced evictions grossly violated a wide range of human rights and indicated a systematic disregard for recognised human rights standards on the part of States. Forced evictions pushed people into homelessness, inadequate housing conditions and poverty. Almost without exception, they affected the poorest, the socially and economically most vulnerable and marginalized sectors of society, and resulted in loss of livelihoods, and intensified inequality and social conflict, contributing to segregation and the creation of what the Special Rapporteur called apartheid cities and villages. The impact on affected communities could be characterised as a human tragedy. Nevertheless, forced evictions continued to occur in total impunity, with rare, if any, reaction by the international community.

The Special Rapporteur’s third report that he was submitting presented an analysis of several identified obstacles to the effective realisation of housing and land rights for women, including homelessness among women, violence against them, discriminatory cultural and social norms and family or personal laws, multiple discrimination, participation of civic services and unaffordability of housing for women, and the impacts of natural disasters, forced evictions and HIV/AIDS on women. There continued to be a need for States to strengthen national legal and policy frameworks for protecting women’s rights to adequate housing, land and inheritance, and to provide avenues for redress where violations occurred. As indicated by testimonies and other information, there was a culture of silence regarding the prevalence of violations across the world of women’s rights to adequate housing and land. The report presented specific suggestions on how to ensure the elaboration of gender-sensitive housing policies and legislation.

The Special Rapporteur had undertaken two country visits: to Iran, where he noted the positive steps taken by a number of Governmental bodies to improve housing conditions in the country given the adverse context of post-war and post-disaster reconstruction; and to Cambodia, where he had tried to draw the attention of the Government to the fact that evictions were carried out in a way that violated a wide number of human rights, and sincere measures should be taken to prevent this.

VERNOR MUNOZ VILLALOBOS, Special Rapporteur on the right to education, submitted his report on the activities undertaken during 2005-2006. By the end of 2005, the Special Rapporteur considered it very important to contribute to the debate on the advancement attained on the realization of the right to education of girls’ education, in view of the first assessment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The MDGs aimed at the elimination of the gender disparity in primary education, and constituted an important reference point to achieving universal primary education by 2015. The Special Rapporteur said that States had to increase their efforts to eliminate attitudes and discriminatory stereotypes, as well as customs and persistent practices that had relegated women to an inferior position. Education was key to the elimination of these practices. In consequence, girls’ education was fundamental to the development of responsible citizens, who would also respect all human rights. Girl’s education was about equality and therefore also dealt with a just, solidarity-based, egalitarian and peaceful society.

It was worrisome to note that no State had been able to eliminate the gender gap comprising all aspects of social life. This meant that gender inequality was not the mechanical result of poverty, as it had been amply documented in North America and in Europe, where inequality persisted in the area of access and the remaining obstacles continued to negatively affect the education of girls and their life opportunities. Difficulties encountered by girls and adolescents were many times aggravated by other kinds of exclusions related to disabilities, ethnic or geographic origin, religious belief or the absence of it. Child work had worse consequences on the education of girls because they had to undergo related forms of aggression and exclusion associated with domestic work. Even though poverty was not the only factor limiting the autonomy of women, poverty when considered in association with marriage and early maternity, it affected formal education of adolescents, as they practically lacked work opportunities except for domestic work and child rearing.

With reference to his visit to Botswana, the Special Rapporteur stated that education has been a dominant priority in the development of the country since independence, and that the Government had achieved incredible progress towards the general schooling of the population. Botswana had reached almost universal primary education and had made important progress towards gender equality. Nevertheless, Botswana faced challenges in different key areas related to the realization of the right to education.
The present report focused on girls’ right to education. In view of the first assessment of the Millennium Development Goals, the Special Rapporteur wished to focus on Goals 2 and 3, on universal primary education and gender equality. The Special Rapporteur addressed the socio-cultural context of gender discrimination by defining the concept of patriarchalism, which underpinned discriminatory behaviours. He denounced the negative impact on education, and especially on girls’ education, of the persistent consideration of education as being a service rather than a human right and insisted on the importance of ensuring not only girls’ access to school but also their completion of the education cycle. The report identified obstacles to education for girls, such as early marriages and pregnancies, child labour (especially domestic work) and armed conflicts.

The Special Rapporteur drew attention to aggravating factors and highlighted the key role of human rights education and its concrete implementation at the classroom level to combat gender discrimination and stereotypes. The report also summarized replies received to the questionnaire sent to different stakeholders to solicit information on the realization of the right to education for girls, extracting major trends from the replies and validating his findings. The report provided a set of recommendations based on the four elements identified as components of the right to education, namely, availability, accessibility, acceptability and adaptability.

JOHN G. RUGGIE, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, said the mandate touched on foundational questions in the evolution of modern international law and governance: to what extent, and how, should they be modified in order to manage the impact of non-State actors, in the case at hand, business enterprises? The stakes for people everywhere could not be higher -- previous eras of globalization had unravelled because they failed adequately to embed market forces within frameworks of rules and values that secured the needs of human community and the desire for social justice. The success of this mandate could help make globalization work for all. It was also a highly-politicised mandate, and the interim report addressed these two issues.

The mandate had the normative aim of strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights in relation to business activities, and the Special Rapporteur saw it as his job to provide the best and most dispassionate analysis. His bottom line was that the last thing victims needed was more unenforced declarations -- they needed effective action. The Special Rapporteur’s major concern had been the legal and conceptual foundation of the Norms, which he judged to be poorly conceived and therefore highly problematic in their potential effects. In the best case scenario, they would do little more than keep lawyers in gainful employment for a generation, but in the worst case, they would turn transnational corporations into more benign twenty-first century versions of East India companies, undermining the capacity of developing countries to generate independent and democratically controlled institutions capable of acting in the public interest.

To better understand the realities of business practices, Mr. Ruggie had made private site visits to the operations of major global firms in developing countries, including the mining industry, footwear and apparel, and, in the near future, the food and beverages sector. Each was complemented by separate civil society encounters. Research had been undertaken on State obligations to regulate and adjudicate the role of private companies, as defined in the seven core international human rights treaties. A project was also under way on State-owned enterprises. Much remained to be done, Mr. Ruggie said, and if there were easy solutions to the challenges the mandate was meant to meet and manage, they would have been adopted long ago.

MARTIN SCHEININ, Special Rapporteur on the protection and promotion of human rights while countering terrorism, said in his interaction with Governments and other pertinent actors he had addressed a number of concerns related to real or potential human rights violations in the context of countering terrorism. A non-exhaustive list of substantive matters of concern was included in his report. Five “current trends” in counter-terrorism measures that entailed a risk of human rights violations were identified: the well-established trend of States resorting to the notion of “terrorism” to stigmatise political, ethnic, regional or other movements they simply did not like, and the recent trend of the international community risking to become indifferent to the abuse of the notion of terrorism, and instead calling for effective measures against “terrorism” without defining the term; the most alarming trend of questioning or compromising the absolute prohibition of torture and of all forms of cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment; the trend of going beyond the criminalisation of incitement to commit serious crime, by penalising the “glorification” or “apology” of terrorism, or the publication of information that “could be useful” in the commission of acts of terrorism; the trend of justifying tightening immigration controls by the risk of terrorism; and the trend of terrorism largely replacing drug-related crime as the primary public justification for extending the powers of the police in the investigation or prevention of crime, coupled with the abandonment of many of the traditional safeguards.

In his country-specific work, the Special Rapporteur had emphasized the proactive and comprehensive nature of his mandate by conducting analysis and assessment of the law and practices related to countering terrorism. He had conducted his first country visit to Turkey, which had provided exemplary facilitation of the mission. He had also communicated with the Governments of the United Kingdom, South Africa and Kazakhstan. The Special Rapporteur said he was dissatisfied that the overall response rate of Governments had been low, both in respect to his letters addressing either legislative issues or individual cases, and his requests for an invitation to a country visit.

One of the main activities of the mandate during the first year had been the
mainstreaming of human rights concerns into the counter-terrorism work of the United Nations and other international organizations. There was growing support for the position that human rights were not a mandatory concession that compromised the effective fight against terrorism, but were in fact a cornerstone of any successful strategy against terrorism. The Special Rapporteur emphasised that the focus of his mandate was not only in disclosing and criticising human rights violations, it was equally important to identify and make broadly known an example of best practice, i.e. legislative and practical solutions that managed to combine an effective fight against terrorism with the protection and promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms. Such examples demonstrated to the world that terrorism should be fought, could be fought, and was most efficiently fought when this did not happen at the expense of human rights.

Statements from Concerned Countries on Housing, Education, Transnational Corporations and Counter-Terrorism

SEYED SAJJADPOUR (Iran), speaking as a concerned country, in response to the report of the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, said that the right to adequate housing lent dignity of the people and Iran was of the view that providing adequate accommodation for people was one of the most important issues. A full picture of the housing situation in Iran needed to take account of the population of 75 million living in a vast earthquake-prone area, and a striving dynamism for development that showed a constant upward trend in providing this potential for its people. Since the revolution there had been significant improvement in a number of areas, including support for building. A number of initiatives, financial or otherwise, had been put in place in the housing sphere, including eliminating housing taxes for the poorest, encouraging mass constructions, and establishing housing cooperatives. Some 40,000 homes had been allocated for families under guardianship, and 55,000 homes had been built for low-income families. Traditional ownership titles in rural areas did not necessarily impair the right to ownership. Migration from rural areas to cities was a complex phenomenon. Finally, he wished to note that the composition of the population as reflected in the report was historically and geographically inaccurate, and he stressed that ethnicity had no relation to the allocation of housing in Iran.
VUN CHHEANG (Cambodia ), speaking as a concerned country, spoke with reference to the report by Miloon Kotari, Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context, for his report. Cambodia stated that from 1975 to 1979, the country has gone through a somber period during which large segments of the population were forcibly evacuated en masse from urban, rural and areas by the Khmer Rouge. They became internally displaced persons in their own country. After 1979, Cambodia began reconstructing the whole country, and set up urban and rural development programmes aimed at improving the living conditions of the population, and maintaining security. It launched a particular programme for urban and rural development to address the demographic situation in the country. It passed laws on the right to private property, including ethnic and religious minorities. The Government set up a land disputes national authority that had already received a number of land disputes of varying complexity. The number of land case disputes had dropped since the establishment of such authority.

ROBYN MUDIE (Australia), speaking as a concerned country, thanked the Special Rapporteur, Miloon Kothari, for the effort he put into the task of investigating the provision of adequate housing in Australia. Australia contended that the arrangements for the provision of housing, other forms of accommodation and housing support to those in need, complied with Australia’s obligations to provide adequate housing. There were still areas of improvement, but the basic scheme was comprehensive, and was designed to ensure appropriate targeting, and absence of discrimination. The Government took the issue of housing affordability very seriously and had already made a considerable contribution to housing affordability through the Commonwealth State Housing Agreement, Rent Assistance and the First Home Owners Grant. The housing situation facing many indigenous Australians required joint responses from all levels of Government, the indigenous community and the non-government sector. Australia was committed to continuing to address and resolve the issues in the provision of adequate housing to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders population.

BOOMETSWE MOKGOTHU (Botswana), speaking as a concerned country, said the purpose of the Special Rapporteur on education’s visit was to assess how Botswana was fairing in availing quality education to its citizens and others residing within the borders, bearing in mind resource constraints and other development challenges faced by the country. Botswana recognised that it would not have been practicable, within the duration of the mission, for the Special Rapporteur to have a full appreciation of all the national policies, programmes and other factors which impacted on the right to education in Botswana, and this was why some inaccuracies featured in the report, and these should be corrected.

The report did not adequately reflect the achievements that Botswana had made in the field of education since gaining independence. Botswana was committed to the provision of quality education for its nationals, despite the serious resource constraints and other development challenges faced by the country. In the field of education, like in all other programmes, the policies of the Government would continue to be guided by the principle of respect for the protection and promotion of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all within its borders.

TURKEKUL KURTTEKIN (Turkey), speaking as concerned country, thanked Martin Scheinin, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, for his report. His visit to Turkey was another example of cooperative relations of Turkey with the Special Procedures. Turkey was determined to go ahead in the field of human rights. In the light of this visit, the correct and accurate interpretation of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur was very important. In that respect, the Special Rapporteur had to be cautious in sharing the results of his work with other fora, including the media, in the exercise of this mandate. The question of the definition of terrorism was a challenge to the international community. Nevertheless, Turkey already had incorporated a definition of terrorism in its Penal Code that took due consideration of international law.

Interactive Dialogue on Housing, Education, Transnational Corporations and Counter-Terrorism

JEAN DANIEL VIGNY (Switzerland) asked the Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing what were the problems he encountered with regard to the right to property; the impact of globalization and the role and motivation of enterprises in housing; and the fate of street children in Asia, Latin America and African with regard to adequate housing. Concerning the report on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, Switzerland strongly condemned all acts of terrorism; at the same time, it expressed its concern to see a number of countries introducing legislation which they pretended would improve security but which were often used to justify arbitrary detention, inhuman treatment and judgements under special procedures. He asked if the Expert intended to deepen his study on that matter. With regard to the report of the Special Rapporteur of the Secretary- General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, Switzerland asked about the main results emanating from his consultations in matters of responsibility of companies concerning the issue of chains of supplies.

PATRICIO UTRERAS (Chile) said with regards to the report on the protection and promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, this was a key mandate to ensure that the international community tackled the critical challenge posed by terrorism in keeping with human rights values and principles. The trends noted by the Special Rapporteur were disturbing, and his efforts to coordinate his work with the Committee against Terrorism and the Security Council were applauded.

On the report by the Special Representative on transnational corporations and other business enterprises, the report had provided some interesting conceptual and practical points, and some preliminary information. The Special Representative should continue to apply methodology including broad consultations of those concerned in the issue, including groups affected by the activities of some enterprises.

A Representative of (Chile) said with regards to the report on education, great progress had been made in Chile with regards to the situation of women, however, a lot remained to be done in labour rights or access by women to elected office. Significant headway had been made in education over the last few years. A law had been adopted guaranteeing the right of pregnant teenage girls to continue their education.

MOHAMMED LOULICHKI (Morocco) thanked Vernor Munuz Villalobos, Special Rapporteur on the right to education, for his report. Morocco agreed with the assessment of the Special Rapporteur on the current gender disparity worldwide on access to education. Morocco believed that implementing the right to education entailed combining international and national efforts, and considering education as an investment. Morocco was determined to combat all forms of discrimination, including gender discrimination. Morocco was happy to extend to the Special Rapporteur an invitation to visit the country so that he could see concrete measures that had been taken by the Government in the context of education, including free access to it, use of new technology as well as policies in place to combat gender discrimination in the education field.

With reference to Miloon Kotari, Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context, Morocco extended to him an invitation to visit the country to offer him the possibility to see on the ground the efforts undertaken by the Government to provide decent housing to the most disadvantaged sectors of society.

ALICIA MARTIN GALLEGOS (Nicaragua), referring to the report on the right to education, welcomed the improvements made in realizing that right in all countries, as described by the Special Rapporteur. Nicaragua had been fulfilling its obligation in matters of education by improving its educational system and deploying efforts to advance the cause of education for all. The Government had also expanded technical schools and training centres for students and teachers. Education programmes had also been developed and provided through television and radio transmissions. The Government had also improved its training programmes to teachers. Closer families ties had been advocated in the educational system by involving parents in the educational system. Children were given lessons on how to behave, through non-violent teaching in schools.

SATU MATTILA (Finland), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said the European Union strongly believed that in combating terrorism, human rights and humanitarian standards had to be maintained. Protection and promotion of human rights while countering terrorism required particular vigilance in all parts of the world, and the European Union underlined the importance of the Human Rights Council to devote attention to the recommendations of the Special Rapporteur. The European Union welcomed the very serious work done by the Special Rapporteur on the right to education, in particular for the information and recommendations in his detailed report, which contained a thorough analysis of obstacles faced by girls in enjoyment of their right to education.

The European Union also thanked the Special Representative on transnational corporations and other business enterprises and asked him which approach he intended to take regarding identification and clarification of standards of corporate responsibility and accountability for transnational corporations and other business enterprises with regards to human rights. On the report of the Special Rapporteur on the right to housing, updates should be given on the situation in Zimbabwe following a Governmental project of mass forced evictions.

SERGIO CERDA (Argentina) thanked John Ruggie, Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises, for his report. Argentina was satisfied to know that this was a way to keep the issue alive in the Council. Through regional initiatives, important headway had been possible. Argentina asked the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for his opinion on the impact of the draft norms of the Subcommission and their possible weakening impact on the social capabilities of the State and the attitudes of the Government to address these areas. Argentina was particularly interested in the possible impact of these draft norms for countries of the South.

With reference to Vernor Munuz Villalobos, Special Rapporteur on the right to education, Argentina noted that in many instances discrimination in the context of girls’ education was not deliberate, but rather the result of a combination of factors, including lack of appropriate resources. Argentina asked the Special Rapporteur for his comments of the effect affirmative action could have to bridge gender inequality in education.

In addressing Miloon Kotari, Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context, Argentina agreed with the Special Rapporteur on the emphasis put on the need to a human-rights approach to evictions and other forms of expulsion.

ZHOU FENG (China), referring to the report to the right adequate housing, said that with the process of economic globalization, multinational companies were based on speculation in housing and in many cities, the price of a small apartment sometimes was estimated to be 40 times the annual income of an ordinary citizen. What responsibility did the multinational companies had towards the vulnerable groups of any country? What was the effect of the right to adequate housing with regard to people affected by natural catastrophe? On the right to education, the speaker said that children of indigenous people were sent to special schools where their cultural links were cut off from their parents; what remedy could the Expert suggest in that area?

DONG-HEE CHANG (Republic of Korea) said international terrorism was too complex a problem to be relegated to the bounds of a single explanation or a simple solution. All aspects should be taken into account of the interrelationship between human rights and terrorism, and two important principles should be borne in mind: the first that the rule of law was the very foundation of just and safe societies; the second that the very values the international community was trying to defend, namely the full spectrum of human rights standards, should not be sacrificed in pursuit of the fight against terrorism.

Researching the root causes of terrorism should not be an attempt to explain it, to find it understandable, and certainly not to justify it. Such an approach would make the research of all the root causes counterproductive. The approach of the Special Rapporteur to understand why some movements or individuals resorted to terrorism seemed to be free of the danger of offering sympathy to terrorism. The international community should set up a clearer standard of conduct for counter-terrorism activities.

JUDITH CHAMMAS (Unites States) thanked Martin Scheinin, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, for his report and the energy brought upon by him to this issue. The United States believed that States must fully respect the rule of law and act in accordance with international human rights instruments in countering terrorism. It wondered whether the Special Rapporteur, in carrying out his mandate, should be engaged in exceptionally difficult and controversial issues such as proposing a unique definition of terrorism, or exploring the root causes of terrorism, notwithstanding their importance.

JOSE CAETANO DA COSTA PEREIRA (Portugal) said Portugal was among the sponsors of the resolution on the right to education. Portugal endorsed the words expressed by Finland. In his report, the Special Rapporteur on the right to education had said that 23 countries had fulfilled their obligations in enrolling boys and girls in schools in 2005. However, 94 counties had so far failed to fulfil to do so while many of them would not be able to fulfil their obligations in 2015. He asked the Special Rapporteur to include further details on the implementation of the right to education within the context of HIV/AIDS.

ALEJANDRO SOLANO (Costa Rica) said the reports submitted were appreciated, and the report on the right to education had reaffirmed the importance of education in public policy. The question of the education of the girl child was key to the universalisation of human rights. Education of girls should seek to bring about change and facilitate instruments to build the capacity of all to enjoy their human rights. Costa Rica was committed to human rights education, and wished the opinion of the Special Rapporteur to this effect.

Right of Reply

ENOS MAFEMBA (Zimbabwe), speaking in a right of reply, said with regards to the statement by Finland for the European Union, there had been clearing of slums in the past, and nobody had raised a finger, until Zimbabwe had started reform, at which point it had become an issue. Zimbabwe wished to build decent houses.


CORRIGENDA

In press release HR/HRC/06/37 of 18 September, the statement by Patrizia Scannella of Amnesty International should read as follows:

PATRIZIA SCANNELLA, of Amnesty International, said Amnesty International appreciated the important contribution made by Doudou Diene, the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. Amnesty International shared the importance he attached to the follow-up to Special Procedures’ communications, recommendations and analysis. Amnesty International believed that the Council would benefit from more information on steps taken by States that he had visited to implement his recommendations. Did the Special Rapporteur have any suggestions about how to ensure better follow-up, and was there a role for the Human Rights Council in encouraging States to report on measures to implement the recommendations of Special Procedures?


In press release HR/HRC/06/44 of 22 September, the statement by Berit Gerritzen of United Nations Watch should read as follows:

BERIT GERRITZEN, of United Nations Watch, said that the report on the incitement to racial and religious hatred and promotion of tolerance observed that international human rights law protected primarily individuals in the exercise of their freedom of religion and not religions per se. The report noted that criminalizing defamation of religion could be counter-productive. Did the term defamation of religions have a sound basis in international human rights law? The High Commissioner’s report had touched on incitement in the Middle East, referring to some very violent articles against Jews in the Egyptian press. UN Watch was deeply concerned with the impact on the most vulnerable – children.

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1Joint statement: World Organization against Torture, Save the Children Alliance, International Alliance of Women, Plan International, World Movement of Mothers, Defence for Children International, Women's World Summit Foundation, International Federation of Social Workers, World Vision International and World Union of Catholic Women's Organisation.


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