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19 March 2001
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Human Rights Committee
Seventy-first Session
19 March 2001
1898th Meeting (AM)
The Human Rights Committee began its seventy-first session at Headquarters this morning. As it did so, it elected, by secret ballot, Prafullachandra Natwarlal Bhagwati of India to serve as its Chairman [Mr. Bhagwati received 10 votes. Abdelfattah Amor of Tunisia received 7 votes].
The Committee then elected Mr. Amor, Hipolito Solari Yrigoyen of Argentina and David Kretzmer of Israel as Vice-Chairmen. Eckart Klein of Germany was elected Rapporteur.
Reports submitted by the Governments of Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Uzbekistan, Croatia and Syria on their implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights will be considered by the Committee during its current session at Headquarters from 19 March to 6 April.
Speaking on behalf of Mary Robinson, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Elissavet Stamatopolou-Robbins, Deputy to the Director, New York Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, highlighted developments since the conclusion of the Committee’s previous session, which included the entry into force, on 26 December 2000, of the Optional Protocol to the Convention for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the ratification by Guatemala of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
She said 23 March would mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Covenant. That date would provide an opportunity to celebrate achievements; take stock and weigh options for the future; and identify challenges of the next 25 years. Among those she could imagine: universal ratification of the Covenant and Optional Protocol; streamlining of the State reporting procedure; and regular and consistent follow-up to all of the Committee’s concluding observations and views under the Optional Protocol.
She noted that, once again, the Committee had a demanding and challenging programme. She expressed hope that during the session the Committee’s revised General Comment on article 4 of the Covenant (on derogations from the Covenant during states of emergency) would be adopted and that the process of amendments to the rules of procedure would be concluded. The revised rules should allow for a streamlining and more efficient organization of the State reporting procedure, and address, among other things, the delicate problem of non-reporting States. The amendments were balanced and should be welcomed by all States parties.
In other business this morning, Nisuke Ando, of Japan, presented the report of the Committee’s working group. He said the group had held 10 meetings between 12 and 16 March and had reviewed a draft list of issues for the summer session for Azerbaijan, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Czech Republic, Monaco and the Netherlands. It had heard representatives of the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and three non-governmental organizations (NGOs) on the situation of civil and political rights in Azerbaijan, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Syria, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic.
Under the First Optional Protocol, he said, the working group had considered 13 draft decisions. It had declared three cases admissible, recommended inadmissibility in four cases and reviewed five draft reviews. It had requested additional information from one government. He said that three cases remained pending before the working group and that the group might reconvene informally to deal with them. He added that the Committee would also have before it three or four draft recommendations from the Special Rapporteur for New Communications.
Also this morning, the Committee adopted its programme of work and discussed its working methods. During that discussion, concern was expressed by members that the report of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which was to have been considered during the session, would not be taken up. Members also stressed the need to ensure that all documents taken up by the Committee appear in each of the Committee’s three languages -- English, French and Spanish. In that regard, specific concern was expressed that documentation received from the delegation of Venezuela was available only in Spanish.
The Committee also discussed the need to make a number of additional amendments to its rules of procedure. It was decided that the matter would be further discussed in a working group of the Committee before action was taken. The Committee’s contribution to the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination and Xenophobia and Related Intolerance was also taken up.
Mr. Solari Yrigoyen gave a report on the regional preparatory meeting for the World Conference which had been held in Chile from 5 to 7 December 2000. The meeting had dealt with, among other things, the causes and manifestations of racism and other forms of intolerance; victims of racism; the implementation of compensation; and preventive measures such as education to eradicate racism and other forms of intolerance. He noted that, due to questions relating to the denomination of indigenous peoples and compensation for discrimination, a final document had not been adopted. He said he had presented his report in writing and hoped it would be available to the Committee.
The Committee also took up the need to elect a focal point for development, deciding, as it did so, that the matter would be further discussed by the bureau.
Maurice Glele Ahanhanzo of Benin, Rafael Rivas Posada of Colombia, Nigel Rodley of the United Kingdom, Ivan Shearer of Australia, Ahmed Twafik Khalil of Egypt, and Patrick Vella of Malta, newly elected members of the Committee, made solemn declarations undertaking to discharge their duties impartially and conscientiously.
Background
The Committee was established to monitor the implementation of the Covenant and its related Protocols in the territory of the States parties. Its 18 members -- independent experts -- are persons of high moral character and recognized competence in the field of human rights and serve for a period of four years. The Committee meets three times a year for three-week sessions, which are normally held in March at Headquarters in New York, and in July and November at the United Nations Office in Geneva. (For additional background information, see Press Release HR/CT/590 of 19 March.)
The five countries presenting reports are among the 147 States parties to the International Covenant. The Committee, as a monitoring body, periodically examines reports submitted by States parties on their promotion and protection of civil and political rights. Representatives of those governments will introduce their country reports and respond to oral and written questions from the Committee's 18 members, who are elected by States parties and serve in their personal capacity.
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Seventy-first Session
19 March 2001
1898th Meeting (AM)
The Human Rights Committee began its seventy-first session at Headquarters this morning. As it did so, it elected, by secret ballot, Prafullachandra Natwarlal Bhagwati of India to serve as its Chairman [Mr. Bhagwati received 10 votes. Abdelfattah Amor of Tunisia received 7 votes].
The Committee then elected Mr. Amor, Hipolito Solari Yrigoyen of Argentina and David Kretzmer of Israel as Vice-Chairmen. Eckart Klein of Germany was elected Rapporteur.
Reports submitted by the Governments of Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Uzbekistan, Croatia and Syria on their implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights will be considered by the Committee during its current session at Headquarters from 19 March to 6 April.
Speaking on behalf of Mary Robinson, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Elissavet Stamatopolou-Robbins, Deputy to the Director, New York Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, highlighted developments since the conclusion of the Committee’s previous session, which included the entry into force, on 26 December 2000, of the Optional Protocol to the Convention for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the ratification by Guatemala of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
She said 23 March would mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Covenant. That date would provide an opportunity to celebrate achievements; take stock and weigh options for the future; and identify challenges of the next 25 years. Among those she could imagine: universal ratification of the Covenant and Optional Protocol; streamlining of the State reporting procedure; and regular and consistent follow-up to all of the Committee’s concluding observations and views under the Optional Protocol.
She noted that, once again, the Committee had a demanding and challenging programme. She expressed hope that during the session the Committee’s revised General Comment on article 4 of the Covenant (on derogations from the Covenant during states of emergency) would be adopted and that the process of amendments to the rules of procedure would be concluded. The revised rules should allow for a streamlining and more efficient organization of the State reporting procedure, and address, among other things, the delicate problem of non-reporting States. The amendments were balanced and should be welcomed by all States parties.
In other business this morning, Nisuke Ando, of Japan, presented the report of the Committee’s working group. He said the group had held 10 meetings between 12 and 16 March and had reviewed a draft list of issues for the summer session for Azerbaijan, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Czech Republic, Monaco and the Netherlands. It had heard representatives of the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and three non-governmental organizations (NGOs) on the situation of civil and political rights in Azerbaijan, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Syria, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic.
Under the First Optional Protocol, he said, the working group had considered 13 draft decisions. It had declared three cases admissible, recommended inadmissibility in four cases and reviewed five draft reviews. It had requested additional information from one government. He said that three cases remained pending before the working group and that the group might reconvene informally to deal with them. He added that the Committee would also have before it three or four draft recommendations from the Special Rapporteur for New Communications.
Also this morning, the Committee adopted its programme of work and discussed its working methods. During that discussion, concern was expressed by members that the report of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which was to have been considered during the session, would not be taken up. Members also stressed the need to ensure that all documents taken up by the Committee appear in each of the Committee’s three languages -- English, French and Spanish. In that regard, specific concern was expressed that documentation received from the delegation of Venezuela was available only in Spanish.
The Committee also discussed the need to make a number of additional amendments to its rules of procedure. It was decided that the matter would be further discussed in a working group of the Committee before action was taken. The Committee’s contribution to the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination and Xenophobia and Related Intolerance was also taken up.
Mr. Solari Yrigoyen gave a report on the regional preparatory meeting for the World Conference which had been held in Chile from 5 to 7 December 2000. The meeting had dealt with, among other things, the causes and manifestations of racism and other forms of intolerance; victims of racism; the implementation of compensation; and preventive measures such as education to eradicate racism and other forms of intolerance. He noted that, due to questions relating to the denomination of indigenous peoples and compensation for discrimination, a final document had not been adopted. He said he had presented his report in writing and hoped it would be available to the Committee.
The Committee also took up the need to elect a focal point for development, deciding, as it did so, that the matter would be further discussed by the bureau.
Maurice Glele Ahanhanzo of Benin, Rafael Rivas Posada of Colombia, Nigel Rodley of the United Kingdom, Ivan Shearer of Australia, Ahmed Twafik Khalil of Egypt, and Patrick Vella of Malta, newly elected members of the Committee, made solemn declarations undertaking to discharge their duties impartially and conscientiously.
Background
The Committee was established to monitor the implementation of the Covenant and its related Protocols in the territory of the States parties. Its 18 members -- independent experts -- are persons of high moral character and recognized competence in the field of human rights and serve for a period of four years. The Committee meets three times a year for three-week sessions, which are normally held in March at Headquarters in New York, and in July and November at the United Nations Office in Geneva. (For additional background information, see Press Release HR/CT/590 of 19 March.)
The five countries presenting reports are among the 147 States parties to the International Covenant. The Committee, as a monitoring body, periodically examines reports submitted by States parties on their promotion and protection of civil and political rights. Representatives of those governments will introduce their country reports and respond to oral and written questions from the Committee's 18 members, who are elected by States parties and serve in their personal capacity.
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