HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE BEGINS SIXTY-FIFTH SESSION

HR/CT/523
22 March 1999
1729th Meeting (AM)


Cecilia Medina Quiroga, of Chile, Elected Chairman


The Human Rights Committee this morning adopted the agenda, as orally revised, and elected officers, as it began its sixty-fifth session. The Committee will consider reports submitted by the Governments of Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica and Lesotho on their compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

In other matters this morning, the Committee approved the list of issues it would raise in connection with the periodic reports of Canada, Costa Rica and Lesotho. In addition, it agreed to take up the list of issues in connection with Cameroon, Cambodia and Chile this afternoon.

In addition, the following new or re-elected members of the Committee were sworn in and solemnly undertook to discharge their duties impartially and conscientiously -- as provided for in article 38 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: Abdelfattah Amor, of Tunisia; Prafullachandra Natwarlal Bhagwati, of India; Thomas Buergenthal, of the United States; Christine Chanet, of France; Eckart Klein, of Germany; David Kretzmer, of Israel; Cecilia Medina Quiroga, of Chile; and Hipolito Solari Yrigoyen, of Argentina.

Ms. Medina Quiroga was then elected as Chairman of the Committee's current session. Elizabeth Evatt, of Australia; Mr. Bhagwati and Mr. Amor were elected Vice-Chairmen. Lord Colville, of the United Kingdom, was elected Rapporteur.

Ms. Medina Quiroga said she hoped to discharge her duties adequately and hoped that the Committee would continue to advance as it had done in the past. She noted that she was the second woman to preside over the Committee and was pleased that it was seeking to redress an imbalance that had taken place over so many years.

Ms. Evatt, Chairman/Rapporteur on the activities of the working group on communications, presenting the group's report, stressed that there were not enough members in the group to have two groups working in parallel. The group had not been able to take up a draft general comment on article 3 of the Covenant, which addresses the equal right of men and women to enjoy all civil and political rights set forth in the Covenant. The group was also
unable to take up the issue of draft consolidated guidelines. There was need to look at procedural issues or to discuss methodologies. Another issue of concern was that communications were now being submitted that were in Russian. There were not sufficient language skills in the secretariat to deal with the volume of material in Russian.

In other matters this morning, the Committee agreed that in the event of Cameroon not showing up, its first priority would be communications, followed by a discussion on the draft consolidated guidelines.

The six countries presenting reports during the current session are among the 144 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 serve in their personal capacity. (For background information on the current session, see Press Release HR/CT/522 of 19 March.)

The Committee will meet again at 3 p.m. today to conclude its consideration of questions to be presented to States parties.