HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE HEARS FROM SPECIAL RAPPORTEURS FOR FOLLOW-UP TO VIEWS AND CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS

Human Rights Committee
MORNING

25 July 2006


Adopts Reports on Follow-Up to Concluding Observations and on
Follow-Up to Individual Communications

The Human Rights Committee this morning discussed the progress reports of the Special Rapporteur for Follow-up to Views and the Special Rapporteur for Follow-up to Concluding Observations and adopted their reports, which will be incorporated in the Committee’s Annual Report.

Following its consideration of the reports of State parties to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Committee adopts concluding observations based on the constructive dialogue held during the plenary session. The concluding observations then furnish a benchmark for progress made in implementing the provisions of the Covenant in future periodic reports by that State party. At its seventy-fifth session, a Special Rapporteur for follow-up on concluding observations was appointed, and requested to report to the Committee at each session and submit an annual report on the progress of his activities.

Under the Optional Protocol to the Covenant, States agree that the Committee may receive and consider communications from individuals claiming to be victims of violations of any of the rights set forth in the Covenant. The Committee forwards its Views to the State Party concerned and to the individual. The Committee designated a Special Rapporteur for follow-up on Views to ascertain the measures taken by States parties to give effect to the Committee’s View and to report to the Committee on his activities at each session and prepare an annual report on his activities.

Nisuke Ando, Committee Expert, Special Rapporteur for Follow-up to Views, introduced the report, contained in document CCPR/C/87/R.3, which detailed the status of the Committee’s Views on individual communications, and the State parties responses thereto, for cases involving Australia, Austria, Belarus, Burkina Faso, Canada, the Czech Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Greece, Libya, Norway, Peru, the Philippines, the Russian Federation, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, and Zambia.
The Committee discussed the State party’s responses on a case-by-case basis and decided what action to take. Those decisions ranged from continuing the dialogue with the State party involved, as was the case in a complaint against Australia, to deciding to convey the State party’s offer of compensation to the author of the complaint, as in the case of a complaint against Burkina Faso. Regarding a complaint against Libya, charging that the State party had refused to issue the plaintiff with a passport, the State party had issued that document in the interim. There was a new complaint alleged, asking for compensation for the time lost in waiting for the passport, but the Committee judged that these new developments meant that they had to await the State party’s response to the allegations before forming any views on the subject. In the case against Norway, the Committee judged that the State party had responded satisfactorily and closed the complaint. In the case against the Philippines alleging unfair imposition of the death penalty, it was observed that the Philippines had recently abolished the death penalty and the Committee decided to contact the State party and ask what effect that would have on the case.

The Committee adopted the report, entitled “Progress Follow-up Report of the Human Rights Committee on Individual Communications”.

Rafael Rivas Posada, Committee Expert, Special Rapporteur for Follow-up to Concluding Observations, introduced the report contained in document CCPR/C/87/CRP.1/Add.7, which looked at the responsiveness of the following States to those Committee recommendations: Venezuela, Moldova, Togo, Mali, Israel, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Uganda, Namibia, Albania, Greece, Iceland, Kenya, Mauritius, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Slovenia, Thailand, Syria, Yemen, Brazil, Canada, Italy, Paraguay, Norway, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region of China), Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Central African Republic and the United States of America. The Special Rapporteur reviewed the situation in each State party on a case-by-case basis and the recommended action by the Committee, usually to send reminders to the State party.

Committee Experts then discussed the report, raising issues about the recommendations contained therein. Many Experts appeared to agree that some stronger action should be taken in the cases of States that had not reported on their treaty obligations for a long time and/or had not responded to repeated Committee requests for information. An Expert also pointed out that there was not enough information in the report, as it was currently formatted, to enable Committee Experts to make an informed decision on whether the action recommended by the report was appropriate or not.

The Committee then adopted the annual report of the Special Rapporteur on the Follow-up to Views.

When the Committee reconvenes this afternoon, at 3 p.m., it is scheduled to adopt its Annual Report to the General Assembly.

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