HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE TAKES UP REPORT OF POLAND

MORNING


HR/CT/99/15
19 July 1999




Country Is Ready to Adopt Optional Protocol to Covenant, Officials Say


Poland presented this morning a fourth periodic report to the Human Rights Committee, describing national efforts to implement the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and answering questions put by the panel’s experts.

Introducing the report, Bogdan Borusewicz, Secretary of State of the Ministry of Interior and Administration, said, among other things, that following changes to the Penal Code and the elimination of the death penalty from domestic law, the Government was considering acceding to the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant, which prohibits capital punishment.

Committee experts questioned a 16-member Government delegation on such issues as illegal migrants, the status of the Optional Protocol of the Covenant in domestic legislation, the availability of contraception, rules governing abortion, and the situation of homosexuals.

The Polish delegation included Krzysztof Jakubowski, Permanent Representative of Poland to the United Nations Office in Geneva; Irena Kowalska, of the Office of the Plenipotentiary of the Government for the Family Matters; Andrzej Pilaszkiewicz, Artur Kozlowski, and Maciej Lewandowski, of the Ministry of Interior and Administration; Zbigniew Krasnodebski, of the Police General Headquarters; and Tomasz Knothe, Minister Plenipotentiary of the Permanent Mission of Poland.

Other members were Beata Ziorkiewicz, Joanna Janiszewska, and Agnieszka Dabrowiecka, of the Ministry of Justice; Jerzy Ciechanski and Igor Struminski of the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy; Adam Laptas, of the Prison Service Central Administration; Jacek Tyszko, of the Permanent Mission of Poland; Andrzej Sados, of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Elzbieta Brodzik, interpreter.

As one of 144 States parties to the Covenant, Poland must submit periodic reports to the Committee on efforts to implement the provisions of the treaty.

When the Committee reconvenes at 3 p.m., it will continue its consideration of the fourth Polish report.

Fourth Periodic Report of Poland

The report (CCPR/C/95/Add.8) reviews administrative and legislative measures undertaken by the Government to further implement the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on an article-by-article basis. It notes that the State guarantees to all those who find themselves on Polish territory full protection of the rights and freedoms acknowledged by the Covenant.

The report further says that in accordance with the country's Constitution, women and men shall have equal rights in all fields of public, political, economic, social and cultural life. Nevertheless, it is admitted that in real life men hold more managerial positions and in comparable positions are paid more.

The report also touches on fundamental changes made in the field of education, health, and social affairs. An important stage in the structural transformation of Poland was the holding free and democratic elections, the first in post-war Poland. In addition, in order to extend guarantees of access to human rights and freedoms, Poland had acceded to the First Optional Protocol to the International Covenant, the report notes.

Introduction of Report

BOGDAN BORUSEWICZ, Secretary of State, Ministry of Interior and Administration of Poland, said one of the most important changes in the field of Polish law was the acceptance of international agreements as a source of generally valid law by the new Constitution.

Mr. Borusewicz said the new Constitution respected human freedom, making it subject to legal protection and obliging everybody to respect the freedoms and rights of others. In addition, the Constitution clearly stressed the equality of all people before the law and prohibited discrimination in political, social and economic life. It also prohibited subjecting anyone to scientific experiments, including medical ones, without their consent. Torture, inhuman or degrading treatment and punishment were prohibited as well, as was corporal punishment.

The new Penal Code provided penalties for public officials who used violence or illegal threats, Mr. Borusewicz said. This newly introduced regulation fulfilled international obligations to penalize any practice of torture.

Mr. Borusewicz said that due to changes introduced into the Penal Code and the elimination of the death penalty, the accession by Poland to the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant was under consideration.

Discussion

Responding to the written questions of Committee members prepared in advance, the Polish delegation said that according to the Constitution, during a state of emergency, protection of civil and political rights could not be suspended. In addition, there could not be any limitation of the rights guaranteed in the Covenant. Since the end of martial law in Poland, all provisions under that law had been suspended.

On non-discrimination and equality of the sexes, the Polish delegation said that the new Constitution had provided for equal treatment of men and women in all spheres of life, including in the family, public affairs and labour. Following the Beijing Conference on Women, the Government had designed a national plan of action to promote the rights of Polish women, and was implementing a number of programmes to that end.

The delegation said current legislation provided for the availability of abortions in the case of life-threatening pregnancies or other reasons cited by medical practitioners. In addition, equal access to family-planning services for men and women was guaranteed; and discrimination in the labour market, both private and public, against pregnant women seeking employment was strictly prohibited.

Answering a question on domestic violence, the delegation said that a number of cases of such violence were related to alcoholic consumption, mainly by men. Last year, among all cases of domestic violence reported to authorities, 93 per cent were committed by men. To assist victims of family violence, the Government had created a "blue hotline".

With regard to capital punishment, the delegation said that since the entry into force of the new Penal Code, the Government was preparing the legal ground for adoption of the Second Optional Protocol to the Covenant. Sentences of capital punishment handed down before the entry into force of the code were converted to life imprisonment.

Polish officials said that procedures for monitoring the conduct of law-enforcement officials and for investigating complaints of violence or other abuses of power by such officials were strictly implemented. Most complaints lodged by prisoners were about the use of force or lack of medical treatment, or related to transportation, correspondence or restriction of family visits. In 1998 there had been about 8,000 such complaints. The delegation also affirmed that with 54,367 prisoners for the whole country, prisons were not crowded; prison capacity was 64,295. There also were 1,295 juveniles detained in correction houses.

A question was asked about persons detained for crossing the Polish border, either seeking asylum or for other reasons. The delegation said that anyone caught in such a situation was held under detention for 48 hours before he/she was either expelled or presented before a judge.

A number of the Committee's experts also put oral questions to members of the Polish delegation on such topics as maternity leave; wage discrimination; problems related to contraception and abortion; and the situation of homosexuals.