SUB-COMMISSION CONCLUDES ITS GENERAL DEBATE ON SPECIFIC HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES

Sub-Commission on the Promotion
and Protection of Human Rights
54th session
16 August 2002
Morning


Concerns Raised about Women's Human Rights,
Terrorism and Contemporary Forms of Slavery



The Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights concluded this morning its consideration of specific human rights violations which focused on issues relating to contemporary forms of slavery, women and human rights and new priorities for the international human rights community, such as terrorism.
During the course of the debate several representatives of States took the floor to raise their concerns about specific human rights violations and to explain initiatives taken by their Governments aimed at the full promotion and protection of human rights. Representatives of States also supported and commented on the reports of the Sub-Commission Experts.
A representative of Egypt thanked Expert Kalliopi Koufa for her report on terrorism and human rights, and said all acts and practices of terrorism aimed at the destruction of human rights and democracy, destabilizing democratic Governments and seriously threatening economic and social development of States. One of the best ways to combat terrorism was to enhance cooperation at the regional and international levels.
A representative of Sri Lanka congratulated Expert Barbara Frey for her paper on small arms and light weapons, and said most violations of human rights and humanitarian norms took place as a result of illegal traffic and use of small arms and light weapons. It was necessary to place restrictions on the illicit manufacture, transfer and circulation of small arms and light weapons and their excessive accumulation and uncontrolled spread.
And, a representative of Iraq referred to the report of former Expert Y. K. Sik Yuen on weapons of mass destruction and said that some 200,000 tons of bombs had been dropped on Iraq and that the weapons had caused unnecessary, aggravated harm and suffering as well as severe damage to the environment. Among the effects were heightened rates of cancer and birth defects.
Representatives of Syria, Bahrain, Armenia and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea raised issues related to women's human rights including violations against women and the initiatives taken by their Governments to ensure the full protection of women's human rights.
Sub-Commission Experts Yozo Yokota and Abdel Sattar addressed the Sub-Commission this morning, stressing that Sub-Commission resolutions were not and must not be seen to be country-specific.
The following non-governmental organizations also took the floor: the Indian Movement - "Tupaj Amaru"; the International Alliance of Women; and the International Committee for the Respect and Application of the African Chapter on Human Rights and Peoples' Rights.
Representatives of India and Colombia also addressed the Sub-Commission this morning. Exercising their right of reply were representatives of Sudan, Mauritania, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, and Nigeria.
The Sub-Commission will reconvene at 3 p.m. to adopt its report and conclude its fifty-fourth session.

Statements on Specific Human Rights Violations
YOZO YOKOTA, Sub-Commission Expert, said several Japanese daily newspapers had reported about the resolution on systematic rape, sexual slavery, and slavery-like practices, adopted without a vote on 14 August, which he had co-sponsored. It turned out the newspapers had carried similar articles stating that the resolution was adopted "unanimously" -- which it was not, as it was adopted without a vote -- and that it kept in mind the issue of "war-time comfort women" and, while avoiding a specific reference to "Japan", "urged" (an expression not used in the resolution) Japan to do something with regard to "comfort women" and "the textbook issue". He regretted very much that these articles did not accurately report what the Sub-Commission had done. As stated on a number of occasions, the Sub-Commission had been instructed by its parent body, the Commission on Human Rights, not to adopt "country-specific" resolutions, and it was his understanding that the resolution was not "country-specific" and should not be interpreted as being "country-specific". He requested that the Chairman confirm that the resolution should not be interpreted or understood to be "county specific".
ABDEL SATTAR, Sub-Commission, said the Chairman had confirmed what Mr. Yokota had stated. Mr. Sattar expressed his disappointment at the manner in which some journalists had reported on the Sub-Commission. It was suggested that Mr. Yokota's statement and the Chairperson's confirmation be sent to the relevant press agencies.
LAZARO PARY, of the Indian Movement "Tupaj Amaru", said indigenous peoples knew what terror, violence, and racial discrimination meant; for centuries they had suffered from colonial, then State terror, then military dictatorships. Terrorism was incompatible with human rights. Indigenous peoples condemned terror, war and State terrorism as a means of "combatting" terrorism. For example, a lethal war was being carried out against the Afghan people, who were poor and could barely read and write; it was a new war of colonial powers against the colonized, of rich against the poor. This war of aggression being waged in the name of battling terrorism was only hurting poor and innocent people, and gravely violating their human rights.
The time had come for the former colonial powers and the United Sates of America to give thought to their policies which were subjugating the rest of the world, and to measures taken that violated fair-trial and procedural norms, that gave no presumption of innocence, and that violated the Fourth Geneva Convention. Now the powers of the United States were seeking to eliminate countries such as Iraq; there was a threat of attack against Iraq, which already was the suffering victim of two recent wars and of 12 years of brutal economic blockade.
JULEN ARZUAGA, of the International League for the Rights and Liberation of Peoples, said that anti-terrorist rhetoric had been exploited by States in their own interest. They had been free to define the concept of terrorism in function of their particular needs. That was why, as there was no commonly accepted definition of terrorism, each government had decided to establish one in its own domestic or geo-strategic interests. Instead of trying to define terrorism, it would be better to try to understand its root causes and to find a way to deal with them. Meanwhile, many governments including the United States, United Kingdom, Israel, Spain and Colombia, had used the international consensus on the priority of combating terrorism to justify and even legitimate their fight against any form of political opposition or dissidence.
The measures taken concerning the treatment of suspects accused under the generic charge of being related to terrorist organizations included the denial of the presumption of innocence, arbitrary deprivation of liberty and violation of the principle of a fair trial. The anti-terrorism fight was also being used as a pretext to attack peaceful opposition groups or dissident ideas.
FATIMATOU MANSOUR, of the International Alliance of Women, said hope was fading for thousands of women and children, not to mention men, held in the camps of the Polisario for more than a quarter of a century under the worst conditions human beings could stand. Women had been tortured, imprisoned and separated from their children in these camps by the leaders of the Polisario, who, incredibly, described themselves as fighting for the sacred principles of freedom and the right to self-determination.
Those who had escaped from the camps had testified in sufficient detail to leave no doubt about the credibility of the abuses committed, which deserved being taken before the International Court of Justice. The continuous attitude of tolerance and even unconcern towards the situation amounted to a large threat to the population held in the camps. The international community and the United Nations should establish urgent, practical mechanisms to re-establish fundamental freedoms inside the camps of the Polisario.
MATHILDE RABARY, of the International Committee for the Respect and Application of the African Chapter on Human Rights and People's Rights, said Madagascar had been going through a painful economic and social crisis following the 2001 elections. Realizing that the outgoing regime had not met the people's expectation, Madagascar people had chosen change. However, they had been subjected to harassments and reprisals. The outgoing regime had been carrying out all sorts of human rights violations, including the recruitment of an armed militia and summary executions. The outgoing regime had refused to establish a humanitarian corridor. Thousands of women were subjected to arbitrary dismissal. Many women had had to resort to prostitution to survive. Madagascar had ratified the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, however, many people had suffered due to the lack of adherence by the Government to the Covenant. The Committee called on the Sub-Commission and the international community to help the people of Madagascar to enjoy their human rights and fundamental freedoms.
KIM YONG HO (the Democratic People's Republic of Korea) said for ten years the international community, including the Sub-Commission, had taken extensive initiatives to resolve the crime of the "comfort women", the most serious case of sexual slavery in wartime in recent history. Sub-Commission Special Rapporteurs on the subject had called the situation a war crime and crime against humanity, as well as a grave violation of human rights norms, and had called for acceptance of legal responsibility on the part of the perpetrator and had recommended criminal prosecution and punishment as well as legal compensation.
However, a State directly responsible for the crime of "comfort women" continued to distort history and even to justify its past crimes; it appeared to reckon that the issue would disappear with the death of the few surviving victims. The international community should urge the State concerned to discharge its true obligations, and the Sub-Commission should futher contribute to the final and complete solution of this issue through practical follow-up measures aimed at implementing the resolutions it had passed on the matter.
YOZO YOKOTA, Sub-Commission Expert, said that the statement just made must be understood in the context of what he had stated earlier this morning.
MOHAMMAD KHAFIF (Syria) said that Syria attached great importance to women's rights. The Constitution guaranteed rights for all humans without discrimination. Syrian women had access to the employment market without any discrimination and a number of measures had been taken to improve women's health. Women were present both in the private sector, in trade unions, and in women's associations that received a lot of support from the Government. Several programmes were underway to ensure rural development and guarantee rural women's rights. Syria aspired to the improvement of human rights and women's rights, and therefore wanted the international community to put pressure on the Israeli government so that the situation, particularly for women, in the Syrian Golan would improve.
MONA AL-JUBORI (Iraq) said radiological weapons used by the United States and the United Kingdom against Iraq had left behind serious negative effects, polluting the environment and threatening human health through their radioactivity and high chemical toxicity. Some 200,000 tons of bombs had been dropped, the weapons had caused unnecessary, aggravated harm and suffering, and severe damage to the environment. Among the effects were heightened rates of cancer and birth defects.
The United States and the United Kingdom should compensate the victims of depleted uranium contamination and lift economic sanctions against Iraq. The Sub-Commission should act to create a non-mass-destruction zone in the Middle East.
SUGEESHWARA GUNARATNA (Sri Lanka) congratulated Expert Barbara Frey for her paper on small arms and light weapons. Sri Lanka believed that most violations of human rights and humanitarian norms took place as a result of the illegal traffic and use of small arms and light weapons. Therefore, it was necessary to place restrictions on the illicit manufacture, transfer and circulation of small arms and light weapons and their excessive accumulation and uncontrolled spread. Sustained efforts must also be taken to strengthen national, regional and international legal regimes that would prevent illegal transfer and use of arms that would, no doubt, contribute towards addressing human rights and humanitarian aspects of the issue.
Sri Lanka believed that this issue could not be addressed in all its aspects only though making States accountable under various national, regional and international regimes, since illicit use of small arms was an issue essentially connected with non-State actors. Therefore, new approaches in making non-State actors accountable for the violations of human rights needed to be pursued.
MOHAMED LOUFTY (Egypt) said all acts and practices of terrorism aimed at the destruction of human rights and democracy, destabilizing democratic Governments and seriously threatening the economic and social development of States. This was why, in Egypt's view, one of the best ways to combat terrorism was to enhance cooperation at the regional and international levels. In this regard, Egypt welcomed Expert Kalliopi Koufa's report which updated the main activities and initiatives undertaken at the global level to eradicate terrorism. The report called on the international community to increase its cooperation to prevent terrorist acts. It was important to state here that Egypt was one of the first countries to call on the international community in 1986 to convene an international conference to coordinate the global fights against terrorism.
In a declaration on 13 September 2002, Arab States had condemned the terrorist attacks of 11 September and had expressed their solidarity with the American people. Furthermore, the Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Conference adopted the Kuala Lumpur Declaration in which they stressed their collective will to combat terrorism in accordance with the teachings of Islam which valued peace, tolerance, respect, and prohibited the killing of innocent people. Regional activities and conventions to combat terrorism were significant building blocks in the current efforts of the international community to eradicate terrorism and serve as important landmarks on the road to build an international coalition to combat terrorism of universal character.
ALI ALARADI (Bahrain) said Bahrain had done much in a brief period to promote the human rights of women, to promote their national role, and to grant them full rights to participate in all aspects of society. A national action pact had been adopted setting in motion a comprehensive process of development including major steps forward for women. A number of women's societies had been established, including a High Women's Council guaranteeing the participation of women in development and guaranteeing women justice. The Council received direct and continuing support from the Government. Bahraini women had entered with force into political life -- they could now elect and be elected, a right used during recent municipal elections and to be used during upcoming Parliamentary elections. Bahrain recently had acceded to the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women.
TIGRAN SAMVELIAN (Armenia) said that in the course of the 20th century women from very diverse cultural backgrounds living in different regimes had made considerable efforts to express their needs and interests and defend their legitimate goals. Consequently, gender relations had become a matter of international concern and debate, in some cases, resulting in confrontations with other leading actors of society. Despite the repeated reaffirmation of women's rights to equality in international and regional conferences, and the inscription of these rights in the United Nations and other international instruments, it was sad to note that the rights of millions of women continued to be denied, in some cases, violated, and that women were considered as a separate group - a so-called minority.
Only the concerted efforts of Governments and non-governmental organizations at all levels, global, national and /or regional, could effectively promote equality, development, peace and prosperity throughout the world.
RAJESH NANDAN PRASAD (India) said the horror of terrorism was not discovered on 11 September 2001. India had long been a victim of brutal, State-sponsored, cross-border terrorism. Democratic societies, unfortunately, were particularly vulnerable to terrorists, who exploited their openness and their freedoms. There could be no justification whatever for terrorism -- political, ideological, ethnic or any other alleged grievance could never be a justification for killing innocent civilians. As countries that were its new victims were discovering, no two persons would perhaps agree on what was a perfect balance between a State's obligation to combat terrorism and its need to safeguard human rights, although few disagreed that it was important to be mindful of human-rights norms.
The search for "root causes" of terrorism risked deflecting everyone in the war against terror. The focus had to be on combatting it rather than dwelling on its origins. The simplistic view that societies with good human rights records were seldom victims of terrorism had been conclusively debunked. The Sub-Commission's expanded report on terrorism and human rights should contain an analytical summary of the not inconsiderable areas of convergence related to these topics.
CAMILO REYES RODRÍGUEZ (Colombia) said that the United Conference on the Illicit Transfer of Small and Lights Weapons had been a step forward in the fight against the proliferation of small arms and weapons. The proliferation of the illegal trafficking of small arms and weapons had a detrimental effect on several countries, including Colombia. It was necessary to approach the trafficking from both a legal and practical approach, since it was necessary to deal with both countries of origin and countries of transfer. It was also essential to prevent the stockpiling of small arms and light weapons. The prevention of the proliferation of trafficking needed to be an international priority. However, it was also necessary to recognize that in the multilateral sphere there was an increasingly large gap between what was said and agreed to on paper, and the implementation of these decisions which needed to be ensured.

Rights of Reply
MUBARAK RAHAMTALLA (Sudan) speaking in right of reply, said David Littman of the Association of World Education last Tuesday evening had made a statement on Sudan that was malicious, superfluous and contained baseless accusations against Sudan. It was well known that Mr. Littman advocated the most aggressive and hateful views not only of Sudan but also against the entire Islamic people and their countries. His reference to a "black African population" was strong evidence of his ignorance of the ethnic diversity of Sudan. His accusation of "traditional slavery" in Sudan was bizarre and he had never provided any convincing evidence of it. The speaker also had purposely exaggerated the number of those allegedly killed by aerial bombardment. Meanwhile Sudan continued to take positive, responsible steps to resolve the conflict with the Sudan People's Liberation Army.
MOHAMED SALECK OULD MOHAMED LEMINE (Mauritania) exercising his right to reply, said that Agir Ensemble pour les droits de l'homme had put forward a number of allegations concerning the bar association elections. It was stressed that the political authorities had had nothing to do with this issue. None of the three candidates had obtained enough of a majority according to regulations and the police had strictly been there to maintain order.
KIM YONG HO (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) speaking in right of reply, said the "comfort women" case was one of the most serious and unremedied cases of sexual slavery and wartime. There had been a number of statements that the comfort women case was considered an example of sexual slavery in wartime and calling for the issue to be resolved. The DPRK did not care how the mass media of Japan interpreted the resolution adopted during the current session, but it felt the Sub-Commission's latest measure could help resolve the complex matter. It believed there was no reason for speakers to be compelled not to mention the substance of resolutions of the Sub-Commission. The DPRK would continue to pay attention to the issue of the comfort women until it was finally and completely resolved.
YOZO YOKOTA, Sub-Commission Expert, said he did not want to discuss the substance of the issue. He agreed with many of the points just stated. His point, as said earlier, had been to confirm that all resolutions adopted were not country specific and must be interpreted as such.
MIKE GBADEBO OMOTOSHO (Nigeria) speaking in right of reply, said references to corporal punishment of women in Nigeria by the World Organization against Torture had grossly misrepresented the situation through reference to two isolated examples in which in fact the sentences had not been carried out. If the NGO wished to imply that adultery should not be condoned, that adultery should not be punished under Shari'a law at the request of the majority of Muslims in the majority of states in Nigeria, Nigeria wished to state that it did not accept such an approach to things. If the World Organization against Torture wished, it could come to Nigeria to see how these matters were handled in reality.



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