SUBCOMMISSION URGES INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO LIFT THE EMBARGO AGAINST IRAQ, ALLEVIATE THE SUFFERING OF IRAQI PEOPLE

Subcommission on the Promotion
and Protection of Human Rights
53rd session
16 August 2001
Morning





Asks Experts to Conduct or Continue Studies on
Terrorism and Human Rights;
Reservations to Human Rights Treaties;
Promotion and Consolidation of Democracy


The Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, nearing the end of its annual three-week session, this morning adopted a number of resolutions and decisions under its agenda items on economic, social and cultural rights, other human rights issues and organization of work.

Subcommission Experts adopted a measure in which they again appealed to the international community, and the Security Council of the United Nations in particular, to lift the embargo against Iraq. The Subcommission also urged the international community and all Governments, including that of Iraq, to alleviate the suffering of the Iraqi population, in particular by facilitating the delivery of food, medical supplies and the wherewithal to meet their basic needs.

The Subcommission entrusted Expert Francoise Jane Hampson with preparing an extended working paper on reservations to human rights treaties. Expert and Special Rapporteur on terrorism and human rights, Kalliopi Koufa, was asked to continue her work and submit a second progress report. And Expert Manuel Rodriguez-Cuadros was asked to prepare an expanded working paper on the promotion and consolidation of democracy.

On intellectual property and human rights, the Subcommission urged all Governments to ensure that the implementation of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) did not negatively impact on the enjoyment of human rights as provided for in international human rights instruments. It requested the High Commissioner to undertake an analysis of the impact of the TRIPS agreement on the rights of indigenous peoples, and to consider the need for an examination and, if necessary, to conduct such an investigation, into whether the patent, as a legal instrument, was compatible with the promotion and protection of human rights.

The Subcommission also cited deep concern that systematic rape, sexual slavery and slavery-like practices were still being used to humiliate civilians and military personnel, to destroy societies and diminish prospects for a peaceful resolution to conflicts, and that the resulting severe physical and psychological trauma endangered not only personal recovery but post-conflict reconstruction of whole societies. It called upon States once again to provide effective criminal penalties and compensation for unremedied violations in order to end impunity.

The panel, which concludes its annual session on Friday, delayed decisions on potentially-contentious matters such as state cooperation with United Nations human rights mechanisms until later in the day. Meanwhile, several other measures were adopted on international protection for refugees; the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery; measures to improve the functioning of the Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights; the length of the annual Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights session; and the composition of Working Groups of the Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection Human Rights for 2002.

When the Subcommission meets at 3 p.m., it will continue to take action on draft resolutions and decisions.

Action on Resolutions and Decisions

In a resolution (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/L.33) on international protection for refugees, adopted without a vote, the Subcommission reaffirmed the importance of the fundamental principle of non-refoulement; expressed its concern over the fate of persons who had risked their lives fleeing from their homes to escape persecution and other factors such as starvation or destitution, motivated in part by unfair international economic relations, and reaffirmed that their human rights should be protected; noted with alarm that the situation of women and girl refugees had been grossly exacerbated to the extent that it required the urgent attention of the international community; urged the international community to make greater efforts to address the needs of such persons by allowing access to them by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in order that it could determine their status; encouraged States to avail themselves of technical assistance from UNHCR and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights; and recommended that States disputing the refugee status of a particular affected population cooperate with UNHCR and other interested parties to facilitate verification of the status of those asserting they were refugees through an impartial and fair process.

In a measure (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/L.38) on reservations to human rights treaties, adopted without a vote, the Subcommission decided to entrust Francoise Jane Hampson with preparing an extended working paper on the topic, which would not duplicate the work of the International Law Commission, and to submit it to the Subcommission at its fifty-fourth session.

In a resolution (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/L.40) on terrorism and human rights, adopted unanimously, the Subcommission requested the Special Rapporteur on the topic, Kalliopi Koufa, to continue her work, taking into consideration relevant views and comments made; requested her to continue in the course of her work direct contacts with competent services and bodies of the United Nations, in particular those in New York and Vienna, and requested her to visit those offices, as soon as possible, to expand her research, update date and information, and expedite her work; requested the Secretary-General to continue to collect information on the implications of terrorism as well as the effects of fighting terrorism on the enjoyment of human rights; and requested the Special Rapporteur to submit a second progress report to the Subcommission at its fifty-fourth session.


In a measure (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/L.41) on promotion and consolidation of democracy, adopted without a vote, the Subcommission decided to request Expert Manuel Rodgriguez-Cuadros to prepare an expanded working paper on the topic for submission to the Subcommission at its fifty-fourth session.

In a measure (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/L.42) on the humanitarian situation of the Iraqi population, adopted without a vote, the Subcommission decided to appeal again to the international community, the Security Council in particular, for the embargo provisions affecting the population of Iraq to be lifted; and decided to urge the international community and all Governments, including that of Iraq, to alleviate the suffering of the Iraqi population, in particular by facilitating the delivery of food, medical supplies and the wherewithal to meet their basic needs.

In a resolution (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/L.42) on the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for Contemporary Forms of Slavery, adopted without a vote, the Subcommission noted with satisfaction that eighteen project grants were paid by the Fund to local non-governmental organizations which worked on issues of contemporary forms of slavery; expressed its support for the work of the members of the Board of Trustees of the Fund; and urged contributions to the Fund to enable it to fulfil its mandate effectively in the year 2002.

In a resolution (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/L.32) on systematic rape, sexual slavery, and slavery-like practices, adopted without a vote, the Subcommission cited deep concern that such offenses were still being used to humiliate civilians and military personnel, to destroy societies and diminish prospects for a peaceful resolution to conflicts, and that the resulting severe physical and psychological trauma endangered not only personal recovery but post-conflict reconstruction of whole societies; recalled that the International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda had acknowledged in their judgements that rape and sexual enslavement constituted crimes against humanity and the crime of genocide; called upon States once again to provide effective criminal penalties and compensation for unremedied violations in order to end impunity; encouraged States to promote human rights education on the matter, ensuring the accuracy of historical events; and called upon the High Commissioner for Human Rights to submit a report on the issues involved to the Subcommission at its fifty-fourth session.

In a measure (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/L.47) on measures to improve the functioning of the Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, adopted unanimously, the Subcommission decided to submit a draft decision to the Commission on Human Rights through which the Commission would consider, at its informal meeting in September, any proposals of the Subcommission aimed at improving the functioning of the Subcommission.

In a measure on the length of the annual Subcommission session, adopted unanimously, the Subcommission decided to request the Commission on Human Rights to restore the length of the Subcommission session to four weeks.

In a measure on the composition of Subcommission Working Groups for the coming year, the Subcommission decided to approve the following list of members:

Working Group on minorities: Y.K.J. Yeung Sik Yuen, and Leila Zerrougi (alternate); Soli Jehangir Sorbjee, and Deepika Udagama (alternate); Vladimir Kartashkin and Iulia-Antoanella Motoc (alternate); Jose Bengoa and Hector Fix Zamudio (alternate); Asbjorn Eide and Kalliopi Koufa (alternate).

Working Group on contemporary forms of slavery: Halima Embarek Warzazi and Joseph Oloka-Onyango (alternate); Rajendra Kalidas Wimala Goonesekere and Chin Sung Chung (alternate); Stanislav Ogurtsov and Victoria Sandru-Popescu (alternate); Paulo Sergio Pinheiro and Miguel Alfonso Martinez (alternate); Fried van Hoof and Barbara Frezy and Kalliopi Koufa (alternates).

Working Group on indigenous populations: Fisseha Yimer and Mrs. Warzazi (alternate); Yozo Yokota and Zoshiko Terao (alternate); Ms. Motoc and Mr. Ogurtsov (alternate); Mr. Alfonso Martinez and Mr. Bengoa (alternate); Francoise Jane Hampson and David Weissbrodt and Mr. van Hoof (alternates).

Working Group on communications: Mr. Yimer and Mrs. Warzazi (alternate); Fan Guoxiang; Teimuraz O. Ramishvili and Mr. Kartashkin (alternate); Manuel Rodriguez-Cuadros and Mr. Pinheiro (alternate); Mr. Weissbrodt and Ms. Hampson and Mr. van Hoof (alternates).

In a resolution (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2001/L.17) on intellectual property and human rights, adopted without a vote, the Subcommission called upon Governments to integrate provisions into their national and local legislation and policies that, in accordance with international human rights obligations and principles, protected the social function of intellectual property; urged all Goverments to ensure that the implementation of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) did not negatively impact on the enjoyment of human rights as provided for in international human rights instruments by which they were bound; also urged all Governments to take fully into account existing State obligations under international human rights instruments in the formulation of proposals for the ongoing review of the TRIPS agreement, in particular in the context of the Ministerial Conference of the World Trade Organization; called upon States parties to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights to fulfil the duty to cooperate internationally in order to realize the legal obligations under the Covenant; requested the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to seek observer status with the World Trade Organization for the ongoing review of the TRIPS agreement; also requested the High Commissioner to undertake an analysis of the impact of the TRIPS agreement on the rights of indigenous peoples; requested the High Commissioner to consider the need for an examination and, if necessary, to conduct such an investigation, into whether the patent, as a legal instrument, was compatible with the promotion and protection of human rights and corresponding State obligations; called upon the High Commissioner to convene an expert seminar to consider the human rights dimension of the TRIPS agreement; and decided to continue consideration of this questions at its fifty-fourth session under the same agenda item.




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