Human Rights Council continues general debate on the promotion and protection of all human rights

MORNING

9 March 2012

The Human Rights Council this morning continued with its general debate on the promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development.

Speakers said recent events around the globe demonstrated that as people everywhere strove for the enjoyment of their fundamental freedoms, they requested open Governments which were accountable, transparent and open to participation. Many women were refused their basic rights and the situation of the world’s women was of particular concern. One speaker said the right to self-determination continued to be denied to some on different pretexts. It was inappropriate to classify journalists and media workers as human rights defenders simply because the task, the goal and the target were not the same. Mega events, such as the Olympics and the World Cup, had devastating impacts on the right to adequate housing.

Speakers regretted that there was no agreement in the Working Group on the right to development on the definition of criteria and sub-criteria. The multi-dimensional aspect of the right to development should be respected. Environmental rights must be considered as human rights in order to prevent disasters and address the challenges posed by globalization. One speaker urged the Council not to introduce sexual orientation or gender identity either as new categories or terms. Other speakers said States should accelerate public education and sensitization concerning sexual orientation and gender identity. Speakers said the Council’s discussion of the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography during natural disasters was very relevant. There were many examples of good practices that made a major difference in the lives of these children. Speakers called upon all Member States to disseminate the Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training and to ensure adequate training in human rights. The use of religion to colour education caused young people to get fixed on differences instead of the commonalities among people.

Speaking in the General Debate were the United States on behalf of seven countries, founders of the Open Government Partnership, Sweden on behalf of Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway, Turkey, Sudan, Holy See, Algeria, South Africa, Morocco on behalf of the Platform on Human Rights Education and Training, Pakistan, Iran, Namibia, Nepal, Bolivia, Sri Lanka, Venezuela, Council of Europe, and the United Nations Children’s Fund in a joint statement on behalf of the United Nations Population Fund, the World Health Organization and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

The following non-governmental organizations also took the floor: Soka Gakkair International in a joint statement, Associazione Communita Papa Giovanni XXIII in a joint statement, Permanent Assembly for Human Rights in a joint statement, France Libertes: Fondation Danielle Mitterrand in a joint statement, Mouvement contre le racisme et pour l’amitié entre les peoples in a joint statement, Charitable Institute for Protecting Social Victims, Friends World Committee for Consultation, Society for Threatened Peoples, Connectas Direitos Humanos, Human Rights Advocates, International Educational Development, Inc., Organisation pour la communication et de promotion de la Cooperation Economique Internationale, International), Khiam Rehabilitation Centre for Victims of Torture, United Towns Agency for North-South Cooperation, Iranian Elite Research Center, International Islamic Federation of Student Organizations, Rencontre Africaine pour la defense des droits de l’homme, Lawyers Rights’ Watch Canada, World Muslim Congress, European region of the International Lesbian and Gay Federation, Organization of Defending Victims of Violence, Franciscans International, International Fellowship of Reconciliation, Press Emblem Campaign, Arab Lawyers Union, Commission to Study the Organization of Peace, United Schools International, International Association of Democratic Lawyers, International Association for Democracy in Africa, Canner International Permanent Committee, North South XXI, World Russian People’s Council
Agence Internationale pour Developpement, Action internationale pour la paix et le developpement dans la region des Grands Lacs, China Association for Preservation and Development of Tibetan Culture, China NGO Network for International Exchanges, United Nations Association, International Institute for Peace,European Union of Public Relations, Center for Environmental and Management Studies, CIVICUS – World Alliance for Citizen Participation, Human Rights Watch, Verein Sudwind Entwicklungspolitick, Amnesty International, International Humanist and Ethical Union, Save a Child’s Heart in Memory of Dr. Ami Cohen, International Human Rights Association of American Minorities, World Environment and Resource Council, International Institute for Non-Aligned Studies, Indian Council of Education, and International Buddhist Relief Organisation.

China, Brazil, spoke in right of reply.

The Council suspended its general debate at 1 p.m. Starting at 3 p.m. this afternoon the Council will hold an interactive dialogue on the report of the International Commission of Inquiry on Libya as well as human rights bodies and mechanisms. The Council will resume the general debate on Monday, 12 March at 9 a.m..

General Debate on the Promotion and Protection of All Human Rights, Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Including the Right to Development

United States spoke in a joint statement on behalf of seven countries, founders of the Open Government Partnership, which was based on principles of transparency, technology innovation and others. The upcoming conference in Brazil would serve as a forum for countries presenting their action plans to implement those founding principles which would contribute to the promotion of economic, social and cultural rights. Recent events around the globe demonstrated that as people everywhere strove for the enjoyment of their fundamental freedoms, they requested open Governments which were accountable, transparent and open to participation.

Sweden, on behalf of Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway, said that the events in the Arab world had demonstrated that equality between men and women must be a crucial part of every society. It also showed that women and girls must be at the core of the development agenda. Many women were refused their basic rights and the situation of the world’s women was of particular concern as half the world’s population was denied their full potential. Gender equality was not only a human rights issue; it was also a question of smart economics because strengthening women’s economic status was a powerful tool to achieve economic development. For this to happen, gender discrimination must be removed from legal frameworks.

Turkey said that challenges posed by globalization required solidarity in building an environment conducive to the right to development. This was particularly crucial in case of least developed countries. It was important to put this right into practice and Turkey welcomed the contribution of experts in defining criteria, which would further assist in devising future legal frameworks for the realization of this right.

Sudan said that in order to implement the right to development, the Government had adopted a legislative approach that included health polices aimed at women and children and free primary and mandatory education. The Government had increased from 2.5 to 8 per cent the amount of Gross Domestic Product spent on education.

Holy See urged the Council to preserve and maintain the universality of human rights and not to introduce sexual orientation or gender identity either as new categories or terms to provide new rights for special groups of people within human rights law and instruments.

Algeria said that since the adoption of the Declaration on the Right to Development 25 years ago, there had been a negative impact due to the inability to implement economic, social, cultural and civil and political rights in realizing the right to development. Algeria was committed to enacting policies to ensure development for women and children and vulnerable groups.

South Africa said the Council’s discussion on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography during natural disasters was very relevant. The Government was ensuring that South Africa was prepared to protect the rights of children even in the case of natural disasters. The Children’s Charter of South Africa provided the right to protection, right to self-expression, right to non-discrimination, access to justice, right to compensation and other rights to children in line with international human rights instruments.

Morocco, speaking on behalf of the Platform of Human Rights Education and Training, said it was with great pleasure and a sense of accomplishment that the Platform welcomed the General Assembly’s adoption of resolution 66/137 regarding the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training, which was the outcome of a long process launched by the Platform. This would make it possible to fill a legal vacuum in the area of human rights education and training at the United Nations. This was essential when speaking of fundamental freedoms and universal human rights.

Pakistan said the right to self-determination continued to be denied to some on different pretexts. The two explicit examples of this continuous denial were the peoples of Palestine and Jammu and Kashmir. Despite Security Council resolutions, the unresolved status of these peoples continued to confront the international community. The Kashmiri people were being subjected to grave and widespread human rights violations. Pakistan called upon the Human Rights Council to play its rightful role in helping the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

Iran said that the unfolding economic and financial crisis and the resorting to unilateral sanctions and to expansionist policies by some States created vulnerability and put at risk the right to development of other States. Given their human cost, sanctions were a clear violation of human rights and created major obstacles to the realization of the right to development. Iran reaffirmed that under no circumstances should people be deprived of an opportunity to enjoyment of their economic, social and cultural rights and called on the Council to address the humanitarian consequences of economic sanctions.

Nepal said the right to development requested favourable conditions at both local and international levels. Without a just environment and an adequate legal framework, this right risked remaining unfulfilled. The necessity for the realization of this right was most pressing in a number of countries where the recent economic and financial crisis had eroded the progress achieved over the years. The international community must pay particular attention to least developed countries and ensure the effective implement of the Istanbul Programme of Action.

Bolivia said that the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation was a basic, independent and explicit human right, recognized as such by the United Nations General Assembly since 2010. Bolivia was pleased to see a growing number of countries acceding to policies on safe water and sanitation that the Bolivian Government had been upholding for years. Bolivia was concerned about the possible inconsistence of messages coming from the Sixth Water Forum, whereby some referred to the obligation of States related to access to safe drinking water, and were not using the human rights language.

Venezuela regretted the obstacles made by developed countries to advance progress on the right to development and noted the use of sanctions which had had a negative impact on the daily lives of people in the developing world. There was a need for a legally binding instrument that protected the principles in the Declaration on the Right to Development.

Council of Europe said that the European Social Charter, adopted in 1961 and ratified by 43 of the 47 member countries, was one of the major legal instruments aimed at integrating civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. Economic crises and poverty created conditions which could foster political extremism, violence and war. Protecting social rights was not a policy choice but a moral obligation.

United Nations Children’s Fund, speaking on behalf of the United Nations Population Fund, the World Health Organization and the United Nations Refugee Agency, said that birth registration was a human right that promoted and facilitated critical cultural and social rights. Currently more than 200 million children under the age of five were not registered. Birth registration should be free and easy to access as it ensured the right to basic social and health services for all children.

Morocco said the right to development was of particular importance for Morocco, as human development and human rights were mutually constitutive. Morocco would continue to call for the right to development at the same level as other rights. The right to development was threatened by the global economic, financial and environmental crises. Morocco supported acceleration of the inter-governmental process to develop a binding mechanism with respect to the right to development.

Sri Lanka said the multi-dimensional approach to development was the only sustainable path to reconciliation, which was Sri Lanka’s primary objective. There could be no development without effective international cooperation and solidarity as a complement to national efforts. The Sri Lankan delegation called upon the Working Group on the right to development to ensure that the multi-dimensional aspect of the right to development was respected.

Namibia said the integration and implementation of the right to development in the United Nations system was crucial to ensuring that millions of people around the world realized their rights. In Namibia, members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities had access to all public and private facilities, institutions and services as the Namibian Constitution prohibited discrimination of any kind. Same sex marriage was not recognised as Namibia was a strongly Christian nation.

Soka Gakkai International, speaking in a joint statement, called upon all Member States to disseminate the Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training and to ensure adequate training in the human rights of State officials. Member States should include their activities on human rights education in their periodic reports to treaty bodies.

Associazione Communita Papa Giovanni XXIII, speaking in a joint statement, said that the criteria and sub-criteria in the document from the Working Group on the right to development were lacking appropriate human rights language. Member States should move toward action on the implementation of the right to development.

Permanent Assembly for Human Rights, speaking in a joint statement, was concerned about detainees in prisons in Argentina where six detainees were burned in 2011 and hundreds of cases of torture had been documented. There were more than 14,000 children and adolescents in Argentina who were not under any parental responsibility.

France Libertes: Fondation Danielle Mitterrand said in a joint statement that Morocco continued carrying out grave violations of human rights against the Sahrawi people, which had not been properly investigated by the international community. Journalists and human rights defenders were also victims of arbitrary detention and forced disappearances.

Mouvement contre le racisme et pour l’amitié entre les peoples in a joint statement drew the attention of the Council to the case of Mr. Ocala who had been in solitary confinement for several months. The non-governmental organization called on the United States to close the detention centre in Guntanamo Bay as it was illegal under international law.

Charitable Institute for Protecting Social Victims, said that the right to education was essential for the exercise of other rights, but the gap between commitment and reality in the enjoyment of this right was significant. States should recognize the key importance of adequate legal frameworks for equality in the enjoyment of the right to education.
Friends World Committee for Consultation said the children of incarcerated parents existed in countries around the world and suffered from physical and mental impacts and many other difficulties. There were many examples of good practices that could make a major difference in the lives of these children.

Society for Threatened Peoples appreciated the remark of the Working Group on arbitrary detention on the connection between arbitrary detention and non-refoulement. Many governments used arbitrary detentions as a means of suppressing peaceful dissent. Countries like China were notorious for such human rights violations.

Connectas Direitos Humanos said Brazil had not overcome the disastrous effects of its mass incarceration policy. Brazil pursued a process of criminalization of poverty and was committed to a development model that disregarded the rights of the poorest communities.

Human Rights Advocates said that mega events, such as the Olympics and the World Cup, had had devastating impacts on the right to adequate housing, including evictions of communities and the criminalization of homelessness in the areas surrounding mega events. Member States should adopt measures to protect the homeless and collaborate with affected communities.

International Educational Development, Inc. was concerned about the situation of persons of ethnic and religious minorities in countries under transitional governments. The development of guidelines and early warning indicators could prevent violations. The Syrian National Council and Syrian minority leaders should work on a plan to protect the rights of minorities should there be a transition period.

Organisation pour la communication et de promotion de la Cooperation Economique Internationale, said that Morocco was a pioneer in terms of developing human rights. In the 1990’s, human rights institutions based on the Paris Principles had been established to promote human rights and in 2011 the new constitution had granted priority to international treaties over domestic law.

Khiam Rehabilitation Centre for Victims of Torture said that there was an escalation of the violation of the economic, social and cultural rights of citizens in Lebanon and more and more citizens were demonstrating. Lebanese citizen Mr. Abdallah was the oldest political prisoner in Europe after being arrested in France in 1984. Although his sentence had come to an end, he had not been released. The Centre called for his release.

United Towns Agency for North-South Cooperation informed the Council about human rights violations in Balochistan by Pakistan which included extra-judicial killings. Pakistan so far had failed to address the concerns of premier human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch on the situation in Balochistan.

Iranian Elite Research Center said that environmental rights must be considered as human rights in order to prevent disasters. A more serious mechanism must be put in place to ensure the participation of civil society organizations in the discussions about environmental rights.

International Islamic Federation of Student Organizations was concerned about the human rights defenders who met the Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders during her visit to India and Jammu and Kashmir and called on the Council to impress upon the Indian Government to put an end to the human rights violations.

Rencontre Africaine pour la defense des droits de l’homme said in such a sad world, what was the message of the Council? 2011 had been a particularly difficult year. It was time to re-invent a new concept to consolidate the progress made, ensure States cooperated and ensure more responsibility in the new cycle.

Lawyers Rights’ Watch Canada called on the Human Rights Council to support its work by conducting an investigation to determine whether the prosecution and suspension of Spanish Judge Garzon was for opening the investigation of over 114,000 unresolved cases of torture and enforced disappearances.
World Muslim Congress said that the culture of impunity in Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir had been responsible for the killings of over 100,000 men, women and children and thousands of enforced and involuntary disappearances. The Human Rights Council should ensure that the rights of the people in Jammu and Kashmir were protected.

European Region of the International Lesbian and Gay Federation said that States should accelerate public education and sensitization of State and non State actors concerning sexual orientation and gender identity. Measures should be put in place to end hate based homophobic violence against people and citizens based on their sexual orientation and gender identity.

Organization of Defending Victims of Violence said that international instruments had not clearly defined the category of human rights defenders. Journalists were often put in the same group as defenders which left a gap in the protection of individuals engaged in human rights work.

Franciscans International in a joint statement drew the Council’s attention to torture and extrajudicial executions still taking place in Papua New Guinea. Franciscans International urged the Government of Indonesia to conduct prompt investigation in all cases of human rights violations, prosecute perpetrators, and provide adequate remedies to the victims.

International Fellowship of Reconciliation in a joint statement welcomed the continued attention of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to the rights of conscientious objectors in Colombia and encouraged all States to be alert to this issue and raise it in the second cycle of the Universal Periodic Review.

Press Emblem Campaign said that there were 21 media workers killed in the first two months of 2012, representing a 50 per cent increase compared to last year. It was inappropriate to classify journalists and media workers as human rights defenders simply because the task, the goal and the target were not the same. The international community should develop new tools to bind all States to acknowledge and accept an obligation to provide protection for journalists beyond the Security Council resolution and extend the protection framework to include forced disappearances, killings, arbitrary detention and new forms of violence.

Arab Lawyers Union wondered about the use of sanctions which violated the human rights of the concerned populations. What was the real intention of States or groups of States who imposed sanctions? Was this a method to occupy a State or a means to punish a people for their economic and social choices? Sanctions on Syria were targeting the whole of Syria.

Commission to Study the Organization of Peace said one major problem was the use of religion to colour education which caused young people to get fixed on differences instead of the commonalities among people. The process of instilling true democratic norms had to start in schools and societies.

United Schools International called on States to step up their efforts to protect the rights of children. Islamic countries’ support of Madrassa schools reflected their lack of true respect for the human rights of children. United Schools International urged States to stick to their promises to be part of the community of nations.

International Association of Democratic Lawyers said that an African American journalist, Abu Jamal had been incarcerated in the United States for over 30 years on death row. He had been a widely respected radio announcer and had spent numerous years in solitary confinement. The Human Rights Council should take note of his case.

International Association for Democracy in Africa said that in Afghanistan the plight of many people was so desperate that selling a child was becoming a routine activity. Reports indicated that boys were kidnapped and sold to the Taliban; girls between 5 and 7 ages were sold into prostitution and other children were placed in indentured servitude which often became permanent.

Canner International Permanent Committee said there was a concern that if the Taliban were allowed to share in political power in Afghanistan gains achieved in the rights of women and children would disappear. The international community should come together to address the threat that faced women in Afghanistan.

North South XXI expressed its concern that there was no mention of the widespread torture in Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan in the Special Rapporteur on torture’s report and encouraged the investigation of the link between foreign occupation and torture. Further, North South XXI regretted that there was no agreement in the Working Group on the right to development on the definition of criteria and sub-criteria, which were important for the effective realization of this right.

World Russian People’s Council said it categorically rejected violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. From a religious point of view, homosexual practices were distortions of human nature, and the non-governmental organization could not accept the imposition of values under the guise of human rights of sexual minorities.

Agence Internationale pour Developpement said that the work of the National Initiative for Human Development in Morocco gave a good example of the promotion of socio-economic rights. It mobilized financial and institutional resources to improve living conditions, raise national social indicators, and ensure access to basic services for vulnerable groups.

Action internationale pour la paix et le developpement dans la region des Grands Lacs was pleased to see some States responding to their people’s aspirations by launching economic, social and cultural reforms. Morocco had shown willingness to strengthen a rule-of-law state, break with practices of the past and better proceed in the process to a democratic transition.

China Association for Preservation and Development of Tibetan Culture visited Tibet and the surrounding areas every year. Since the launch of the development programme, people had found many things satisfying. In settlements for herders, there was better access to education and health. The herders were eager to be settled.

China NGO Network for International Exchanges said some organizations had made some comments about the freedom to religious belief and human rights protection in Tibet. These comments were not fair. Nomadic Tibetans were perfectly satisfied with the new homes and subsidies they received from the Government.

United Nations Association said that China was a multi-religious country and the Government had supported the reconstruction of temples and mosques during post disaster recovery. More than 17,000 people, including those from religious communities, were currently attending the People’s Consultative Conference, evidence of a broad and active participation of people in national politics.

International Institute for Peace said States faced the challenge of terrorism in protecting and promoting human rights. Support of the Khalistan movement in the Indian Punjab was an example of terrorist acts committed under the claim that it was imperative for the Sikhs to be granted their right to self-determination.

European Union of Public Relations said that human rights defenders should always raise their voice against instances where States subverted democratic procedures and laws using counter terrorism as an excuse. Exceptional circumstances that required a temporary hold on human rights should always be temporary and justified by law.

Centre for Environmental and Management Studies said that it was very important to analyze the root causes of terrorism. An unfortunate aspect of the problem was the use of terrorism as an instrument of proxy war or tolerating terrorist activities in the name of ideology or faith.

CIVICUS – World Alliance for Citizen Participation urged the Council to take proactive measures and guarantee an enabling environment for civil society. The following conditions should be guaranteed to all civil society actors: freedom of association, freedom of expression, the right to communicate and cooperate, and the State’s duty to protect.

Human Rights Watch said that in 2008, the Human Rights Council had called on Spain to repeal its 1977 Amnesty Law and to ensure that domestic courts did not apply limitation periods to crimes against humanity. The Human Rights Watch called on Spain to repeal this law and ensure effective remedy, including justice and truth to families of victims of crimes committed under the dictatorship of General Franco.

Verein Sudwind Entwicklungspolitick was concerned about the large number of human rights violations regarding human rights defenders, especially women human rights defenders, including human rights attorneys, journalists and bloggers. The Council should consider the worsening situation of human rights in Iran.

Amnesty International welcomed the repot of the Working Group on enforced or involuntary disappearances on its mission to Mexico which highlighted the alarming rise in reports of enforced disappearances by military and other security forces. The Mexican authorities continued to fail to conduct effective investigations into these disappearances.

International Humanist and Ethical Union said accusations of witchcraft and demonic possession against children by priests and pastors in Africa often resulted in torture or death. The report of the Holy See under the Convention on the Rights of the Child should contain more information on the issue of child abuse by Catholic clergy.

Save a Child’s Heart in Memory of Dr. Ami Cohen said that its mission was to improve the quality of cardiac care for children from developing countries regardless of nationality, religion or race. Eight in 1,000 children were born with congenital heart disease and of the 2,800 children the organization had treated so far more than half were Palestinian.

International Human Rights Association of American Minorities said that there were now more malnourished people across the globe than in 1980. There was a direct link between the right to development and other human rights. In Indian held Kashmir, the funding for social services was lower than in the Indian provinces.

World Environment and Resource Council said that in Pakistan controlled Gilgit Baltistan and Kashmir freedom of expression and political activities were banned for indigenous people. In 2011, 120 sedition cases were registered against native right defenders. The Special Rapporteur should visit Gilgit Baltistan and Kashmir to investigate human rights violations there.

International Institute for Non-aligned Studies said that gender justice was still being denied. Women were prevented from achieving their full potential, even though they contributed 50 per cent of the time spent on all global economic activities, paid and unpaid. Millions of women lived in conditions of abject deprivation of their fundamental human rights only because they were women.

Indian Council of Education said that development must be an inclusive process and ensure that all segments of the population would benefit from the utilization of resources available to a nation. The right to development was not a favour to people, but was a responsibility of States to create structures encouraging balanced regional development.

International Buddhist Relief Organization said over the past years several Buddhist places of worship in India had been occupied by extremists and Buddhist believers had been prevented from entering the temples. Certain sites were about to be destroyed and the International Buddhist Relief Organization called upon the Council to support the Buddhist community and to protect their right to freedom of religion by protecting their places of worship.

Right of Reply

China, speaking in a right of reply, said that China categorically rejected the allegations made against China by the Society for Threatened People. China was a country governed by the rule of law and it did not allow arbitrary detentions or forced disappearances. The Government protected the rights of individuals and promoted State security, public interest and the property and livelihood of the Chinese people in line with its commitments to international treaties.

Brazil, speaking in a right of reply, said that Brazil was one of the most advanced of the developing countries in economic and social rights. The Government had lifted above the poverty line 30 million people and would lift another 60 million people out of poverty. The Government had been engaged with Special Rapporteurs on the promotion of human rights and had been active in consultations with indigenous communities regarding power projects to minimize negative impacts.

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For use of the information media; not an official record