Human Rights Committee continues discussion on draft General Comment on the right to life

Human Rights Committee

03 April 2018

Adopts Introductory Paragraphs on Euthanasia and Suicide, and Private Security Companies

The Human Rights Committee this morning continued its second reading of the draft General Comment No. 36 on article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on the right to life, adopting introductory paragraphs on euthanasia and suicide, and private security companies, and beginning discussion of the introductory paragraph 12 on new weapons.

Yuval Shany, Committee Rapporteur for the draft General Comment, led the discussion and reminded of the proposals previously presented by States, organizations and individuals on paragraphs 10, 11, and 12.

In the discussion of introductory paragraph 10 on euthanasia and suicide, Committee Experts expressed preference for a text that would not impose normative obligations on States parties to allow medical professionals to provide medical treatment or medical means to facilitate the termination of life of severely afflicted adults, reminding that the Committee had made only two recommendations with respect to assisted suicide, namely in the case of Switzerland and the Netherlands.  Accordingly, Experts opted for a more factual structure of the paragraph, while preserving the reference to human dignity and personal autonomy.  Some Experts stressed that the right wording needed to be found in all official languages and not just in English.  The Committee then adopted paragraph 10 as amended.        

On introductory paragraph 11 on the operation of private security companies and States parties’ obligation to ensure their actual compliance with article 6 of the Covenant, Committee Experts proposed a reference to training in international humanitarian law for private security entities, and to due diligence of States to determine whether members of private security entities were involved in human rights violations.  The Committee then adopted paragraph 11 as amended.

In the discussion of introductory paragraph 12 on new weapons and their compatibility with the right to life, some Committee Experts noted that the Committee should discourage the development of new weapons, and refer to both weapons acquisition and sale, noting that fully autonomous weapons systems would be absolutely incompatible with the right to life.  Some cautioned that the Committee should avoid suggesting that currently there were no normative frameworks that could deal with the use of new weapons.  Others pointed out a paradox in telling States that they could improve their self-defense and then telling them that they should limit their self-defense by observing the impact of new weapons on the right to life.

The Committee will continue its discussion of the General Comment No. 36 on the right to life on Thursday, 5 April, at 10 a.m.
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For use of the information media; not an official record
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