Human Rights
Civil and Political Rights:
The Human Rights Committee
Fact Sheet No. 15 (Rev.1)
CONTENTS
Page
Introduction................................................................................... 1
Part I - The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
and its Protocols . .......................................................................... 3
Structure and Contents of the Covenant ....................................... 4
Parts I and II - Overarching Provisions ............................ 4
Part III - The Substantive Rights of the Covenant ........... 6
Parts IV to VI - Monitoring and Technical Aspects
of the Covenant ............................................................ 9
Contents of the Two Optional Protocols to the Covenant............. 10
Part II - The Human Rights Committee........................................... 12
What is the Committee and who are its members? ............... 12
What are the roles of the Committee members? ................... 12
When does the Committee meet and how does it work?......... 14
Part III - The Four Monitoring Functions of the Committee ............ 14
Examination of Reports Submitted by States Parties............... 15
What should a State party’s report
to the Committee include?............................................ 15
How should a State party’s report be compiled?............ 16
How does the Committee examine
a State party’s report? ................................................... 18
What happens during the session when the Committee
examines a State party’s report? .................................... 18
What happens once the Committee has adopted its
concluding observations? .............................................. 20
What happens if a State party fails to submit
a report to the Committee? .......................................... 21
Adoption of General Comments on Articles
of the Covenant ..................................................................... 24
Consideration of Individual Complaints Under
the Optional Protocol ............................................................ 25
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What if my complaint is urgent? ................................... 25
What technical and/or procedural requirements
must my complaint satisfy? ........................................... 26
What about the substance of my case?......................... 26
What happens if the Committee finds in my favour? .... 27
Assessment of Inter-State Complaints.................................... 27
What impact does the Committee’s work have?............ 29
Conclusion..................................................................................... 30
LIST OF BOXES
I.1. How does a State agree to be bound by the terms of
a treaty such as the Covenant and its Optional Protocols? . 3
I.2. Can the rights that have been described in Part III
be limited or restricted?................................................. 8
I.3. Can the Covenant be rejected or denounced by a State
that no longer wishes to be bound by it? What about
new States emerging from the break-up of an old State
that was a party to the treaty? ....................................... 10
III.1. Purpose and value of the reporting process ................... 22
III.2. Where is the reporting process headed?........................ 23
III.3. Where can I find detailed information on how
to submit an individual complaint?................................ 25
III.4. How can I access the Committee’s work?...................... 28
ANNEXES
I. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ................. 31
II. Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights .................................................................. 55
III. Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition
of the death penalty................................................................ 61
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Introduction
The Charter of the United Nations (1945) proclaims that one of the
purposes of the United Nations is to promote and encourage respect for
human rights and fundamental freedoms for all. This call was first given
concrete expression with the promulgation of the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. Adopted
against the background of the horrors of the Second World War, the
Universal Declaration was the first attempt by all States to agree, in a
single document, on a comprehensive catalogue of the rights of the
human person. As its name suggests, it was not conceived of as a treaty
but rather a proclamation of basic rights and fundamental freedoms,
bearing the moral force of universal agreement. Its purpose has thus been
described as setting “a common standard of achievement for all peoples
in all nations”. Broadly speaking, the Universal Declaration sets down two
broad categories of rights and freedoms - civil and political rights, on the
one hand, and economic, social and cultural rights, on the other.
At the time of the adoption of the Universal Declaration, there was
already broad agreement that human rights should be translated into
legal form as a treaty, which would be directly binding on the States that
agreed to be bound by its terms. This led to extensive negotiations in the
Commission on Human Rights, the political body established in 1946,
composed of State representatives meeting annually in Geneva to discuss
a wide variety of human rights issues. The year 1966 saw the adoption by
the General Assembly of the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights. The two International Covenants on Human Rights form the
cornerstone of an extensive series of internationally binding treaties
covering a wide variety of issues in the field of human rights. The treaties
define human rights and fundamental freedoms and set basic standards
that have inspired more than 100 international and regional human rights
conventions, declarations, sets of rules and principles.
Alongside the two Covenants are five further core United Nations human
rights treaties: the International Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Racial Discrimination (1965); the Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979); the Convention
against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or
Punishment (1984); the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989);
and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All
Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (1990). Many of the
treaties also have optional protocols, separate treaties which add
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substantive and/or procedural provisions to the original treaty to which
they relate.
Each of these treaties, including the two Covenants, follows the same
pattern. They set out a series of substantive rights, in what is often known
as the “normative” part of the treaty, that define the basic rights and
fundamental freedoms in the area addressed by that treaty. An
independent monitoring body, or committee, established by the treaty
itself, oversees the implementation of the treaty by States parties. These
committees are comprised of independent experts, elected by the States
that are parties to the treaty, whose impartiality, independence and
experience in the field of human rights make them well placed to assess
the progress made by States parties against the standards set out in the
treaty in question. For the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights, the treaty body established for that purpose is the Human Rights
Committee.
This Fact Sheet will first provide an introduction to the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and its two Optional Protocols, the
texts of which are annexed. Second, the Fact Sheet will describe the work
of the Human Rights Committee. The Committee should not be confused
with the Commission on Human Rights, which is a quite separate entity,
as mentioned above. Nor should the Human Rights Committee be
understood as a “global” body that addresses all human rights described
in all the treaties; rather, it may best be described as a committee on civil
and political rights as it is responsible for oversight of the implementation
of the civil and political rights set out in the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights.
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PART I - The International Convenant on Civil and
Political Rights and its Protocol
Although the text of the Covenant was adopted in 1966, it took another
10 years before the necessary 35 States had become parties to it and it
formally entered into force on 23 March 1976 for those States. As of June
2004, a further 117 States had become parties to the Covenant, making
for a current total of 152 States parties. Updated lists of States
parties to all the treaties may be found in the Treaty Bodies database of
the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
(http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf) and also in the United Nations Treaty
Collection at http://untreaty.un.org (subscribers only).
Box I.1. How does a State agree to be bound by the
terms of a treaty such as the Covenant and its
Optional Protocols?
A State can become party to a treaty in one of two main ways.
Firstly, it can sign the treaty, following which, according to the rules
of international law, the State may not act contrary to the objects
and purposes of the treaty. Signature is followed by ratification. In
depositing an instrument of ratification, a State formally indicates its
intent to be bound by the treaty. Alternatively, a State can accede to
a treaty. Accession, whereby a State that has not signed a treaty
agrees to be bound by it, is equivalent to ratification. The treaty in
question typically provides a short period of time after the date of
ratification or accession before the State is actually bound by the
terms of the treaty. In the case of the Covenant, this is three months.
For further details on these steps, refer to the Treaty Handbook of
the United Nations of the Office of Legal Affairs, accessible at:
http://untreaty.un.org/ola-internet/Assistance/
handbook_eng/hbframeset.htm.
Parties to the Covenant may also become parties to either or both of its
two Optional Protocols. The first Optional Protocol sets out a system by
which the Human Rights Committee can receive and consider complaints
from individuals who allege that their human rights have been violated,
while the second Optional Protocol abolishes the death penalty for States
parties. The first Optional Protocol also came into force on 23 March 1976
and currently has 104 States parties, while the Second Optional Protocol
came into force on 11 July 1991 and has 53 States parties.
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Structure and Contents of the Covenant
The Covenant is divided into six major Parts. Parts I and II set out a series
of provisions generally applicable to all the rights described in the
Covenant. Part III is the “backbone” of the Covenant, elaborating the
substantive individual rights. The final Parts deal with the establishment
of the Human Rights Committee, the Committee’s monitoring functions
and a variety of technical matters. The Parts will now be described in turn.
Parts I and II - Overarching Provisions
The first two Parts, comprising articles 1 to 5, are an important set of
what may best be described as provisions of an overarching or structural
nature. Article 1, which forms Part I, guarantees the right of selfdetermination.
This right differs from the other Covenant rights in that it
is a right expressly ascribed to “peoples” rather than to individuals. It is
also the only right that is common to both Covenants, as article 1 of the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is
identical. While the precise contours under international law of the right
of self-determination remain in a state of flux, it can safely be taken that
a precondition for a full and genuine expression of self-determination on
the part of a people is the enjoyment by its members in whole measure
of the rights contained in the Covenant.
Part II comprises articles 2 through 5. Article 2 is one of the fundamental
cornerstones of the Covenant. It provides that a State party must respect
and ensure the rights of the Covenant to all persons within its jurisdiction.
With some exceptions, such as the right to vote, these rights extend not
only to citizens but to all persons in the State’s territory, and must be
respected without discrimination. If necessary, legislation should be
enacted to properly guarantee these rights. Crucially, States parties are
required to provide remedies to persons whose rights under the Covenant
are breached. The Committee, in its jurisprudence, has interpreted this
right to require a forum to be available to hear an allegation of a violation
of a Covenant right when it is “sufficiently well founded to be arguable
under the Covenant”. Commonly, it is the courts and administrative
authorities that provide these remedies. Without this right to enforce a
Covenant right before the domestic authorities by way of remedy, the
actual substantive rights of the Covenant would be deprived of much
practical effect. For greater detail on the scope of the obligation entailed
by this key article, see General Comment No. 31 on the nature of the
general legal obligation imposed on States parties to the Covenant
(CCPR/C/74/CRP.4/Rev.6).
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Treaty bodies and academic commentary have developed a three-part
understanding of the responsibilities imposed by treaties on a State party.
The first obligation is to respect the rights, which most obviously requires
Governments to refrain from violating human rights. This is often also
called a “negative” obligation, or an obligation not to engage in a
particular act or practice. The classic example is that a State must refrain
from an act of torture or arbitrary deprivation of life. The second
obligation, to protect enjoyment of the rights, goes further: the State
party must not only refrain from violating an individual’s rights itself, but
it must also protect an individual from a violation of his or her rights by
third parties, be they private individuals, corporations, or other non-State
actors. This may well require positive action by the State party, for
example by establishing an appropriate legislative and policy framework
and devoting sufficient resources to their effective implementation.
Thirdly, a State party must promote or fulfil an individual’s rights, that is
take the required steps to create a necessary and conducive environment
within which the relevant rights can be fully realized. This again is a
“positive” obligation which may require a State party to take substantial
steps, including the allocation of appropriate resources, to satisfy its
obligations under the treaty. So, for example, with respect to the
Covenant, a State party must provide legal aid to persons “where the
interests of justice so require” under article 14, paragraph 3 (d), and
prevent overcrowding in prisons so as to comply with the guarantee in
article 10, paragraph 1, of humane conditions of detention for prisoners.
Article 3 of the Covenant provides for the equal right of men and women
to the enjoyment of Covenant rights. As the Committee’s jurisprudence
has evolved, article 26 in Part III of the Covenant, which provides for
equality before the law and equal protection of the law without
discrimination, including on the basis of sex, has been interpreted to
encompass the same protection, but the importance of this question to
the framers of the Covenant may be seen by virtue of its location in the
first Part of the Covenant.
Article 4 of the Covenant recognizes that exceptional situations affecting
a State party may make the guarantee of some rights difficult or
impossible, at a practical level, for a temporary period of time.
Accordingly, article 4 clearly sets out the strictly permissible boundaries for
suspending or derogating from certain rights, in order to foreclose the
possibility of any abuses. The threshold condition is that there must exist
a public emergency, officially proclaimed, which threatens the life of the
nation. The Human Rights Committee can, and does, question, in
appropriate cases, whether this basic requirement has been satisfied
when a State decides to derogate from its obligations under the
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Covenant. Even if such a situation does exist, the measures taken must be
“strictly required by the exigencies of” the relevant crisis. This is a high
standard, the respect for which a State party may be required to
demonstrate to the Committee’s satisfaction. In addition, regardless of
the situation, there are some rights, including the rights to life and to be
protected from torture, which may not be derogated from in any
circumstances. These rights are listed in paragraph 2 of article 4. For
greater detail on issues arising under article 4, see General Comment No.
29 on states of emergency (CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.11).
Part II of the Covenant concludes with article 5, a general protective
provision stating that nothing in the Covenant confers the right to limit
or destroy any of its provisions, and that a State party whose domestic law
provides greater protections than those contained in the Covenant may
not use that as an excuse to restrict or derogate from the fundamental
rights contained in the Covenant.
Part III - The Substantive Rights of the Covenant
Part III is the heart of the Covenant. It lists the substantive rights and
fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the treaty. These are the articles
that are commonly invoked by individuals alleging that their rights under
the Covenant have been violated, although provisions of Part I may also
be invoked and may lend support to their interpretation.
Articles 6 to 11 may be regarded as core provisions for the protection of
the life, liberty and physical security of the individual. These provisions
also stipulate the narrow confines within which the death penalty may
legitimately be imposed in States parties where that penalty has not been
abolished. Specific prohibitions are set out concerning torture,
unauthorized medical experimentation, slavery and forced labour. The
rights of a person in the context of deprivation of liberty, commonly by
arrest, and in detention are also covered here. Articles 12 and 13 deal
with movement into, out of and within a State, with particular rules
applicable to the expulsion of aliens.
Articles 14 to 16 deal with how a person must be treated by the judicial
process. Article 14 guarantees the right to a fair trial in both criminal and
civil cases, a right of fundamental importance, especially so given the
close links to the right to an effective remedy contained in article 2. It sets
out the rights to equality before the courts and to fair adjudication of
claims resolved before courts and tribunals, and lists a series of additional
protections applicable to criminal trials. Article 15 prohibits retrospective
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criminal punishment, while article 16 states simply that everyone has the
right to be recognized as a person before the law.
Articles 17 to 22 set out fundamental freedoms to be enjoyed free of
unjustified external interference. Article 17 addresses the right to privacy,
article 18 freedom of thought and religion, article 19 freedom of opinion
and expression (subject to the prohibitions in article 20 of advocacy of
war or of national, racial or religious hatred), article 21 the right to
peaceful assembly and article 22 freedom of association, including
through trade unions.
Articles 23 and 24 recognize the particular role of the family unit and
addres issues of marriage and the rights of children. Article 25 stands
alone as the major right to political participation in the Covenant,
outlining the rights to vote and to be elected at genuine periodic elections
by universal suffrage and secret ballot as well as the rights to take part in
public affairs and to have equal access to the public service.
Alongside articles 2 and 14, article 26, as noted above, is a fundamental
provision of the Covenant. It sets out the rights to equality before the law
and to equal protection of the law, with a wide guarantee of nondiscrimination.
The Human Rights Committee has taken a broad view of
this provision, relating it to all provisions of law, rather than simply the
terms of the Covenant. Thus, if a State party confers a particular benefit
of any kind on a person or group of persons, it must be accorded in a
non-discriminatory fashion. That is to say, distinctions drawn by law must
be based upon reasonable and objective grounds, these being criteria the
Committee may assess, in order to be consistent with this provision.
Part III of the Covenant concludes with article 27, which guarantees
persons belonging to ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities the right, in
community with other members of the group, to enjoy and practise their
own culture, religion or language. While nominally expressed as an
individual right, this provision, by definition, may best be understood as a
group right protecting a community of individuals.
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Box I.2.Can the rights that have been described in
Part III be limited or restricted?
A number of the rights described in Part III are expressly set out as
being subject to restrictions or limitations, commonly where
provided by law and necessary for specific enumerated purposes.
Articles 17, 18, 19, 21, 22 and 25 expressly permit some form of
restriction or limitation. If a State party chooses to limit or restrict
one of these rights within the limits prescribed, this is permissible
and does not amount to a violation of the right in question. Other
rights, notably those protecting against “arbitrary” action on the
part of the State, implicitly recognize as permissible certain
reasonable measures taken by the State.
It should be emphasized, however, that in any case the permissible
limits are neither wide nor generous, and certainly do not permit a
State party effectively to void a certain right of practical meaning.
The burden of justification in such a case lies with the State party to
show, including to the Committee, that a certain limitation satisfies
the tests of legality, necessity, reasonableness and legitimate
purpose. Some rights may never be restricted or limited, no matter
how serious the circumstances. In other cases, a right claimed by
one person may have to be balanced against a right claimed by
another. For example, it may be necessary, consistent with a child’s
right to necessary measures of protection under article 24, for a
child to be removed from an abusive domestic environment, even
though such a separation from a family may appear contrary to the
parents’ right under article 23 to protection of the family unit.
The other method by which rights may be restricted is by
reservation. A reservation is a formal declaration lodged by a State
party at the time it becomes party to a treaty that it declines to apply
one or more provisions, either in whole or in part, in its jurisdiction.
In contrast to some other treaties, the Covenant is silent on the
effect of reservations. A reservation may be entered, subject to the
general rule of international law, as expressed in the Vienna
Convention on the Law of Treaties, that it may not be inconsistent
with the object and purpose of the treaty. The traditional indicator
of whether a reservation is acceptable is the reaction of other States
parties, which may submit objections to a reservation lodged by
another State party.
The Committee itself, as the body charged with monitoring the
implementation of the Covenant, has assumed the power to make
8
a determination on the compatibility of a reservation with the
Covenant’s object and purpose and has expressed its view on this
matter with respect to several States parties. If the Committee finds
a reservation to be incompatible, it “severs” the reservation and
applies the full obligation in question to the State party. While the
possibility of lodging reservations may encourage States to become
party to a treaty when they may not be willing to assume the whole
extent of the obligations deriving therefrom, reservations are often
regarded as a poor policy choice in that they may deprive certain
persons of rights for reasons which are unclear to other States
parties or which may only be valid for a time. For this reason, the
Committee consistently encourages States parties to review, with
a view to their removal, reservations that they have lodged. For
further details on the Committee’s approach to these matters, see
General Comment No. 24 on issues relating to reservations
(CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.6).
Part IV to VI - Monitoring and Technical Aspects of the Covenant
The remaining Parts of the Covenant establish the Human Rights
Committee as the treaty’s monitoring body. Part IV, covering articles 28 to
45, sets up the Committee and provides for its functions and procedures.
These will be covered in detail below. Part V of the Covenant, in articles
46 and 47, includes savings provisions with respect to the United Nations
Charter and, linked with article 1, to the inherent right of peoples freely
to enjoy and utilize their natural wealth and resources. Articles 48 to 53,
comprising the final Part VI, contain standard treaty provisions concerning
mechanics for becoming a party, notification and amendments. Article 50
provides that the Covenant’s provisions extend to all parts of a federal
State without limitation or exception. This is important for States whose
domestic law reserves exclusive competence in certain areas to state or
provincial rather than federal authorities. In such a case, the federal
authorities, who usually represent a State party before the Committee,
must take such measures as may be necessary to ensure that the
Covenant is fully applicable within its territory and that the necessary
remedies for violations are available. In this sense, article 50 is a
restatement of the well-known principles of international law whereby a
State’s international responsibility is engaged by the acts and omissions of
its authorities at all levels, whether national, provincial or local, and that
a State’s domestic law does not excuse a breach of a treaty obligation.
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Box I.3. Can the Covenant be rejected or denounced by
a State that no longer wishes to be bound by
it? What about new States emerging from the
break-up of an old State that was a party to
the treaty?
Unlike many treaties, the concluding provisions of the Covenant do
not provide for denunciation of the treaty allowing a State party to
withdraw from the treaty regime. In these circumstances, the
Committee has taken the view that in the light of the particular
character of human rights treaties such as the Covenant, which
extend basic rights and freedoms to persons within a State party’s
jurisdiction, these rights and freedoms may not be withdrawn once
confirmed. Accordingly, once a State has ratified the Covenant, it is
not permitted to withdraw from its obligations by denouncing the
treaty. Likewise, States parties may not denounce the Second
Optional Protocol, which does not contain any provisions on
denunciation either. In contrast, the first Optional Protocol
specifically sets out a denunciation procedure.
A related issue is the situation in terms of ongoing applicability of
the Covenant when a State party to the Covenant breaks up into a
series of successor States. Applying a similar approach, the
Committee has taken the view that a successor State succeeds to a
predecessor State’s obligations under the Covenant. Thus, for
example, the Committee views Kazakhstan as being bound by the
Covenant, as a successor State to the USSR, which was a State party
at the time of its dissolution. Generally, this precise situation does
not arise, as successor States have acted to confirm the applicability
of the Covenant in their jurisdictions, such as by making a
declaration of succession. Similarly, when the United Kingdom and
Portugal, as States parties to the Covenant, returned sovereignty
over Hong Kong and Macau respectively to China, China agreed to
apply the Covenant obligations in those territories, even though it
was not itself a State party to the Covenant.
Contents of the Two Optional Protocols to the Covenant?
The first Optional Protocol is procedural and provides a mechanism for the
Committee to receive and consider individual complaints alleging a
violation of the Covenant, that is to say of the substantive rights
contained in Part III, if appropriate in conjunction with the provisions of
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Parts I and II. As its name makes clear, the Protocol is not compulsory, but
once a State party to the Covenant also becomes a party to the Protocol,
any person subject to the jurisdiction of the State party may lodge a
written complaint with the Human Rights Committee (subject to any
permissible reservations). This is not limited to nationals, or to persons
within a State’s territory, but extends to all persons who are directly
subject to a State’s exercise of power through its authorities. Thus, for
example, a national of a State party residing abroad who was denied a
passport by that State was able to bring a claim to the Committee.
The Protocol sets out in articles 1, 2, 3 and 5 a series of admissibility
requirements, explicit and implicit, which a complaint must satisfy before
its substance, or merits, can be considered. Article 4 of the Protocol sets
out basic procedural requirements for the treatment of a complaint.
Under article 6, the Committee reports annually to the General Assembly
on its activities concerning complaints, while articles 7 through 14 contain
largely standard savings and technical provisions on the mechanics of
becoming a party, entry into force, notification, amendment,
denunciation and the like. Article 10, like the parent Covenant, provides
that the Protocol too extends without exception to all parts of federal
States. Article 12 allows a State party to denounce the Optional Protocol.
The purpose of the Second Optional Protocol is revealed by its full title,
“aiming at the abolition of the death penalty”. Its single substantive
provision, article 1, states directly that no person within a State party’s
jurisdiction shall be executed, and that each State party shall take all
necessary measures to abolish the death penalty. Article 2 permits, subject
to certain procedural requirements, only one reservation, namely one
reserving the death penalty in time of war pursuant to a conviction for a
most serious crime of a military nature committed in wartime. Article 6
provides that these provisions are non-derogable and, as substantive
provisions, apply as additional provisions to the Covenant. Articles 3 to 5
apply to the Protocol the same reporting and State complaint procedures
that are discussed below with respect to the Covenant, as well as
complaints lodged under the Optional Protocol. The remaining articles 7
to 11 set out the federal provision discussed above as well as the usual
treaty mechanics dealing with its entry into force, amendment and so on.
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Part II - The Human Rights Committee
What is the Committee and who are its members?
The Human Rights Committee is established under article 28 of the
Covenant. It has 18 members, who must be nationals of States parties to
the Covenant. Members of the Committee, as of other treaty bodies, are
also often called “experts”. Under article 28 of the Covenant, Committee
members must be “persons of high moral character and recognized
competence in the field of human rights”, with “consideration given to
the usefulness of the participation of some persons having legal
experience”. Each member is a national of the State party that nominates
them. Most Committee members (past and present) have a legal
background, whether from the judicial bench, as a practitioner or in
academia.
Under article 31, the Committee “may not include more than one
national of the same State”. Rather, “consideration should be given to
equitable geographical distribution of membership and to the
representation of the different forms of civilization and of the principal
legal systems”. It is these principles, set out in the Covenant, that guide
States parties when they nominate members and then elect them by
secret ballot to four-year terms. Elections for half of the Committee’s
members are held at two-yearly intervals at United Nations Headquarters,
during the annual session of the General Assembly. Members may be reelected,
if renominated, upon the expiry of their terms. If a Committee
member should vacate his or her position early, for example by reason of
death or resignation, another election may be held. The practice has,
however, arisen whereby such members are replaced by persons
nominated by the same State party as the vacating member. After
elections, members also maintain contact with States parties and engage
in dialogue on general issues of mutual concern through the forum of
meetings with States parties that the Committee regularly schedules
during its sessions.
What are the roles of the Committee members?
Members of the Committee serve in their personal capacity, not as
representatives of their Governments. Therefore, the proceedings of the
Committee should be politically impartial. In order to ensure highest
standards of conduct, the Committee has adopted ethical guidelines for
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the guidance of its members. The Committee’s rules of procedure
(CCPR/C/3/Rev.7) also formalize certain of these elements. Accordingly,
safeguards are in place to promote impartiality in appearance as well as
in substance. For example, a Committee member does not participate in
the consideration of a periodic report submitted by the State of which he
or she is a national, or in the adoption of concluding observations
thereon. Nor does a Committee member take part in discussion of a
complaint under the Optional Protocol that is directed against his or her
country. If for any other reason there may be a general apprehension of
partiality with respect to a particular matter, a Committee member may
recuse him- or herself from any proceedings on the question.
The members elect the Committee’s officers for terms of two years. These
officers are the Committee’s Chairperson, with overall responsibility for
the conduct of the Committee’s work, three Vice-Chairpersons, and the
Rapporteur, to whom the preparation of the Committee’s annual report
to the General Assembly is entrusted. In addition, there are currently three
special rapporteurs who are appointed by the Committee for the same
terms to perform specific functions. These are:
• The Special Rapporteur on New Communications, whose functions
include the registration of new complaints under the Optional Protocol
and such preliminary issues as requests for interim measures of
protection that may be necessary to prevent irreparable harm in a case
presented to the Committee;
• The Special Rapporteur on Follow-up to Views, who monitors the
implementation of the Committee’s decisions on the merits of
individual cases; and
• The Special Rapporteur on Follow-up to Concluding Observations, who
is tasked with the Committee’s new procedure of follow-up with
respect to individual State party reports considered by the Committee
(see below).
In electing these officers of the Committee, a variety of factors are
considered, including the desirability of a fair geographical and linguistic
spread amongst them. The Committee is serviced by a secretariat
provided by the Secretary-General of the United Nations and which is
based at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights in Geneva, Switzerland.
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When does the Committee meet and how does it work?
The Human Rights Committee normally holds three plenary sessions for
its full membership, each lasting three weeks, during the course of a year.
These sessions are usually held at United Nations Headquarters in March
and at the United Nations Office at Geneva in July and October,
respectively. The Committee may also meet at a different location. One
such occasion was when, at the invitation of the (then) Federal
Republic of Germany, a session was held in Bonn in 1981. The
Committee’s rules of procedure, available in the Treaty Bodies database of
the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
(http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf), set out in considerable detail the
modalities of the Committee’s operation. Thus, 12 Committee members
constitute a quorum, with each member having one vote. The Committee
makes all reasonable efforts to reach its decisions by consensus. On rare
occasions when consensus cannot be reached, the Committee members
may resort to a vote of those present.
Each session of the Committee is usually preceded by a one-week
meeting of the Committee’s working group, typically made up of five
members. The functions of the working group have evolved over the
years and are currently devoted solely to handling, as an initial chamber,
decisions on individual complaints under the Optional Protocol. While it
may declare complaints admissible in whole, its decisions on
inadmissibility (whether in whole or in part) and on the merits of a
complaint proceed to the full Committee for debate and formal plenary
decision. For further details on these matters, see Fact Sheet 7 (Rev.1),
entitled Complaints Procedures, published by the Office of the United
Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Part III - The Four Monitoring Functions of the
Committee
The Human Rights Committee’s task is to supervise and monitor the
implementation of Covenant obligations by States parties. One of the
great strengths of the Committee is the moral authority it derives from
the fact that its membership represents all parts of the world. Accordingly,
far from representing a single geographical or national perspective, the
Committee speaks with a global voice. In carrying out its monitoring and
supervisory functions, the Committee has four major responsibilities. First,
the Committee receives and examines reports from the States parties on
the steps they have taken to give effect to the rights spelled out in the
14
Covenant. Second, the Committee elaborates so-called general
comments, which are designed to assist States parties to give effect to the
provisions of the Covenant by providing greater detail regarding the
substantive and procedural obligations of States parties. Third, the
Committee receives and considers individual complaints, also known as
“communications”, under the Optional Protocol made by individuals who
claim violations of their Covenant rights by a State party. Fourth, the
Committee has jurisdiction to consider certain complaints made by a
State party that another State party is not abiding by the obligations
assumed under the Covenant.
Examination of Reports Submitted by States Parties
All States that have ratified or acceded to the Covenant undertake to
submit reports to the Committee on the measures they have adopted to
give effect to the rights the Covenant establishes and on the progress
made in the enjoyment of those rights. This obligation is contained in
article 40 of the Covenant.
A State party’s initial report is due within one year of the entry into force
of the Covenant for the country concerned. Subsequent reports, known
as “periodic reports”, are now due at a time individually specified by the
Committee for each State party. In 1997, the Committee changed its
previous rule regarding subsequent periodic reports, under which States
parties were generally required to submit reports every five years.
Occasionally, the Committee would also call for reports outside the fiveyear
cycle from States suffering from acute human rights crises, such as
the States of the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, during the respective
civil wars. Owing to the growth in the number of States parties to the
Covenant and the limited meeting time of the Committee, a fixed
reporting period for all States parties became increasingly impractical. At
present, the Committee sets, in the final paragraph of its concluding
observations on a particular report (discussed below), the date by which
the next periodic report should be submitted. Typically, this time frame is
of the order of four to five years, although on occasion shorter periods
have also been set. The Committee nevertheless retains the discretion, as
exceptional circumstances warrant, to call for an additional report prior to
the time that has been formally set for submission of the next report.
What should a State party’s report to the Committee include?
The Committee provides general guidelines to help Governments in
preparing their reports. At the outset, States should submit what is
15
known as a “core document”. This document details basic information
about a State, its demography and geography, as well as its
constitutional, legal and political structures and other general
information. Because this information is of common interest to all the
treaty bodies, it is provided in a single document available to all the treaty
bodies that examine a particular State. The State in question is thus
relieved of having to supply afresh the same information when it comes
up for consideration before each treaty body. As important changes in a
State take place, the core document should be updated in order that the
treaty bodies can remain apprised of current developments of general
interest to them.
The initial reports submitted by States to the Committee under the
Covenant should comprehensively cover all substantive articles of the
Covenant, including information on the State’s constitutional and legal
framework that is not set out in the core document, and the legal and
practical measures taken in order to implement the Covenant. It is of
critical importance that States ensure that they describe the factual
situation, or, in other words, the practical realities regarding the
implementation and enjoyment of Covenant rights, rather than limiting
themselves to a description of the formal situation as represented in
the State’s laws and policies. These requirements are set out in much
greater detail both in reporting guidelines published by the Committee,
as well as in the Manual on Human Rights Reporting published
by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
These documents are available in the Treaty Bodies database of the
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights (http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf) and under the Office’s online
Professional Training Series at http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu6/2/
training.htm, respectively.
Thereafter, States are advised to submit shorter periodic reports that focus
on the issues raised by the Committee in its previous concluding
observations, and on significant developments since the previous report.
All reports should also include explanations of the measures taken to
address any decisions made against the State on the merits of individual
complaints lodged under the Optional Protocol.
How should a State party’s report be compiled?
There is no one set method for compiling a report in the State. As the
implementation of Covenant rights affects areas that cut right across the
typical activities of Government, many if not all government departments
will have an interest in the presentation of laws, programmes and policies
16
to the Committee that fall within their areas of expertise. In addition, in
many States, especially ones with a federal structure, provincial and
regional governments may have particular competencies in certain areas
and from whom contributions to the report will accordingly be required.
As a result, it is crucial that a coordination mechanism be developed,
whereby the different authorities are briefed on and tasked with the
requirements of a report. Usually, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs takes the
lead role in the submission of a report.
Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other members of civil
society have assumed an increasingly prominent role in the reporting
process, including in the compilation of a report. The Committee regards
as best practice in the preparation of a report the involvement of a broad
range of members of civil society. There is no set formula for how civil
society should contribute, and different States have experimented with a
variety of mechanisms. These include consultations with civil society prior
to compiling a report, use of information and statistics provided by civil
society, involving civil society in reviews of draft reports, and so on. In
States with a national human rights institution (such as a Human Rights
Commission), such an organization may also often possess valuable
expertise and insights in the areas covered by the report. The key to
achieving a report that reflects as broadly as possible a common view of
governmental and society actors of the enjoyment of Covenant rights in
the State in question is for consultation to be comprehensive and
meaningful. (See the section below, entitled “Where is the reporting
process headed?”, for further discussion of related issues.) It may be that
on one or several issues, there is disagreement between the State and one
or more members of civil society. In such a case, naturally the State will
submit its report to the Committee in a form that it regards as
appropriate.
Upon submission, the report is translated into the official United Nations
languages and posted publicly on the web site of the Office of the United
Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Preferably prior to this, but
at the latest by this point, members of civil society advancing a different
perspective on issues raised in the report - or, alternatively, not addressed
therein - may provide their own submissions to the Committee. In order
to limit the information supplied to a manageable volume, civil society is
encouraged, to the extent possible, to submit a common report reflecting
the agreed views of a variety of groups or organizations. Such a report,
which often tracks the format of the State’s report, is known as a
“shadow report”. Naturally, the Committee is often able to give greater
weight to information supplied in a report compiled by a number of
17
members of civil society than to information supplied by one group alone,
though this information can also be useful.
How does the Committee examine a State party’s report?
The process of examining a report runs across two consecutive
Committee sessions. At the first session, the report is assigned to a group
of between four and six Committee members known as a Country Report
Task Force (CRTF). The decision to create CRTFs was adopted in March
2002. They are designed to streamline the reporting procedure and
improve the quality of the dialogue with States parties. At least one CRTF
member should come from the same region as the relevant State. One
member is the designated “country rapporteur”, whose main
responsibility is to accompany a report through the Committee’s
processes. With the assistance of the Committee’s secretariat, the CRTF
draws up a “List of Issues” arising from the relevant report and other
information supplied to the Committee. The List of Issues addresses the
most crucial matters regarding the enjoyment of Covenant rights in the
relevant State and often seeks additional information with respect to key
questions. The List of Issues is sent to the State party well in advance - at
least one session ahead - of the session at which the report will be
examined in the presence of representatives of the State party. It is
increasingly common, and of real assistance to Committee members, for
States to provide written answers (ideally in the Committee’s three
working languages of English, French and Spanish) to the List of Issues in
advance or at the beginning of the Committee’s public examination of the
report.
What happens during the session when the Committee examines a
State party’s report?
At the beginning of the Committee’s session, the Committee hears in a
private meeting representatives of specialized agencies and other parts of
the United Nations that wish to provide information on the State to be
considered. The Committee is also often briefed, typically in an informal
lunchtime meeting, on views of members of civil society wishing to bring
Committee members up to date on certain issues.
The Committee then proceeds to examine each report in a public
constructive dialogue with a delegation of the relevant State party. This
delegation typically comprises the State party’s ambassador to the United
Nations Office at Geneva and other members of diplomatic staff, as well
as representatives from government departments and agencies with
expertise in matters dealt with in the Covenant. It is not uncommon for
18
ministers of government departments to be part of these delegations,
and on occasion members of civil society and minority groups, for
example, have also been included. It usually takes one and a half days for
the Committee to examine an initial report, with two half-day meetings
being in general devoted to subsequent periodic reports. The examination
begins by an opening presentation of the report by the State party’s
delegation, often including a response to the List of Issues. Thereafter,
Committee members put questions to the representatives, seeking to
clarify or deepen understanding of issues arising concerning the
implementation and enjoyment of Covenant rights in the State party. This
often includes questions that have not been fully clarified by the
responses to the List of Issues. Members of the relevant CRTF have the
main responsibility for putting questions to the State representatives,
though other Committee members have an opportunity to intervene.
There may be several rounds of exchanges between the Committee and
the State party’s delegation on different issues. The dialogue is also
facilitated by the holding, where possible, of the initial meeting in the
afternoon and the second meeting the following morning, to enable the
delegation to obtain information and clarifications overnight from
authorities in the State party. After the conclusion of the dialogue, there
is usually also a short time for the delegation to supply additional
information to the Committee.
After the conclusion of this dialogue, the Committee drafts detailed
written concluding observations on the report in question. Concluding
observations, which have been adopted since 1992, set out the results of
the dialogue with the Committee’s conclusions and are therefore a very
useful way of monitoring a State’s human rights record. The country
rapporteur for the report in question, with the assistance of the members
of the relevant CRTF, has initial responsibility for drafting the concluding
observations, which are circulated to all members of the Committee for
comment and are then referred for discussion and adoption by the
Committee in plenary. Concluding observations are consensus comments
on positive and negative aspects of a State party’s implementation of the
Covenant. They are generally divided into the following sections:
Introduction, Positive factors, and Principal subjects of concern and
recommendations. The bulk of the concluding observations is generally
devoted to the last heading, where the issues that remain of concern
to the Committee are paired with the Committee’s recommendations
for remedial action. The final paragraph sets forth the date by which
the next periodic report should be submitted to the Committee. The
concluding observations have the dual function of helping States to
prepare future reports, and helping the Committee to focus on the most
19
important issues in future dialogues over future reports. All concluding
observations are publicly available via the Treaty Bodies database of the
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
(http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf).
What happens once the Committee has adopted its concluding
observations?
In 2001, the Committee created a new position, that of Special
Rapporteur on Follow-up to Concluding Observations. In almost all
concluding observations, the Committee identifies, in the final paragraph
of its findings, a limited number of issues of particular priority. It then asks
the State party to provide, no later than a year thereafter, information on
the measures it has taken to address those particular issues. This followup
information is translated and in general made publicly available on the
Treaty Bodies database of the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights (http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf).
Along with whatever information may have been supplied from other
sources on these issues, the Special Rapporteur, with the assistance of the
Committee secretariat, assesses this follow-up information and makes a
recommendation to the Committee on any further steps that may be
appropriate. The Committee then sets aside time to discuss the Special
Rapporteur’s findings and decides on further action. The decisions are
very flexible, and may range from changing the date for the submission
of the State party’s next report, to requesting further information, to
requesting the Special Rapporteur to meet with representatives of the
State party on a specific issue. If States fail to submit the follow-up
information, the Special Rapporteur will meet with representatives in
order to pursue the issue. If a State continues to be unresponsive to the
Committee’s request, that fact is recorded in the Committee’s annual
report to the General Assembly. The initial reactions of States parties to
the follow-up procedure within the reporting process have been very
encouraging.
The Committee’s follow-up procedure complements and focuses the
efforts of States parties and civil society subsequent to the adoption of
concluding observations. The Committee seeks to encourage, first of all,
considered and comprehensive public debate on its findings, and for this
reason routinely requests States parties to give appropriate publicity to its
concluding observations. If necessary, this may involve translating them
into one or more local languages. Debating the concluding observations
in the national parliament is also a constructive way of publicizing
and generating discussion on the Committee’s findings and
recommendations. Thereafter, government departments, again ideally in
20
consultation with civil society and other relevant stakeholders, are best
placed to assess whether changes of law, policy and practice are
necessary or appropriate to give effect to the concluding observations and
to monitor those steps, including proposals for legislative change, as they
take their course. These responses at the national level lay the
groundwork for the next report, in the preparation of which the
Committee regards as best practice a thorough accounting of the steps
taken, area by area, in response to its previous concluding observations.
What happens if a State party fails to submit a report to the
Committee?
Some States have been chronically late in submitting their reports, and/or
have failed to attend scheduled dialogues. This has meant that the
situation in some States parties has not been examined by the Committee
for many years. As a result of this unsatisfactory situation, the Committee
decided in 2001 that a State’s record under the Covenant could be
examined at the Committee’s discretion in the absence of a report, and if
necessary in the absence of a delegation from a State party, which would
be advised in advance of the proposed date of such an examination. The
major factor in deciding which States are examined in this fashion is
of course the delay in reporting or the non-submission of reports. In these
circumstances, the Committee adopts provisional concluding
observations in private session on the basis of information that has been
submitted to it concerning the State party being examined. These
observations are transmitted to the State party, and may subsequently be
made public in original or amended form.
21
Box III.1. Purpose and value of the reporting process
The process of compiling a report, as described, provides an
opportunity for a State party to clarify, in the context of its own
national framework, the content of its obligations assumed under
the Covenant and to take stock of the current situation with respect
to Covenant rights, as well as to identify areas that require reform to
ensure full compliance with the Covenant. The consultations
required within government structures and between Government
and civil society in order to prepare a thorough report can improve
understanding of the Covenant and the objectives of human rights
generally. At the same time, publicity surrounding the preparation of
a report draws attention to the level of the State’s compliance with
its obligations and the ways individuals and groups can further
contribute to their implementation. The report’s consideration by
the Committee allows for dialogue between the State party and a
group of impartial and highly experienced experts during which
areas requiring improvement can be identified and suggestions
made. Reporting also highlights good practices and lessons learned
which may be drawn on by other States as they seek to implement
the Covenant. Finally, the outcome of the procedure in the form of
concluding observations constitutes an authoritative guide for future
legislation, policies and programmes. Although directed at the State
party, they can also be used by other stakeholders to encourage
implementation and a culture of human rights in the State party.
They also serve as a valuable guide to other States parties where
similar issues arise.
22
Box III.2. Where is the reporting process headed?
The reporting process has been the subject of debate for some
years, not least as a result of substantial backlogs which emerged to
differing degrees within all of the treaty bodies in the 1990s, as well
as of general concerns about the efficacy of the process. The
Committee has in past years been clearly concerned with improving
the reporting process. Typically, one or more Committee members
will make a proposal for reform, which is studied on behalf of the
Committee by an informal working group of members with the
secretariat’s assistance, and then debated and decided upon in
plenary. At the same time, treaty bodies are increasing their efforts
to harmonize procedures, with a view to reducing overlap and
duplication and drawing on the respective skills and experiences of
the treaty bodies. Examples of the greater coordination taking place
between the treaty bodies are the outcomes of the recently
instituted annual meetings of the chairpersons of the treaty bodies
and the inter-committee meetings, which bring together members
of each of the treaty bodies. The documents agreed upon at these
meetings are available on the Treaty Bodies database of the Office
of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
(http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf).
In 2002, the Secretary-General called for further reform of the treaty
body system. In response, the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights has moved forward with
consultations with treaty bodies, States parties and other
stakeholders in order to chart a path towards a more efficient and
effective treaty body system. One possible simplification mooted
was that States should submit a single combined report to all the
treaty bodies covering the full scope of their obligations under those
treaties to which they are parties. Studies are in progress examining,
for example, the use that might be made of a much expanded core
document covering all matters common to the treaties, with concise
reports then focusing on treaty-specific issues, with particular
reference to follow-up to that treaty body’s previous concluding
observations. In June 2004, the inter-committee meeting and the
meeting of chairpersons of the committees agreed that States
wishing to utilize such an approach in their reporting to treaty
bodies may do so. Further improvements to the methods of work
and practices of all treaty bodies, including the Human Rights
Committee, can be expected to emerge in coming years.
23
Adoption of General Comments on Articles of the Covenant
A further means by which the Committee carries out its function of
interpreting the Covenant and to clarify the scope and meaning of its
articles, and thus of all States parties’ obligations, is through the
development and adoption of so-called general comments. As the
provisions of the Covenant, like most human rights treaties, are phrased
in general terms and thus liable to be interpreted in a variety of ways, the
Committee has taken up the elaboration of general comments by way of
advice to all States parties. Rather than dealing with a particular issue as
it arises in the context of a particular State party’s situation, general
comments analyse a specific article or general issue in the Covenant in an
extended and comprehensive fashion. While most general comments are
detailed interpretations of a specific Covenant right, some address
the Covenant rights of specific groups, such as aliens, while others
address procedural issues, such as the preparation of reports, or
miscellaneous issues, such as reservations to the Covenant. The general
comments are available on the Treaty Bodies database of the Office
of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
(http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf).
The Committee takes its authority for these documents from article 40,
paragraph 4, of the Covenant, which provides that it may transmit “such
general comments as it may consider appropriate” to all States parties.
The first general comments, issued in the early 1980s, were quite brief.
However, those issued since the late 1980s have become increasingly
detailed. A general comment now reads as a general statement of law
that expresses the Committee’s conceptual understanding of the content
of a particular provision, and as such is a very useful guide to the
normative substance of international human rights obligations. This
function enables the Committee to permit the Covenant to speak to
modern circumstances, in which understandings and perceptions of
language and practice may have evolved substantially since the Covenant
was adopted. In this sense, the Covenant is a living instrument that
remains as relevant to the contemporary challenges of today as it was
when it was adopted. These comments thus continue to guide States
parties in applying the provisions of the Covenant, as well as in preparing
their reports.
In 2003, there was discussion during the inter-committee meeting of the
possibility of treaty bodies’ issuing joint general comments, in view of the
at times considerable overlap between provisions of different treaties
monitored by different committees. The committees may thus, in the
future, move towards adopting parallel general comments on issues of
24
common concern, such as the meaning of the prohibition on
discrimination or on the consequences of non-reporting by States parties.
Consideration of Individual Complaints Under the Optional
Protocol
As has been observed above in the discussion of the content of the
Optional Protocol to the Covenant, individuals who claim that their rights
and freedoms under the Covenant have been violated may call the State
in question to account for its actions if that State is a party to the
Covenant and to the Optional Protocol. As of early June 2004, 1,295 such
complaints had been registered by the Committee, of which 362 had
been declared inadmissible under the criteria described in articles 3 and 5
of the Protocol and 452 considered on the merits of the case. Of those,
violations of the Covenant were found in 349 cases; 178 were
withdrawn, and 305 were pending. Further updates on these figures may
be obtained at: http://www.unhchr.ch/html/menu2/8/stat2.htm. Typically,
it may take several years for a complaint to proceed from initial
submission through the series of exchanges between the parties to a final
decision by the Committee. In certain circumstances, a final resolution
may be achieved much more quickly.
Box III.3. Where can I find detailed information on how
to submit an individual complaint?
The process for submitting a communication and having it examined
by the Human Rights Committee is set out in detail in Fact Sheet
No. 7 (Rev.1), Complaint Procedures, also published by the Office
of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
This publication is available in hard copy on request and is also
accessible online at the following address: http://www.unhchr.ch/
html/menu6/2/sheets.htm. The reader is referred to that source for
a full discussion of the following elements, which are set out in brief.
What if my complaint is urgent?
When a complaint is first submitted, the Committee may sometimes
request the State party concerned to take what are called “interim
measures” to avoid irreparable damage to the alleged victim while the
complaint is being considered. These measures are designed to preserve
the respective rights of the parties until the Committee takes a decision
on a complaint. For example, States have been requested to refrain from
25
executing or extraditing persons before the Committee examines the
compatibility with the Covenant of such actions, which cannot be undone
after the event.
What technical and/or procedural requirements must my complaint
satisfy?
The complaint having been lodged, there are a number of admissibility
criteria that must be satisfied before the Committee will consider the
merits of an individual communication under the Optional Protocol. These
are set out in the Optional Protocol itself and in the Committee’s
jurisprudence. The Committee does not have independent fact-finding
functions under the Optional Protocol, but rather considers all written
information made available to it by the author of the complaint and the
State party concerned. No oral evidence is submitted. There is no strict
rule regarding the allocation of the burden of proof in Optional Protocol
cases. The Committee will tend to accept the facts as alleged by the victim
if it receives no information from the relevant State, or if the State merely
submits refutations in general terms. The Committee will tend to accept
the State’s specific denials of certain facts unless the victim can provide
documentary proof supporting his or her own assertions. However, the
Committee has on occasion recognized that the nature of a complaint
may make it impossible for the victim to submit further relevant evidence,
and/or that certain information is occasionally exclusively in the hands of
the State party. In such cases, the burden placed upon the State to refute
the alleged victim’s allegations will be higher. At the very least, a State is
required to investigate a complainant’s allegations in good faith.
What about the substance of my case?
If the Committee finds the case to be admissible, it adopts “Views” on
the substance, or merits, of the complaint. These Views consist of either
a finding of violation, or a finding of non-violation, or a mixture of both
if the complaint has made a number of allegations. The Views are
communicated to the author of the complaint as well as to the State
party, and are made public after the session at which they are adopted.
Being decisions on individual complaints, this case law is a very important
guide to the specific meaning in concrete circumstances of what the
Covenant requires, and is thus a valuable point of reference for courts and
decision markers in all States parties when considering the same or similar
issues.
26
What happens if the Committee finds in my favour?
If the Committee finds a violation in a particular case, the State party is
requested to remedy that violation, pursuant to the obligation in article 2,
paragraph 3, of the Covenant to provide an effective remedy for
Covenant violations. The recommended remedy may take specific form,
such as the payment of compensation, the repeal or amendment of
legislation, and/or the release of a detained person. Thereupon, the case
is taken up by the Committee’s Special Rapporteur on Follow-up to Views,
who communicates with the parties with a view to achieving a
satisfactory resolution to the case in the light of the Committee’s Views.
In many cases, significant remedies have been achieved through the
Optional Protocol process for victims of human rights violations. In
addition, laws and policies have been changed in order to ensure that in
future other individuals do not suffer the same violations. Each year, the
results of these activities undertaken following a finding of a violation and
the remedies provided by States parties are described in the annual report
of the Committee.
Assessment of Inter-State Complaints
A State party may submit a communication to the Committee alleging that
another State party is not fulfilling its obligations under the Covenant. This
reflects the dual understanding of a human rights treaty as not simply a
contract between a State party and persons subject to its jurisdiction, but
also a multilateral treaty in the traditional sense that all States parties to a
treaty have an interest in the compliance of other States parties with their
obligations. In this fashion, it can be legally said that human rights violations
in a State party are of direct concern to all other States parties. Such a
complaint, which is provided for in article 41 of the Covenant, may,
however, only be made in respect of two States parties that have declared
that they recognize the competence of the Committee to receive and
consider such inter-State complaints. As of publication, some 48 States had
made such a declaration. To date, however, no inter-State complaint has
been submitted to the Committee. Nevertheless, it is instructive to outline
the way in which this procedure would operate.
The first step would be for the State lodging the complaint to bring the
matter to the attention of the State that is alleged not to be fulfilling its
obligations. Within three months, the latter should reply, in the form of a
written explanation or clarification. If, within six months, the matter is not
settled to the satisfaction of both parties, either may refer it to the
Committee, which may deal with it once satisfied that, within a reasonable
period of time, all domestic remedies have been tried, without success.
27
The Committee may then take the matter up and propose its good offices
in the search for a friendly solution. If there is still no agreement, the
Committee may appoint a five-person conciliation commission, with the
agreement of the States parties directly concerned, but not including their
nationals among its members, with instructions to complete its business
and submit a report to the Chairperson of the Committee and, through
that person, to the parties in dispute, within 12 months.
Box III.4. How can I access the Committee’s work?
The concluding observations, general comments, final decisions on
individual complaints and other documents produced by and for the
Committee are all available and searchable online in the Treaty
Bodies database of the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights (http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf).
In order to stay up to date with developments as they occur, any
individual can subscribe to a free public electronic LISTSERV which
distributes via e-mail the results of each session of the Human Rights
Committee at or shortly after the conclusion of each session. E-mail
addresses may be added to this distribution mechanism by visiting
the following web page and adding the address in the field
provided: http://www.unhchr.ch/tbmailin.nsf/email?Openform. This
LISTSERV provides a link to an updated chart showing which States
parties have submitted reports and when they are scheduled for
consideration by the Committee.
In order to stay abreast of developments while a session
is in progress, press releases summarizing each day’s developments
can be consulted daily on the homepage of the Office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
(http://www.ohchr.org). A final press release after the end of the
session reviews the most important decisions on individual
complaints adopted during the session in question.
The same information may also be found in hard copy form in the
Committee’s annual report to the General Assembly, which is
available for consultation in many libraries and information centres.
The most important decisions with respect to individual complaints
are also collected in the ongoing series “Selected Decisions of the
Human Rights Committee Under the Optional Protocol”. These
volumes are likewise available for consultation in many libraries and
information centres.
28
What impact does the Committee’s work have?
No country’s record of protecting and promoting civil and political rights
is perfect and free from criticism. As a result, the Committee’s fourfold
task, in respect of the particular circumstances of each national context,
is to encourage each State party:
• To maintain in place those laws, policies and practices that enhance the
enjoyment of these rights;
• To withdraw or suitably amend those measures that are destructive or
corrosive of Covenant rights;
• To take appropriate positive action when a State party has failed to act
to promote and protect these rights; and
• To consider appropriately the effects in terms of the Covenant of new
laws, policies and practices that a State party proposes to introduce in
order to ensure that it does not regress in giving practical effect to
Covenant rights.
The Committee’s work has had a real effect in promoting the enjoyment
of civil and political rights in many countries, even though the cause and
effect relationship is at times difficult to discern clearly. One can readily
identify numerous instances of an individual complaint leading to positive
results for the individual concerned, be it in the form of a payment of
compensation, a commutation of a death sentence, a retrial, an
investigation into particular events, or a number of other remedies, in the
State party concerned. Such cases have also led to changes in laws that
gave rise to a finding of violation of the Covenant. Each year, the results
of the individual communications considered during the year may be
consulted in the Committee’s annual report to the General Assembly,
which is published as Supplement No. 40 of the Official Records of the
Assembly’s session.
Similarly, in the context of the reporting process, the instances are
numerous of the recommendations of the Human Rights Committee
leading, directly or indirectly, to positive changes to law, policy and
practice. One wide-ranging survey of these effects at national level is a
2001 study by C. Heyns and F. Viljoen, entitled “The Impact of the United
Nations Human Rights Treaties at the Domestic Level”. Similarly, a detailed
study by the International Law Association has compiled the effects of
treaty body recommendations upon national courts and tribunals. With
the Committee’s follow-up procedure by which feedback is requested
from a State concerning priority recommendations contained in
concluding observations within a year, the specific results in this field will
29
become easier to trace. The broader effects should also not be neglected
- when the Committee issues a recommendation on a matter or a finding
on an individual complaint, other States parties with similar issues can
derive guidance from the Committee’s analysis and undertake
appropriate action. The same effect is intended from the elaboration of
general comments, which are not directed at a particular State party. In
similar fashion, the institution of procedures to “vet” new laws or policies
prior to their introduction for consistency or compatibility with, among
other instruments, the Covenant has the effect of preventing violations
before they can arise.
Conclusion
The Human Rights Committee performs the vital function of monitoring
the enjoyment of the rights set out in the Covenant, a legally binding
international treaty. Whether in its consideration of States parties’ reports,
its adoption of general comments, or its examination of complaints by
individuals or States alleging violations of the Covenant, the Committee
is the pre-eminent interpreter of the meaning of the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In doing so, it seeks to give a full
and generous interpretation to the meaning of the Covenant’s provisions,
consistent with its character as an instrument guaranteeing fundamental
rights and freedoms. The Committee’s members do not simply look at the
formal legal position applicable in a particular State or case, but rather go
deeper, to the practical realities on the ground in the States with which it
is concerned, and issue findings with a view to achieving positive change.
Indeed, compliance by a State with the Committee’s Views is evidence of
a State’s good faith attitude towards its Covenant obligations. Over the
years, the Committee’s work has resulted in numerous changes of law,
policy and practice, both at the general national level and in the context
of individual cases. In a direct sense, therefore, the Committee’s discharge
of the monitoring functions entrusted to it under the Covenant has
improved the lives of individuals in countries in all parts of the world. It is
in this spirit that the Committee will continue to make its work relevant
and applicable to all States parties, and to strive for the enjoyment of all
civil and political rights guaranteed by the Covenant, in full and without
discrimination, by all people.
30
ANNEXES
Annex I
INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS
Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by
General Assembly resolution 2200 A (XXI) of 16 December 1966
Entry into force: 23 March 1976, in accordance with article 49
Preamble
The States parties to the present Covenant,
Considering that, in accordance with the principles proclaimed in
the Charter of the United Nations, recognition of the inherent dignity and
of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is
the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,
Recognizing that these rights derive from the inherent dignity of the
human person,
Recognizing that, in accordance with the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, the ideal of free human beings enjoying civil and political
freedom and freedom from fear and want can only be achieved if
conditions are created whereby everyone may enjoy his civil and political
rights, as well as his economic, social and cultural rights,
Considering the obligation of States under the Charter of the United
Nations to promote universal respect for, and observance of, human
rights and freedoms,
Realizing that the individual, having duties to other individuals and
to the community to which he belongs, is under a responsibility to strive
for the promotion and observance of the rights recognized in the present
Covenant,
31
Agree upon the following articles:
PART I
Article 1
1. All peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that
right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their
economic, social and cultural development.
2. All peoples may, for their own ends, freely dispose of their
natural wealth and resources without prejudice to any obligations arising
out of international economic cooperation, based upon the principle of
mutual benefit, and international law. In no case may a people be
deprived of its own means of subsistence.
3. The States parties to the present Covenant, including those
having responsibility for the administration of Non-Self-Governing and
Trust Territories, shall promote the realization of the right of selfdetermination,
and shall respect that right, in conformity with the
provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
PART II
Article 2
1. Each State party to the present Covenant undertakes to respect
and to ensure to all individuals within its territory and subject to its
jurisdiction the rights recognized in the present Covenant, without
distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion,
political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other
status.
2. Where not already provided for by existing legislative or other
measures, each State party to the present Covenant undertakes to take
the necessary steps, in accordance with its constitutional processes and
with the provisions of the present Covenant, to adopt such legislative or
other measures as may be necessary to give effect to the rights
recognized in the present Covenant.
3. Each State party to the present Covenant undertakes:
(a) To ensure that any person whose rights or freedoms as
herein recognized are violated shall have an effective remedy,
32
notwithstanding that the violation has been committed by persons acting
in an official capacity;
(b) To ensure that any person claiming such a remedy shall have
his right thereto determined by competent judicial, administrative or
legislative authorities, or by any other competent authority provided for
by the legal system of the State, and to develop the possibilities of judicial
remedy;
(c) To ensure that the competent authorities shall enforce such
remedies when granted.
Article 3
The States parties to the present Covenant undertake to ensure the
equal right of men and women to the enjoyment of all civil and political
rights set forth in the present Covenant.
Article 4
1. In time of public emergency which threatens the life of the
nation and the existence of which is officially proclaimed, the States
parties to the present Covenant may take measures derogating from their
obligations under the present Covenant to the extent strictly required by
the exigencies of the situation, provided that such measures are not
inconsistent with their other obligations under international law and do
not involve discrimination solely on the ground of race, colour, sex,
language, religion or social origin.
2. No derogation from articles 6, 7, 8 (paras. 1 and 2), 11, 15, 16
and 18 may be made under this provision.
3. Any State party to the present Covenant availing itself of the
right of derogation shall immediately inform the other States parties to
the present Covenant, through the intermediary of the Secretary-General
of the United Nations, of the provisions from which it has derogated and
of the reasons by which it was actuated. A further communication shall
be made, through the same intermediary, on the date on which it
terminates such derogation.
Article 5
1. Nothing in the present Covenant may be interpreted as implying
for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or
perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and
33
freedoms recognized herein or at their limitation to a greater extent than
is provided for in the present Covenant.
2. There shall be no restriction upon or derogation from any of the
fundamental human rights recognized or existing in any State party to the
present Covenant pursuant to law, conventions, regulations or custom on
the pretext that the present Covenant does not recognize such rights or
that it recognizes them to a lesser extent.
PART III
Article 6
1. Every human being has the inherent right to life. This right shall
be protected by law. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life.
2. In countries which have not abolished the death penalty,
sentence of death may be imposed only for the most serious crimes in
accordance with the law in force at the time of the commission of the
crime and not contrary to the provisions of the present Covenant and to
the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of
Genocide. This penalty can only be carried out pursuant to a final
judgement rendered by a competent court.
3. When deprivation of life constitutes the crime of genocide, it is
understood that nothing in this article shall authorize any State party to
the present Covenant to derogate in any way from any obligation
assumed under the provisions of the Convention on the Prevention and
Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
4. Anyone sentenced to death shall have the right to seek pardon
or commutation of the sentence. Amnesty, pardon or commutation of the
sentence of death may be granted in all cases.
5. Sentence of death shall not be imposed for crimes committed by
persons below 18 years of age and shall not be carried out on pregnant
women.
6. Nothing in this article shall be invoked to delay or to prevent the
abolition of capital punishment by any State party to the present
Covenant.
34
Article 7
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment. In particular, no one shall be
subjected without his free consent to medical or scientific
experimentation.
Article 8
1. No one shall be held in slavery; slavery and the slave trade in all
their forms shall be prohibited.
2. No one shall be held in servitude.
3. (a) No one shall be required to perform forced or compulsory
labour;
(b) Paragraph 3 (a) shall not be held to preclude, in countries
where imprisonment with hard labour may be imposed as a punishment
for a crime, the performance of hard labour in pursuance of a sentence
to such punishment by a competent court;
(c) For the purpose of this paragraph the term “forced or
compulsory labour” shall not include:
(i) Any work or service, not referred to in subparagraph (b),
normally required of a person who is under detention in consequence of
a lawful order of a court, or of a person during conditional release from
such detention;
(ii) Any service of a military character and, in countries
where conscientious objection is recognized, any national service required
by law of conscientious objectors;
(iii) Any service exacted in cases of emergency or calamity
threatening the life or well-being of the community;
(iv) Any work or service which forms part of normal civil
obligations.
Article 9
1. Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one
shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention. No one shall be
deprived of his liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with
such procedure as are established by law.
35
2. Anyone who is arrested shall be informed, at the time of arrest,
of the reasons for his arrest and shall be promptly informed of any
charges against him.
3. Anyone arrested or detained on a criminal charge shall be
brought promptly before a judge or other officer authorized by law to
exercise judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable
time or to release. It shall not be the general rule that persons awaiting
trial shall be detained in custody, but release may be subject to guarantees
to appear for trial, at any other stage of the judicial proceedings, and,
should occasion arise, for execution of the judgement.
4. Anyone who is deprived of his liberty by arrest or detention shall
be entitled to take proceedings before a court, in order that that court
may decide without delay on the lawfulness of his detention and order his
release if the detention is not lawful.
5. Anyone who has been the victim of unlawful arrest or detention
shall have an enforceable right to compensation.
Article 10
1. All persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated with
humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.
2. (a) Accused persons shall, save in exceptional circumstances, be
segregated from convicted persons and shall be subject to separate
treatment appropriate to their status as unconvicted persons;
(b) Accused juvenile persons shall be separated from adults and
brought as speedily as possible for adjudication.
3. The penitentiary system shall comprise treatment of prisoners
the essential aim of which shall be their reformation and social
rehabilitation. Juvenile offenders shall be segregated from adults and be
accorded treatment appropriate to their age and legal status.
Article 11
No one shall be imprisoned merely on the ground of inability to fulfil
a contractual obligation.
36
Article 12
1. Everyone lawfully within the territory of a State shall, within that
territory, have the right to liberty of movement and freedom to choose his
residence.
2. Everyone shall be free to leave any country, including his own.
3. The above-mentioned rights shall not be subject to any
restrictions except those which are provided by law, are necessary to
protect national security, public order (ordre public), public health or
morals or the rights and freedoms of others, and are consistent with the
other rights recognized in the present Covenant.
4. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of the right to enter his own
country.
Article 13
An alien lawfully in the territory of a State party to the present
Covenant may be expelled therefrom only in pursuance of a decision
reached in accordance with law and shall, except where compelling
reasons of national security otherwise require, be allowed to submit the
reasons against his expulsion and to have his case reviewed by, and be
represented for the purpose before, the competent authority or a person
or persons especially designated by the competent authority.
Article 14
1. All persons shall be equal before the courts and tribunals. In the
determination of any criminal charge against him, or of his rights and
obligations in a suit at law, everyone shall be entitled to a fair and public
hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established
by law. The press and the public may be excluded from all or part of a trial
for reasons of morals, public order (ordre public) or national security in a
democratic society, or when the interest of the private lives of the parties
so requires, or to the extent strictly necessary in the opinion of the court
in special circumstances where publicity would prejudice the interests of
justice; but any judgement rendered in a criminal case or in a suit at law
shall be made public except where the interest of juvenile persons
otherwise requires or the proceedings concern matrimonial disputes or
the guardianship of children.
2. Everyone charged with a criminal offence shall have the right to
be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law.
37
3. In the determination of any criminal charge against him,
everyone shall be entitled to the following minimum guarantees, in full
equality:
(a) To be informed promptly and in detail in a language which
he understands of the nature and cause of the charge against him;
(b) To have adequate time and facilities for the preparation of
his defence and to communicate with counsel of his own choosing;
(c) To be tried without undue delay;
(d) To be tried in his presence, and to defend himself in person
or through legal assistance of his own choosing; to be informed, if he
does not have legal assistance, of this right; and to have legal assistance
assigned to him, in any case where the interests of justice so require, and
without payment by him in any such case if he does not have sufficient
means to pay for it;
(e) To examine, or have examined, the witnesses against him
and to obtain the attendance and examination of witnesses on his behalf
under the same conditions as witnesses against him;
(f) To have the free assistance of an interpreter if he cannot
understand or speak the language used in court;
(g) Not to be compelled to testify against himself or to confess
guilt.
4. In the case of juvenile persons, the procedure shall be such as
will take account of their age and the desirability of promoting their
rehabilitation.
5. Everyone convicted of a crime shall have the right to his
conviction and sentence being reviewed by a higher tribunal according to
law.
6. When a person has by a final decision been convicted of a
criminal offence and when subsequently his conviction has been reversed
or he has been pardoned on the ground that a new or newly discovered
fact shows conclusively that there has been a miscarriage of justice, the
person who has suffered punishment as a result of such conviction shall
be compensated according to law, unless it is proved that the nondisclosure
of the unknown fact in time is wholly or partly attributable to
him.
38
7. No one shall be liable to be tried or punished again for an
offence for which he has already been finally convicted or acquitted in
accordance with the law and penal procedure of each country.
Article 15
1. No one shall be held guilty of any criminal offence on account of
any act or omission which did not constitute a criminal offence, under
national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor
shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the
time when the criminal offence was committed. If, subsequent to the
commission of the offence, provision is made by law for the imposition of
the lighter penalty, the offender shall benefit thereby.
2. Nothing in this article shall prejudice the trial and punishment of
any person for any act or omission which, at the time when it was
committed, was criminal according to the general principles of law
recognized by the community of nations.
Article 16
Everyone shall have the right to recognition everywhere as a person
before the law.
Article 17
1. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference
with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks
on his honour and reputation.
2. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such
interference or attacks.
Article 18
1. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience
and religion. This right shall include freedom to have or to adopt a religion
or belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually or in community
with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in
worship, observance, practice and teaching.
2. No one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his
freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice.
39
3. Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs may be subject only
to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect
public safety, order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and
freedoms of others.
4. The States parties to the present Covenant undertake to have
respect for the liberty of parents and, when applicable, legal guardians to
ensure the religious and moral education of their children in conformity
with their own convictions.
Article 19
1. Everyone shall have the right to hold opinions without
interference.
2. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right
shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas
of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in
the form of art, or through any other media of his choice.
3. The exercise of the rights provided for in paragraph 2 of this
article carries with it special duties and responsibilities. It may therefore be
subject to certain restrictions, but these shall only be such as are provided
by law and are necessary:
(a) For respect of the rights or reputations of others;
(b) For the protection of national security or of public order
(ordre public), or of public health or morals.
Article 20
1. Any propaganda for war shall be prohibited by law.
2. Any advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that
constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence shall be
prohibited by law.
Article 21
The right of peaceful assembly shall be recognized. No restrictions
may be placed on the exercise of this right other than those imposed in
conformity with the law and which are necessary in a democratic society
in the interests of national security or public safety, public order (ordre
public), the protection of public health or morals or the protection of the
rights and freedoms of others.
40
Article 22
1. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of association with
others, including the right to form and join trade unions for the
protection of his interests.
2. No restrictions may be placed on the exercise of this right other
than those which are prescribed by law and which are necessary in a
democratic society in the interests of national security or public safety,
public order (ordre public), the protection of public health or morals or
the protection of the rights and freedoms of others. This article shall not
prevent the imposition of lawful restrictions on members of the armed
forces and of the police in their exercise of this right.
3. Nothing in this article shall authorize States parties to the
International Labour Organisation Convention of 1948 concerning
Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise to take
legislative measures which would prejudice, or to apply the law in such a
manner as to prejudice, the guarantees provided for in that Convention.
Article 23
1. The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society
and is entitled to protection by society and the State.
2. The right of men and women of marriageable age to marry and
to found a family shall be recognized.
3. No marriage shall be entered into without the free and full
consent of the intending spouses.
4. States parties to the present Covenant shall take appropriate
steps to ensure equality of rights and responsibilities of spouses as to
marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution. In the case of dissolution,
provision shall be made for the necessary protection of any children.
Article 24
1. Every child shall have, without any discrimination as to race,
colour, sex, language, religion, national or social origin, property or birth,
the right to such measures of protection as are required by his status as a
minor, on the part of his family, society and the State.
2. Every child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall
have a name.
3. Every child has the right to acquire a nationality.
41
Article 25
Every citizen shall have the right and the opportunity, without any
of the distinctions mentioned in article 2 and without unreasonable
restrictions:
(a) To take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or
through freely chosen representatives;
(b) To vote and to be elected at genuine periodic elections
which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret
ballot, guaranteeing the free expression of the will of the electors;
(c) To have access, on general terms of equality, to public
service in his country.
Article 26
All persons are equal before the law and are entitled without any
discrimination to the equal protection of the law. In this respect, the law
shall prohibit any discrimination and guarantee to all persons equal and
effective protection against discrimination on any ground such as race,
colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social
origin, property, birth or other status.
Article 27
In those States in which ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities exist,
persons belonging to such minorities shall not be denied the right, in
community with the other members of their group, to enjoy their own
culture, to profess and practise their own religion, or to use their own
language.
PART IV
Article 28
1. There shall be established a Human Rights Committee (hereafter
referred to in the present Covenant as the Committee). It shall consist of
18 members and shall carry out the functions hereinafter provided.
2. The Committee shall be composed of nationals of the States
parties to the present Covenant who shall be persons of high moral
character and recognized competence in the field of human rights,
42
consideration being given to the usefulness of the participation of some
persons having legal experience.
3. The members of the Committee shall be elected and shall serve
in their personal capacity.
Article 29
1. The members of the Committee shall be elected by secret ballot
from a list of persons possessing the qualifications prescribed in article 28
and nominated for the purpose by the States parties to the present
Covenant.
2. Each State party to the present Covenant may nominate not
more than two persons. These persons shall be nationals of the
nominating State.
3. A person shall be eligible for renomination.
Article 30
1. The initial election shall be held no later than six months after
the date of the entry into force of the present Covenant.
2. At least four months before the date of each election to the
Committee, other than an election to fill a vacancy declared in accordance
with article 34, the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall address
a written invitation to the States parties to the present Covenant to
submit their nominations for membership of the Committee within three
months.
3. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall prepare a list
in alphabetical order of all the persons thus nominated, with an indication
of the States parties which have nominated them, and shall submit it to
the States parties to the present Covenant no later than one month
before the date of each election.
4. Elections of the members of the Committee shall be held at a
meeting of the States parties to the present Covenant convened by the
Secretary-General of the United Nations at the Headquarters of the
United Nations. At that meeting, for which two thirds of the States parties
to the present Covenant shall constitute a quorum, the persons elected to
the Committee shall be those nominees who obtain the largest number
of votes and an absolute majority of the votes of the representatives of
States parties present and voting.
43
Article 31
1. The Committee may not include more than one national of the
same State.
2. In the election of the Committee, consideration shall be given to
equitable geographical distribution of membership and to the
representation of the different forms of civilization and of the principal
legal systems.
Article 32
1. The members of the Committee shall be elected for a term of
four years. They shall be eligible for re-election if renominated. However,
the terms of nine of the members elected at the first election shall expire
at the end of two years; immediately after the first election, the names of
these nine members shall be chosen by lot by the Chairman of the
meeting referred to in article 30, paragraph 4.
2. Elections at the expiry of office shall be held in accordance with
the preceding articles of this part of the present Covenant.
Article 33
1. If, in the unanimous opinion of the other members, a member
of the Committee has ceased to carry out his functions for any cause
other than absence of a temporary character, the Chairman of the
Committee shall notify the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who
shall then declare the seat of that member to be vacant.
2. In the event of the death or the resignation of a member of the
Committee, the Chairman shall immediately notify the Secretary-General
of the United Nations, who shall declare the seat vacant from the date of
death or the date on which the resignation takes effect.
Article 34
1. When a vacancy is declared in accordance with article 33 and if
the term of office of the member to be replaced does not expire within
six months of the declaration of the vacancy, the Secretary-General of the
United Nations shall notify each of the States parties to the present
Covenant, which may within two months submit nominations in
accordance with article 29 for the purpose of filling the vacancy.
2. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall prepare a list
in alphabetical order of the persons thus nominated and shall submit it to
44
the States parties to the present Covenant. The election to fill the vacancy
shall then take place in accordance with the relevant provisions of this
part of the present Covenant.
3. A member of the Committee elected to fill a vacancy declared in
accordance with article 33 shall hold office for the remainder of the term
of the member who vacated the seat on the Committee under the
provisions of that article.
Article 35
The members of the Committee shall, with the approval of the
General Assembly of the United Nations, receive emoluments from United
Nations resources on such terms and conditions as the General Assembly
may decide, having regard to the importance of the Committee’s
responsibilities.
Article 36
The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall provide the
necessary staff and facilities for the effective performance of the functions
of the Committee under the present Covenant.
Article 37
1. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall convene the
initial meeting of the Committee at the Headquarters of the United
Nations.
2. After its initial meeting, the Committee shall meet at such times
as shall be provided in its rules of procedure.
3. The Committee shall normally meet at the Headquarters of the
United Nations or at the United Nations Office at Geneva.
Article 38
Every member of the Committee shall, before taking up his duties,
make a solemn declaration in open committee that he will perform his
functions impartially and conscientiously.
Article 39
1. The Committee shall elect its officers for a term of two years.
They may be re-elected.
45
2. The Committee shall establish its own rules of procedure, but
these rules shall provide, inter alia, that:
(a) Twelve members shall constitute a quorum;
(b) Decisions of the Committee shall be made by a majority vote
of the members present.
Article 40
1. The States parties to the present Covenant undertake to submit
reports on the measures they have adopted which give effect to the rights
recognized herein and on the progress made in the enjoyment of those
rights:
(a) Within one year of the entry into force of the present
Covenant for the States parties concerned;
(b) Thereafter whenever the Committee so requests.
2. All reports shall be submitted to the Secretary-General of the
United Nations, who shall transmit them to the Committee for
consideration. Reports shall indicate the factors and difficulties, if any,
affecting the implementation of the present Covenant.
3. The Secretary-General of the United Nations may, after
consultation with the Committee, transmit to the specialized agencies
concerned copies of such parts of the reports as may fall within their field
of competence.
4. The Committee shall study the reports submitted by the States
parties to the present Covenant. It shall transmit its reports, and such
general comments as it may consider appropriate, to the States parties.
The Committee may also transmit to the Economic and Social Council
these comments along with the copies of the reports it has received from
States parties to the present Covenant.
5. The States parties to the present Covenant may submit to the
Committee observations on any comments that may be made in
accordance with paragraph 4 of this article.
Article 41
1. A State party to the present Covenant may at any time declare
under this article that it recognizes the competence of the Committee to
receive and consider communications to the effect that a State party
claims that another State party is not fulfilling its obligations under the
46
present Covenant. Communications under this article may be received
and considered only if submitted by a State party which has made a
declaration recognizing in regard to itself the competence of the
Committee. No communication shall be received by the Committee if it
concerns a State party which has not made such a declaration.
Communications received under this article shall be dealt with in
accordance with the following procedure:
(a) If a State party to the present Covenant considers that
another State party is not giving effect to the provisions of the present
Covenant, it may, by written communication, bring the matter to the
attention of that State party. Within three months after the receipt of the
communication the receiving State shall afford the State which sent the
communication an explanation, or any other statement in writing
clarifying the matter which should include, to the extent possible and
pertinent, reference to domestic procedures and remedies taken,
pending, or available in the matter;
(b) If the matter is not adjusted to the satisfaction of both
States parties concerned within six months after the receipt by the
receiving State of the initial communication, either State shall have the
right to refer the matter to the Committee, by notice given to the
Committee and to the other State;
(c) The Committee shall deal with a matter referred to it only
after it has ascertained that all available domestic remedies have been
invoked and exhausted in the matter, in conformity with the generally
recognized principles of international law. This shall not be the rule where
the application of the remedies is unreasonably prolonged;
(d) The Committee shall hold closed meetings when examining
communications under this article;
(e) Subject to the provisions of subparagraph (c), the
Committee shall make available its good offices to the States parties
concerned with a view to a friendly solution of the matter on the basis of
respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms as recognized in the
present Covenant;
(f) In any matter referred to it, the Committee may call upon
the States parties concerned, referred to in subparagraph (b), to supply
any relevant information;
(g) The States parties concerned, referred to in subparagraph
(b), shall have the right to be represented when the matter is being
47
considered in the Committee and to make submissions orally and/or in
writing;
(h) The Committee shall, within 12 months after the date of
receipt of notice under subparagraph (b), submit a report:
(i) If a solution within the terms of subparagraph
(e) is reached, the Committee shall confine its report to a brief statement
of the facts and of the solution reached;
(ii) If a solution within the terms of subparagraph
(e) is not reached, the Committee shall confine its report to a brief
statement of the facts; the written submissions and record of the oral
submissions made by the States parties concerned shall be attached to
the report.
In every matter, the report shall be communicated to the States
parties concerned.
2. The provisions of this article shall come into force when 10
States parties to the present Covenant have made declarations under
paragraph 1 of this article. Such declarations shall be deposited by the
States parties with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall
transmit copies thereof to the other States parties. A declaration may be
withdrawn at any time by notification to the Secretary-General. Such a
withdrawal shall not prejudice the consideration of any matter which is
the subject of a communication already transmitted under this article; no
further communication by any State party shall be received after the
notification of withdrawal of the declaration has been received by the
Secretary-General, unless the State party concerned has made a new
declaration.
Article 42
1. (a) If a matter referred to the Committee in accordance with
article 41 is not resolved to the satisfaction of the States parties
concerned, the Committee may, with the prior consent of the States
parties concerned, appoint an ad hoc Conciliation Commission
(hereinafter referred to as the Commission). The good offices of the
Commission shall be made available to the States parties concerned with
a view to an amicable solution of the matter on the basis of respect for
the present Covenant;
(b) The Commission shall consist of five persons acceptable to
the States parties concerned. If the States parties concerned fail to reach
agreement within three months on all or part of the composition of the
48
Commission, the members of the Commission concerning whom no
agreement has been reached shall be elected by secret ballot by a twothirds
majority vote of the Committee from among its members.
2. The members of the Commission shall serve in their personal
capacity. They shall not be nationals of the States parties concerned, or of
a State not party to the present Covenant, or of a State party which has
not made a declaration under article 41.
3. The Commission shall elect its own Chairman and adopt its own
rules of procedure.
4. The meetings of the Commission shall normally be held at the
Headquarters of the United Nations or at the United Nations Office at
Geneva. However, they may be held at such other convenient places as
the Commission may determine in consultation with the Secretary-
General of the United Nations and the States parties concerned.
5. The secretariat provided in accordance with article 36 shall also
service the commissions appointed under this article.
6. The information received and collated by the Committee shall be
made available to the Commission and the Commission may call upon the
States parties concerned to supply any other relevant information.
7. When the Commission has fully considered the matter, but in
any event not later than 12 months after having been seized of the
matter, it shall submit to the Chairman of the Committee a report for
communication to the States parties concerned:
(a) If the Commission is unable to complete its consideration of
the matter within 12 months, it shall confine its report to a brief
statement of the status of its consideration of the matter;
(b) If an amicable solution to the matter on the basis of respect
for human rights as recognized in the present Covenant is reached, the
Commission shall confine its report to a brief statement of the facts and
of the solution reached;
(c) If a solution within the terms of subparagraph (b) is not
reached, the Commission’s report shall embody its findings on all
questions of fact relevant to the issues between the States parties
concerned, and its views on the possibilities of an amicable solution of the
matter. This report shall also contain the written submissions and a record
of the oral submissions made by the States parties concerned;
49
(d) If the Commission’s report is submitted under subparagraph
(c), the States parties concerned shall, within three months of the receipt
of the report, notify the Chairman of the Committee whether or not they
accept the contents of the report of the Commission.
8. The provisions of this article are without prejudice to the
responsibilities of the Committee under article 41.
9. The States parties concerned shall share equally all the expenses
of the members of the Commission in accordance with estimates to be
provided by the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
10. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall be
empowered to pay the expenses of the members of the Commission, if
necessary, before reimbursement by the States parties concerned, in
accordance with paragraph 9 of this article.
Article 43
The members of the Committee, and of the ad hoc conciliation
commissions which may be appointed under article 42, shall be entitled
to the facilities, privileges and immunities of experts on mission for the
United Nations as laid down in the relevant sections of the Convention on
the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations.
Article 44
The provisions for the implementation of the present Covenant shall
apply without prejudice to the procedures prescribed in the field of
human rights by or under the constituent instruments and the
conventions of the United Nations and of the specialized agencies and
shall not prevent the States parties to the present Covenant from having
recourse to other procedures for settling a dispute in accordance with
general or special international agreements in force between them.
Article 45
The Committee shall submit to the General Assembly of the United
Nations, through the Economic and Social Council, an annual report on
its activities.
50
PART V
Article 46
Nothing in the present Covenant shall be interpreted as impairing
the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations and of the
constitutions of the specialized agencies which define the respective
responsibilities of the various organs of the United Nations and of the
specialized agencies in regard to the matters dealt with in the present
Covenant.
Article 47
Nothing in the present Covenant shall be interpreted as impairing
the inherent right of all peoples to enjoy and utilize fully and freely their
natural wealth and resources.
PART VI
Article 48
1. The present Covenant is open for signature by any State
Member of the United Nations or member of any of its specialized
agencies, by any State party to the Statute of the International Court of
Justice, and by any other State which has been invited by the General
Assembly of the United Nations to become a party to the present
Covenant.
2. The present Covenant is subject to ratification. Instruments of
ratification shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United
Nations.
3. The present Covenant shall be open to accession by any State
referred to in paragraph 1 of this article.
4. Accession shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument of
accession with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
5. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall inform all
States which have signed this Covenant or acceded to it of the deposit of
each instrument of ratification or accession.
51
Article 49
1. The present Covenant shall enter into force three months after
the date of the deposit with the Secretary-General of the United Nations
of the thirty-fifth instrument of ratification or instrument of accession.
2. For each State ratifying the present Covenant or acceding to it
after the deposit of the thirty-fifth instrument of ratification or instrument
of accession, the present Covenant shall enter into force three months
after the date of the deposit of its own instrument of ratification or
instrument of accession.
Article 50
The provisions of the present Covenant shall extend to all parts of
federal States without any limitations or exceptions.
Article 51
1. Any State party to the present Covenant may propose an
amendment and file it with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall thereupon
communicate any proposed amendments to the States parties to the
present Covenant with a request that they notify him whether they favour
a conference of States parties for the purpose of considering and voting
upon the proposals. In the event that at least one third of the States
parties favours such a conference, the Secretary-General shall convene
the conference under the auspices of the United Nations. Any
amendment adopted by a majority of the States parties present and
voting at the conference shall be submitted to the General Assembly of
the United Nations for approval.
2. Amendments shall come into force when they have been
approved by the General Assembly of the United Nations and accepted by
a two-thirds majority of the States parties to the present Covenant in
accordance with their respective constitutional processes.
3. When amendments come into force, they shall be binding on
those States parties which have accepted them, other States parties still
being bound by the provisions of the present Covenant and any earlier
amendment which they have accepted.
52
Article 52
Irrespective of the notifications made under article 48, paragraph 5,
the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall inform all States
referred to in paragraph 1 of the same article of the following particulars:
(a) Signatures, ratifications and accessions under article 48;
(b) The date of the entry into force of the present Covenant
under article 49 and the date of the entry into force of any amendments
under article 51.
Article 53
1. The present Covenant, of which the Chinese, English, French,
Russian and Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited in the
archives of the United Nations.
2. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall transmit
certified copies of the present Covenant to all States referred to in
article 48.
53
Annex II
OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON CIVIL
AND POLITICAL RIGHTS
Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by
General Assembly resolution 2200 A (XXI) of 16 December 1966
Entry into force: 23 March 1976, in accordance with article 9
The States parties to the present Protocol,
Considering that in order further to achieve the purposes of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (hereinafter referred to
as the Covenant) and the implementation of its provisions it would be
appropriate to enable the Human Rights Committee set up in Part IV of
the Covenant (hereinafter referred to as the Committee) to receive and
consider, as provided in the present Protocol, communications from
individuals claiming to be victims of violations of any of the rights set forth
in the Covenant
Have agreed as follows:
Article 1
A State party to the Covenant that becomes a party to the present
Protocol recognizes the competence of the Committee to receive and
consider communications from individuals subject to its jurisdiction who
claim to be victims of a violation by that State party of any of the rights
set forth in the Covenant. No communication shall be received by the
Committee if it concerns a State party to the Covenant which is not a
party to the present Protocol.
Article 2
Subject to the provisions of article 1, individuals who claim that any
of their rights enumerated in the Covenant have been violated and who
have exhausted all available domestic remedies may submit a written
communication to the Committee for consideration.
Article 3
The Committee shall consider inadmissible any communication
under the present Protocol which is anonymous, or which it considers to
55
be an abuse of the right of submission of such communications or to be
incompatible with the provisions of the Covenant.
Article 4
1. Subject to the provisions of article 3, the Committee shall bring
any communications submitted to it under the present Protocol to the
attention of the State party to the present Protocol alleged to be violating
any provision of the Covenant.
2. Within six months, the receiving State shall submit to the
Committee written explanations or statements clarifying the matter and
the remedy, if any, that may have been taken by that State.
Article 5
1. The Committee shall consider communications received under
the present Protocol in the light of all written information made available
to it by the individual and by the State party concerned.
2. The Committee shall not consider any communication from an
individual unless it has ascertained that:
(a) The same matter is not being examined under another
procedure of international investigation or settlement;
(b) The individual has exhausted all available domestic
remedies. This shall not be the rule where the application of the remedies
is unreasonably prolonged.
3. The Committee shall hold closed meetings when examining
communications under the present Protocol.
4. The Committee shall forward its views to the State party
concerned and to the individual.
Article 6
The Committee shall include in its annual report under article 45 of
the Covenant a summary of its activities under the present Protocol.
Article 7
Pending the achievement of the objectives of resolution 1514 (XV)
adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 14 December
1960 concerning the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to
56
Colonial Countries and Peoples, the provisions of the present Protocol
shall in no way limit the right of petition granted to these peoples by the
Charter of the United Nations and other international conventions and
instruments under the United Nations and its specialized agencies.
Article 8
1. The present Protocol is open for signature by any State which
has signed the Covenant.
2. The present Protocol is subject to ratification by any State which
has ratified or acceded to the Covenant. Instruments of ratification shall
be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
3. The present Protocol shall be open to accession by any State
which has ratified or acceded to the Covenant.
4. Accession shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument of
accession with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
5. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall inform all
States which have signed the present Protocol or acceded to it of the
deposit of each instrument of ratification or accession.
Article 9
1. Subject to the entry into force of the Covenant, the present
Protocol shall enter into force three months after the date of the deposit
with the Secretary-General of the United Nations of the tenth instrument
of ratification or instrument of accession.
2. For each State ratifying the present Protocol or acceding to it
after the deposit of the tenth instrument of ratification or instrument of
accession, the present Protocol shall enter into force three months after
the date of the deposit of its own instrument of ratification or instrument
of accession.
Article 10
The provisions of the present Protocol shall extend to all parts of
federal States without any limitations or exceptions.
Article 11
1. Any State party to the present Protocol may propose an
amendment and file it with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
57
The Secretary-General shall thereupon communicate any proposed
amendments to the States parties to the present Protocol with a request
that they notify him whether they favour a conference of States parties
for the purpose of considering and voting upon the proposal. In the event
that at least one third of the States parties favours such a conference, the
Secretary-General shall convene the conference under the auspices of the
United Nations. Any amendment adopted by a majority of the States
parties present and voting at the conference shall be submitted to the
General Assembly of the United Nations for approval.
2. Amendments shall come into force when they have been
approved by the General Assembly of the United Nations and accepted by
a two-thirds majority of the States parties to the present Protocol in
accordance with their respective constitutional processes.
3. When amendments come into force, they shall be binding on
those States parties which have accepted them, other States parties still
being bound by the provisions of the present Protocol and any earlier
amendment which they have accepted.
Article 12
1. Any State party may denounce the present Protocol at any time
by written notification addressed to the Secretary-General of the United
Nations. Denunciation shall take effect three months after the date of
receipt of the notification by the Secretary-General.
2. Denunciation shall be without prejudice to the continued
application of the provisions of the present Protocol to any
communication submitted under article 2 before the effective date of
denunciation.
Article 13
Irrespective of the notifications made under article 8, paragraph 5,
of the present Protocol, the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall
inform all States referred to in article 48, paragraph 1, of the Covenant of
the following particulars:
(a) Signatures, ratifications and accessions under article 8;
(b) The date of the entry into force of the present Protocol
under article 9 and the date of the entry into force of any amendments
under article 11;
(c) Denunciations under article 12.
58
Article 14
1. The present Protocol, of which the Chinese, English, French,
Russian and Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited in the
archives of the United Nations.
2. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall transmit
certified copies of the present Protocol to all States referred to in article
48 of the Covenant.
59
61
Annex III
SECOND OPTIONAL PROTOCOL TO THE INTERNATIONAL COVENANT
ON CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS,
AIMING AT THE ABOLITION OF THE DEATH PENALTY
Adopted and proclaimed by General Assembly resolution 44/128 of
15 December 1989
The States parties to the present Protocol,
Believing that abolition of the death penalty contributes to
enhancement of human dignity and progressive development of human
rights,
Recalling article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
adopted on 10 December 1948, and article 6 of the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, adopted on 16 December 1966,
Noting that article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights refers to abolition of the death penalty in terms that
strongly suggest that abolition is desirable,
Convinced that all measures of abolition of the death penalty should
be considered as progress in the enjoyment of the right to life,
Desirous to undertake hereby an international commitment to
abolish the death penalty,
Have agreed as follows:
Article 1
1. No one within the jurisdiction of a State party to the present
Protocol shall be executed.
2. Each State party shall take all necessary measures to abolish the
death penalty within its jurisdiction.
Article 2
1. No reservation is admissible to the present Protocol, except for a
reservation made at the time of ratification or accession that provides for
the application of the death penalty in time of war pursuant to a
conviction for a most serious crime of a military nature committed during
wartime.
2. The State party making such a reservation shall at the time of
ratification or accession communicate to the Secretary-General of the
United Nations the relevant provisions of its national legislation applicable
during wartime.
3. The State party having made such a reservation shall notify the
Secretary-General of the United Nations of any beginning or ending of a
state of war applicable to its territory.
Article 3
The States parties to the present Protocol shall include in the reports
they submit to the Human Rights Committee, in accordance with article
40 of the Covenant, information on the measures that they have adopted
to give effect to the present Protocol.
Article 4
With respect to the States parties to the Covenant that have made
a declaration under article 41, the competence of the Human Rights
Committee to receive and consider communications when a State party
claims that another State party is not fulfilling its obligations shall extend
to the provisions of the present Protocol, unless the State party concerned
has made a statement to the contrary at the moment of ratification or
accession.
Article 5
With respect to the States parties to the first Optional Protocol to
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights adopted on 16
December 1966, the competence of the Human Rights Committee to
receive and consider communications from individuals subject to its
jurisdiction shall extend to the provisions of the present Protocol, unless
the State party concerned has made a statement to the contrary at the
moment of ratification or accession.
Article 6
1. The provisions of the present Protocol shall apply as additional
provisions to the Covenant.
2. Without prejudice to the possibility of a reservation under article
2 of the present Protocol, the right guaranteed in article 1, paragraph 1,
of the present Protocol shall not be subject to any derogation under
article 4 of the Covenant.
62
Article 7
1. The present Protocol is open for signature by any State that has
signed the Covenant.
2. The present Protocol is subject to ratification by any State that
has ratified the Covenant or acceded to it. Instruments of ratification shall
be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
3. The present Protocol shall be open to accession by any State that
has ratified the Covenant or acceded to it.
4. Accession shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument of
accession with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
5. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall inform all
States that have signed the present Protocol or acceded to it of the
deposit of each instrument of ratification or accession.
Article 8
1. The present Protocol shall enter into force three months after the
date of the deposit with the Secretary-General of the United Nations of
the tenth instrument of ratification or accession.
2. For each State ratifying the present Protocol or acceding to it
after the deposit of the tenth instrument of ratification or accession, the
present Protocol shall enter into force three months after the date of the
deposit of its own instrument of ratification or accession.
Article 9
The provisions of the present Protocol shall extend to all parts of
federal States without any limitations or exceptions.
Article 10
The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall inform all States
referred to in article 48, paragraph 1, of the Covenant of the following
particulars:
(a) Reservations, communications and notifications under
article 2 of the present Protocol;
(b) Statements made under articles 4 or 5 of the present
Protocol;
63
(c) Signatures, ratifications and accessions under article 7 of the
present Protocol;
(d) The date of the entry into force of the present Protocol
under article 8 thereof.
Article 11
1. The present Protocol, of which the Arabic, Chinese, English,
French, Russian and Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be
deposited in the archives of the United Nations.
2. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall transmit
certified copies of the present Protocol to all States referred to in article
48 of the Covenant.
64
Human Rights Fact Sheets: *
No. 2 The International Bill of Human Rights (Rev.1)
No. 3 Advisory Services and Technical Cooperation in the Field of
Human Rights (Rev.1)
No. 4 Combating Torture (Rev.1)
No. 6 Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (Rev.2)
No. 7 Complaint Procedures (Rev.1)
No. 9 The Rights of Indigenous Peoples (Rev.1)
No. 10 The Rights of the Child (Rev.1)
No. 11 Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions (Rev.1)
No. 12 The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
No. 13 International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights
No. 14 Contemporary Forms of Slavery
No. 15 Civil and Political Rights: The Human Rights Committee (Rev.1)
No. 16 The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
(Rev.1)
No. 17 The Committee against Torture
No. 18 Minority Rights (Rev.1)
No. 19 National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of
Human Rights
No. 20 Human Rights and Refugees
No. 21 The Human Right to Adequate Housing
No. 22 Discrimination against Women: The Convention and the
Committee
No. 23 Harmful Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women
and Children
No. 24 The Rights of Migrant Workers
No. 25 Forced Evictions and Human Rights
No. 26 The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention
No. 27 Seventeen Frequently Asked Questions about United Nations
Special Rapporteurs
No. 28 The Impact of Mercenary Activities on the Right of Peoples to
Self-determination
No. 29 Human Rights Defenders: Protecting the Right to Defend
Human Rights
65
* Fact Sheets Nos. 1, 5 and 8 are no longer issued.
66
The Human Rights Fact Sheet series is published by the Office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, United Nations
Office at Geneva. It deals with selected questions of human rights that are
under active consideration or are of particular interest.
Human Rights Fact Sheets are intended to assist an ever-wider
audience in better understanding basic human rights, what the United
Nations is doing to promote and protect them, and the international
machinery available to help realize those rights. Human Rights Fact Sheets
are free of charge and distributed worldwide. Their reproduction in
languages other than the official United Nations languages is encouraged
provided that no changes are made to the contents and the Office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva is
advised by the reproducing organization and given credit as being the
source of the material.
Inquiries should be addressed to:
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
United Nations Office at Geneva
8-14, Avenue de la Paix
1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland
New York Office:
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
United Nations
New York, NY 10017
United States of America
Printed at United Nations, Geneva ISSN 1014-5567
GE.04-43671–May 2005–11,845
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