COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION TO MEET AT GENEVA, 26 FEBRUARY - 15 MARCH
Press Release
RD/843
COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION TO MEET AT GENEVA, 26 FEBRUARY - 15 MARCH
19960222 Background Release GENEVA, 19 February (UN Information Service) -- The measures taken by Zimbabwe, Russian Federation, Colombia, Denmark, United Kingdom, Finland, Hungary, Spain and Venezuela to combat racial discrimination will be considered by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination at its forty-eighth session, to be held at Geneva from 26 February to 15 March.These countries are among the 146 States parties to the 1969 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. The 18-member Committee, the first body created by the United Nations to review actions by States in fulfilling their obligations under a specific human rights agreement, examines reports submitted periodically by States parties on their compliance with the Convention. Representatives of the Governments are invited to introduce their country reports and respond to questions from Committee members.
The panel of experts is also scheduled to discuss the reports of the following States parties, whose reports have been deemed excessively overdue: Madagascar, Cambodia, India, Pakistan, Panama, Nepal, Swaziland, Guinea, Gambia and Côte d'Ivoire.
With regard to prevention of racial discrimination, including early warning and urgent procedures, the Committee may consider the situation in which information has been requested under paragraph 1, article 9 of the Convention. According to that paragraph, States parties are to undertake to submit to the Secretary-General, for consideration by the Committee, a report on the legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures which they have adopted and which give effect to the provisions of this Convention within one year after the entry into force of the Convention for the State concerned and, thereafter, every two years and whenever the Committee so requests.
In addition to considering States parties' reports, the Committee will examine, in closed session, communications from individuals claiming to be victims of racial discrimination. Only complaints against the 22 States parties that have recognized the competence of the Committee under Article 14 of the Convention are admissible.
Submission of Reports
Under article 9 of the Convention, States undertake to report to the Committee on legal, judicial and other measures they have adopted to ensure effective protection against racial discrimination within their jurisdiction. States parties to the Convention agree to: condemn and seek to eliminate racial discrimination in their territories; review their policies in order to amend or nullify any regulations which create or perpetuate such discrimination, based on racial superiority or hatred; and prohibit organizations and activities which promote or incite racial discrimination. They also agree to provide remedies for victims of racial discrimination and to adopt measures to combat prejudice and promote understanding among different national, racial and ethnic groups.
In addition, States parties undertake to guarantee the right of everyone to equality before the law without distinction as to race, colour, or national or ethnic origin.
In the past, the Committee has called upon the Secretary-General to bring to the attention of States parties, at their annual meeting, the unfortunate consequences of delays in the submission of reports and to encourage them to consider ways and means by which all parties might be brought to fulfil their reporting obligations. The Committee has also instituted a procedure to review the implementation of the Convention in those States parties responsible for the longest delays in submitting periodic reports. In a letter addressed to the Governments of those States, the Committee said that delays in the submission of reports hampered its efforts to monitor the implementation of the Convention.
Communications under Article 14
Under article 14 of the Convention, the Committee considers communications from individuals or groups of individuals claiming to be victims of a violation by States parties of any of the rights set forth in the Convention, provided the States concerned have recognized the competence of the Committee in this regard. The following States parties have already done so: Algeria, Finland, Australia, Bulgaria, Chile, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Peru, Russian Federation, Senegal, Slovakia, Sweden, Ukraine and Uruguay.
Third Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination
Concerning the Third Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination, which began in December 1993, the Committee will have before it relevant General Assembly resolutions on the implementation of the Third Decade as well as the report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on
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contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination and xenophobia and related intolerance (A/50/476). Relevant resolutions of the Commission and Sub-Commission will also be before the Committee.
States Parties to Convention
At present, the following 146 States are parties to the Convention: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Cyprus, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Hungary, Iceland, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya.
Also, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Tajikistan, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro), Zaire, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Committee Membership, Officers
The members of the Committee, elected in their individual capacity are: Mahmoud Aboul-Nasr (Egypt); Hamzat Ahmadu (Nigeria); Michael Parker Banton (United Kingdom); Theodoor van Boven (Netherlands); Ion Diaconu (Romania); Eduardo Ferrero Costa (Peru); Ivan Garvalov (Bulgaria); Régis de Gouttes (France); Andrew Chigovera (Zimbabwe); Carlos Lechuga Hevia (Cuba); Yuri A. Rechetov (Russian Federation); Shanti Sadiq Ali (India); Agha Shahi (Pakistan); Michael E. Sherifis (Cyprus); Zou Deci (China); Luis Valencia Rodriguez (Ecuador); Rüdiger Wolfrum (Germany); and Mario Jorge Yutzis (Argentina).
At the beginning of the forty-eighth session, the Committee will elect from among its members a Chairperson, three Vice-Chairpersons and a Rapporteur to serve for two years.
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