HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION ADOPTS RESOLUTIONS ON SITUATIONS IN MIDDLE EAST, WESTERN SAHARA

Press Release
HR/CN/781

HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION ADOPTS RESOLUTIONS ON SITUATIONS IN MIDDLE EAST, WESTERN SAHARA

(Reproduced as received; delayed in transmission.)

GENEVA, 26 March (UN Information Service) -- The Commission on Human Rights adopted five resolutions this afternoon on the situation in the Middle East, calling -- as in previous years -- for Israeli withdrawal from occupied Palestinian territory; for an end to repressive measures in the occupied Syrian Golan; for cessation of the Israeli policy of expanding settlements in the occupied Arab territories; for an end to violations of human rights there; and for intensified efforts in the peace process under way between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). All but the last measure, which was passed by consensus, were approved by roll-call votes, with only the United States opposed. The Commission also adopted a resolution urging direct talks to resolve the stalemate over the settlement plan in Western Sahara.

In a resolution on the question of the violation of human rights in the occupied Arab territories, including Palestine, passed by a roll-call vote of 25 in favour, 1 against, with 23 abstaining, including the countries of the European Union, the Commission condemned continued violations of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, in particular continued acts of killing, detention of thousands of Palestinians without trial, continuation of confiscation of lands, extension and establishment of Israeli settlements, confiscation of property of Palestinians, and expropriation of their land. It called upon Israel to withdraw from the Palestinian territories, including Jerusalem, and the other occupied Arab territories.

In a resolution on the human rights in the occupied Syrian Golan, passed on a roll-call vote of 26 in favour, 1 opposed, with 23 abstaining, the Commission called upon Israel to desist from changing the physical character, demographic composition, institutional structure, and legal status of the occupied Syrian Golan; to desist from imposing Israeli citizenship and identity cards on Syrian citizens in the territory; and to desist from repressive measures against them.

In a resolution on Israeli settlements in the occupied Arab territories, sponsored by the European Union and passed on a roll-call vote of 47 in favour, 1 opposed, with 2 abstentions, the Commission welcomed positive developments including the recent step towards further implementation of relevant agreements of the Middle East peace process, but expressed deep concern at expansion of Israeli settlements, expropriation of land, demolition of houses, and confiscation of property. The Commission also strongly condemned all acts of terrorism, and called upon all parties not to allow any acts of terrorism to derail the ongoing peace process.

In a resolution on the situation in occupied Palestine, passed by a roll-call vote of 28 in favour, 1 opposed, with 21 abstentions, the Commission called upon Israel to comply with its obligations under the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of international law, and to withdraw from the Palestinian territories, including Jerusalem, and the other Arab territories which it had occupied since 1967 by military force.

In a resolution on the Middle East peace process, approved without a vote and sponsored by the United States, the Commission emphasized that achieving such a peace was vital to full implementation of human rights; welcomed the Protocol concerning the redeployment in Hebron of 15 January 1997 signed by the Government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization; called upon all parties to protect the human rights and well-being of all detained persons under their control; and encouraged the continuation of negotiations on the implementation of the next stage of the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements.

The resolution on the situation of Western Sahara, approved without a vote, expressed serious concern about persistent obstacles to implementation of the settlement plan agreed to; noted that the Security Council had decided to suspend the identification process and reduce the strength of the military component of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara, owing to the absence of progress in implementation of the settlement plan; and declared the Commission's conviction of the importance and usefulness of direct contacts between the two parties, with a view to overcoming their differences and creating conditions for the speedy and effective implementation of the settlement plan.

Speaking after the voting, a representative of Israel said his country was part of the peace process and deeply committed to it; that there was no room in the process for acts of terrorism; and that several of the resolutions had "slavishly followed" anti-Israeli choreography of previous years, and even featured a hardening of language against Israel.

Following action on resolutions, the Commission resumed debate under its agenda item on the human rights of detainees and prisoners, and heard numerous statements at a meeting that was extended until 9 p.m.

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Carlos Vargas Pizarro, Chairman of the open-ended working group established to elaborate a draft optional protocol to the Convention against Torture -- an international human-rights treaty -- said the Group was determined to establish a system of cooperation that would make it easier to eradicate torture, which affected all countries of the world, regardless of economic and political conditions. The essential idea of the draft protocol was to set up a group of experts to visit places of detention in an effort to prevent torture.

Several countries sought greater emphasis on problems of terrorism or -- in the established lexicon -- violence by "non-State actors". A representative of Peru said that hostage taking was one of the most widespread terrorist acts; in Peru, 72 people were still in captivity after three months when a terrorist group attacked the residence of the ambassador of Japan. And a delegate of Turkey said his country had, in the past decade, been afflicted by a murderous terrorist campaign which aimed at the dismemberment of the country; this has lead to a struggle with solemn questions such as the delicate balance of conflicting rights of individual to speak freely versus the rights of society to protect of citizens.

Among remarks by non-governmental organizations were contentions by the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims that torture was practised in one-third of the countries of the world today, that insufficient financial aid provided to the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture was "shameful", and that implementation of the United Nations Convention against Torture was lacking.

Addressing the afternoon meeting were delegates of the following countries: Cuba, Netherlands (on behalf of the European Union), Peru, Bahrain, Turkey, Poland, Cameroon, and Cyprus.

The following non-governmental organizations and international agencies also provided statements: International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims; World Organization against Torture; France Libertés: Fondation Danielle Mitterrand; Pax Romana; Pax Christi; Article XIX; International Commission of Jurists; International Prison Watch; Human Rights Watch; International Movement for Fraternal Union among Races and Peoples; Arab Organization for Human Rights; Himalayan Research and Cultural Foundation; Liberation; International Educational Development; Friends World Committee for Consultation; Afro-Asian People's Solidarity Organization; International Institute for Peace; Latin American Federation of Associations of Relatives of Disappeared Detainees; Women's International Democratic Federation; War Resister's International; and Andean Commission of Jurists.

The Commission will reconvene Thursday, 27 March, at 10 a.m., to continue discussion of the human rights of detainees.

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Action on Draft Resolutions

In a resolution passed on a vote of 25 in favour, 1 opposed and 23 abstaining on the question of the violation of human rights in the occupied Arab territories, including Palestine (E/CN.4/1997/L.3), the Commission condemned continued violations of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories since the signing of the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements by the Government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1993, in particular continued acts of killing, detention of thousands of Palestinians without trial, continuation of confiscation of lands, extension and establishment of Israeli settlements, confiscation of property of Palestinians, and expropriation of their land, and called upon Israel to cease those acts immediately; condemned the opening of a tunnel under the Al-Aqsa mosque; the revocation of identity cards of the citizens of the Palestinian city of Jerusalem, forcing them to live outside their home; condemned the use of torture against Palestinians during interrogation, which the Israeli High Court of Justice had legitimized; called upon Israel to cease immediately its policy of collective punishments, such as demolition of houses and closure of the Palestinian territory; and called upon Israel to withdraw from the Palestinian territories, including Jerusalem, and the other occupied Arab territories in accordance with the relevant resolutions of the United Nations and the Commission.

The following countries voted in favour: Algeria, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Brazil, Cape Verde, Chile, China, Cuba, Egypt, Ethiopia, Guinea, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Republic of Korea, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Zimbabwe.

The following country voted against: United States.

The following countries abstained: Angola, Argentina, Austria, Belarus, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Madagascar, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Russian Federation, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay.

The representative of the Netherlands, speaking on behalf of the European Union, said it would abstain on voting on the three draft resolutions the Commission would take up first. Last year, the European Union had abstained as well. The resolutions this year were similar to those of last year. The authors of the resolutions had changed the draft, taking into account exclusively negative developments. The European Union shared the concern about the negative developments, but believed that positive developments should also be reflected. The substance of the item did not reflect how the Commission should address these issues and so the European Union abstained.

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The representative of the United States said the United States could not support the resolution. It was one-sided in nature and complicated the Middle East peace process; it also interfered in the ongoing peace process, which was best left to direct negotiations between the Governments involved. The language of the resolutions tabled under this agenda item had not changed with the times. The peace process had done far more to promote human rights in the Middle East than all the resolutions condemning Israel put together. The United States did not approve of the construction by Israel of new settlements, and had made that clear on numerous occasions. Nonetheless, the United States believed that one-sided rhetoric and attempts to prejudge the peace process were more likely to add to the tensions in the region than ease them. The resolution, and three others on the same general subject to be voted on today did not serve a positive purpose and did not help to resolve the delicate problems of the Middle East.

In a resolution passed by a vote of 26 in favour, 1 opposed and 23 abstaining on the human rights in the occupied Syrian Golan (E/CN.4/1997/L.5), the Commission called upon Israel, the occupying power, to comply with the relevant resolutions of the General Assembly and of the Security Council, in which the Council decided, among other things, that the Israeli decision to impose its laws, jurisdiction, and administration on the occupied Syrian Golan was null and void; called upon Israel to desist from changing the physical character, demographic composition, institutional structure, and legal status of the occupied Syrian Golan, and emphasized that displaced persons must be allowed to return to their homes and to recover their properties; called upon Israel to desist from imposing Israeli citizenship and identity cards on Syrian citizens in the territory, and to desist from repressive measures against them; determined that all legislative and administrative measures and actions taken or to be taken by Israel that purported to alter the character and legal status of the occupied Syrian Golan were null and void; and called upon member States not to recognize any such legislative or administrative measures.

The following countries voted in favour: Algeria, Argentina, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Cape Verde, Chile, China, Colombia, Cuba, Egypt, Ethiopia, Guinea, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Republic of Korea, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Zimbabwe.

The following country voted against: United States.

The following countries abstained: Angola, Austria, Belarus, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Madagascar, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Russian Federation, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay.

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In a resolution passed on a vote of 47 in favour, 1 opposed and 2 abstaining on Israeli settlements in the occupied Arab territories (E/CN.4/1997/L.6), the Commission welcomed positive developments including the recent step towards further implementation of relevant agreements of the Middle East peace process involving signing of the Protocol concerning the redeployment in Hebron; and the report submitted by the Special Rapporteur; expressed deep concern at Israeli settlement activities, including expansion of settlements, expropriation of land, demolition of houses, and confiscation of property, among other things; strongly condemned all acts of terrorism, while calling upon all parties not to allow any acts of terrorism to affect the ongoing peace process negatively; and called upon the Government of Israel to comply fully with previous Commission resolutions, to cease completely its policy of expanding settlements and related activities in the occupied territories, including East Jerusalem, to forego and prevent any new installation of settlers in the occupied territories, and to address the question of the Israeli settlements during negotiations on the final status of the territories.

The following countries voted in favour: Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Austria, Bangladesh, Belarus, Benin, Bhutan, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Cape Verde, Chile, China, Colombia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Guinea, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Zimbabwe.

The following country voted against: United States.

The following countries abstained: Dominican Republic, Uruguay.

ARTURO HERNANDEZ BASAVE (Mexico), in an explanation of vote, said it would vote for the draft resolution. Mexico condemned any terrorist acts wherever they occurred. Terrorist acts were particularly of concern in the context of the Middle East peace process. Acts of terrorism deserved to be condemned and civilians deserved to be protected.

MOUNIR ZAHRAN (Egypt) said Egypt would vote for the draft resolution. Egypt had requested that the sponsors add a paragraph to the preamble to refer to the failure of the Security Council to take a decision on this issue. Unfortunately, that request had not been taken into consideration, which was why Egypt had not sponsored the draft.

MOHAMED-SALAH DEMBRI (Algeria) said it would vote in favour of the draft resolution presented by the European Union nations; the intention was to contribute here to a just and equitable resolution of the peace process. There was not a strong enough condemnation of violations of human rights in the resolution, Algeria felt, and Algeria was not satisfied with the lack of

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mention of other occupied territories, but it nonetheless would support the measure.

MIGUEL RUIZ BLANCO (Colombia) said the Colombian delegation would have voted for the resolution contained in document L.3 if it had been present during the vote.

LUIS LILLO (Chile) said the delegation had voted in favour of the resolution on the situation in occupied Palestine; it shared concern over serious human-rights violations in the occupied territories. However, Chile would have preferred more balanced language in the text and that the resolution had called more energetically for all parties to achieve a successful resolution to the peace process.

In a resolution passed by a vote of 28 in favour, 1 opposed and 21 abstaining on the situation in occupied Palestine (E/CN.4/1997/L.4), the Commission called upon Israel to comply with its obligations under the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of international law, and to withdraw from the Palestinian territories, including Jerusalem, and the other Arab territories which it had occupied since 1967 by military force, in accordance with the relevant United Nations resolutions; and requested the Secretary-General to transmit the resolution to the Government of Israel and other Governments, and to make available to the Commission prior to its fifty-fourth session all information pertaining to the implementation of the resolution by the Government of Israel.

The following countries voted in favour: Algeria, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Brazil, Cape Verde, Chile, China, Colombia, Cuba, Egypt, Ethiopia, Guinea, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Republic of Korea, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Zimbabwe.

The following country voted against: United States

The following countries abstained: Argentina, Austria, Belarus, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Russian Federation, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay.

In a resolution passed without a vote on the question of Western Sahara (E/CN.4/1997/L.7), the Commission expressed serious concern about persistent obstacles to implementation of the settlement plan agreed to; noted that the General Assembly had taken note of the relevant Security Council resolution deciding to suspend the identification process and reduce the strength of the military component of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara, owing to the absence of progress in implementation of the settlement plan; reaffirmed the responsibility of the United Nations towards the people

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of Western Sahara; declared its conviction of the importance and usefulness of direct contacts between the two parties, with a view to overcoming their differences and creating conditions for the speedy and effective implementation of the settlement plan; and noted that the General Assembly had requested the Special Committee on the Situation with Regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples to continue to consider the situation in Western Sahara.

Through a resolution adopted without a vote on the Middle East peace process (E/CN.4/1997/L.8), the Commission stressed the importance of achieving a comprehensive, just and lasting peace; emphasized that such a peace was vital to full implementation of human rights; welcomed the peace process started in Madrid and supported the subsequent bilateral negotiations; also welcomed the Protocol concerning the redeployment in Hebron of 15 January 1997 signed by the Government of Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, and the subsequent redeployment of Israeli troops from parts of Hebron; welcomed the release of female Palestinian prisoners from Israeli detention as a confidence-building measure; called upon all parties to protect the human rights and well-being of all detained persons under their control; called upon all parties to work to advance a free civil society, under the rule of law; expressed full support for the achievements of the peace process thus far, including the series of agreements reached; and encouraged the continuation of negotiations on the implementation of the next stage of the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements.

YOSEF LAMDAN (Israel) said that since it was systematically excluded from membership in the Commission, it could scarcely speak on a vote in which it was denied participation. None the less, Israel drew great encouragement from the draft and hoped it would be adopted unanimously. Israel was part of the peace process and was deeply committed to it. Israel was heartened by Dr. Hanan Ashrawi's speech earlier this week in which she said the Palestinians were also committed to the peace process. The resolution specifies that acts of terrorism violated the principles of the peace process and were aimed at destroying human rights. There was no room in the peace process for acts of terrorism and they had to come to a complete end. Israel drew no comfort that L.4 and other resolutions adopted together slavishly followed the cerography against Israel. In fact, there was a hardening of language against Israel. In the real world, these resolutions would have no impact on direct peace negotiations.

NABIL RAMLAWI, observer for Palestine, said draft resolution L.8 was unbalanced, because in its third preambular paragraph reference was made to the international peace conference held in Madrid; but that peace conference had been held on the principle of land for peace, in accordance with Security Council decisions; Palestine did not know how the co-sponsors of the resolution could ask the Commission to abandon this principle of land for peace. The paragraph in question did not talk about this principle, and meant

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the United States had stepped back from it, and that was not acceptable, and the international community should not accept it. If the Commission adopted the resolution, it would have to bear the responsibility for abandoning the principle of land for peace. As for the fifth preambular paragraph, when 30 women were liberated from Israeli prisons, there were still some 4,000 Palestinians in Israeli prisons still awaiting trial; the paragraph did not mention them; it was unbalanced. The paragraph was in favour of Israel, the torturer. Also, the resolution did not mention establishment of new settlements by Israel when it mentioned various threats to the peace process.

MOHAMED-SALAH DEMBRI (Algeria) said his delegation would go along with consensus on L.8 because it sought to consolidate the peace process, which Algeria supported. Algeria had hosted two conferences to allow the Palestine Liberation Organization to address the Madrid and Oslo meetings. However, Algeria felt that the text was still insufficient because it did not question Israel's illegal occupation of Arab territories, nor acts that threatened what had already been achieved.

MOUNIR ZAHRAN (Egypt) said the delegation was sorry to say it had not been consulted on the drafting of the resolution, as it had hoped; if it had, it would have made certain additions taking account of the peace process, its progress, and the obstacles holding it back. Still, Egypt hoped the resolution would be adopted by consensus, although it wished its remarks to be noted in the summary records; further, it felt the principle of land for peace was missing from the third preambular paragraph; it also should have referred to the resolution on the withdrawal from the Lebanese territories. It also would have been better to talk about the release of all Palestinians in Israeli jails who had not been charged or tried. Egypt denounced all acts of terrorism, and felt violence engendered violence and was an obstacle to the peace process; it would have liked to have seen an operative paragraph talking about that issue; and it would have liked to have had a paragraph referring to Israeli settlements.

DANIEL BERNARD (France) said France had never seized giving support to the peace process and it supported L.8 because it was desirable for the Commission to restate its unanimous support for peace efforts. It was necessary to complete what had been started in Madrid. France welcomed the progress already made in Israel's redeployment from Hebron. However, France condemned the reneging on agreements already made and condemned acts of violence.

Statements on Rights of Detainees

The Commission received this afternoon the report of the working group on the draft optional protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (document E/CN.4/1997/33). That protocol would establish a system of visits to places of detention in

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countries that agreed to it. The report summarizes the debate that took place during the fifth session of the working group, held from 14 to 25 October 1996, and reproduces the text of draft articles of the protocol as they stood after second reading. The working group's Chairman-Rapporteur, Carlos Vargas Pizarro (Costa Rica), said at the opening of the fifth session that important progress had been made towards achieving a final draft. He stressed that the purpose of the draft Optional Protocol would be to enhance dialogue with States through the principles of cooperation, confidentiality, impartiality and independence of the members of the proposed body. He referred to the generally accepted view that periodic visits to any place under the jurisdiction of the State concerned was the most effective method of strengthening protection of detainees against torture.

CARLOS VARGAS PIZARRO, Chairman-Rapporteur of the open-ended working group, said the essential idea of the draft protocol was to set up a group of experts to visit places of detention to prevent torture. A serious dialogue between the international monitoring body and the State concerned was needed.

Mr. Pizarro said the annual two-week meeting of the working group was too short for it to carry out its work, although a number of country delegates did not feel it should meet twice a year as proposed by some. None the less, there was a broad spirit of cooperation evident in the group's meetings. Enormous progress had been made, but there was a need to complete the work quickly. The Working Group hoped to have an effective instrument to prevent torture soon; it requested that the Commission renew its mandate so that it could finalize its work.

MIGUEL ALFONSO MARTINEZ (Cuba) said the work so far carried out by the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention had been marked by arbitrariness in its own methods of work. From the beginning, the Group had decided, on its own, to unilaterally modify drastically its mandate. The mandate limited the Group to investigating cases of arbitrary detention; it did not extend to matters of imprisonment, which were different, as they represented sentences passed and imposed by courts. Detention referred only to deprivation of liberty before trials had been concluded. There was no standing for the Group to investigate cases of imprisonment, but it did just that, apparently under an unacceptably broad interpretation of the word "detention". If it was agreed to allow the Working Group to do this, it would be possible for the Group to question the acts of courts and their reasonableness, all of which occurred in sovereign nations. The Group could pronounce on the supposed arbitrariness of any precept contained in the legal measures or procedures of a country, or even the supposed arbitrariness of its Constitution -- that was too much power, and too broad in nature, to give to the five members of the Working Group; Cuba, and other countries, could not accept this.

PETER VAN WULFTEN PALTHE (Netherlands), speaking on behalf of the European Union, said human rights standards provided governments with a list

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of basic "dos" and "don'ts". Torture, arbitrary detention and making people disappear are activities that governments should not engage in. Governments should instead create a climate of tolerance and provide people with due processes of law. The report by the Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression (document E/CN.4/1997/31) reminded one of the need for tolerance. The Union agreed with the Special Rapporteur's conclusion that: "the right to freedom of expression can be described as an essential test right, the enjoyment of which illustrates the enjoyment of all human rights enshrined in the United Nations Bill of Rights". The Union also welcomed the work of the Working Group on arbitrary detention and felt it was the arbitrary nature of detention that should be a primary concern. The Union regretted that Turkey, Indonesia, Cameroon, China and India had not yet responded to the requests of the Special Rapporteur on torture to visit those countries. The Union welcomed the comments of the Turkey's Foreign Minister on 7 March to the effect that "the reform efforts of the Turkish Government to further human rights continue"; and it called on Iraq and Turkey to invite the Working Group on disappearances to visit the countries.

JOSE URRUTIA (Peru) said the Commission had declared that terrorism, in any its form, could never be justified. Yet, despite this condemnation, innocent human beings continued to be victims of this scourge. In Peru, 72 people were still being held captive by a terrorist group that had attacked the residence of the Ambassador of Japan three months ago. Peru refused to give in to blackmail so as not to set a serious precedent that could lead to the proliferation of this kind of terrorist act. Peru would use every available means to achieve a peaceful solution and preserve the lives of the hostages. The international community had not hesitated to condemn hostage-taking and Peru welcomed the Commission's stand on this. However, Peru was concerned about the silence of other international actors on this human rights issue. Peru would welcome a condemnation of terrorism by non-governmental organizations. The Government was also surprised at the silence on this issue of some Special Rapporteurs -- the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers had unjustifiably neglected to mention that the President of the Supreme Court and other members of the judiciary were being held hostage in Lima.

AHMAD AL-HADDAD (Bahrain) said the destabilization campaign experienced by his country in 1994 had coincided with a number of complaints of human rights abuses being lodged against Bahrain. The threat against Bahrain had been revealed to be an armed conspiracy to overthrow the Government. A small, but very skilful, group of fundamentalist zealots and extremists connected to terrorists in Bahrain or in self-imposed exile abroad were responsible for these acts. The Government was committed to human rights and had recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Committee of the Red Cross to allow it to undertake independent prison inspection visits within Bahrain.

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TUGAY ULUCEVIC (Turkey) said his country had, in the past decade, been afflicted by a murderous terrorist campaign aimed at dismembering the country. This had led to a struggle which raised issues such as the delicate balance between the right of individuals to speak freely versus the right of society to protect its citizens. In the report drafted following his 1996 visit to Turkey, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom and expression stated that: "A number of problems merit special consideration.... First among these is the pernicious problem of politically motivated violence in society". Torture and ill-treatment were prohibited by the Constitution and punishable. On the occasion of the adoption by the Parliament of the Human Rights Reform Law in March 1997, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tansu Ciller, had reaffirmed that: "Torture is not only a crime in our law, it is also a crime against humanity. I absolve the Turkish police and security forces as a whole from the shameful crimes. However, if there are any officers who commit this crime we shall find them out and punish them".

ROMAN KUZNIAR (Poland) said no one could deny the existence of torture in many countries around the world, and no one in the room would try to justify the use of torture; the common denominator for countries where it occurred was the lack of democracy, the existence of totalitarian or authoritarian regimes with their inherent contempt for human dignity. The United Nations community must urge all States to ratify the Convention against Torture, but as only half of United Nations Member States had done so, the United Nations should seek other ways of monitoring and acting on problems of torture -- the 1503 procedure, for example, could be used extensively for that, as, alas, the practice of torture in many countries met only too well the criteria of the procedure, while the procedure had generally been abused over the years for cases that had nothing to do with "gross violations". The Commission should ask the Working Group to speed up its efforts to develop a draft optional protocol to the Convention; and Poland approved of the idea contained in the draft resolution to come before the Commission of preparing a report on the situation worldwide in regard to torture -- the names of countries and officials who practised or tolerated it should be known and subject to the scrutiny of the United Nations community.

LUCY GWANMESIA (Cameroon) said Cameroon was a party to many international human-rights instruments, and was dedicated to promoting and protecting human rights; it was a proud democratic nation; a new era of freedom had been ushered in, including freedom of association and freedom to form political parties. Disturbances in 1992 were only lessons in the country's effort to learn democracy, and much progress had been made since. The Constitution had been amended in 1996 to raise the level of the judiciary to that of the other major branches of Government; there were no prisoners of conscience; judicial guarantees and fair-trial standards were observed; human rights education was given to Government and judicial officials; detention centres were subject to surprise visits from inspectors; the Convention

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against Torture took precedence over all national law; currently there were no cases of enforced or involuntary disappearances -- reports to the contrary were the work of groups trying to discredit the Government. The reference to Cameroon in the report of the Special Rapporteur on torture was based on false and misleading information; there were other cases of such misinformation; Special Rapporteurs and Working Groups should keep in mind their responsibility to act only on responsible information.

INGE GENEFKE, of the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims, said the group had observed the tragic physical and psychological effects of torture on the health of torture victims. Torturers who worked for governments could succeed in their horrid task to break down the victim's identity. Torture was used in one third of the countries of the world today because governments wanted to say into power; therefore, torture should be referred to as an instrument of power. Many of the Council's health professionals who helped victims of government-sanctioned torture were in great danger of becoming victims themselves, and some of them already had. These people needed financial assistance and protection desperately. The insufficient financial aid provided to the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture was shameful.

ERIC SOTTAS, of the World Organization against Torture, said that despite the adoption in past decades of a number of conventions, the efficiency of international instruments against torture and existing mechanisms was subject to a number of reservations. Victims, families and defenders of human rights all expected national and international instances to give redress to victims and compensate them for the violations they had experienced. Unfortunately, adopted resolutions and the mechanisms contained in international conventions or in constitutions were widely ignored and without any practical results. In Turkey, for example, the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture had found that torture and serious ill-treatment of persons detained by the police, whether they were common law suspects or held under terrorism legislation, was widely practised. Such practices also took place in Sri Lanka. In Rwanda, meanwhile, numerous people implicated in the genocide of the Tutsi minority had not been punished for their crimes. In Burundi, a gradual genocide was occurring and reliable sources had testified that torture and massacres were widespread.

SALVATORE PAPPALARDO, of France-Libertés/Fondation Danielle Mitterrand, said Tunisia violated human rights despite the fact that it had ratified most of the international human rights conventions. Arrests and arbitrary detention, torture and mistreatment, inequitable judgments and systematic harassment were to intimidate opposition figures, members of human rights organizations and lawyers. The Secretary General of Amnesty International had been subjected to constant police surveillance during his visit, while the President of the International League for Human Rights had not even been allowed into the country. Last year, the Tunisian Mission in Geneva had

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expressed its willingness to allow Danielle Mitterrand to visit Tunisia, but the invitation had not been confirmed. Despite the recent freeing of prisoners of conscience, numerous others were still languishing in Tunisian jails. The Commission should to do its utmost to remedy this situation and ensure that non-governmental organizations active in the promotion and defence of human rights could enter Tunisia to carry out their mandates.

The representatives of Pax Romana, said numerous South Vietnamese political prisoners from so-called education camps had been mutilated or killed while clearing anti-personnel mines. The Vietnamese Government had used these prisoners to clear mine fields knowing full well that they were not mine-clearing professionals and had no maps or appropriate equipment. Rather than undergoing a re-education programme, these prisoners had been arbitrarily detained in gulags without trial, suffering inhuman and degrading treatment. Moreover, their wives had been expelled by force from their homes; deported to new economic zones, which were in reality disguised work camps; and raped by Vietnamese Communist Party officials.

JACQUES VITTORI, of Pax Christi International, said 1996 had seen a high level of arbitrary arrests of young East Timorese -- and the systematic torture of those arrested. Some 264 East Timorese might have been arbitrarily arrested. The riots in Bacau in June 1996 as a result of a so-called "religious" conflict between Catholics and Muslims were believed to have been deliberately provoked. The trials of some of the youths involved in the riots had been unfair; indeed, legal procedures were frequently violated in East Timor. The Indonesian Government should, among other things: conduct a full and impartial inquiry into reports that up to 10 East Timorese had been executed extra-judicially between January and September 1996; provide information about prisoners detained following the riots; conduct a full and impartial inquiry into other reports of torture, arbitrary arrests and disappearances, and prosecute those found responsible to the fullest extent under the law.

JANET BAUER, of Article XIX International Centre against Censorship, said her group welcomed the fourth report of Abid Hussain, Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression. Article XIX believed that the rights to seek, receive and impart information were often most at risk during electoral processes, particularly in emerging democracies. It urged the Special Rapporteur to include in his next report analysis and commentary on the role that access to information laws could and should play in facilitating popular participation. Another subject related to the right to seek and receive information was the report that the Department of Public Information of the United Nations planned to charge non-governmental organizations for access to the Organization's Optical Disk System. The peoples of which the United Nations was made had a right to receive without charge documents already in the public domain.

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MONA RISHMANT, of the International Commission of Jurists, said the group was disturbed by the civil suit filed in a Malaysian court against United Nations Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers. It hoped Malaysia would resolve the matter before a hearing took place on 9 April 1997. The International Commission of Jurists had found that in 1996, at least 462 jurists had suffered reprisals in 52 countries for carrying out their duties. It also noted that there were significant structural defects in the legal and judicial systems in many countries that led to the improper adminstration of justice and contributed to impunity. Colombia, Peru, Nigeria, Bahrain, Turkey and Brazil had special tribunals and decrees which were against human rights; removal of judicial discretion in sentencing was a problem in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom; Ethiopia dismissed judges; Jordan had forced the retirement of 11 judges, and Botswana did not give its judges tenure. Meanwhile, corruption was a problem for the judiciary in Venezuela, Mexico, Indonesia, Morocco and Zaire. And there were other judiciary shortcomings in Italy, the United States, Hong Kong, Belarus, Kenya, Turkey, Venezuela, Mexico, Sudan, Djibouti, Pakistan, Tunisia, the Philippines, Nigeria and Northern Ireland. As for the work of the Working Group on arbitrary detention, the ICJ urged that the mandate of the panel be extended to allow the consideration of cases of arrest or detention, even when these were already being examined by a domestic judge.

DAVID FABBRO, of International Prison Watch, said prison conditions in Latin American jails were often in violation of the minimum prison standards established by the United Nations. In many cases there was overcrowding, old and inadequate infrastructures, deplorable hygienic conditions and insufficient or poor-quality food. Conditions in five countries deserved particular attention. In Colombia, prison buildings were more than 40 years old, and were in a deplorable state. In El Salvador, the situation was not much different, with the majority of prisons dating back to before 1950. Nicaragua's eight prisons were not maintained; prisoners had no beds and only 40 per cent of them had a mattress. Running water, drains and electricity were missing in numerous prisons in Venezuela. In Mexico, meanwhile, overcrowding made it impossible to separate prisoners by age, sex or penal category.

JULIA HALL, of Human Rights Watch, said the organization was deeply concerned about the continued state of emergency in Northern Ireland. Under the current emergency laws, a detainee could be held for up to seven days without charge, and interrogations of detainees were not recorded. Also, the emergency regime in Northern Ireland was supported by legislation that effectively annulled the common law right to silence applicable in the United Kingdom. The excessive use of force by police in Northern Ireland was also a major concern. The Universal Declaration on Human Rights guaranteed freedom from arbitrary arrest, detention or exile and to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal in determining any criminal charges. Fundamental respect for human rights was essential for the creation and

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maintenance of a just and lasting peace in Northern Ireland. As for the work of the Working Group on arbitrary detention, Human Rights believed that limiting its area of concern only to cases of detention before a judicial decision would lead to a form of selectivity.

MESFIN WOLDEMARIAM, of the International Movement for Fraternal Union among Races and Peoples, said governments could not justify violations of human rights by arguing cultural particularities or hiding behind claims of sovereignty; to deny that there was no extrajudicial killing in Ethiopia in 1996 was tantamount to denying that those who in fact were killed were human beings. Every year many Ethiopians were killed without any pretence of legal process, and with total impunity; men and women were tortured and maimed, often for matters having to do with their relatives; many were victims of involuntary disappearances. In addition there were some 10,000 persons held in detention without a day in court, and the number was growing; there also were abuses of teachers, unions, journalists, judges, and prosecutors; religious institutions also were brutalized. The Commission should appoint a Special Rapporteur to investigate the situation in Ethiopia.

MOHAMED SAFAA, of the Arab Organization for Human Rights, said his group had raised the issue of the 200 Lebanese hostages being detained in Israeli prisons and camps at the last two session of the Commission. Of these, 150 had been held in detention camps since 1985 without trial, and 14 had died from torture. The rest were suffering from disease. Israel had freed some 45 hostages in 1996, but it had subsequently increased the number of arbitrary detentions. Those held in camps were not tried, had not been allowed to see lawyers and were not given adequate health care or food. In the prisons, the detainees had gone on hunger strike last year because their families and lawyers were not allowed to see them. Israel was also holding 28 Syrians in detention; they were also suffering from health and other problems. The international community should exert pressure on Israel to save the Lebanese hostages.

ASHOK BHAN, of the Himalayan Research and Cultural Foundation, said many States continued to deny prescribed rights to detainees and were engaged in the practice of detention without judicial supervision. Hostage-taking by terrorist groups was also growing. Terrorism required supportive assistance and financing; very often, terrorist groups were the instruments of some States. Those States used terrorists for political and territorial aims to escape the accountability that went with armed action, which made them guilty of violating the basic human rights of innocent people. It was tragic that some State authorities were assisting terrorists, thus becoming the unpunished and unaccountable violators of human rights. The Himalayan Research and Cultural Foundation recommended that the Security Council and the General Assembly initiate action against countries that sheltered terrorist and mercenary organizations.

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MAGGIE BOWEN, of Liberation, said that despite the absolute nature of the prohibition against torture and ill-treatment, such practices were continuing, particularly against so-called minority communities. Liberation believed States had an undilutable legal and moral responsibility to refrain from using violence to combat perceived threats to stability. Liberation had noted violations in Turkey, Tibet, Sri Lanka and India. The group welcomed the contribution in the fight against torture of the Indian National Human Rights Commission and the efforts of some members of the judiciary. However, that was a small, overstretched body faced with thousands of allegations of abuse. India would benefit from assistance in the field of law. Liberation hoped the Commission could offer necessary aid.

G.G. PONNAMBALAM, of International Educational Development, said the war situation in northeast Sri Lanka -- the traditional homeland of the Tamils -- had being going on for the past 15 years and had now taken genocidal proportions. There had been a total disregard of all the principles relating to detention, as well as callous violations of customary international humanitarian law applicable in armed conflicts. Tamils throughout the island had been subjected to arbitrary arrests, indefinite detention, torture, involuntary disappearances and extra-judicial killings. The impunity of those responsible for human-rights violations and breaches of humanitarian law was borne out by the non-prosecution of those suspected of committing those crimes. The continuing presence of the Sinhala army of occupation in the traditional homeland of the Tamils would not only lead to further violations of human rights but would also obstruct a negotiated settlement of the Tamil problem.

RACHEL BRETT, of the Friends World Committee for Consultation, said use of torture, inhuman and degrading treatment and punishment within armed forces of various countries was overdue for attention; such maltreatment fell into the categories of recruitment procedures, initiation rites, general harassment, and official practices. In some countries, recruitment itself was forcible, with military forces conducting systematic sweeps of poor urban and rural areas and collecting youths and forcing them into trucks to be taken away. Later, brutal and humiliating rituals applied to them included being forced to hand over personal belongings; deprivation of food; being forced to pay for privileges such as being allowed out in the evening; sexual assault, including rape -- which occurred in the case of men as well as women; and mental abuse. Where women were also in the armed forces, problems of rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment were compounded. The time had come for a thorough study of how existing international human-rights standards applied to members of the armed forces, and how they could be better applied, and the Commission was urged to undertake such a study.

A .M. ALI, of the Afro Asian Peoples Solidarity Organisation, said the most visible symptom of the lack of concern for the human rights of individuals was the practice adopted by some States of detaining people

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without cause and torturing them without any accountability or remorse. The conditions a State imposed upon its people were a consequence not just of maladministration or of a lack of knowledge about what constituted inhuman behaviour. For example, Pakistan was today a democracy, but the reins of power were still held by people who valued their feudal past. Power remained consolidated in the hands of the majority Muslims. Thus Christians, Hindus, and other minorities were suddenly transformed into lesser beings. The Special Rapporteur, in his report on his 1996 visit to Pakistan, touched upon all the forms of illegal detention and torture that were practised in the country. Unless an effort was made to change the structures of Pakistan so that all citizens were treated equally, there would always be those who considered that the right to oppression was fundamental.

TATIANA SHAUMIAN, of the International Institute for Peace, said the number of terrorist acts was increasing while the intervals between them grew smaller. Terrorism manifested itself in different forms. The fight against terrorism in general, and especially the very dangerous form of hostage-taking, and to prevent the violation of human rights and insults to human dignity, was only possible with the full cooperation of all countries. Criminals who violated human rights, and chiefly the right to life, must know that punishment for their actions was inevitable, regardless of which country's territory their crimes were committed on.

JANETTE BAUTISTA, of the Latin American Federation of Associations of Relatives of Disappeared Detainees (FEDEFAM), said forced disappearances, torture, and arbitrary detention had not disappeared from the world, or from Latin America; it was the sad truth; there were serious offenses of this nature in such countries as Mexico, Colombia, Peru, and Guatemala. The situation of arbitrary imprisonment was particularly alarming in Peru; thousands had been affected in recent years, and the truth was that many were innocent; the process of pardons was slow, and they were not pardoned of the charged offenses, merely pardoned of punishment; meanwhile proven perpetrators of human-rights violators in the country enjoyed impunity, including members of paramilitary groups; they had been among those benefiting from a general amnesty granted by the Government. The FEDEFAM was deeply preoccupied with the persistence of forced disappearances in Colombia, and with the persistence of torture; bodies of persons tortured and then killed were often found on the outskirts of cities such as Bogota. Various grave violations of human rights could not be accepted nor impunity or amnesty accepted in Argentina, Guatemala, Brazil, Chile, El Salvador and Uruguay.

AIDA AVELLO, of the Women's International Democratic Federation of Women, said it was vital to do away with brutal and dehumanizing treatment of women prisoners. Detained persons were a vulnerable segment of the population, and once they were released they were stigmatized. Elementary rights were denied to prisoners and all types of crimes are perpetrated within prisons. Maximum security prisons in Peru were particularly bad; women

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prisoners were kept in tiny cells, and totally isolated. In another prison in Peru, women suffered from diseases such as tuberculosis and from freezing conditions. The Commission should appoint a Special Rapporteur to study this form of violence against women.

SAEED MOKBIL, of War Resisters' International, said Yemen was the only country to have private prisons -- more than 100 of them. Those prisons held thousands of illegally detained persons who were shackled by the neck, hands and legs. In these places, detainees were tortured and women were raped. But torture in Yemen occurred not only inside prisons: on the streets, people were beaten and kidnapped by the security forces. The judiciary in Yemen was not independent, since the President was also the head of the highest court. Even so, courts had recently ruled against the Government in 31 cases of rights violations. The boycotting of elections would help Yemenis force the Government to carry out its promises.

MARIE-NOELLE LITTLE, of the Andean Commission of Jurists, said reforms in judicial systems were under way throughout the Andean region -- a case of response to formerly inoperative judicial systems which had led to impunity or self-justice; it was an enormous challenge, and perhaps the most notable success was that of Bolivia, where procedural legislation reform had reduced unsentenced prisoners from 91 per cent to 53 per cent, making Bolivia the country with the second fewest unsentenced prisoners in Latin America. Problems remained in other countries, however; there was the inability of Colombian justice to penalize organized crime and those responsible for human-rights violations; there was high index of unsentenced prisoners in Venezuela; there were some disturbing aspects to anti-terrorism legislation in Peru. In addition, there always existed the temptation to interfere with the independence of the judiciary.

SOTOS ZACHEOS (Cyprus) said the question of the missing persons in Cyprus following the Turkish invasion of the summer of 1974 was still unresolved. The Commission, session after session, was told of the tragic problem and on four occasions had adopted relevant resolutions; families of missing persons, meanwhile, were still waiting, day after day, to be informed whether their loved ones were alive or dead. A United Nations investigatory committee was established in 1981, but had made little progress. In 1996, the committee's work was at a standstill; the expectation of the Government of Cyprus was that the committee would resume its investigative work with the appointment of the new Secretary-General's representative in the committee, as well as other needed personnel. Cyprus appealed to all concerned for assistance and cooperation in resolving the long-standing problem; it appealed especially to Turkey to take the political and humanitarian steps necessary for the reaching a solution to this tragic matter affecting both Greek and Turkish Cypriot families.

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