HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONER SAYS 'MASSIVE, WIDESPREAD VIOLATIONS' STILL NEED INTENSE SCRUTINY OF INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

21 October 1997

Press Release
HR/CT/499

HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONER SAYS 'MASSIVE, WIDESPREAD VIOLATIONS' STILL NEED INTENSE SCRUTINY OF INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY

19971021 Committee Begins Session, Concerned at Withdrawal by Democratic People's Republic of Korea from Civil and Political Rights Covenant

GENEVA, 20 October (UN Information Service) -- The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, this morning opened the autumn session of the Committee on Human Rights and stressed that although human rights were receiving greater international recognition, this should not "obscure the underlying reality of massive and widespread violations of human rights and the intense human suffering which marks our era".

The new session of the Committee is to examine the reports of six countries -- Senegal, Jamaica, iraq, Sudan, Belarus and Lithuania -- on what they have done to implement the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Mrs. Robinson said that as the United Nations embarked on the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the fifth anniversary of the adoption of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, "the challenge to the international community and to all of us to be more effective in promoting and ensuring respect for human rights is greater than ever". She said United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan was deeply and personally interested in human rights, attaching great importance to them in the context of his overall responsibilities in promoting peace and security.

The new High Commissioner repeated her vow to take a balanced and broad approach which would emphasize civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights, and the right to development, as well as women's and children's rights.

Also this morning, the 18-member Committee adopted its agenda and programme of work, heard a brief statement on its pre-sessional working group and discussed lists of issues to be raised with countries presenting reports. The Chairman, Christine Chanet (France), said the Committee would discuss in private the withdrawal of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's from the Covenant.

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Statements

MARY ROBINSON, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the international human rights treaty system was clearly at the core of the United Nations human rights programme and its role had become ever more essential as the number of countries acceding to and ratifying the treaties increased.

However, the fact that human rights were receiving greater international recognition should not obscure the underlying reality of massive and widespread violations of human rights and the intense human suffering which marked the present era. Mrs. Robinson said that with the onset of the celebrations to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the fifth anniversary of the adoption of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, the challenge to the international community to be more effective in promoting and ensuring respect for human rights was greater than ever.

She said that in New York recently, she had had the chance to observe that the Secretary-General was deeply and personally interested in human rights, and attached great importance to them in the context of his overall responsibilities in promoting peace and security. She said the difficult situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Lakes Region of Africa as a whole continued to be an issue of immediate concern. She stressed the need "to break the cycle of impunity when it comes to such massive violations of human rights". The situation in Algeria was also another situation of major concern.

Another disturbing recent development, she said, had been the announcement on 25 August by the Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea that it had decided to withdraw from the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. She said she looked forward to receiving the views of the Committee on this issue.

Mrs. Robinson said that in her approach to her work, she intended to take a balanced and broad approach which would emphasize civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights, and the right to development, as well as women's and children's rights.

The Chairman of the Committee CHRISTINE CHANET (France) said that while the Committee was not a political organ, its experts believed in the strength of law, even more when it was supported by political will. In response to the financial crisis, the Committee had reduced the number of its working groups and changed its work methods. She assured the High Commissioner for Human Rights that the Committee would be discussing the withdrawal of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

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