ARMS EMBARGO IN GREAT LAKES REGION OF AFRICA CALLED FOR AS SOCIAL COMMITTEE CONTINUES HUMAN RIGHTS REVIEW
Press Release
GA/SHC/3449
ARMS EMBARGO IN GREAT LAKES REGION OF AFRICA CALLED FOR AS SOCIAL COMMITTEE CONTINUES HUMAN RIGHTS REVIEW
19971117 Reports Received on Burundi, Iraq, Iran; Representative of Iraq Says Charges of Abuse Based on Allegations of People Hostile to His CountryThe Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Burundi called for an arms embargo on all the countries in the Great Lakes region in central Africa, as he introduced his report on that country to the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) this morning. He also said it was unjust to maintain the economic sanctions on the Burundi people; their suffering must be taken into account. The international community should adopt a common, energetic approach to find specific solutions to the problems of ethnic and national identity and to economic development.
The representative of Burundi said the imposition of a total embargo on a small landlocked country was against international laws and conventions. The embargo dashed all hopes of the people of Burundi, having a negative impact on health care for children and women, depriving orphans of schooling and denying farmers access to fertilizers for agriculture. The Special Rapporteur's plea for an end to the embargo was welcomed.
The Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iraq said the situation there was "terrible", and had deteriorated since the Government's last report. Iraqi representatives, he said, continued a practice of denial, prevarication and postponement. In response, the representative of Iraq said the report was a misrepresentation based on allegations of people who had always been hostile to his country. The core of any human rights problem in Iraq was a consequence of the United Nations embargo and sanctions.
Also this morning several representatives said that human rights situations or violations should not be exploited for hidden political agendas. The representative of the Russian Federation said he was convinced that the United Nations human rights activities should provide an impetus to the rapprochement of States rather than become a factor of division and confrontation.
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The United Nations should reject the use of human rights as a political weapon for foreign policy and development cooperation, said the representative of Kenya. Such practices smacked of selectivity and double standards, promoting confrontation and undermining the spirit of cooperation. The search for lasting solutions should aim at removing obstacles to the right to development, especially in developing countries.
The representative of Ukraine called for need for new approaches to cooperation of United Nations agencies with non-governmental organizations, whose statements were sometimes made just to "pester" the government of the relevant country.
The representative of New Zealand, speaking also for Canada and Australia, said the burden of reporting under the human right treaties was particularly daunting for small States. As society moved beyond standard setting to implementation, the United Nations should be made more effective in technical assistance in the field of human rights.
The representative of Bangladesh said his country was committed to human rights. A National Human Rights Commission had been established, as well as a Law Commission to identify and review Bangladesh's position on international human rights instruments.
Statements were also made by the representatives of Cuba, Thailand, Turkey and Kazakhstan, and by an official of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
A report was also introduced by the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran.
In response to the report by the Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights Situation in Iraq, statements were also made by the representatives of Kuwait and the United States.
The Third Committee meets again at 3 p.m. today to continue its consideration of human rights questions. It was expected to hear the introduction of a number of draft texts and take action on one draft resolution.
Committee Work Programme
The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) met this morning to continue its consideration of human rights questions, including alternative approaches for improving the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms, the reports of special rapporteurs and representatives, the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, and the report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The Committee was also expected to hear introductory statements by the special rapporteurs on the situation of human rights for Iraq and Burundi, and the Special Representative of the Commission on Human Rights for the situation of human rights in Iran.
The Committee had before it reports on the human rights situations and reports of special rapporteurs and representatives on the following: Cambodia, Haiti, Kosovo, the former Yugoslavia, Myanmar, southern Lebanon and West Bekaa, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Sudan, Cuba, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
(For background on alternative approaches, the Vienna Declaration and the High Commissioner's report, and the reports of the special rapporteurs and representatives, see Press Releases GA/SHC/3443 and GA/SHC/3444 of 12 November; GA/SHC/3445 of 13 November, and GA/SHC/3447 of 14 November.)
Human Rights in Iraq
MAX VAN DER STOEL, Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iraq, said the Iraqi Government had long withdrawn even the pretence of cooperation with him, but the allegations of violations of human rights in Iraq continued. The analysis in the report, based on information which included testimony from persons interviewed in countries neighbouring Iraq, concluded that widespread, systematic and serious violations of human rights continued in Iraq.
The conclusions were shared by other independent experts monitoring Iraq's compliance with its international human rights obligations, such as the United Nations Human Rights Committee, he said. The Committee had observed that the human rights situation had deteriorated since the Government's last report. Iraqi representatives continued "a well-established practice of denial, prevarication and postponement". The Government agreed to do nothing to change the terrible situation of human rights in Iraq. He said the conclusion was that the nature of the legal and political system in Iraq made improvement impossible because the system of military dictatorship effectively required that human rights violations occur in order to maintain the position and privileges of those in power.
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The report focused on four types of violations, he continued. Violations against the personal security and integrity of individuals included arbitrary and extrajudicial executions; there was a virtual absence of freedom of opinion and expression; the governmental authorities forcibly displaced persons belonging to non-Arab communities; and finally, the right to food and health continued to be spectacularly violated by the Government.
After five years, he went on, Iraq had accepted the "food for oil" programme offered within a year of the sanctions being imposed. Nevertheless, in the summer, the Government had interrupted the sale of oil, caused delay in delivering humanitarian supplies, and it had failed to facilitate an open and effective monitoring system.
Among other obstructions, he added, the Government had instituted a ration-card system entailing a registration fee for anyone who was to receive international aid. Agencies therefore reported a shortage of foodstuffs and medicaments. The Government admitted the shortages and yet stopped its own rations to people. The Government must provide convincing evidence of using its own resources to remove existing shortages to avoid the suspicion that the Government preferred to use the resources for purchases not of a humanitarian character.
MOHAMMED AL-HUMAIMIDI (Iraq) said the report was a misrepresentation of facts. The allegations had nothing to do with human rights. The reports were based on allegations of persons who had always been hostile to Iraq. Iraq had responded to allegations previously, for example, regarding the situation in northern Iraq. He said allegations of judicial violations were totally unacceptable and were an interference in Iraq's internal affairs. As for build-ups of Iraqi forces in the northern area, it was an issue involving Kurdish people and Turkish invasions still taking place among the civilian population. The Special Rapporteur's report had ignored the situation, he said, without even mentioning that there was a threat to the region. Even if there was a build-up, it would be Iraq's right to deploy its forces the way it wanted.
The report was full of unfounded claims whose accuracy could not be proven, he continued. Acts mentioned in the report did not take place. There was misrepresentation when authorities followed up people who were accused or those who had committed crimes. That was an absolute and normal practice in preserving the safety of its people and property. No coup had taken place. Freedom of expression had already been addressed. He said the forced movement of populations had taken place because of fighting Kurdish factions, with a view of controlling more land. The fighting in the north from October was still going on, along with military attacks from Turkey.
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Regarding allegations of demographic changes in Kirkuk during the Iraq- Iran war, he said some families had been asked to leave the border for safety. They were reimbursed and Iraq had explained this.
In the field of food and health, he went on, Iraq had been eager to explain its view while the Special Rapporteur had ignored it. If this was an awakening, it was too late. There was a Memorandum of Understanding. He said any allegation about the failure to deploy aid was outside the Special Rapporteur's mandate. The Secretary-General had acknowledged Iraq's cooperation with human rights workers. The problematic nature of ration cards was exaggerated and lacked accuracy. The ration card was aimed to avoid duplications or fraud. There was not a single case of withholding a ration card. The claim could not be proven. Iraq tried to provide rations to all in all areas of the country.
The core of the problem was that any rights which were violated were a result of the embargo and sanctions, he said. Had the Special Rapporteur the minimum level of objectivity and fairness, he would have called for lifting of the embargo. Also, the Special Rapporteur had gone far afield from the guidelines given by the General Assembly. He should be guided by impartiality and uphold those principles. The Special Rapporteur, however, used his mandate to disparage Iraq. He was calling for a change in the legitimate regime of Iraq, which was a stark violation of the people's right to self- determination. Iraq totally rejected unfounded claims that depended on prefabricated stories.
MARIAM AL-AWADHI (Kuwait) said Kuwait was suffering from Iraqi slowness and noncooperation with the tripartite commission in Geneva. Iraq's violations had led to social and psychological problems for all categories of citizens in Kuwait. From aggression in the cities, to massacres of women and children, to the wealth confiscated, Iraq had tried to destroy Kuwaiti society. It was impossible to quantify the amount of economic and military destruction caused by Iraq to Kuwait. Human rights observers and the working group on forced and involuntary disappearances had documented the damage and violations of rights. Six hundred had disappeared from Kuwait and other States. All agencies should cooperate to get those Kuwaitis released.
She said that in stating that because of the constitutional framework Iraqi legislation was not in conformity with international standards the report of the Special Rapporteur was correct. That was the basis of all violations in rights, because the situation arose in a power that was responsible only to itself. That was a violation and a challenge to the dignity of humankind. It was necessary for the international community to challenge that. Welcoming the Security Council resolution aimed at alleviating the "suffering of Iraqi brothers", she said every effort should be made to defend human rights and support measures to that end.
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GREG KUEHLE (United States) said he endorsed the Special Rapporteur. It was unfortunate that Iraq "continued to deny, deny, deny" when it should "comply, comply, comply". Iraq could blame only itself for its problems. It could solve them by cooperating with the United Nations, and with the Third Committee, by allowing the Special Rapporteur to investigate human rights conditions.
Mr. VAN DER STOEL said the position of Iraq remained the same. There was no indication of any intention to meet the requests of the United Nations system or to respect its international human rights obligations.
He said Iraq's speech could be summarized by saying, "what the Special Rapporteur is saying is not true". A group of independent human rights monitors should be allowed into Iraq who could move around freely without restrictions. Then it would be seen who had been correct. That would be a constructive step on the part of Iraq. So far there had been no indication of that, however, and it had to be wondered, "What does the Government have to hide?".
It could not be denied that the population was suffering terribly, he said. The question was, who was responsible? With regard to the food situation, the elderly and children suffered most. There was an offer to provide food. Only at the end of last year was the breakthrough reached. The suffering could have been avoided. It could only be hoped that implementation of the "food-for-oil" formula would move smoothly, but there was concern now because Iraq considered it the role of the United Nations to help solve the food problem. It had to be a joint effort between Iraq and the United Nations.
The issue was not beyond the Special Rapporteur's mandate, which included food and health concerns. Furthermore, he concluded, the mandate was to determine whether Iraq was respecting its international human rights obligations. It was to be hoped that in the next months there would be a change in the attitude of the Government, and that there would be improvement of the human rights situation in Iraq.
Human Rights in Iran
MAURICE COPITHORNE, Special Representative of the Commission on Human Rights on the Situation on Human Rights in Iran, said for many years the situation in Iran had attracted wide criticism, which was well-founded. There were many areas of concern and a great deal needed to be done by the Iranian Government to bring the human rights situation up to minimum international standards. Since the recent change of Government in Iran, the world press had reported a number of statements of intent to effect significant change in the areas of human rights and other areas by the new Government. The extent to which those intentions would be implemented remained to be seen. In the
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meantime, it was his duty to note that serious violations of human rights continued to occur.
Nevertheless, he was optimistic because the people of Iran sought a life that was more respectful of human dignity and, he believed that ultimately the will of the people would prevail. Most important, their demands, as reflected in the recent elections, were now recognized by many of those in positions of power in the country. He therefore looked forward to the prospect of being able to report to the next session of the Human Rights Commission that there had been substantive, quantifiable change for the better in the human rights situation in Iran.
Human Rights in Burundi
PAULO SERGIO PINHEIRO, Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Burundi, said he had not been able to visit the country since 1996. Burundi needed openness and dialogue. He felt solidarity with the Burundi people whose rights were being violated. The international community had been incapable of finding the basis of a negotiated settlement for Burundi and of ensuring economic recovery in the country.
In Burundi confrontations between the Government and the rebels, and the rebels' incursions, had led to the death of hundreds of civilians, the burning of houses and had forced thousands to flee their homes. Anti- personnel mines had been exploded by the rebel forces, leading to the death and wounding of numerous civilians. Ambushes had also led to the death of many people. The massacres of civilians, torture and cruel treatment were being carried out in violation of the main international instruments.
In addition, the Burundi people had been subjected to the imposition of sanctions by neighbouring countries, he said. The sanctions had contributed to an increase in suffering and malnutrition, a decrease in agricultural production, and had adverse effects on the health services, particularly for children and teenagers. About 10 per cent of the people of Burundi lived in camps. Although the objectives of those camps were laudable, several did not have minimum standards of housing, food and security.
The Government, he went on, had had to meet the challenge of the existing situation on many fronts. Some positive developments had not prevented the main political forces to continue to fight. The extremist trends on both sides had worsened. Some timid steps had been made towards democracy. The international community had been immobilized vis-a-vis the Burundi people. There was need for a collective approach to the conflicts in the Great Lakes region as a whole because violence in one country in the subregion led to progressive destabilization of neighbouring countries.
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He called for an arms embargo on all the countries in the Great Lakes region to halt the flow of weapons. There was need for reform of the army and the police. It was unjust to maintain the economic sanctions on the Burundi people; their suffering must be taken into account. The international community must recognize the difficulty of holding elections in the current circumstances; in the Great Lakes region, people were dying as a result of political violence. The international community must adopt a common, energetic approach to find specific solutions to the problems of ethnic and national identity and to economic development. He hoped the countries in the region would work together to find solutions to the crisis, and work towards promoting human rights and the reconstruction of the country.
GAMALIEL NDARUZANIYE (Burundi) said his country had suffered four years of human rights violations. The truth had been distorted by detractors. The report on Burundi appeared to be a deliberate step towards confrontation. However, after meeting the Special Rapporteur, he believed that he was concerned to establish the truth. The Burundi Government had been willing to be transparent, and to be cooperative with the work of the Special Rapporteur.
However, he had a number of concerns with the report. The Special Rapporteur had been unable to go to Burundi for reasons beyond his control. His report would be more complete if he had visited. The Government of Burundi was ready to work with the Commission on Human Rights to restore human rights to the people of Burundi.
He said the continued genocide in his country since 1993 and the spiral of deadly violence and the civil war had led to the deaths of thousands of Burundians because of their ethnicity or political allegiance. The silence of the international community regarding the horrors being experienced could only be looked at as reprehensible and in complicity. Burundians had appealed to President Buyoya to halt the madness of the genocide and the ideology that had led to it. The response of some countries had been the imposition of a total embargo on a small landlocked country, against international and conventions. The defence of democracy could not disregard the value of life. Democracy that did not respect the lives of its citizens had no raison d'etre.
He went on to say that the embargo dashed all hopes of the people of Burundi, having a negative impact on health care for children and women, depriving orphans of schooling and denying farmers access to fertilizers for agriculture. The Special Rapporteur's plea for an end to the embargo was welcome. The international community should support the peace process in Burundi, including the opening of negotiations with all political parties.
The right to a homeland was important and no citizen should be allowed to be stateless, he said. Burundi wanted to ensure the voluntary return to Burundi by all its citizens living outside the country so that none of its citizens would be without a homeland. He referred particularly to those in
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camps. Since July 1996, the human rights situation in Burundi had improved. He called on the Special Rapporteur to return to Burundi to confirm those developments.
Mr. PINEIRO, Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Burundi, congratulated the delegation of Burundi for the openness with which it had received his report. He looked forward to going to the country in the near future and to submitting a follow-up report.
Statements
ROGER BALL (New Zealand), speaking also for Canada and Australia, said the burden of reporting under the human right treaties was particularly daunting for small States. Harmonizing the timing for submission of reports under the various treaties would help improve coordination. He said he supported the consolidation of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Centre for Human Rights. Also, human rights should be integrated throughout the work of the United Nations and coordinated with other activities. The High Commissioner should participate more in the work of the Executive Committee, and to that end the New York Office should be staffed at a more senior level with adequate resources to carry out an enhanced role.
For the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, he said, the momentum should be provided by a public profile that should be created for the occasion. The coming year was an occasion to reaffirm the consensus from the Vienna Conference that human rights were universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated. The funding base for the operation should be broadened beyond voluntary sources.
Finally, as society moved beyond standard-setting to implementation, the United Nations should be made more effective in technical assistance in the field of human rights.
BRUNO RODRIGUEZ (Cuba) said his country did not attempt to be a paradigm for anyone, but it prided itself on a democracy that had found a formula to ensure its people participated in its Government. Cuba's socialism had passed every test and followed an independent, modern and viable path because it had the overwhelming majority consensus of its people.
Cubans voted and the minimum voting age was 16, he said. Votes were not for sale, nor were there any rooms for sale in the Palace of the Revolution. Young people voted because they had a future and old people voted because they had pensions. Cuba had no senators for life and the voter's right to rescind power was swift.
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Political systems were in crisis, he said. People did not believe in them in the industrialized world. Those who wanted to change Cuba's system should first convince their own voters that their own system worked. Then they would have to convince Cuba that the diversity of the globe could be restricted to a single electoral or political model. And they would have to convince the people of the South that their cultures were inferior to those of the North, where the only political model was working worse every year. In short, Cuba would have to be colonized again before those who wanted to change its system had the right to do so.
ANWARUL KARIM CHOWDHURY (Bangladesh) said the backdrop of reform at the United Nations was linked to human rights, which should be the central concern of the United Nations agenda. Human rights was essentially linked to the practice of democracy, respect for the rule of law, the pursuit of justice and peace, and the realization of the right to development.
The intrinsic link between development and human rights was recognized in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, he said. There should be a separate and new branch in the Office of the High Commissioner to deal specifically with the promotion and realization of the right to development. Also, coordination and cooperation should be increased throughout the United Nations system for more effective promotion and realization of the right to development.
Bangladesh was committed to human rights, he concluded. A National Human Rights Commission had been established, as well as a Law Commission to identify and review Bangladesh's position on international human rights instruments. Bangladesh was not short on commitments; it required assistance, however, both in financial and technical terms, to effectively realize its commitments.
ALEXANDRE V. ZMEEVSKI (Russian Federation) said the questions asked by the authors of the Universal Declaration of Human rights were still to be answered -- what was to be done to make the world just? What was the way to put an end to tyranny and oppression? How to ensure in practice the worth of the human person? Will the Universal Declaration at the new stage of development of mankind be able to reaffirm -- in combating hunger, poverty and aggressive nationalism -- the same strength it had demonstrated while breaking the Iron Curtain?
He said he was convinced that United Nations human rights activities should provide an impetus to the rapprochement of States, rather than become a factor of division and confrontation. It was important to realize the principle of interdependency and indivisibility of all human rights. It was time to renounce the practice of double standards in the field of human rights. It was clear that the Universal Declaration should apply to everyone.
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The activities of High Commissioner Mary Robinson should ensure the triumph of the ideas enshrined in the Declaration.
In just a few years, he went on, Russia had managed to go from a totalitarian State to a country open to the world, with free elections and an independent press. The country was becoming a part of the system of democratic security. Reforms in the area of human rights included the setting up of a National Committee. A federal programme of action in the field of human rights for 1998-2001 was being prepared. The Russian Federation could not remain indifferent to the destiny of 25 million of its compatriots who were outside the country, particularly when there were violations of their rights regarding language and public organizations.
Neither, he added, could Russia accept the situation in the case of Estonia and Latvia, where hundreds of thousands of people had no citizenship and remained totally or partly deprived of their civil and political rights as well as their socio-economic and cultural rights. There were no signs that the Estonian and Latvian authorities were ready to implement in good faith the recommendations of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other regional and international organizations. The problem had recently been raised with the High Commissioner for Human Rights. The subject of the rights of Russians would remain the subject of Russia's legitimate concern until a just solution was found in accordance with international standards.
YURIY BOHAIEVS'KY (Ukraine) stressed the importance of the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights and the Vienna Programme of Action for the entire international community. Further intensive efforts were needed to implement the Vienna Declaration and action programme.
He said the effectiveness of the High Commissioner's efforts would depend on the outcome of the restructuring of the Centre for Human Rights. The key role in the international system of protection of human rights belonged to the Commission on Human Rights. As a member of the Commission, Ukraine regretted that recent efforts to institute reforms in the body's working methods had failed. Duplication and the ineffective use of financial and other resources had already put in question the Commission's ability to meet the challenges of today's world.
He said Ukraine had done its utmost to meet international obligations in the field of human rights, but United Nations treaty bodies had not given sufficient attention to the peculiarities of human rights policy in each individual country. Member States were often asked "the cliche questions and the cliche assessments were applied" to their human rights situations. Because of lack of time reports were not thoroughly analysed, and a given situation was not compared to the previous one. Changes were not adequately acknowledged. That had been Ukraine's experience with its third periodical
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report on the observance of the provisions of the Convention against Torture. A working group should be set up within the Commission on Human Rights to study carefully the practice of the regional monitoring bodies to avoid miscalculations in assessments of human rights situations.
There was also need for new approaches to cooperation of United Nations agencies with the increasing number of non-governmental organizations taking part in the sessions of United Nations bodies and whose "statements ... are made sometimes with one purpose -- to pester the government of the relevant country". A differential approach to cooperation with those organizations would therefore be more productive.
He said Ukraine had pursued national policy for the promotion and protection of human rights. This included signing the protocol to the European Convention on the abolition of the death penalty, and the introduction of parliamentary control over the observance of the constitutional rights of citizens of Ukraine. The status of Ukrainians outside the country was not adequately secured. It was necessary to restate that the country of citizenship or of permanent residence should bear the primary responsibility for ensuring the rights of all ethnic groups, including Ukrainians.
KARN CHIRANOND (Thailand) said his country's policy on religion was different from what had been presented in the Secretary-General's report on the elimination of all forms of religious intolerance. The Thai Constitution guaranteed that all persons were equal before the law. Thai people had the right to choose and practice religion, as long as their civic duties and public morality were not affected. Discrimination on the ground of religious differences was unconstitutional. Furthermore, Thailand's national education curriculum therefore prescribed that major religions in Thailand, namely Buddhism, Christianity and Islam, as well as other major religious beliefs, were studied at all levels.
The information which Thailand had provided should have been reflected in the report. Buddhism was not the only religion included in textbooks for public schools. On the contrary, Thailand attached equal importance to all religions in the country in line with the Constitution. The report relating to Thailand should be amended.
AHMET ARDA (Turkey) said 1998 would be an important year for human rights with the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Outside the United Nations the work of the Inter Action Council, the group of former heads of States or Government from some 30 countries, aimed to balance human rights and fundamental freedoms with responsibilities and duties. The current mandate of human rights mechanisms must not serve as an excuse to prevent discussions on the role and responsibilities of individuals and groups in human rights. The resolution on
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human rights and terrorism that his delegation would submit to the Third Committee again this year had been drafted with that understanding.
He said the financial and human resources available to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights were not adequate, and that would affect the Office's functioning, including the preparation of documents. Besides being late, reports also contained misinterpretations, even distortions, of sources of information.
In every country there was room for improvement in the field of human rights. It was each State's responsibility to maintain the highest human rights standards. Turkey was constantly reviewing its legislation to further expand the boundaries of human rights and fundamental freedoms for its citizens. The Turkish Government and public were sensitive to allegations of violations, and in 1990, Turkey had recognized the compulsory jurisdiction of the European Court on Human Rights.
He said he was disappointed by the European Union's allegations of human rights violations in Turkey, as contained in the recent statement made on behalf of the Union in the Third Committee. The Union chose to ignore the concrete steps being taken by his Government to improve the rights of its citizens, such as reducing detention periods, lifting the state of emergency in most provinces where it existed, and the setting-up of a high-level inter- ministerial human rights coordination body to monitor human rights issues.
He said Turkey supported efforts to bring human rights in their broadest context to Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, the attempts to establish peace and security and a climate of human rights in that country were doomed to failure if the immense suffering caused by nearly four years of genocidal atrocities, ethnic cleansing and mass rapes were not dealt with satisfactorily, and there was not a minimum sense of justice being done.
TLEUZHAN SEKSENBAYEV (Kazakhstan) said the Secretary-General's proposals to consolidate the Office of the High Commissioner and the Centre for Human Rights would ensure coordination and consistency of priorities and actions in the field of human rights, and would provide a solid institutional base for the human rights programme. At the same time, there should be a review of the human rights machinery, with recommendations on how to streamline and rationalize it.
She said Kazakstan's commitment to human rights was based on its Constitution. A human rights commission attached to the President's Office would monitor the observance of rights and formulate policy. Along with the relevant government departments, the commission would draft a State programme for human rights.
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Her Government had also established a working group to prepare a national plan of action to achieve the goals of the Decade for Human Rights Education, to inform the population on the subject. Since becoming an independent State, Kazakstan had ratified and acceded to a number of international human rights agreements and intended to give additional impetus to that process.
ESTHER M. TOLLE (Kenya) said basic principles such as culture and tradition, economic development and political institutions had to be understood and respected by all. Such an approach should eliminate confrontational practices. Like many countries, Kenya attached great importance to the right to development as a universal and inalienable right and an integral part of fundamental human rights. The search for lasting solutions should aim at eliminating existing obstacles to realizing the right to development especially in developing countries, at both the national and international levels.
She said Kenya had recently established an Inter-Ministerial Committee with a mandate to compile and submit outstanding periodical reports as required under international human rights instruments. Kenya had also made constitutional, legislative and administrative reforms which addressed issues raised by the European Union in the Third Committee. The United Nations should reject the use of human rights as a political weapon for foreign policy and development cooperation. Such practices smacked of selectivity and double standards, promoting confrontation and undermining the spirit of international cooperation in the field of human rights.
Mr. DOMINIQUE BOREL, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), said both humanitarian and human rights law sought to protect the most basic rights of the individual, which was the right to life, dignity and a modicum of freedom and justice. They differed in that human rights law sought to promote development of the individual in society on the economic, social, cultural, civil and political levels. Humanitarian law had a more limited objective; it was a body of law for emergency use, applicable solely in situations of armed conflict. Without seeking to improve society, it aimed to protect the individual against violence and arbitrary behaviour.
The activities of the ICRC in situations of violence reflected the close relationship between human rights and humanitarian law, he said. When ICRC delegates visited detainees and engaged in dialogue with local authorities, they helped prevent disappearances and torture, thereby protecting the right to life. In such ways, the work of the ICRC promoted respect for human rights, which often coincided with the rights conferred by the rules and principles of humanitarian law, whether or not in situations where the latter was applicable.
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Thus, in Rwanda, he went on, the concerted approach adopted with human rights observers was encouraging. The role of the ICRC in improving living conditions and treatment of detainees left human rights observers to deal with more specific tasks relating to judicial issues and respect of applicable norms. The increasingly desperate plight of penal law detainees in a growing number of countries merited such deeper involvement. While the ICRC had the latitude to act in situations of armed conflict as a neutral and impartial mediary, he concluded, the human rights organizations had an important role to play in the period of transition towards pacification and in reinforcing the capacity of authorities to respect human rights. In the build-up prior to conflicts, the organizations could also engage in prevention.
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