COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION TO MEET AT GENEVA FROM 1 TO 19 MARCH
Press Release
RD/891
COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION TO MEET AT GENEVA FROM 1 TO 19 MARCH
19990225 Background Release GENEVA, 25 February (UN Information Service) -- The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination will meet at the Palais des Nations in Geneva from 1 to 19 March to review measures to fight discrimination by Austria, Costa Rica, Finland, Italy, Lesotho, Mongolia, Peru, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Syria and Kuwait.These countries are among the 150 States parties to the 1969 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. The 18-member Committee, the first body created by the United Nations to review actions by States in fulfilling their obligations under a specific human rights agreement, examines reports submitted periodically by States parties on their compliance with the Convention. Representatives of the Governments are invited to introduce their country reports and respond to questions from Committee members.
At this fifty-fourth session of the Committee, the experts are also scheduled to review the implementation of the Convention in Bangladesh, which has previously submitted reports but whose periodic reports have been deemed excessively overdue. In addition, the Committee has scheduled a review of the implementation of the Convention in Bahrain, Congo and Slovenia, whose initial reports were seriously overdue.
Continuing efforts to prevent racial discrimination, the Committee is set to examine, under its early-warning and urgent action procedures, the situations in Australia, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Sudan and Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
In addition to considering States parties' reports, the Committee will study, in closed session, communications from individuals claiming to be victims of racial discrimination. Only complaints against the 25 States parties that have recognized the competence of the Committee under article 14 of the Convention are admissible.
Submission of Reports
Under article 9 of the Convention, States undertake to report to the Committee on legal, judicial and other measures they have adopted to ensure
effective protection against racial discrimination within their jurisdiction. States parties to the Convention agree to condemn and seek to eliminate racial discrimination in their territories; to review their policies in order to amend or nullify any regulations which create or perpetuate such discrimination, based on racial superiority or hatred; and to prohibit organizations and activities which promote or incite racial discrimination. They also agree to provide remedies for victims of racial discrimination and to adopt measures to combat prejudice and promote understanding among different national, racial and ethnic groups.
In addition, States parties undertake to guarantee the right of everyone to equality before the law without distinction to race, colour, or national and ethnic origin.
In the past, the Committee has called upon the Secretary-General to bring to the attention of States parties, at their annual meeting, the unfortunate consequences of delays in the submission of reports and to encourage them to consider ways and means by which all parties might be brought to fulfil their reporting obligations. The Committee has also instituted a procedure to review the implementation of the Convention in those States parties responsible for the longest delays in submitting periodic reports. In a letter addressed to the Governments of those States, the Committee said that delays in the submission of reports hampered its efforts to monitor the implementation of the Convention.
Communications under Article 14
Under article 14 of the Convention, the Committee considers communications from individuals or groups of individuals claiming to be victims of a violation by States parties of any of the rights set forth in the Convention, provided the States concerned have recognized the competence of the Committee in this regard. The following 27 States parties have already done so: Algeria, Australia, Bulgaria, Chile, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Denmark, Ecuador, Finland, France, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Peru, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Senegal, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine and Uruguay.
States Parties to Convention
At present, the following 153 States are parties to the Convention: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Cyprus, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Ethiopia,
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Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Hungary, Iceland, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya and Lithuania.
Also, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Tajikistan, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Committee Membership, Officers
The members of the Committee, elected in their personal capacity, are: Mahmoud Aboul-Nasr (Egypt); Michael Parker Banton (United Kingdom); Theodoor van Boven (Netherlands); Ion Diaconu (Romania); Eduardo Ferrero Costa (Peru); Ivan Garvalov (Bulgaria); Régis de Gouttes (France); Carlos Lechuga Hevia (Cuba); Yuri A. Rechetov (Russian Federation); Shanti Sadiq Ali (India); Agha Shahi (Pakistan); Michael E. Sherifis (Cyprus); Zou Deci (China); Luis Valencia Rodriguez (Ecuador); Rüdiger Wolfrum (Germany); Mario Jorge Yutzis (Argentina); Peter Nobel (Sweden); and Gay McDougall (United States).
Mr. Aboul-Nasr is the Chairman. Mr. Yutzis, Mr. Diaconu and Mr. Sherifis are Vice-Chairmen. Mr. Banton is the Rapporteur.
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