HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE ADOPTS GENERAL COMMENT ON ARTICLE 3, CONCERNING EQUAL POLITICAL, CIVIL RIGHTS FOR MEN AND WOMEN

Press Release
HR/CT/559

HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE ADOPTS GENERAL COMMENT ON ARTICLE 3, CONCERNING EQUAL POLITICAL, CIVIL RIGHTS FOR MEN AND WOMEN

The Human Rights Committee this afternoon concluded consideration of its general comment on article 3 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which states that State parties to the Covenant undertake to ensure the equal right of men and women to the enjoyment of all civil and political rights set forth in the present Covenant.

The Committee, in adopting General Comment 28 -- equality of rights between women and men, as orally amended and subject to revisions of the Spanish and French versions -- decided to update its general comment on article 3. General Comment 28 will replace General Comment 4 (thirteenth session, 1981), in light of the experience it had gathered in its activities over the last 20 years. The revision seeks to take into account the important impact of the article on the enjoyment by women of the human rights protected under the Covenant. (The text of the general comment will be available tomorrow.)

General comments are recommendations made by the Committee on various articles of the Covenant. Through their adoption, the Committee reiterates its desire to assist State parties in fulfilling their reporting obligations. The comments draw attention to some aspects of the treaty, but do not purport to be limiting or to attribute any priority to different aspects of the Covenant. Comments might, from time to time, be followed by others.

Also this afternoon, one of the Committee’s working groups was asked to prepare a set of documents for consideration as part of the Committee’s contribution to the Preparatory Committee for the World Conference on Racism, to be held in South Africa in August 2001.

The Committee, as a monitoring body, periodically examines reports submitted by States parties on their promotion and protection of civil and political rights. Representatives of those governments introduce their country reports and respond to oral and written questions from the Committee’s 18 members, who serve in their personal capacity. The four countries, which presented reports during the current session -– Republic of the Congo, United Kingdom, Mongolia and Guyana -– are among 144 States parties to the International Covenant. (For further background on the current session, see Press Release HR/CT/544 of 9 March.)

The Committee will meet again at 10 a.m. tomorrow to hear a statement by Angela King, Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on Gender Issues and the Advancement of Women.

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