HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE ADOPTS GENERAL COMMENT ON REMEDIES FOR VIOLATIONS OF COVENANT BY STATES PARTIES

Human Rights Committee                                     

Eightieth Session                                          

2187^th Meeting* (PM)

HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE ADOPTS GENERAL COMMENT ON REMEDIES

FOR VIOLATIONS OF COVENANT BY STATES PARTIES

The Human Rights Committee this afternoon adopted a general comment on article 2 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, entitled "The Nature of the General Legal Obligations Imposed on States Parties to the Covenant".

The Geneva-based Committee -– an 18-member panel of human rights experts who monitor implementation of the Covenant -– is currently meeting at United Nations Headquarters in New York through the end of the week.  The comment, introduced in draft form last year by Committee expert Nigel Rodley, focuses on the effective remedies for violations of the provisions of the Covenant by States parties.

Once finalized and adopted –- the Committee intends to give the text one final read-through for technical corrections -- the general comment will replace General Comment No. 3, reflecting and developing its principles.  The general non-discrimination provisions of article 2, paragraph 1, have been addressed in General Comment 18 and General Comment 28, and the current general comment should be read together with them.

The text says that while article 2 is couched in terms of the obligations of State parties towards individuals as the right-holders under the Covenant, every State party has a legal interest in the performance by every other State party of its obligations.

By adopting General Comments, the Committee reiterates its desire to assist States parties in fulfilling their reporting obligations.  The Comments draw attention to aspects of the treaty, but do not purport to be limitative or to attribute any priority to different aspects of the Covenant.

Last week, the panel orally amended and adopted paragraphs 11, 15 and, after a lengthy discussion, part one of paragraph 18 (formerly 17).  That paragraph concerns bringing perpetrators to justice for human rights violations or “certain other violations under the Covenant”.  The experts adopted the draft’s opening   10 paragraphs following their second reading of the text last November in Geneva.

The obligations of the Covenant, in general, and article 2, in particular, are binding on every State party as a whole, the draft text says.  All branches of government -– executive, legislative and judicial –- and other public or governmental authorities, at whatever level -– national, regional or local -- are in a position to engage in the responsibility of the State party.

The Committee will meet again at a time to be announced in the Journal.

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*     The 2183^rd, 2184^th, 2185^th & 2186^th Meetings were closed.