International Covenant on Civil

 and Political Rights

36^th Meeting (AM)

Meeting of States Parties to International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Fills Two Human Rights Committee Vacancies

 

Experts from Switzerland, Kazakhstan Replace Members following Resignations

The Meeting of States Parties to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights today elected Walter Kälin (Switzerland) and Marat Sarsembayev (Kazakhstan) to the Human Rights Committee, replacing members who had resigned before completing their four-year terms of office.

Given the unusual circumstance of two simultaneous vacancies of unequal length, the Meeting held two separate elections to fill the vacancies arising from the resignations of Helen Keller (Switzerland), whose term was due to expire on 31 December 2014, and Mahjoub El Haiba (Morocco), who had been expected to serve until 31 December 2012.  Mr. Kälin was elected in a single round of secret balloting and Mr. Sarsembayev in two rounds.  Djakupova Gulsara ( Kyrgyzstan) and Khalid Salman Mohammed Ali Al-Nuami ( Iraq) failed to win election.

Acting by acclamation, the Meeting also elected Abulkalam Abdul Momen (Bangladesh) as its Chairperson, as well as Manuel Korček (Slovak Republic) and Haim Waxman (Israel) as Vice-Chairpersons.

The Human Rights Committee monitors implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and its Protocols in the territory of States parties.  Adopted by the General Assembly on 16 December 1966, the Covenant commits States parties to respect the civil and political rights of individuals, including the rights to life, freedom of religion, freedom of speech and freedom of assembly, in addition to electoral and due-process rights, and the right to a fair trial.  The Committee comprises 18 independent experts of high moral character and recognized competence in the field of human rights.  Elected by Member States, they serve four-year terms and half of their number are elected every second year in the General Assembly.  The Committee convenes three times a year in three-week sessions, two of which are held in Geneva and one in New York.

Mr. Kälin, a professor of constitutional and international law at the University of Bern, is also Director of the Swiss Centre of Expertise in Human Rights.  Having previously been a member of the Human Rights Committee between 2003 and 2008, he has also served as Representative of the Secretary-General on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons, and as Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Commission on the situation of human rights in Iraqi-occupied Kuwait.

Mr. Sarsembayev, a member of Kazakhstan’s Central Election Commission, is Dean of the Faculty of Law at the Kazakh National University and was previously Chair of International Law and Director of the Institute of Human Rights in Almaty.

Prior to the first election, the Chair reviewed the rules of procedure for the elections, noting that those elected would be the nominees who obtained the largest number of votes and an absolute majority of the votes cast.  The Committee may not include more than one national of the same State, he cautioned, informing the Meeting that the nomination of one candidate, Gulnar Satbayeva ( Kazakhstan), had been withdrawn as another national of that country had also been nominated.

A representative of the Secretary-General then expressed his sadness and that of the Secretariat at the death of Committee member Abdelfattah Amor ( Tunisia) on 2 January.  Elections to fill that vacancy would be held during an extraordinary meeting of the States parties scheduled for 1 May, he said.

The Chair said regular elections had also been scheduled for 6 September, when nine members would be elected to replace those whose terms of office were slated to end on 31 December, including one member elected to fill a vacancy today.  Regular updates on developments regarding the Covenant and the work of the Committee would also be provided at the September meeting, he added.

Voting Results for Election to Replace Helen Keller

Number of ballot papers:	133
Number of invalid ballots:	5
Number of valid ballots:	128
Abstentions:	0
Number of Members voting:	128
Required majority:	65
Number of votes obtained:
Khalid Salman Mohammed Ali Al-Nuami ( Iraq)	15
Djakupova Gulsara ( Kyrgyzstan)	7
Walter Kälin (Switzerland)	91
Marat Sarsembayev (Kazakhstan)	15

Having received the required absolute majority and the largest number of votes, Mr. Kälin (Switzerland) was elected and his name was subsequently removed from the list of candidates to be considered in the second election.

Voting Results for Election to Replace Mahjoub El Haiba (First Round)

Number of ballot papers:	136
Number of invalid ballots:	1
Number of valid ballots:	135
Abstentions:	6
Number of Members voting:	129
Required majority:	65
Number of votes obtained:
Khalid Salman Mohammed Ali Al-Nuami (Iraq)	44
Djakupova Gulsara ( Kyrgyzstan)	22
Marat Sarsembayev (Kazakhstan)	63

As no candidate received the required absolute majority, the Meeting proceeded to a second round of voting.

Voting Results for Election to Replace Mahjoub El Haiba (Second Round)

Number of ballot papers:	136
Number of invalid ballots:	1
Number of valid ballots:	135
Abstentions:	4
Number of Members voting:	131
Required majority:	66
Number of votes obtained:
Khalid Salman Mohammed Ali Al-Nuami ( Iraq)	34
Djakupova Gulsara ( Kyrgyzstan)	14
Marat Sarsembayev (Kazakhstan)	83

Having received the required absolute majority and the largest number of votes, Mr. Sarsembayev (Kazakhstan) was elected for a term expiring on 31 December 2012.

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For information media • not an official record