Human rights

Citing critical gaps between a number of admittedly excellent laws and proposed legislative amendments on the one hand, and the actual status of civil and political rights in Serbia on the other, experts of the Human Rights Committee pressed that country today to do more on several fronts, including the protection of minority rights, the effective functioning of its courts and grave instances of violence against journalists and human rights defenders.

While Serbia had made gains in reforming its judiciary, advancing minority participation in public affairs and generally fostering a “spirit of tolerance and inter-cultural dialogue”, the Government was aware of the challenges it faced in advancing civil and political rights, especially given the enduring legacy of conflict in the region, top officials told the Human Rights Committee today as its experts considered the country’s second periodic report.

With its legislative, institutional and procedural mechanisms for protecting human rights meeting the highest European standards, Slovakia had made significant progress in implementing the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Human Rights Committee heard today.

Commending the Government of Togo for having abolished the death penalty and adopted a press code, experts of the Human Rights Committee expressed concern today at the number of draft laws awaiting passage in the National Assembly, especially a draft Criminal Code, and urged their adoption as soon as possible to prevent the perception that a lack of political will was interfering with much needed reform.

Togo was on an irreversible path to sustainable human development and democracy, which would enhance the protection of human rights and consolidate the rule of law in the wake of the period of national unrest that had followed the death of its President in 2005, the country’s Minister for Human Rights, Consolidation of Democracy and the Rule of Law told the Human Rights Committee today as it began its 101st session.

The Thirteenth Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child today elected nine members to the Committee on the Rights of the Child.

More than 300 students from the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, France and Mexico concluded their annual Student Conference on Human Rights, held at United Nations Headquarters from 1 to 3 December, under the theme "Discrimination and the Rights of the Child".

The needs and rights of disabled persons must be more fully integrated into the United Nations system’s diverse international agenda, from its efforts to coordinate humanitarian assistance, provide development funds and fight disease, to its ability to empower women and collect data on human development, the Third Conference of States Parties of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was told today, as it concluded its three-day session.

The Meeting of States Parties to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights this morning re-elected six members and elected three new members to its monitoring body, the Human Rights Committee.

Equal access to education — with accommodating teachers, understanding students and a supportive administration — coupled with respect for the right of disabled persons to choose where and with whom they lived were vital elements for realizing the full spectrum of human rights, the third Conference of States Parties of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was told today, in two round table discussions concerning those issues.