HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE CONTINUES TO DISCUSS DRAFT GENERAL COMMENT ON THE RIGHT TO LIFE

The Human Rights Committee this morning continued its discussion on a draft General Comment on Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, on the right to life. In particular, Experts concluded their discussions on paragraphs 6, 6a and 7 of the Draft General Comment, and started their discussion on paragraph 8.

Working with a written revised version of those paragraphs prepared by the two Rapporteurs, Yuval Shany and Nigel Rodley, based on the discussions throughout the session, the Experts verbally amended and adopted paragraphs 6, 6a and 7 in their first reading. The adoption of those paragraphs would only be definitive when they were adopted during a second reading, which would take place after the adoption of all paragraphs in a first reading.

Whereas paragraph 6 defined the deprivation of life as a deliberate or an otherwise foreseeable and preventable infliction of life-terminating harm or injury caused by an act or omission, paragraph 6a dealt with the duty of the State party to refrain from engaging in conduct which would results in the arbitrary deprivation of life.

Paragraph 7 on enforced disappearances reiterated the duties of the State in that area, including by taking appropriate measures both to prevent them, as well as to shed light on the fate of the missing. The text also emphasized that the families of the victims should in no case be compelled to declare their missing relatives as dead in order to qualify for reparations.

During the discussion on paragraph 8 on abortion in relation to the right to life of a pregnant woman, some Experts again raised their concerns that the right to life of the unborn child was not mentioned in the revised paragraph. Other Experts were of the opinion that the concern of the life to life of the unborn child was implicit in the paragraph, as it stated that “although State party may adopt measures designed to regulate abortions, such measures must not result in violation of the right to life of a pregnant woman and her other rights under the Covenant, including the prohibition against cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment.”

The Human Rights Committee will next meet in public this afternoon at 5 p.m. to conclude its discussion on paragraph 8 of the General Comment on Article 6.



For use of the information media; not an official record

CT16/013E