HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE CONCLUDES ITS ONE HUNDRED AND TWELFTH SESSION

The Human Rights Committee this afternoon concluded its one hundred and twelfth session after adopting its concluding observations and recommendations on the reports of Sri Lanka, Burundi, Haiti, Malta, Montenegro and Israel on how they are implementing the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The Committee’s concluding observations and recommendations on the six reports are available on its webpage for the session.

During the session, the Committee also adopted a General Comment on Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on liberty and security of person. The General Comment covers a wide range of issues under Article 9, including the definition of arbitrary detention and the procedural safeguards necessary for avoiding unlawful and arbitrary detention, such as the 48-hour standard for promptly bringing a criminal suspect before a judge. States’ duties are also spelled out regarding deprivation of liberty by private persons or groups. The General Comment also covers the highly controversial issue of people being detained without criminal charge under security legislation in exceptional situations such as armed conflict. It emphasizes that such detention poses a severe risk of a person being arbitrarily deprived of their liberty. The General Comment describes safeguards that must be provided for security detention to be acceptable under Article 9.

Nigel Rodley, Chairperson of the Committee, in concluding remarks, said that the Committee had adopted 50 out of 52 communications presented to it. The Committee found violations of the Covenant in 35 of these cases and in four it concluded that no violation had taken place. Eight cases were declared inadmissible and three cases were discontinued. The Committee had also adopted six lists of issues on States parties: Venezuela, Canada, Spain, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, United Kingdom and Uzbekistan; reviewed six State reports and adopted concluding observations on them; adopted the General Comment on article 9 on liberty and security of person; and used the occasion of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Second Optional Protocol to the Covenant, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty, to adopt a media statement that encouraged States to keep up the momentum on abolition by ratifying this Optional Protocol. The Committee had decided to adopt its next General Comment on article 6, the right to life.

Mr. Rodley bid farewell to the six Committee members who were departing: Ms. Chanet, Mr. Flinterman, Mr. Kaelin, Ms. Majodina, Mr. Neuman, and Mr. Zlatescu, and noted that this was his last session chairing the Committee.

The Committee’s one hundred and thirteenth session will be held from 16 March to 9 April 2015, during which it will consider the reports of Cambodia, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Cyprus, Monaco and Russia. Those reports, and related documentation can be found on the Committee’s webpage for the session.

The Human Rights Committee is a body of independent experts that monitors implementation of the ICCPR by States that have ratified the treaty.
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/CCPR/Pages/CCPRIndex.aspx

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For more information and media requests, please contact: Kate Fox kfox@ohchr.org/ 41 22 917 9398 or Liz Throssell ethrossell@ohchr.org / 41 22 917 9466 / 41 79 752 0488


For use of the information media; not an official record

CT14/042E