HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE ADOPTS ANNUAL REPORT

The Human Rights Committee this afternoon adopted its Annual Report to the General Assembly following a discussion among Committee Experts. The Annual Report covers the period from 1 August 2007 to 31 July 2008 and the ninety-first, ninety-second and the ninety-third sessions of the Human Rights Committee.

The Annual Report, which was introduced by Committee Expert, Abdelfattah Amor, notes that, since the adoption of the last report, Samoa has become a party to the Covenant; Albania and the Republic of Moldova have become parties to the First Optional Protocol; and Albania, France, Honduras, Mexico, the Philippines and Ukraine have become parties to the Second Optional Protocol. In total, there were now 161 States parties to the Covenant, 111 to the First Optional Protocol and 66 to the Second Optional Protocol.

During the period under review, the Committee considered the reports of 13 States parties, and adopted concluding observations on those reports. The Committee also made its provisional concluding observations on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines final and public, regretting the lack of cooperation by that State. Under the Optional Protocol procedure, the Committee adopted Views on 23 communications, declared 3 communications admissible, 13 inadmissible and the consideration of 10 communications were discontinued. A total of 1,790 communications had now been registered since the entry into force of the Optional Protocol to the Covenant.

In the report, the Committee again deplored the fact that some States parties did not comply with their reporting obligations. In 2001 it had therefore adopted a procedure to deal with these situations. This procedure had been applied at the Committee’s ninetieth session to examine, in the absence of a report, the measure taken by Grenada to give effect to the rights recognized in the Covenant.

The Committee’s workload had continued to grow. Twelve initial or periodic reports were received between 1 August 2007 and 31 July 2008, and by the end of the ninety-third session, some reports had not yet been considered. At the end of the ninety-third session, 431 communications were pending. The Committee had considered implementing special measures to remedy this situation, such as lengthening one of the sessions. Throughout the reporting period, the Committee continued to contribute to the discussion prompted by the Secretary-General’s proposals for reform and streamlining of the treaty body system.

Topics covered by the report included, among other things, methods of work of the Committee and cooperation with other United Nations bodies; submission of reports by States parties; consideration of reports submitted by States parties; consideration of communications under the Optional Protocol; follow-up activities under the Optional Protocol; and follow-up to concluding observations.


Committee Experts reviewed the report on a chapter-by-chapter basis, raised questions and made suggestions for minor amendments to the text. Mr. Amor noted that the reports were lengthy, and historical “excursions” when not applicable should be avoided in future reports. The Committee then adopted the Annual Report.

At the beginning of the meeting, Ivan Shearer, Committee Expert and Rapporteur for Follow-up to Views, addressed comments raised by Committee Experts this morning during the discussion on the report on the status of the Committee’s Views on individual communications (CCPR/C/93/R.5). In conclusion he said that, the observations of State parties should be submitted on the merits. Subsequently, the Committee adopted the report, as orally amended.


The Committee will reconvene in public at 10 a.m. on Friday, 25 July, when it will announce Bureau decisions and officially close its ninety-third session.



For use of the information media; not an official record


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