STATEMENTS BY HUMAN RIGHTS SPECIAL RAPPORTEURS

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 001093 DEPT FOR IO/HR, DRL/MLGA, PRM/PIP, S/GWI SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM SOCI UNGA SUBJECT: STATEMENTS BY HUMAN RIGHTS SPECIAL RAPPORTEURS ¶1. SUMMARY: As part of the annual discussion of human rights issues in the UN General Assembly, numerous Special Rapporteurs on thematic issues made presentations to the UNGA Third Committee. Below are summaries of the hour-long presentations by the Special Rapporteurs for Torture, Myanmar, DPRK, Palestine, Freedom of Religion, Human Rights Defenders, Human Rights while Countering Terrorism, and Extrajudicial Executions. The summaries for presentations for Special Rapporteurs on Right to Health, Right to Food, Housing, VAW, TIP, Migrants, and Right to Education are reported Septel. END SUMMARY. TORTURE -------------- ¶2. On October 20, Manfred Nowak, Special Rapporteur on Torture, asserts that conditions of detention in most parts of the world do not respect the dignity of detainees and fail to live up to international standards. He said most of the victims of arbitrary detention, torture and inhuman conditions of detention are people who belong to the poorest and most disadvantaged sectors of society. He said one of the more surprising observations is that police and prison authorities do not regard it as their responsibility to provide detainees with the most basic services necessary for survival. The full report can be found at: www.un.org. ¶3. Most delegates supported Mr. Nowak and his mandate. However, China's delegate said that false information about China's detention centers, including "brainwashing," was included in the report. Nigeria, in referring to allegations of torture, said this "ambush diplomacy" did not bode well for the prevention of torture. MYANMAR -------------- ¶4. Tomas Ojea Quintana, Special Rapporteur on Myanmar, said on October 22 that elections for 2010 had been planned but no official dates for the election had been announced. He said the national election was the momentum the Government needed to demonstrate its commitment to international human rights standards. He urged Myanmar to release all prisoners of conscience, including Aung San Suu Kyi. He suggested the idea of creating a Myanmar election oversight mechanism by duplicating the Tripartite partnership between the Government of Myanmar, the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN),and the UN. He said the situation of human rights in Myanmar remained alarming with a pattern of widespread and systematic violations resulting in serious abuses of civilians' rights and integrity. The full report can be found at: www.un.org. ¶5. Myanmar's delegate said that his government supported the Special Rapporteur's visit next month. However, he said the report was "less than objective" and anti-government groups had been given a sympathetic ear and comments from those groups should have been verified before inclusion in the report. While agreeing that electoral laws needed reform, he stressed that Myanmar's focus was not on the narrow interests of individuals, but rather on larger national interests. ¶6. In response to the Special Rapporteur's presentation, delegations called for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners. They were not convinced that the 2010 elections would be held in a free and fair manner, if held at all. DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC of KOREA -------------- ¶7. Vitit Muntarbhorn, Special Rapporteur on the DPRK, said on October 22 that the situation in the country remained "dismal and abysmal," due to the repressive nature of the power base. He said the DPRK was a country based on a centralized system, geared to upholding the top-most leadership in a non-democratic setting, and a "military first" policy. Muntarbhorn strongly urged the DPRK to address the rampant malnutrition by opening markets and small-lot farming. He urged ending punishment of those seeking asylum abroad, those sent back, and inhumane treatment of persons. He recommended the DPRK terminate public executions and other violations of rights and freedoms, by means of legal reforms. The full report can be found at: www.un.org. ¶8. Responding, the delegate from the DPRK reminded the Committee that it had never recognized the Special Rapporteur's mandate, saying the resolution that established it was a politically devised document. He stated that the resulting report was "totally useless". He claimed that there were no human rights abuses in his country and that it participated with the Committee on the Rights of the Child, citing the country report as evidence of participation. He said DPRK rejects being singled out and warned it would be a big mistake to think anything would change in his country by using such methods. ¶9. Delegates supported the Special Rapporteur's work and called on the DPRK to allow him to visit. They were concerned about food security and the "military first" approach. Several delegates commented on the situation of asylum seekers and refugees. Palestine -------------- ¶10. Richard Falk, Special Rapporteur on Palestine, said on October 22 that Israel had denied entry to the HRC Fact Finding Mission, headed by Judge Richard Goldstone, saying such behavior set an unfortunate precedent for the Council's relations with UN Member States. Mr. Falk said his report focused on the Gaza crisis, the accountability gap, the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion on the Israeli security wall, settlement expansion, Palestinian self-determination and gaps in international humanitarian law. He said the right to self-determination had been thwarted by Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories even though it was assumed that the right would be brought about through bilateral negotiations and reinforced by the U.S. and the Quartet. He recommended that the GA request an advisory opinion on the obligations of UN Member States and urged the General Assembly to implement the Goldstone Report's recommendations. The full report can be found at: www.un.org. ¶11. The U.S. criticized the report for being one sided while Iran, Egypt and Syria all applauded the report as being comprehensive and thorough. Iran hoped the "regime" would be held accountable for the "commission of war crimes," and Syria said there seemed to be no will of the international community to push Israel to comply with its obligations under intentional law. FREEDOM OF RELIGION -------------- ¶12. Asma Jahangir, Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion, said on October 23 that in some places the freedom to manifest one's religion or beliefs is subject to limitations. He said many believers are prevented from identifying themselves through the display of religious symbols while others are required to publicly display them. He was concerned about authorities who censor, monitor or even write sermons of religious leaders. He says that to foster religious tolerance, states should take a human rights-based approach. The full report can be found at: www.un.org. HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS -------------- ¶13. Margaret Sekaggya, Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, said on October 23 that she was concerned over the growing trend in adopting restrictive laws to govern NGOs and their work. Freedom of association under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights meant the right to found an association or to join an already existing one. Further, security and anti-terrorism laws were increasingly vague, and their broad definition lent themselves easily to misinterpretation or abuse, she said. The full report can be found at: www.un.org. HUMAN RIGHTS WHILE COUNTERING TERRORISM -------------- ¶14. The report on October 26 by Martin Sheinin, Special Rapporteur on Human Rights while Countering Terrorism, generated considerable debate among Member States for suggesting that "gender diversity" included the experiences of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender individuals. Various speakers noted that he had been requested to "integrate a gender perceptive" in his mandate" but had used personal ideas about gender, rather than what was agreed at international conferences. Because of the "gender debate" the Arab Group and Tanzania, refused to be involved in the debate and would not engage with the report. ¶15. The Cuban delegate said that the U.S. and its private contractors had tortured Muslim detainees because of their religion and identity. She also said there were secret CIA bases that tortured people. She called for reparation and compensation for these victims. The full report can be found at: www.un.org. EXTRAJUDICIAL EXECUTIONS -------------- ¶16. Philip Alston, Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions, said on Oct 27 that "when a wide range of large and important states does not permit UN scrutiny of alleged killings over a period of almost a decade, there is something badly amiss with the system." He emphasized that more than two-thirds of the states he had approached to arrange a country visit had rejected his request or failed to respond. He said in Colombia, the most prominent issue concerned "false positives" and in the U.S., the use of unmanned drones or predators to carry out targeted executions was of concern. In Kenya, he said the main concern was the existence of death squads. The full report can be found at: www.un.org. ¶17. In response to the U.S. delegate's point that "targeted killings" were governed by international humanitarian law, Alston said that anywhere from 30% to 95%t of targeted killings were carried out through the use of drones and predators. He said that the CIA operated a large majority of the weapons, in complete isolation. He expressed hope that the issue would be addressed more constructively by the current U.S. administration. ¶18. Alston also held a press conference in which he said that the U.S. position of the General Assembly and HRC have no role in relation to killings that occur in the context of an armed conflict was a "simply untenable" response. The full press conference can be viewed at: www.un.org. Rice