CRINMAIL 86:
HRC Session 20 closes
In this issue:
To view this CRINMAIL online, click here
HRC Session 20
The Human Rights Council closed its 20th session on 6 July with the adoption of a number of important resolutions, including on the right to nationality, focusing specifically on women and children. Syria was once again on the agenda, whilst new Special Procedure mandates were established on Belarus and Eritrea.
Children's rights featured in a number of discussions, including on violence against girls, trafficking, migrants, and business and human rights.
In their concluding comments, NGOs made a joint statement welcoming several of the outcomes, whilst criticising a lack of progress on Syria and Mali. They also lamented the challenges they faced in achieving full and effective participation in the work of the Council, particularly in informal discussions.
Thematic discussions
A first!
The Council made its first ever affirmation of the right to nationality, passing a resolution calling upon all States to adopt and implement nationality legislation with a view to prevent and reduce statelessness among women and children. States are urged to reform nationality laws that discriminate against women by granting equal rights to men and women to confer nationality to their children.
The Open Society Justice Initiative, which has been lobbying on behalf of stateless children, said the resolution highlighted many important international legal norms, including the right to free birth registration, and called on states to protect the right to due process in all nationality-related matters. However, it does fall short of accepted treaty standards on one point.
"More than 100 countries have an explicit obligation to grant nationality to children born on their territories who would otherwise be stateless. This obligation is also implicit in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (...) The council resolution, however, only encourages states to 'facilitate, in accordance with their national law, the acquisition of nationality by children born on their territories or to their nationals abroad who would otherwise be stateless.'”
"Moreover, the resolution fails to acknowledge the right to nationality for children not born in the country where they habitually reside. International law requires states to ensure that all stateless children have access to nationality through a process of facilitated naturalization, regardless of place of birth." Read the full article here.
A resolution was also passed on human rights and arbitrary deprivation of nationality, urging States to adopt and implement nationality legislation with a view to avoiding statelessness, in particular as a result of State succession. It expresses its concern that persons arbitrary deprived of nationality may be affected by poverty, social exclusion and limited legal capacity. More here.
Online breakthrough
The Council has for the first time backed people's right to freedom of expression on the internet, adopting a resolution affirming that the same rights that people have offline must also be protected online. Find out what States said here. Read also about the landmark discussions on freedom of expression on the internet which took place during the Council's March session here.
Violence never far away
Remedies and reparations for women and girls who have been subjected to violence was on the agenda during the annual full-day discussion on women’s human rights. Panellists emphasised that gender considerations must be paramount in assessing reparations, and that the complex and long-term consequences of violence against women and girls must be taken into account. More here.
You can also visit CRIN's Children and Violence microsite.
Whilst on the subject of violence, a side event on harmful traditional practices (HPTs) against women and girls highlighted the gap between law and practice. Panellists attempted to define the actions needed to realise the elimination of these practices. Read more here. Find out more about HTPs here.
Don't forget children
Awareness and implementation are the key priorities for the Guiding Principles, Ms Jungk, Chairperson of the Working Group on Business and Human Rights, said as she presented her report. She also said the Group were looking at possibilities to undertake country visits in the near future. UNICEF encouraged partners to focus on the interaction between children's rights and businesses, which impacted those rights at the community level, in the marketplace and the workplace. More here.
The Committee on the Rights of the Child is currently preparing a General Comment on Child Rights and the Business Sector. Back in March, the Committee issued a call for submissions on an annotated outline. Contributions received form the basis for a second call for submissions. Find out how to contribute here.
Detention?
“There is no empirical evidence that detention deters irregular migration or discourages persons from seeking asylum", the Special Rapporteur on migrants, François Crépeau, said in presenting his annual report. Mr Crépeau shared a range of successful non-custodial alternatives to detention, which are also considerably less expensive than detention measures. However, he warned that the success of those alternatives depends on the adoption of a human rights approach. Read more here.
Whilst on the subject of detention, the Council adopted a resolution requesting the Working Group on arbitrary detention to prepare draft basic principles and guidelines on remedies and procedures on the right to anyone deprived of his or her liberty. It also asked the Group to submit a specific report to the Council on national, regional and international laws, regulations and practices; and to subsequently hold a consultation with relevant parties. More here. Read also about CRIN's inhuman sentencing campaign.
Also on the agenda
To read about other discussions involving children's rights, including on trafficking, education, health, and children with disabilities, visit our 20th session page.
Country discussions
UN Experts called in
In a resolution regarding the situation of human rights in Belarus, the Council expressed grave concern at the findings of the High Commissioner for Human Rights that suggest the existence of a pattern of serious violations of human rights since 19 December 2010. It decided to appoint a Special Rapporteur to monitor the situation. Read more here.
A Special Procedure mandate was also created for Eritrea further to a resolution in which the Council strongly condemned the continued widespread and systematic violations of human rights committed by the Eritrean authorities, the severe restrictions on freedom of opinion and expression, and the forced conscription of citizens for indefinite periods. More here.
More work to do
On Côte d’Ivoire, the current mandate of the UN Expert concerning technical assistance in the area of human rights was renewed for one year. In the resolution, the Council strongly condemned the attacks on the civilian population and personnel of the UN Operations, in particular the killing of seven UN peacekeepers on June 8 2012. More here.
The current mandate regarding technical assistance to Somalia was also extended for one year in a resolution in which the Council strongly condemned the grave and systematic human rights abuses perpetrated against the civilian population. The resolution urges all parties to take immediate steps to protect women and children and calls in particular for an immediate end to the unlawful recruitment and use of children as soldiers. More here.
Still on the agenda
Paulo Pinheiro, Chair of the independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria, presented an oral report on its investigation into the events of 5 May 2012 in El-Houleh, Syria, which resulted in the deaths of over 100 persons. Mr Pinheiro said the Commission believed it unlikely that anti-Government fighters were responsible for the killing and considered that Syrian Government forces or those loyal to them were the most likely perpetrators. The Council later adopted a resolution condemning the ongoing violations. More here.
Attention needed
The Council condemned the human rights violations and acts of violence committed in northern Mali, including the recruitment of children by government forces and other armed groups, and expressed support for current efforts by the African Union and ECOWAS to settle the crisis. The High Commissioner for Human Rights was requested to monitor the situation and report to the 21st session. More here.
Meanwhile, a three member fact finding mission is to investigate the implications of Israeli settlements on the rights of Palestinian People, further to a report by Richard Falk, UN Expert on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories. The report revealed how settlement expansion has continued to accelerate with at least 3,500 units under construction in 2011.
For more on the country discussions, including the full list of resolutions adopted, visit our 20th session page.
Coming Up
Universal Periodic Review (UPR) (What is this?)
Pre-session
UPR Info is organising pre-session meetings in Geneva from 27 to 31 August between civil society and Permanent Missions to discuss the human rights situation of the States to be reviewed at the 14th session of the UPR. Find out how to participate here.
Session 14
The 14th session will take place from 22 October to 5 November (see list of States below). You can read CRIN's child rights extract reports from each of the States' first cycle reviews:
Argentina Gabon Ghana Peru Guatemala Benin
Republic of Korea Switzerland Pakistan Zambia Japan
Ukraine Sri Lanka France Romania Czech Republic
Special Procedures (What are these?)
Call for contributions
The UN Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, Najat Maalla M’jid, is seeking contributions for her upcoming report which focuses on sex tourism. Find out how you can contribute here.
Upcoming visits
- The Special Rapporteur (SR) on internally displaced persons will visit Côte d’Ivoire from 23 July - 1 August
- The SR on on indigenous people will visit El Salvador from 13 - 16 August 2012
- The SR on sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography will visit Guatemala from 20 - 29 August, and Honduras from 30 August - 7 September
- View the full list of visits for 2012 here
- Find out how you can engage with Special Rapporteurs here
- Visit CRIN's page on information and advocacy opportunities
Next HRC Session
The 21st session of the Human Rights Council will take place from 12 - 30 September 2012. All information on the session will be posted as soon as it becomes available on our 21st session page.
{THE LAST WORD}
"The Council has not lived up to expectations in regard to Syria, by failing to contribute its piece to the overall response by the international community. The Council should focus on providing justice to victims of human rights violations, and the way to do that would have been a clear recommendation for ICC referral."
NGOs, in a joint statement, lament the lack of progress on Syria.
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