HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE CONSIDERS REPORT OF PARAGUAY

The Human Rights Committee has considered the second periodic report of Paraguay on how that State party is implementing the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Introducing the report, Mario Sandoval, Director-General of Multilateral Policy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Paraguay, said the national Constitution of 1992, which was drafted under a national Constitutional agreement after the change of Government in 1989 when the first free and fair elections took place, provided Paraguay with a legal framework that embodied the most advanced guarantees in the field of human rights. However, it had been a hard task subsequently, as the entire legal framework emanating from the Constitution had had to be drafted, as it had not existed before. What was new was the implementation of both national and international legislation in the protection of human rights on one hand, and on the other the activities and initiatives undertaken to carry forward an infrastructure for the protection of human rights.

In preliminary concluding remarks, Christine Chanet, Chairperson of the Committee, said the report had been awaited for some time, and the Committee was very pleased to have been able to consider it. It perhaps had some shortcomings, in particular with regard to the implementation of the Covenant, although the delegation had made laudable attempts to provide that information. In some cases, the delegation was not able to provide replies, and referred to written replies, which she urged them to submit within the deadline so that they could be taken into account in the concluding observations. The organization of the justice system, and the appointment of judges and conditions by which they could be removed were very serious and should have been included in the report, and indeed in the core document.

Other Committee Experts raised questions and asked for further information on subjects pertaining to, among other things, measures taken regarding the excessive use of force and ill-treatment in prisons, in particular with regards to monitoring the use of firearms by the police, manifestations of force, and allegations of killings between 1989 and 2004; constitutional measures taken by the State party and how these were applied in practice with regards to serious human rights violations; and that conscientious objectors did not know what their rights were or indeed that the option existed, and what alternatives existed to military service and what were the characteristics of these.

The Committee will issue its formal, written concluding observations and recommendations on the report of Paraguay towards the end of its session which will conclude on 3 November 2005.

Also representing Paraguay was the Director of Human Rights of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Paraguay, and a representative of the Paraguayan Mission to the United Nations Office at Geneva.

Paraguay is among the 155 States parties to the International Covenant and as such it is obligated to submit reports on its performance aimed at implementing the provisions of the treaty. It is also one of the 105 States parties to the Optional Protocol to the Covenant.

The Committee will reconvene at 3 p.m. on Thursday 20 October to begin its consideration of the fifth periodic report of Italy (CCPR/C/ITA/2005/5).

Report of Paraguay

The second periodic report of Paraguay (CCPR/C/PRY/2004/2), says that the Constitution of Paraguay, which is based on international human rights instruments, sets forth a wide range of basic guarantees, rights and freedoms, respecting the principle of the universality, interrelatedness and interdependence of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. The Office of the Ombudsman is now a firmly established institution that has played an active part in the enactment of legislation, the safeguarding of human rights, the channelling of complaints from members of the public and the protection of community interests.

Judicial enforcement is ensured by the judiciary through courts and tribunals throughout Paraguay. In 2000 the Supreme Court of Justice established a Human Rights Unit, which is implementing a Strategic Plan (2002-2005) that focuses on the promotion of human rights and the dissemination of international norms and jurisprudence. The Unit performs no judicial functions. The Constitution provides for habeas corpus, as well as habeas data. The new Criminal Code entered into force in November 1998. As a result, Paraguay was integrated into contemporary legal culture. The values underpinning the Code are based on penal guarantee theories, drawing on the basic concept of protection of human dignity and commitment to the rule of law. The general principles underlying the Criminal Code are human dignity, the rule of law and minimum intervention. The Childhood and Adolescence Code, promulgated as Act No. 1680/01 (annex 3), consists of five books and 259 articles. Its basic aim is to ensure the integrated protection of the human person from conception until the age of majority, which is 18 years. In legal terms, it comprises a wide range of fundamental rights, eliminating any remaining doubts about the status of the child, who (as a child or adolescent) is an active subject and beneficiary of all rights inherent in the human person.

With the ratification of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and other international treaties, the Paraguayan Government has displayed its firm resolve to ensure full respect for and observance of human rights, in accordance with the fundamental principles of freedom, justice, the rule of law, democracy and peace. Paraguay has made every effort to achieve a proper understanding of the provisions of the Covenant. With a view to publicizing human rights, the Office of the Ombudsman, having become fully operational in 2001, drew up a programme of work in 2003 involving publicity and the dissemination of information regarding the role of the Office of the Ombudsman. To that end, offices were established in different parts of the country.
Presentation of Report

Mario Sandoval, Director-General of Multilateral Policy at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Paraguay, said Paraguay was very happy to be able to discuss with the Committee the situation of human rights in Paraguay after a period in its history during which it had really suffered a subjugation of human rights across the board. As the Committee was well aware, the national Constitution of 1992, which was drafted under a national Constitutional agreement after the change of Government in 1989 when the first free and fair elections took place, provided Paraguay with a legal framework that embodied the most advanced guarantees in the field of human rights. However, it had been a hard task subsequently, as the entire legal framework emanating from the Constitution had had to be drafted, as it had not existed before. This had required an extensive change of attitudes in the country.

One of the major novelties introduced in the Constitution of 1992 referred to the establishment of the Ombudsman, the Defensor del Pueblo, which had been established in 1995, although an Ombudsman was not appointed until 6 years later. This illustrated what background work had had to be done in terms of political and real interest that had had to be coordinated following the change of regime. The transition process had taken place over those years, and was extremely onerous, more so than in other countries. The Office of the Ombudsman had been very active on many fronts since then, including in the drafting of legislation, channelling complaints from the grass-roots level, and ex officio protection of community interests. It was therefore now the most representative body defending human rights in Paraguay.

Under the current Constitution, human rights were protected at two levels, both explicitly in the text, and secondly in the powers granted in the Constitution regarding the ranking of international instruments, which came immediately after the Constitution in the hierarchy of laws, with domestic laws coming as third. This provided a dual assurance for the protection of human rights, and was an achievement on the part of those who had drafted the text. The courts had the duty to provide jurisdictional protection of human rights, and had established a specific human rights entity which was currently responsible for promoting implementation of international instruments, including the Covenant and its Optional Protocols and implementation within the sphere of jurisprudence. This human rights unit was very actively involved in disseminating and raising awareness of the instruments, and this was a very serious task. There were human rights commissions in both chambers of the Parliament, in the Chamber of Deputies and in the Senate. What was new was the implementation of both national and international legislation in the protection of human rights on one hand, and on the other the activities and initiatives undertaken to carry forward an infrastructure for the protection of human rights.

Questions by the Committee Experts

A series of questions were submitted in writing by the Committee Experts in advance of the meeting, to which the delegation responded.

Response by Delegation

Constitutional and Legal Framework within which the Covenant and the Optional Protocol are Implemented

The activities carried out by the Ombudsman’s Office had promoted law 838 of 1996 regarding compensation for victims of the dictatorship regime, Mr. Sandoval said. Approximately 600 victims of abuse of human rights had already collected compensation. Regarding the Truth and Justice Commission of Paraguay, which was responsible for investigations, this had special features. There had been significant participation in the setting-up of the Commission, and among its members were those who had actually suffered under the previous regime. The work of the Commission was to receive reports through the various hearings that it carried out in the country on facts that occurred under the regime. To date it had covered all departments and areas in the country. Its budget came under that of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which had very limited resources. A public hearing had been carried out by the Commission in the Parliament, at which the highest levels of Government were present as were representatives of civil society, non-governmental organizations and the press. The ongoing work of the Commission was also disseminated to the public.

For cases of violations of human rights, Mr. Sandoval said that there was no statute of limitations for these whatsoever, and this was stipulated in the Constitution on a list of acts, including genocide, kidnapping, torture, inhuman or degrading torture or others. For some things, however, there was a statute of limitations.

Equality Between the Sexes and Non-Discrimination

The Executive Secretariat for Women had fostered a number of different plans and projects, Mr. Sandoval said. There were 17 Individual Secretariats in local Government offices, with their own budgets. Women assisted in national plans and policy implementation. A main objective was the social and political participation of women and the equal access to opportunities in power structures and decision-making bodies. A centre had been established aimed at training women in order to make sure that they could become agents of change in decision-making areas, and it had an ambitious goal for the number of women to be trained, which had been exceeded. The participation of women was not something that was being pushed in a vacuum or merely to achieve equality of one of the two genders in participation, as the participation of women could give a very different vision to a country where men had been leading things, as had been the case in many societies in Latin America. It was not quantitative, but qualitative representation that was being stressed.

Domestic Violence

Domestic violence had been a focus of the Executive Secretariat for Women, which had implemented various actions, including advancing initiatives, complaints, registration of cases and gender mainstreaming in national affairs, said Mr. Sandoval. There were also centres for women. During the period between January and July 2005, the General Directorate for Order and Security, through its 911 emergency hotline, had dealt with 630 reports of domestic violence. The Prosecution Service had a mediation office, which had dealt with 295 cases of domestic violence, which was 48 per cent of all prosecuted cases. The Department for Family Affairs was focussed primarily on achieving conciliation between parties in dispute, and had a dispute settlement mechanism for family cases, providing legal and psychological counselling, and working with the Executive Secretariat for Women. The members of this Department were trained to provide the necessary counselling, and at no time were cases brought before the Department simply filed or considered as merely private matters. From 2006, training would be given to police officers so that they could deal appropriately with domestic violence.

States of Emergency

A request had been submitted by the Senate in August 2003 for the executive to enhance security in the country by ensuring the presence of members of the national forces on the streets, in light of increased concern regarding lack of safety and security, Mr. Sandoval said. This was therefore a preventative measure. The presence of the armed forces, working in conjunction with the police, occurred within the legal and constitutional framework, and was in keeping with the law. The military establishment in Paraguay was very present in power up to 1989, and had since been gradually adjusting in the subsequent 16 years to its new constitutional role. The armed forces had been institutionalised in keeping with the framework laid down in the Constitution, and their participation in the civilian affairs within a situation of democracy was in response to the escalating situation of problems in the country. Frankly, security and law and order had escaped the control of the police, as they should be the ones responsible for law and order on the streets. The transition process of the police to democracy had mostly begun in 2003, at which point there had been a marked lack of security in the country, and it was in that context that the President, as Head of the Armed Forces, had ordered the latter to participate in overseeing security, in conjunction with the police and backing them up in this responsibility.

Right to Life and the Prohibition of Torture or Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment

The Ministry of Public Health, Mr. Sandoval said, was the Ministry that had been the slowest to implement its own policies, as it had inherited a very difficult situation, beginning with a serious lack of funding, which in conjunction with the politicisation of people in authority under the previous regime had caused problems. During the transition period, the Ministers had rechannelled the activities of the Ministry towards those activities which it should be focusing on, and the Ministry had been working with the WHO and the inter-American Health System, and this had been very important with regards to reducing maternal and infant mortality. The Millennium Development Goals had been adopted, but although progress had been made, it would be difficult to achieve the goals on infant mortality by 2015. A guide was being introduced for infant and maternal health, and since 2004, the guide for health of those under the age of 10 had been implemented, and one of the major measures had been to provide free health services at the national level for both pregnant and post-partum women, and children up to the age of ten.

The national police was currently being trained and being updated with regard to topics on human rights, so that all activities conformed to human rights and respected them, within the context of each particular case. There were reforms being carried out, but in the case of demonstrations, the police could not trouble or prevent legal gatherings. There would have to be regulation that allowed the police to disperse people before they became troublesome when there was evidence that they were intending to commit an illicit act. Other institutions were currently working with the riot police to provide them with specifically designed training courses. On whether the alleged perpetrators of torture cases had been prosecuted, Mr. Sandoval said that the Public Prosecutor’s Office was aware of the issue, and it was progressing appropriately, with perpetrators being identified, judged and convicted.

Prohibition of Slavery and Forced Labour

The few cases of trafficking that had originated in Paraguay had been identified, Mr. Sandoval said. Paraguay was mostly a country of transit. It could not be described as one of those countries in which this scourge prevailed, but there was an attitude to combat this phenomenon. There were specific cases which had been dealt with legally, and which had been resolved. However, it was not a pervasive social problem, and it was not endemic, but was a circumstance that flowed from the general situation of the country.

Regarding the forcible recruitment of minors, Mr. Sandoval said that from 2003, there had not been a single report of this. The minimum age was 18, but Paraguay had an exception to the Protocol, and said that recruiting could be done down to the age of 16. In spite of this, since 2003, there had been no recruitment of anybody below the age of 18 into the armed forces for military service, which was compulsory. However, in the Constitution, there was an option for conscientious objection.

Security of Person and Protection from Arbitrary Arrest

Access to legal counsel constitutionally and through the legislation was a right and was guaranteed as such by the State, the delegation. There were public defenders and counsels who were dealing with cases, and there was a huge burden for the Ombudsman in this respect, although the post was fulfilling its task successfully. There were no restrictions on access to private legal counsel. Sometimes, there were not enough Ombudsmen or counsels available. Provisional detention was up to 15 days, but the only cases where this was allowed to exceed 48 hours was when there was an extradition request, and these sometimes caused a longer stay in jail. In other cases it did not happen, and there were no reports of cases taking longer than 48 hours. The State had no knowledge of a complaint or case not linked to extradition where the limit of 48 hours was exceeded. The Attorney General upheld this, and the police were fully aware that they had a limited period of time to inform the appropriate judge or attorney of the situation.

Oral Questions by Experts

Committee Members then asked questions and made comments on varied topics, including on measures taken regarding the excessive use of force and ill-treatment in prisons, in particular with regards to monitoring the use of firearms by the police, manifestations of force, and allegations of killings between 1989 and 2004; constitutional measures taken by the State party and how these were applied in practice with regards to serious human rights violations; a need for more information on the division of labour between the Truth and Justice Commissions and the Ombudsman’s Office; issues related to the imposition of states of emergency; issues linked to the apparent increase in domestic violence and deterrents to the latter and whether the situation was improving, and whether judges were slow to act in this regard; cases of torture investigated by the special human rights body in the prosecution service and what had been the results of these investigations; and if apart from the extradition treaty with Brazil, whether there were other similar treaties with other countries.

Response to Oral Questions

Responding to these questions, Mr. Sandoval said that the observations made and those that would be made subsequently concerned the measures that had to be implemented to cover respect for human rights in Paraguay. Many of the observations made, which underlay the issues raised, were largely agreed with. The doubts and misgivings of the Experts were justified, as this was the true human rights situation in Paraguay. The entire transition process was supposed to show an upswing, and maintain this towards the end, but this was the inverse of what had taken place in Paraguay, and a lot of impetus had been lost. Regarding the use of force by law enforcement officers, this could raise issues of proportionality, which Paraguay was trying to inculcate during training courses so that police officers did not go over the range of their duty. There had been no official complaint over past years concerning any excessive use of force by law enforcement officers, and had there been, they would have been brought to trial.

On the prison population, three-quarters of prisoners had not received their definitive sentencing, so only a very small number were convicts. Recently, a different section had been set up for those who were convicted and sentenced. An effort would be made to provide all data on the effective implementation of the Covenant in practice. That there was no statute of limitations for certain crimes and whether the State of Paraguay had ratified the Rome Statute, then the answer was yes, this was the case. On tangible results that had been obtained following structural reforms, these had been seen, and public complaints, which were the method used for evaluation, for example, cases of violence, had decreased. Real action being taken against domestic violence involved a growing awareness on the level of society as a whole. There were cases where police did not wish to register cases of domestic violence, and the Government found out about this through the media and through NGOs. Regarding abortion, deaths due to this practise were high; there was no current intent or move towards decriminalisation of abortion. There were no complaints about having minors serving in the army, and the first time Mr. Sandoval had heard of a case was at the Committee.

On extradition treaties, there were some with approximately a dozen countries besides Brazil, and a list would be provided. There was no trend in reducing the period of pre-trial detention before extradition, Mr. Sandoval said. On trafficking in human beings, Paraguay would provide information on cases currently being investigated and on their status. The maximum penalty for trafficking in human beings was six years, and the minimum penalty was three months. Equality between spouses before the law was a process that was suffering from cultural attitudes. The Government was aware of this, although there were currently no sociological studies on these matters and therefore no statistics. In urban areas, the relationship between spouses had been restored after many years of inequality, and the State was carrying out awareness-raising efforts to this effect. There was a bill to achieve 50 per cent representation of women in Parliament; this figure had been reached in other spheres.

Prison Conditions

On the separation of minors from adults and convicted detainees from pre-trial detainees, the delegation said prison conditions in Paraguay had improved. There was an institutional commission that visited prisons, and other bodies had undertaken intensive work through regular visits. They had issued recommendations to improve conditions, and these included the separation of minors from adults. With regards to the separation of convicted detainees and pre-trial detainees, work was being done to this effect, but it had not yet been fully achieved. Major improvements had been made, but there were difficulties due to budgetary constraints. Work was also being done to improve the quality of life for women prisoners.

Right to a Fair Trial

In August 2003, Mr. Sandoval said, all the runners for the Presidency and from all parties undertook formally, before the national electorate and in a public event fully publicised in the media, to really tackle corruption in all spheres of life, and this included changes in the Supreme Court of Justice. The current Government, in compliance with the election platform promises, pledged to undertake a political trial of six of the members of the Supreme Court before the Parliament. An opinion survey stated that 99 per cent of citizens approved of this change in the Supreme Court. There was a negative heritage of the past concerning the Supreme Court, as the judges sitting on it could not be moved, and, coming from earlier periods, stood in the way of reform. New judges had been appointed at many levels throughout the judiciary. Physical measures had had to be taken to resolve the issues of the judiciary linked to the past, including that the archives were not in appropriate conditions to ensure that trials could move forwards expeditiously.

Right to Freedom of Thought, Conscience and Religion

On conscientious objection, Mr. Sandoval said that the State party did not intend to make any changes with regards to conscientious objection, which was a right. The State Committee was dealing with this issue, and, after reviewing the situation, issued a certificate to the individual concerned, and there was no intention of changing the situation.

Right to Freedom of Expression

There were no records of assaults perpetrated on journalists, Mr. Sandoval said. The Trade Union of Journalists was of the opinion that there were a number of law articles that were considered harmful to the freedom of expression. The publication of surveys within 15 days of elections was also forbidden, and no information could be disseminated within an hour of the closing of polling stations. One of the most harmful facts, according to the Union, arose from the owners of the media who used it for their own propaganda purposes, and there was a self-censorship by journalists to conform to the views of the owners of the paper for which they worked. Some investigative journalists had been threatened with death, suffered from pressure and there had been cases of physical assault including murder on journalists, according to the Union, Mr. Sandoval said.

Right to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly

Legislation of 1998 guaranteed the right to freedom of assembly and demonstration, and established parameters for this, including police permission. Meetings had to be public and could not close off the roads or public thoroughfares, although exceptions were granted to religious processions. Previously, situations had arisen where the majority of demonstrations degenerated into extreme violence against public property or persons. There was vandalism in the streets, and according to the organisers of these so-called peaceful demonstrations, this action was carried out by infiltrators from the previous dictatorship, and by police plants and stooges who would sow discord in the demonstration and trigger violence. There had been no such problems recently.

Rights of the Child and of Minorities.

There were programmes and projects implemented by the National Secretariat for Childhood and Adolescence to secure the application of the rules governing protection of children, the delegation said, and the emphasis was on prevention and protection. Fourteen departmental councils for children had been established. A project had been implemented to strengthen shelters. On the subject of the increase in the number of children being born in indigenous communities and in rural areas, Mr. Sandoval said that there was a national campaign for the registration of newborns. It was anticipated that the campaign would eventually achieve registration of 100,000 individuals by 2006. Further groundwork and awareness raising was required with regards to indigenous communities.

Paraguay was a bilingual country, with Guarani listed as a national language. It was a spoken language, not a written one. Early learning was given in the original language of the child. Paraguay was proud of its languages, and there was no preference for Spanish over Guarani. For other minorities, the indigenous peoples had other languages, but nothing was envisaged to incorporate those languages, as they were more like local dialects, whereas the vehicular language was Guarani, Mr. Sandoval said. With regards to the age of criminal responsibility, the delegation said that Paraguay was a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and implemented a legal and educatory approach to juvenile offenders. The legislation established the age of criminal responsibility from 14 onwards, but only when taking into account an analysis of the circumstances of each individual that established that the individual was sufficiently mature to understand the unlawfulness of the act.

All indigenous land disputes were currently before the courts, Mr. Sandoval said.

Oral Questions

Committee Members asked other questions and made comments on varied topics, including what were the criteria for the appointment of judges, as this had great impact on their independence; that conscientious objectors did not know what their rights were or indeed that the option existed, and what alternatives existed to military service and what were the characteristics of these; issues linked to the significant number of children who were not enrolled in the civil record and the dangers linked to this, as well as the threats this posed to the fulfilment of their rights as stipulated in the Covenant; and issues linked to access by lawyers to persons deprived of their liberty and at what point this access could take place and whether there had been any problems linked to this.

Response by Delegation

Responding briefly to the questions and issues raised, Mr. Sandoval said there was no difference in terms of timely access to detainees, whether the person was a private lawyer or a public defender. The other questions would be responded to in writing, although he made some personal comments on various topics. The Committee would be kept informed of progress on various programmes and policies.


Preliminary Remarks

CHRISTINE CHANET, Chairperson of the Committee, said she thanked the delegation of Paraguay. The report had been awaited for some time, and the Committee was very pleased to have been able to consider it. It perhaps had some shortcomings, in particular with regard to the implementation of the Covenant, although the delegation had made laudable attempts to provide that information. In some cases, the delegation was not able to provide replies, and referred to written replies, which she urged them to submit within the deadline so that they could be taken into account in the concluding observations.

The organization of the justice system, the appointment of judges and conditions by which they could be removed were very serious and should have been included in the report, and indeed in the core document. The delegation should have been able to say how and why six judges of the Supreme Court had been removed. There was some written information, but the delegation should have been able to discuss this issue with the Committee. Other issues, such as the presence of a lawyer during custody, should have been made available, since it was only with this that the Committee could tell if the Covenant was being complied with. There were some positive points, and these would appear in the concluding observations, including the appointment of an Ombudsman, and the early warning system for violence, in particular domestic violence, although more information on how these operated was required.

The frankness of the delegation on how the momentum initially achieved after the deposal of the military in 1989 had failed was appreciated. There were questions remaining on various matters, including for example that members of the military had to buy their own arms, which was very grave. This absence of regulations was something that could not be allowed to continue, and it implied considerable hazard for the population. Also, the situation in the judiciary and the police in terms of policing demonstrations required elaboration, as did the situation with regard to extra-judicial executions, as more information on how impunity was combated in this respect was required. Issues linked to child soldiers and child labour also required elaboration. The third periodic report should be submitted at a reasonable time.


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