COMMITTEE AGAINST TORTURE OPENS THIRTY-SEVENTH SESSION

The Committee against Torture this morning opened its thirty-seventh session by hearing an address by a representative of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and adopting its agenda and programme of work.

Bacre Waly Ndiaye, Director of the Human Rights Procedures Division of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, highlighted the entry into force of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment on 22 June 2006, which he said was a “historic milestone in the fight against torture”. It would establish a system of regular visits to places of detention carried out by complementary international and national independent expert bodies. Upon ratifying or acceding to the Optional Protocol, States parties would be accepting unannounced visits to places of detention by those bodies.

Mr. Ndiaye also qualified the forthcoming adoption of the draft International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol by the General Assembly at its sixty-first session as “an outstanding accomplishment in the field of human rights”. The draft Convention provided the framework to address the hitherto neglected rights of an estimated 10 per cent of the world’s population. In particular, Article 15 of the draft contained specific references to the right to be free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in respect of persons with disabilities.

Also at the opening meeting, the newly elected member of the Committee, Luis Benigno Gallegos Chiriboga (Ecuador), made a solemn declaration to perform his duties as a member of the Committee honourably, faithfully, impartially and conscientiously. Mr. Gallegos Chiriboga replaces his fellow compatriot, Julio Prado Vallejo, who died on 20 October 2006.

The Chairperson, Andreas Mavrommatis, paid tribute to Julio Prado Vallejo, who he said had “died on the ramparts”, as he had continued to do his level best to contribute to the work of the Committee despite his awareness of his illness. A letter of condolence to be addressed to the family of Mr. Prado Vallejo was circulated to members for comment, and then other Committee Members also paid tribute to his memory. The Committee observed a minute of silence to commemorate his death.

Over the course of its three-week session, the Committee will review measures undertaken by Tajikistan, Mexico, Burundi, the Russian Federation, Guyana, South Africa and Hungary to prevent and punish acts of torture. These countries are among the 142 States parties to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

The Committee next reconvenes in public, on Tuesday, 7 November at 10 a.m., when it is scheduled to begin its consideration of the initial report of Tajikistan (CAT/C/TJK/1).

Statement by the Representative of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

BACRE WALY NDIAYE, Director of the Human Rights Procedures Division of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that, since the Committee’s May session, important developments had occurred in relation to the work of the United Nations human rights treaty bodies. One important event had been the entry into force of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment on 22 June 2006. That was indeed a historic milestone in the fight against torture. As Members knew, the Protocol provided for a new monitoring mechanism very different from those established by other United Nations treaties. Essentially, it would establish a system of regular visits to places of detention carried out by complementary international and national independent expert bodies. Upon ratifying or acceding to the Optional Protocol, States parties would be accepting unannounced visits to places of detention by those bodies.

Since September 2000, Mr. Ndiaye recalled, the Office of Legal Affairs had organized a treaty event at United Nations Headquarters in New York. A total of 46 States had participated in this year’s event, held from 13 to 20 September, which had focused on “crossing borders”. With regard to the Convention against Torture and its Optional Protocol, Andorra had ratified the Convention and had become the 142nd State party. Benin and Ukraine had ratified the Optional Protocol, Armenia and Peru had acceded to it, and Germany and South Africa had signed the Protocol, bringing the total number of States parties to the Protocol to 27 and 54 signatories after the treaty event. Since then, Senegal had ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention, thereby becoming its 28th State party.

Mr. Ndiaye also noted that, on 25 August 2006, the Ad Hoc Committee on a Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities adopted the draft International Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol. The draft Convention was the culmination of five years’ work of the Ad Hoc Committee, which the General Assembly established in 2001. The forthcoming adoption of the draft Convention and its Optional Protocol by the General Assembly at its sixty-first session constituted an outstanding accomplishment in the field of human rights, and would provide the framework to address the hitherto neglected rights of an estimated 10 per cent of the world’s population, or 650 million people. Article 15 of the draft contained specific references to the right to be free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in respect of persons with disabilities.

Of particular interest for treaty bodies, and in particular for the Committee against Torture, was the Human Rights Council’s mandate to undertake a Universal Periodic Review of the fulfilment by each State of its human rights obligations and commitments. Mr. Ddiaye observed that the General Assembly had underlined that such a mechanism should complement, and not duplicate the work of treaty bodies, and that was certainly the position of the High Commissioner.


On the reform of treaty bodies, Mr. Ndiaye wished to update the Committee on some of the actions taken to implement the recommendations of the Fifth Inter-Committee Meeting and the Eighteenth Meeting of Chairpersons of Treaty Bodies. The working group on treaty body reform was currently scheduled to meet on 27 and 28 November 2006, and Ms. Gaer was to represent the Committee against Torture at that meeting. In addition, the Working Group on reservations would reconvene on 14 and 15 December 2006, to complete its report for submission to the Sixth Inter-Committee Meeting. Mr. Camara would represent the Committee at that meeting.

The meeting of chairpersons had accepted the revised draft harmonized guidelines on reporting under international human rights treaties, including guidelines on a common core document and treaty-specific documents, prepared by a technical working group set up by the fourth inter-committee meeting. Mr. Ndiaye observed that several States parties had begun to report under the guidelines and the meeting reaffirmed that States parties wishing to use the guidelines should be encouraged to do so, in consultation with OHCHR and the Division for the Advancement of Women. OHCHR was conducting brainstorming meetings with interested States. The meeting of chairpersons had recommended that Committees begin to apply the guidelines immediately, in a flexible manner, and compile indications of any difficulties experienced in implementing them.