INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS
The States Parties to the present Covenant,
Considering that, in accordance with the principles proclaimed in
the Charter of the United Nations, recognition of the inherent dignity and of the
equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the
foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,
Recognizing
that these rights derive from the inherent dignity of the human person,
Recognizing
that, in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the ideal
of free human beings enjoying civil and political freedom and freedom from fear
and want can only be achieved if conditions are created whereby everyone may
enjoy his civil and political rights, as well as his economic, social and
cultural rights,
Considering
the obligation of States under the Charter of the United Nations to promote
universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and freedoms,
Realizing
that the individual, having duties to other individuals and to the community to
which he belongs, is under a responsibility to strive for the promotion and
observance of the rights recognized in the present Covenant,
Agree
upon the following articles:
- All
peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right they
freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic,
social and cultural development.
All
peoples may, for their own ends, freely dispose of their natural wealth
and resources without prejudice to any obligations arising out of
international economic co-operation, based upon the principle of mutual
benefit, and international law. In no case may a people be deprived of its
own means of subsistence.
The
States Parties to the present Covenant, including those having
responsibility for the administration of Non-Self-Governing and Trust
Territories, shall promote the realization of the right of
self-determination, and shall respect that right, in conformity with the
provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
- Each
State Party to the present Covenant undertakes to respect and to ensure to
all individuals within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction the
rights recognized in the present Covenant, without distinction of any kind,
such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion,
national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
Where
not already provided for by existing legislative or other measures, each
State Party to the present Covenant undertakes to take the necessary
steps. in accordance with its constitutional
processes and with the provisions of the present Covenant, to adopt such
legislative or other measures as may be necessary to give effect to the
rights recognized in the present Covenant.
Each
State Party to the present Covenant undertakes:
- To ensure that any person whose
rights or freedoms as herein recognized are violated shall have an
effective remedy, notwithstanding that the violation has been committed
by persons acting in an official capacity; to ensure that any person
claiming such a remedy shall have his rights thereto determined by
competent judicial, administrative or legislative authorities, or by any
other competent authority provided for by the legal system of the State,
and to develop the possibilities of judicial remedy;
- To ensure that the competent
authorities shall enforce such remedies when granted.
The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to ensure the equal
right of men and women to the enjoyment of all civil and political rights set
forth in the present Covenant.
- In
time of public emergency which threatens the life of the nation and the
existence of which is officially proclaimed, the States Parties to the
present Covenant may take measures derogating from their obligations under
the present Covenant to the extent strictly required by the exigencies of
the situation, provided that such measures are not inconsistent with their
other obligations under international law and do not involve
discrimination solely on the ground of race, colour, sex, language,
religion or social origin.
- No
derogation from articles 6, 7, 8 (paragraphs 1 and 2), 11, 15, 16 and 18
may be made under this provision.
- Any
State Party to the present Covenant availing itself of the right of
derogation shall immediately inform the other States Parties to the
present Covenant, through the intermediary of the Secretary-General of the
United Nations, of the provisions from which it has derogated and of the
reasons by which it was actuated. A further communication shall be made,
through the same intermediary, on the date on which it terminates such
derogation.
- Nothing
in the present Covenant may be interpreted as implying for any State,
group or person any right to engage in any activity or perform any act
aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms recognized
herein or at their limitation to a greater extent than is provided for in
the present Covenant.
There
shall be no restriction upon or derogation from any of the fundamental
human rights recognized or existing in any State Party to the present
Covenant pursuant to law, conventions, regulations or custom on the
pretext that the present Covenant does not recognize such rights or that
it recognizes them to a lesser extent.
- Every
human being has the inherent right to life. This right shall be protected
by law. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life.
In
countries which have not abolished the death penalty, sentence of death
may be imposed only for the most serious crimes in accordance with the law
in force at the time of the commission of the crime and not contrary to
the provisions of the present Covenant and to the Convention on the
Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. This penalty can only
be carried out pursuant to a final judgment rendered by a competent court.
When
deprivation of life constitutes the crime of genocide, it is understood
that nothing in this article shall authorize any State Party to the
present Covenant to derogate in any way from any obligation assumed under
the provisions of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the
Crime of Genocide.
Anyone
sentenced to death shall have the right to seek pardon or commutation of
the sentence. Amnesty, pardon or commutation of the sentence of death may
be granted in all cases.
Sentence
of death shall not be imposed for crimes committed by persons below
eighteen years of age and shall not be carried out on pregnant women.
Nothing
in this article shall be invoked to delay or to prevent the abolition of
capital punishment by any State Party to the present Covenant.
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment. In particular, no one shall be subjected without his
free consent to medical or scientific experimentation.
- No
one shall be held in slavery; slavery and the slave-trade in all their
forms shall be prohibited.
- No
one shall be held in servitude.
- No
one shall be required to perform forced or compulsory labour;
- Paragraph 3(a) shall not be held to
preclude, in countries where imprisonment with hard labour may be imposed
as a punishment for a crime, the performance of hard labour in pursuance
of a sentence to such punishment by a competent court;
- For the purpose of this paragraph the
term "forced or compulsory labour" shall not include:
- Any work or service, not
referred to in subparagraph (b), normally required of a person who is
under detention in consequence of a lawful order of a court, or of a
person during conditional release from such detention;
- Any service of a
military character and, in countries where conscientious objection is
recognized, any national service required by law of conscientious objectors;
- Any service exacted in
cases of emergency or calamity threatening the life or well-being of the
community;
- Any work or service
which forms part of normal civil obligations.
- Everyone
has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be subjected
to arbitrary arrest or detention. No one shall be deprived of his liberty
except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedure as are
established by law.
Anyone
who is arrested shall be informed, at the time of arrest, of the reasons
for his arrest and shall be promptly informed of any charges against him.
Anyone
arrested or detained on a criminal charge shall be brought promptly before
a judge or other officer authorized by law to exercise judicial power and
shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release. It
shall not be the general rule that persons awaiting trial shall be
detained in custody, but release may be subject to guarantees to appear
for trial, at any other stage of the judicial proceedings, and, should
occasion arise, for execution of the judgment.
Anyone
who is deprived of his liberty by arrest or detention shall be entitled to
take proceedings before a court, in order that that court may decide
without delay on the lawfulness of his detention and order his release if
the detention is not lawful.
Anyone
who has been the victim of unlawful arrest or detention shall have an
enforceable right to compensation.
- All
persons deprived of their liberty shall be treated with humanity and with
respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.
- Accused
persons shall, save in exceptional circumstances, be segregated from
convicted persons and shall be subject to separate treatment appropriate
to their status as unconvicted persons;
- Accused juvenile persons
shall be separated from adults and brought as speedily as possible for
adjudication.
The
penitentiary system shall comprise treatment of prisoners the essential
aim of which shall be their reformation and social rehabilitation. Juvenile
offenders shall be segregated from adults and be accorded treatment
appropriate to their age and legal status.
No one shall be imprisoned merely on the ground of inability to fulfill
a contractual obligation.
- Everyone
lawfully within the territory of a State shall, within that territory,
have the right to liberty of movement and freedom to choose his residence.
- Everyone
shall be free to leave any country, including his own.
- The
above-mentioned rights shall not be subject to any restrictions except
those which are provided by law, are necessary to protect national
security, public order (ordre public), public
health or morals or the rights and freedoms of others, and are consistent
with the other rights recognized in the present Covenant.
- No
one shall be arbitrarily deprived of the right to enter his own country.
An alien lawfully in the territory of a State Party to the present
Covenant may expelled therefrom only in pursuance of a decision reached in
accordance with law and shall, except where compelling reasons of national
security otherwise require, be allowed to submit the reasons against his
expulsion and to have his case reviewed by, and be represented for the purpose
before, the competent authority or a person or persons especially designated by
the competent authority.
- All
persons shall be equal before the courts and tribunals. In the
determination of any criminal charge against him, or of his rights and
obligations in a suit at law, everyone shall be entitled to a fair and
public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal
established by law. The Press and the public may be excluded from all or
part of a trial for reasons of morals, public order (ordre public) or national security in a democratic society,
or when the interest of the private lives of the parties so requires, or
to the extent strictly necessary in the opinion of the court in special
circumstances where publicity would prejudice the interests of justice;
but any judgment rendered in a criminal case or in a suit at law shall be
made public except where the interest of juvenile persons otherwise
requires or the proceedings concern matrimonial disputes or the
guardianship of children.
- Everyone
charged with a criminal offence shall have the right to be presumed
innocent until proved guilty according to law.
- In
the determination of any criminal charge against him, everyone shall be
entitled to the following minimum guarantees, in full equality:
- To be informed promptly
and in detail in a language which he understands of the nature and cause
of the charge against him;
- To have adequate time and
facilities for the preparation of his defence and to communicate with
counsel of his own choosing;
- To be tried without undue
delay;
- To be tried in his
presence, and to defend himself in person or through legal assistance of
his own choosing; to be informed, if he does not have legal assistance,
of this right; and to have legal assistance assigned to him, in any case
where the interests of justice so require, and without payment by him in
any such case if he does not have sufficient means to pay for it;
- To examine, or have
examined, the witnesses against him and to obtain the attendance and
examination of witnesses on his behalf under the same conditions as
witnesses against him;
- To have the free
assistance of an interpreter if he cannot understand or speak the
language used in court;
- Not to be compelled to
testify against himself or to confess guilt.
- In
the case of juvenile persons, the procedure shall be such as will take
account of their age and the desirability of promoting their
rehabilitation.
- Everyone
convicted of a crime shall have the right to his conviction and sentence
being reviewed by a higher tribunal according to law.
- When
a person has by a final decision been convicted of a criminal offence and
when subsequently his conviction has been reversed or he has been pardoned
on the ground that a new or newly discovered fact shows conclusively that
there has been a miscarriage of justice, the person who has suffered
punishment as a result of such conviction shall be compensated according
to law, unless it is proved that the non-disclosure of the unknown fact in
time is wholly or partly attributable to him.
- No
one shall be liable to be tried or punished again for an offence for which
he has already been finally convicted or acquitted in accordance with the
law and penal procedure of each country.
1. No
one shall be held guilty of any criminal offence on account of any act or
omission which did not constitute a criminal offence, under national or
international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier
penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time when the criminal
offence was committed. if, subsequent to the commission
of the offence, provision is made by law for the imposition of a lighter
penalty, the offender shall benefit thereby.
2.
Nothing in this article shall prejudice the
trial and punishment of any person for any act or omission which, at the time
when it was committed, was criminal according to the general principles of law
recognized by the community of nations.
Article 16
Everyone shall have the
right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.
- No
one shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his
privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks on his
honour and reputation.
- Everyone
has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or
attacks.
- Everyone
shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This
right shall include freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of
his choice, and freedom, either individually or in community with others and
in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship,
observance, practice and teaching.
- No
one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his freedom to have or
to adopt a religion or belief of his choice.
- Freedom
to manifest one's religion or beliefs may be subject only to such
limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public
safety, order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of
others.
- The
States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to have respect for the
liberty of parents and, when applicable, legal guardians to ensure the
religious and moral education of their children in conformity with their
own convictions.
- Everyone
shall have the right to hold opinions without interference.
- Everyone
shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include
freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds,
regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form
of art, or through any other media of his choice.
- The
exercise of the rights provided for in paragraph 2 of this article carries
with it special duties and responsibilities. It may therefore be subject
to certain restrictions, but these shall only be such as are provided by
law and are necessary:
- For
respect of the rights or reputations of others;
- For
the protection of national security or of public order (ordre public), or of public health or morals.
- Any
propaganda for war shall be prohibited by law.
- Any
advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes
incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence shall be prohibited by
law.
The right of peaceful
assembly shall be recognized. No restrictions may be placed on the exercise of
this right other than those imposed in conformity with the law and which are
necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or
public safety, public order (ordre public), the protection of public health or
morals or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.
- Everyone
shall have the right to freedom of association with others, including the
right to form and join trade unions for the protection of his interests.
- No
restrictions may be placed on the exercise of this right other than those
which are prescribed by law and which are necessary in a democratic
society in the interests of national security or public safety, public
order (ordre public), the protection of public
health or morals or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.
This article shall not prevent the imposition of lawful restrictions on
members of the armed forces and of the police in their exercise of this
right.
- Nothing
in this article shall authorize States Parties to the International Labour
Organization Convention of 1948 concerning Freedom of Association and
Protection of the Right to Organize to take legislative measures which
would prejudice, or to apply the law in such a manner as to prejudice, the
guarantees provided for in that Convention.
- The
family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is
entitled to protection by society and the State.
- The
right of men and women of marriageable age to marry and to found a family
shall be recognized.
- No
marriage shall be entered into without the free and full consent of the
intending spouses.
- States
Parties to the present Covenant shall take appropriate steps to ensure
equally of rights and responsibilities of spouses as to marriage, during
marriage and at its dissolution. In the case of dissolution, provision
shall be made for the necessary protection of any children.
- Every
child shall have, without any discrimination as to race, colour, sex,
language, religion, national or social origin, property or birth, the
right to such measures of protection as are required by his status as a
minor, on the part of his family, society and the State.
- Every
child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have a name.
- Every
child has the right to acquire a nationality.
Every citizen shall have
the right and the opportunity, without any of the distinctions mentioned in
article 2 and without unreasonable restrictions:
- To
take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or through freely
chosen representatives;
- To
vote and to be elected at genuine periodic elections which shall be by
universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret ballot,
guaranteeing the free expression of the will of the electors;
- To
have access, on general terms of equality, to public service in his
country.
All persons are equal
before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to the equal
protection of the law. In this respect, the law shall prohibit any
discrimination and guarantee to all persons equal and effective protection
against discrimination on any ground such as race, colour, sex, language,
religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property,
birth or other status.
In those States in which
ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities exist, persons belonging to such
minorities shall not be denied the right, in community with the other members
of their group, to enjoy their own culture, to profess and practice their own
religion, or to use their own language.
- There
shall be established a Human Rights Committee (hereafter referred to in
the present Covenant as the Committee). It shall consist of eighteen
members and shall carry out the functions hereinafter provided.
- The
Committee shall be composed of nationals of the States Parties to the
present Covenant who shall be persons of high moral character and
recognized competence in the field of human rights, consideration being
given to the usefulness of the participation of some persons having legal
experience.
- The
members of the Committee shall be elected and shall serve in their
personal capacity.
- The
members of the Committee shall be elected by secret ballot from a list of
persons possessing the qualifications prescribed in article 28 and
nominated for the purpose by the States Parties to the present Covenant.
- Each
State Party to the present Covenant may nominate not more than two
persons. These persons shall be nationals of the nominating State.
- A
person shall be eligible for renomination.
- The
initial election shall be held no later than six months after the date of
the entry into force of the present Covenant.
- At
least four months before the date of each election to the Committee, other
than an election to fill a vacancy declared in accordance with article 34,
the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall address a written
invitation to the States Parties to the present Covenant to submit their
nominations for membership of the Committee within three months.
- The
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall prepare a list in
alphabetical order of all the persons thus nominated, with an indication
of the States Parties which have nominated them, and shall submit it to
the States Parties to the present Covenant no later than one month before
the date of each election.
- Elections
of the members of the Committee shall be held at a meeting of the States
Parties to the present Covenant convened by the Secretary-General of the
United Nations at the Headquarters of the United Nations. At that meeting,
for which two thirds of the States Parties to the present Covenant shall
constitute a quorum, the persons elected to the Committee shall be those
nominees who obtain the largest number of votes and an absolute majority
of the votes of the representatives of States Parties present and voting.
- The
Committee may not include more than one national of the same State.
- In
the election of the committee, consideration shall be given to equitable
geographical distribution of membership and to the representation of the
different forms of civilization and of the principal legal systems.
- The
members of the Committee shall be elected for a term of four years. They
shall be eligible for re-election if renominated.
However, the terms of nine of the members elected at the first election
shall expire at the end of two years; immediately after the first
election, the names of these nine members shall be chosen by lot by the
chairman of the meeting referred to in article 30, paragraph 4.
- Elections
at the expiry of office shall be held in accordance with the preceding
articles of this part of the present Covenant.
- If,
in the unanimous opinion of the other members, a member of the Committee
has ceased to carry out his functions for any cause other than absence of
a temporary character, the Chairman of the Committee shall notify the
Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall then declare the seat
of that member to be vacant.
- In
the event of the death or the resignation of a member of the Committee,
the Chairman shall immediately notify the Secretary-General of the United
Nations, who shall declare the seat vacant from the date of death or the
date on which the resignation takes effect.
- When
a vacancy is declared in accordance with article 33 and if the term of
office of the member to be replaced does not expire within six months of
the declaration of the vacancy, the Secretary-General of the United
Nations shall notify each of the States Parties to the present Covenant,
which may within two months submit nominations in accordance with article
29 for the purpose of filling the vacancy.
- The
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall prepare a list in
alphabetical order of the persons thus nominated and shall submit it to
the States Parties to the present Covenant. The election to fill the
vacancy shall then take place in accordance with the relevant provisions
of this part of the present Covenant.
- A
member of the Committee elected to fill a vacancy declared in accordance
with article 33 shall hold office for the remainder of the term of the
member who vacated the seat on the Committee under the provisions of that
article.
The members of the
Committee shall, with the approval of the General Assembly of the United
Nations, receive emoluments from United Nations resources on such terms and
conditions as the General Assembly may decide, having regard to the importance
of the Committee's responsibilities.
The Secretary-General of
the United Nations shall provide the necessary staff and facilities for the
effective performance of the functions of the Committee under the present
Covenant.
- The
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall convene the initial meeting
of the Committee at the Headquarters of the United Nations.
- After
its initial meeting, the Committee shall meet at such time as shall be
provided in its rules of procedure.
- The
Committee shall normally meet at the Headquarters of the United Nations or
at the United Nations Office at Geneva.
Every member of the
Committee shall, before taking up his duties, make a solemn declaration in open
committee that he will perform his functions impartially and conscientiously.
- The
Committee shall elect its officers for a term of two years. They may be
re-elected.
- The
Committee shall establish its own rules of procedure, but these rules
shall provide, inter alia, that:
- Twelve
members shall constitute a quorum;
- Decisions
of the committee shall be made by a majority vote of the members present.
- The
States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to submit reports on the
measures they have adopted which give effect to the rights recognized
herein and on the progress made in the enjoyment of those rights:
- Within
one year of the entry into force of the present Covenant for the States
Parties concerned;
- Thereafter
whenever the Committee so requests.
- All
reports shall be submitted to the Secretary-General of the United Nations,
who shall transmit them to the Committee for consideration. Reports shall
indicate the factors and difficulties, if any, affecting the
implementation of the present Covenant.
- The
Secretary-General of the United Nations may, after consultation with the
Committee, transmit to the specialized agencies concerned copies of such
parts of the reports as may fall within their field of competence.
- The
Committee shall study the reports submitted by the States Parties to the
present Covenant. It shall transmit its reports, and such general comments
as it may consider appropriate, to the States Parties. The Committee may
also transmit to the Economic and Social Council these comments along with
the copies of the reports it has received from States Parties to the
present Covenant.
- The
States Parties to the present Covenant may submit to the Committee
observations on any comments that may be made in accordance with paragraph
4 of this article.
- A
State Party to the present Covenant may at any time declare under this
article that it recognizes the competence of the Committee to receive and
consider communications to the effect that a State Party claims that
another State Party is not fulfilling its obligations under the present
Covenant. Communications under this article may be received and considered
only if submitted by a State Party which has made a declaration
recognizing in regard to itself the competence of the Committee. No
communication shall be received by the Committee if it concerns a State
Party which has not made such a declaration. Communications received under
this article shall be dealt with in accordance with the following
procedure:
- If
a State Party to the present Covenant considers that another State Party
is not giving effect to the provisions of the present Covenant, it may,
by written communication, bring the matter to the attention of that State
Party. Within three months after the receipt of the communication, the
receiving State shall afford the State which sent the communication an
explanation or any other statement in writing clarifying the matter,
which should include, to the extent possible and pertinent, reference to
domestic procedures and remedies taken, pending, or available in the
matter.
- If
the matter in not adjusted to the satisfaction of both States Parties
concerned within six months after the receipt by the receiving State of
the initial communication, either State shall have the right to refer the
matter to the Committee, by notice given to the Committee and to the
other State.
- The
Committee shall deal with a matter referred to it only after it has
ascertained that all available domestic remedies have been invoked and
exhausted in the matter, in conformity with the generally recognized
principles of international law. This shall not be the rule where the
application of the remedies is unreasonably prolonged.
- The
Committee shall hold closed meetings when examining communications under
this article.
- Subject
to the provisions of subparagraph (c), the Committee shall make available
its good offices to the States Parties concerned with a view to a
friendly solution of the matter on the basis of respect for human rights
and fundamental freedoms as recognized in the present Covenant.
- In
any matter referred to it, the Committee may call upon the States Parties
concerned, referred to in subparagraph (b), to supply any relevant
information.
- The
States Parties concerned, referred to in subparagraph (b), shall have the right to be represented when the matter
is being considered in the Committee and to make submissions orally
and/or in writing.
- The
Committee shall, within twelve months after the date of receipt of notice
under subparagraph (b), submit a report:
- If
a solution within the terms of subparagraph (e) is reached, the
Committee shall confine its report to a brief statement of the facts and
of the solution reached;
- If
a solution within the terms of subparagraph (e) is not reached, the Committee
shall confine its report to a brief statement of the facts the written
submissions and record of the oral submissions made by the States
Parties concerned shall be attached to the report.
In every matter, the report
shall be communicated to the States Parties concerned.
- The
provisions of this article shall come into force when ten States Parties
to the present Covenant have made declarations under paragraph 1 of this
article. Such declarations shall be deposited by the States Parties with
the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall transmit copies
thereof to the other States Parties. A declaration may be withdrawn at any
time by notification to the Secretary-General. Such a withdrawal shall not
prejudice the consideration of any matter which is the subject of a
communication already transmitted under this article; no further
communication by any State Party shall be received after the notification
of withdrawal of the declaration has been received by the
Secretary-General, unless the State Party concerned has made a new
declaration.
-
- If
a matter referred to the Committee in accordance with article 41 is not
resolved to the satisfaction of the States Parties concerned, the
Committee may, with the prior consent of the States Parties concerned,
appoint an ad hoc Conciliation Commission (hereinafter referred to as the
Commission). The good offices of the Commission shall be made available
to the States Parties concerned with a view to an amicable solution of
the matter on the basis of respect for the present Covenant;
- The
Commission shall consist of five persons acceptable to the States Parties
concerned. If the States Parties concerned fail to reach agreement within
three months on all or part of the composition of the Commission, the
members of the Commission concerning whom no agreement has been reached
shall be elected by secret ballot by a two-thirds majority vote of the
Committee from among its members.
- The
members of the Commission shall serve in their personal capacity. They shall
not be nationals of the States Parties concerned, or of a State not party
to the present Covenant, or of a State Party which has not made a
declaration under Article 41.
- The
Commission shall elect its own Chairman and adopt its own rules of
procedure.
- The
meetings of the Commission shall normally be held at the Headquarters of
the United Nations or at the United Nations Office at Geneva. However,
they may be held at such other convenient places as the Commission may
determine in consultation with the Secretary-General of the United Nations
and the States Parties concerned.
- The
secretariat provided in accordance with article 36 shall also service the
commissions appointed under this article.
- The
information received and collated by the Committee shall be made available
to the Commission and the Commission may call upon the States Parties
concerned to supply any other relevant information.
- When
the Commission has fully considered the matter, but in any event not later
than twelve months after having been seized of the matter, it shall submit
to the Chairman of the Committee a report for communication to the States
Parties concerned:
- If
the Commission is unable to complete its consideration of the matter
within twelve months, it shall confine its report to a brief statement of
the status of its consideration of the matter.
- If
an amicable solution to the matter on the basis of respect for human
rights as recognized in the present Covenant is reached, the Commission
shall confine its report to a brief statement of the facts and of the
solution reached;
- If
a solution within the terms of subparagraph (b) is not reached, the
Commission's report shall embody its findings on all questions of fact
relevant to the issues between the States Parties concerned, and its views
on the possibilities of an amicable solution of the matter. This report
shall also contain the written submissions and a record of the oral
submissions made by the States Parties concerned;
- If
the Commission's report is submitted under subparagraph (c), the States
Parties concerned shall, within three months of the receipt of the
report, notify the Chairman of the Committee whether or not they accept
the contents of the report of the Commission.
- The
provisions of this article are without prejudice to the responsibilities
of the Committee under article 41.
- The
States Parties concerned shall share equally all the expenses of the
members of the Commission in accordance with estimates to be provided by
the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
- The
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall be empowered to pay the
expenses of the members of the Commission, if necessary, before
reimbursement by the States Parties concerned, in accordance with
paragraph 9 of this article.
The members of the
Committee, and of the ad hoc conciliation commissions which may be appointed
under article 42, shall be entitled to the facilities, privileges and
immunities of experts on mission for the United Nations as laid down in the
relevant sections of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the
United Nations.
The provisions for the
implementation of the present Covenant shall apply without prejudice to the
procedures prescribed in the field of human rights by or under the constituent
instruments and the conventions of the United Nations and of the specialized
agencies and shall not prevent the States Parties to the present Covenant from
having recourse to other procedures for settling a dispute in accordance with
general or special international agreements in force between them.
The Committee shall
submit to the General Assembly of the United Nations, through the Economic and
Social council, an annual report on its activities.
Nothing in the present
Covenant shall be interpreted as impairing the provisions of the Charter of the
United Nations and of the constitutions of the specialized agencies which
define the respective responsibilities of the various organs of the United
Nations and of specialized agencies in regard to the matters dealt with in the
present Covenant.
Nothing in the present
Covenant shall be interpreted as impairing the inherent right of all peoples to
enjoy and utilize fully and freely their natural wealth and resources.
- The
present Covenant is open for signature by any State Member of the United
Nations or member of any of its specialized agencies, by any State Party
to the Statute of the International Court of Justice, and by any other
State which has been invited by the General Assembly of the United Nations
to become a party to the present Covenant.
- The
present Covenant is subject to ratification. Instruments of ratification
shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
- The
present Covenant shall be open to accession by any State referred to in
paragraph 1 of this article.
- Accession
shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument of accession with the
Secretary-General of the United Nations.
- The
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall inform all States which have
signed this Covenant or acceded to it of the deposit of each instrument of
ratification or accession.
- The
present Covenant shall enter into force three months after the date of the
deposit with the Secretary-General of the United Nations of the
thirty-fifth instrument of ratification or instrument of accession.
- For
each State ratifying the present Covenant or acceding to it after the
deposit of the thirty-fifth instrument of ratification or instrument of
accession, the present Covenant shall enter into force three months after
the date of the deposit of its own instrument of ratification or
instrument of accession.
The provisions of the
present Covenant shall extend to all parts of federal States without any
limitations or exceptions.
- Any
State Party to the present Covenant may propose an amendment and file it
with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. The Secretary-General of
the United Nations shall thereupon communicate any proposed amendments to
the States Parties to the present Covenant with a request that they notify
him whether they favour a conference of States Parties for the purpose of
considering and voting upon the proposals. In the event that at least on
third of the States Parties favours such a conference, the
Secretary-General shall convene the conference under the auspices of the
United Nations. Any amendment adopted by a majority of the States Parties
present and voting at the conference shall be submitted to the General
Assembly of the United Nations for approval.
- Amendments
shall come into force when they have been approved by the General Assembly
of the United Nations and accepted by a two-thirds majority of the State
Parties to the present Covenant in accordance with their respective
constitutional processes.
- When
amendments come into force, they shall be binding on those States Parties
which have accepted them, other States Parties still being bound by the
provisions of the present Covenant and any earlier amendment which they
have accepted.
Irrespective of the
notifications made under article 48, paragraph 5, the Secretary-General of the
United Nations shall inform all States referred to in paragraph 1 of the same
article of the following particulars:
- Signatures,
ratifications and accessions under article 48;
- The
date of the entry into force of the present Covenant under article 49 and
the date of the entry into force of any amendments under article 51.
- The
present Covenant, of which the Chinese, English, French, Russian and
Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited in the archives of
the United Nations.
- The
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall transmit certified copies of
the present Covenant to all States referred to in article 48.