REFUGEE PROTECTION
UN Commission on Human Rights
In mid-October, after three weeks of Israeliaggression in the
occupied territories, the 53 member UN Commission on Human Rights,
the primary human rights body in the United Nations, met in a
special session, the fifth in its history(previous special sessions
were held on the situation in East Timor, the former Yugoslavia and
Rwanda), to discuss the current situation in Palestine, based on a
request by the Permanent Representative of Algeria on behalf of the
Council of Arab Permanent Representatives Members of the League of
Arab States on 3 October. 47 out of 53 members of the Commission
supported convening of the special session.
The final resolution of the special session of the Commission on Human Rights was adopted by a roll-call vote of 19 votes to 16, with 17abstentions. Those voting against the resolution include d Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Guatemala, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, United Kingdom, and United States. The Commission decided to: (a) To establish, on an urgent basis, a human rights inquiry commission; (b) To request the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to undertake an urgent visit to the occupied Palestinian territories; (c) To request the Special Rapporteurs of the Commission on Human Rights to carry out immediate missions to the occupied Palestinian territories and report the findings to the Commission on Human Rights.
Report of the UN High Commissioner for Human
Rights
During November, the UN High Commissionerfor Human Rights visited
the occupied Palestinian territories, Israel, Egypt and
Jordan, to gatherinformation about the ongoing violation of human
rights as mandated by the Commission on Human Rights during its
special session in October. In a report submitted to the General
Assembly and the Secretary General at the end of November, the
Commissioner characterized the human rights in the occupied
territories as bleak. Moreover the Commissioner underlined the
connection between the Israeli occupation and the massive violation
of Palestinian rights.
"In the occupied Palestinian territories, discussions concerning the present crisis and its impact on human rights were linked to the reality of the occupation itself. That reality was described by Palestinians as one of grinding, petty humiliations, discrimination and inequalities which were ultimately dehumanizing. It was explained that the anger and frustration of the present Intifada stemmed from lack of implementation of the key United Nations resolutions, especially General Assembly resolutions 181 (II) and 194 (III) and Security Council resolution 242 (1967), the continuing encroachment on land for settlements, and what was perceived as a peace process which had not addressed the Palestinian claims of a State with East Jerusalem as its capital and some recognition of the right of return of refugees."
Detailing Israel's excessive use of force and denial of humanitarian access, the High Commissioner stated that "every effort should be made to explore the feasibility of establishing an international monitoring presence" in the occupied territories. She further emphasized that a peaceful and stable future in the region could only be achieved on the basis of a framework "conforming to the requirements of international human rights and humanitarian law. Full application of the international human rights standards set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the two Human Rights Conventions is essential." She further called for the High Contracting Parties to the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilians in Time of War to assume their responsibility under the Convention.
The High Commissioner also called for the protection of Palestinian economic rights, freedom of movement, and compensation for victims of unlawful use of force, including for theloss of property. In what otherwise was a fairly solid legal report, the High Commissioner oddly drew a distinction between settlements in densely populated Palestinian areas and those in other parts of the occupied territories. While the Commissioner called for a cessation of all settlement construction she specificallyrecommended the removal of the settlements in densely populated Palestinian areas, even though both types of settlements mentioned by the Commissioner are considered by the UN to be illegal under the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilians in Time of War.
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Report of the Special Rapporteur to the Commission on
Human Rights (excerpts) Under the circumstances, all local parties reiterated their disappointment at the international community's evident lack of will to take substantive measures to uphold rights for Palestinians. Moreover, they uniformly deplored the double standard that has applied to the occupied Palestinian territories, tolerating or facilitating the Israeli occupation authorities' unbroken pattern of violations. In particular, they point out the contradiction between these standards established through the United Nations and the simultaneous ineffectiveness of the UN to uphold its own principles. A number of common demands were forcefully put forward by practically all interlocutors as the needed corrective. effets secondaire kamagra https://www.kamelef.com/kamagra-ou-viagra.html kamagra effets secondaire action: |