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The Fifty-Fourth Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 February 2017

Michael J. Dennis
Michael J. Dennis*
Affiliation:
U.S. Department of State
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Type
Current Developments
Information
American Journal of International Law , Volume 93 , Issue 1 , January 1999 , pp. 246 - 252
Copyright
Copyright © American Society of International Law 1999

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References

1 The Report of the Commission on Human Rights [CHR] on its fifty-fourth session, UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/177 [hereinafter Report], contains the resolutions and decisions of the Commission.

2 CHR Press Releases HR/CN/98/3 (Mar. 16, 1998) and HR/CN/98/4 (Mar. 17, 1998).

3 Statement by the Secretary-General at 1 (Mar. 16, 1998) (on file with author).

4 Like similar essays on the 1994–1997 sessions, this is a personal reflection on the Commission’s session and not a complete record. Sec John R. Crook, The Fiftieth Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, 88 AJIL 806 (1994); John R. Crook, The Fifty-first Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, 90 AJIL 126 (1996); Michael J. Dennis, The Fifty-second Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, 91 AJIL 167 (1997); Michael J. Dennis, The Fifty-third Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, 92 AJIL 112 (1998) [hereinafter Dennis, 53d Session].

5 CHR Res. 1998/7, annex (Apr. 3). The declaration subsequently received final approval from the General Assembly in December 1998.

6 Id., Art. 1.

7 Id., Art. 2(1).

8 Id., Art. 12(2).

9 Id., Arts. 3 and 13; see also Report of the working group on its thirteenth session, UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/98, at 5–6, 9.

10 CHR Res. 1998/7, annex, Art. 18; see also Report of the working group, supra note 9, at 5.

11 Statements of Ambassador Selebi at 3, and Mary Robinson at 2 (Apr. 24, 1998) (on file with author).

12 See Dennis, 53d Session, supra note 4, at 116–18. The reports of the working groups for the 1997–1998 sessions are contained in UN Docs. E/CN.4/1998/106, E/CN.4/1998/42, E/CN.4/1998/102, and E/CN.4/1998/103.

13 CHR Res. 1998/14 (Apr. 9), 1998/34 (Apr. 17) and 1998/76 (Apr. 22), respectively.

14 CHR Res. 1998/8 (Apr. 3).

15 At the 1997 session, the resolution was approved by a vote of 27 to 11, with 14 abstaining. See Dennis, 53d Session, supra note 4, at 113–14.

16 UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/156 and Add.1. While few other industrial democracies retain the death penalty, a majority of countries retain the death penalty for the most serious offenses. See UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/82.

17 His report is UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/68/Add.3.

18 Statement of Ambassador George E. Moose at 1 (Apr. 15, 1998) (on file with author).

19 Statement of Ambassador George E. Moose at 1 (Apr. 21, 1998) (on file with author); CHR Res. 1998/68 (Apr. 21).

20 CHR Res. 1998/47 (Apr. 17); see also Dennis, 53d Session, supra note 4, at 115.

21 CHR Dec. 1998/107 (Apr. 17).

22 See explanations of vote by the Governments of the United Kingdom (on behalf of the European Union), Canada, Japan, Mexico, Chile and the United States. CHR Press Release HR/CN/98/51 (Apr. 17, 1998). The Commission did adopt by consensus a Russian text on hostage taking that condemned hostage taking as an illegal act aimed at the destruction of human rights. CHR Res. 1998/73 (Apr. 22). Article 30 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, GA Res. 217A (III), UN Doc. A/810, at 71 (1948), expressly states that “[n]othing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.”

23 Report of the Secretary-General, UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/87, at 15–16.

24 CHR Res. 1998/29 (Apr. 17).

25 CHR Res. 1998/75 (Apr. 22).

26 CHR Res. 1998/38 (Apr. 17), 1998/68, supra note 19, and 1998/18 (Apr. 9).

27 CHR Res. 1998/40 (Apr. 17).

28 CHR Dec. 1998/102 (Apr. 9), and CHR Res. 1998/24 (Apr. 17), 1998/25 (Apr. 17), 1998/33 (Apr. 17), and 1998/12 (Apr. 9), respectively.

29 See explanation of vote by the United States concerning the resolution on foreign debt (Apr. 17, 1998) (on file with author).

30 Statement of Mary Robinson, supra note 11, at 3.

31 See explanations of vote by the United States, supra note 29, and Japan on resolution on foreign debt, CHR Press Release HR/CN/98/50 (Apr. 17, 1998).

32 CHR Res. 1998/72 (Apr. 22).

33 See GA Res. 52/136 (Dec. 12, 1997) (adopted by a vote of 129 to 12 (U.S.), with 32 abstentions).

34 See Statement of United States Ambassador George E. Moose on the right to development (Mar. 26, 1998) (on file with author).

35 Report of the High Commissioner, UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/21, para. 26.

36 CHR Res. 1998/61 (Apr. 21), 1998/64 (Apr. 21), 1998/65 (Apr. 21), 1998/67 (Apr. 21), 1998/79 (Apr. 22) and 1998/80 (Apr. 22), respectively.

37 CHR Res. 1998/63 (Apr. 21), 1998/69 (Apr. 21), 1998/70 (Apr. 21), 1998/71 (Apr. 21) and 1998/82 (Apr. 24), respectively.

38 CHR Res. 1998/60 (Apr. 17), 1998/58 (Apr. 17) and 1998/59 (Apr. 17), respectively.

39 CHR Res. 1998/22 (Apr. 14).

40 The texts of the chairman’s statements are in the Report, supra note 1, at 298–99, 293–98, and 359–60, respectively.

41 Report, supra note 1, at 361.

42 See Annual U.N. Ritual Condemning China Loses U.S. Support, N.Y. Times, Mar. 14, 1998, at A1; U.S. Won’t Seek Censure of China for Abuses, Wash. Post, Mar. 14, 1998, at 1. China subsequently signed the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, in October 1998. The annual resolution, first introduced in 1990 after the assault on unarmed protesters in Tiananmen Square, has never been adopted by the Commission. See Dennis, 53d Session, supra note 4, at 122.

43 Report, supra note 1, at 349–51.

44 The report of Special Rapporteur Carl-Johan Groth of Sweden is UN Doc. E/CN.4/1998/69.

45 See Human Rights Body Snubs U.S. on Cuba, Int’l Herald Trib., Apr. 22, 1998, at 1; U.N. Panel Defeats U.S. Move to Censure Cuba on Human Rights, N.Y. Times, Apr. 22, 1998, at A5.

46 See Dennis, 53d Session, supra note 4, at 122–23. The annual Middle East resolutions critical of Israel were as follows: (1) a Syrian resolution on human rights in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights (CHR Res. 1998/2 (Mar. 27)), adopted by 33 to 1, with 19 abstentions; (2) an Egyptian resolution on human rights in the occupied territories, including Palestine (CHR Res. 1998/1 (Mar. 27)), adopted by 31 to 1, with 20 abstentions; (3) a Tunisian text on the situation in occupied Palestine (CHRRes. 1998/4 (Mar. 27)), adopted by 34 to 1, with 18 abstentions; (4) another Tunisian text (on behalf of the League of Arab States) on the situation of human rights in southern Lebanon and the western Bekaa (CHR Res. 1998/62 (Apr. 21)), adopted by 52 to 1; and (5) a European Union text on Israeli settlements in the occupied territories (CHR Res. 1998/3 (Mar. 27)), adopted by 51 to 1.