mercredi 20 juin 2007

Human Rights council, Organizational Meeting, 20th June 2007 (9 a.m.-1 p.m.)

The session began by concluding with the countries’ remarks concerning the newly adopted document on Institution Building and the election of the new bureau.
Indonesia thanked the ambassador D’Alba for his outstanding work as the president of the council. The representative recognized that the adopted text was the result of a fruitful collaboration among States and expressed special thanks to China for the perseverance and the flexibility it demonstrated during negotiations.
Iran reaffirmed that the mandate on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories should be maintained until the end of the occupation.
Poland expressed regrets that certain mandates of the special procedures had not been maintained and without a comprehensive exam of their usefulness, here Poland cited the specific case of the mandate on Byelorussia.
The Republic of Korea expressed some concerns on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). The representative stated that there should a more in depth examination of the country mandates and that the council should strengthen the mechanism by applying the lessons learned with the special procedures.
Tunisia thanked the delegations of Algeria and Pakistan and the different regional groups for their commitment to a consensus.
Nigeria commended the collaboration of the regional groups, and in particular the Algerian delegation representing the African region and for its role in negotiations, and acknowledged that the refinement of the system had allowed for its self-evaluation for the better.
Egypt wished for the council to concede more importance to the situation of Palestine and to take practical measures to tackle its particular circumstances and allow the Palestinian people to acquire their independence.
Algeria aligned itself on the declaration of Pakistan concerning the right to auto-determination. The representative stressed that one of the challenges facing the international community was the establishment of viable institutions and efficient procedures for the promotion and the protection of the right to auto-determination.
The Czech Republic appreciated the package as the result of a brilliant multilateral diplomacy; however it expressed disappointments concerning the annulment of the mandates on Byelorussia and Cuba despite the recurrent human rights violations in those countries, and assured the respective rapporteurs of the two cases of their continuous assistance.
Venezuela commended the rationalization of the country mandates, and particularly the suppression of the mandates on Byelorussia and Cuba, whom it considered was inferring from politicized decisions.
The "Organisation International de la Francophonie (OIF)" expressed its congratulations to the ambassador D’Alba and his bureau for the remarkable work accomplished and to the newly appointed president for his election and assured him of their collaboration for the labor ahead.
Sri-Lanka thanked the Algerian representative for the redaction of the code of conduct and also appreciated China for its firm and flexible endeavor taken during negotiations.
The International University of Women, on behalf of twelve NGOs, appreciated the incorporation of the gender equality question in the forth coming discussions of the council but deplored that it had not been included in its schedule.
After a short break, the council reviewed draft proposals, which had been deferred from its fifth session.
The council first examined the draft resolution A/HRC/5/L.4, on the follow-up to the report of the commission of Inquiry on Lebanon, introduced by Pakistan, on behalf of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, and Sudan, representing the Group of Arab States. After an oral amendments made by Pakistan, the European Union made a statement with regards to its wish to help the democratic government of Lebanon and the draft resolution was adopted without a vote.
The draft resolution A/HRC/5/L.5, on the Human Rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and follow-up to resolutions S-1/1 and S-3/1, was then introduced by Pakistan on behalf of the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the Group of Arab States. Israel, as a concerned party, expressed its criticisms about the present resolution, considering that the mission had already taken place and did not give a fair account of the situation, and considered the resolution to be another attack against the Israeli government. Palestine, also expressing itself as a concerned party, stated that Israel continued to violate human rights on the occupied territories and urged the members of the council to adopt the resolution without a vote. The council subsequently adopted the resolution without a vote. Thereafter, Canada made a statement reaffirming its attachment to the carrying out of the council’s decisions but expressed concerns about the implementation of the cited resolutions. Germany, on behalf of the European Union, also expressed apprehension about the implementation of those resolutions.
Finally, the council considered the draft resolution A/HRC/5/L.6, on follow-up to decision S-4/101 on the situation in Darfur, introduced by Germany on behalf of the European Union and Egypt on behalf of the Group of African States. As a concerned party, Sudan made a statement where it reaffirmed its desire to find a political solution to the crisis of Darfur and expressed hope that the new hybrid force of the African Union and the United Nations will help for its realization. After the adoption of the resolution, Canada commended the work of consensus of all the parties involved, especially the Sudanese government for its commitment to pursue its collaboration with the group of experts.

Aucun commentaire: