Global: Who is Really Committed to Human Rights?

Who is Really Committed to Human Rights?

Press Release
Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative

The global fight against the practice of torture received a major boost on
23rd May, when Honduras and Bolivia simultaneously ratified the Optional
Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture (OPCAT). This means that OPCAT
will formally enter into force this coming Thursday, 22nd June since it now
has the twenty ratifications necessary for it to come into effect. This news
was greeted with satisfaction by the Director of the Commonwealth Human
Rights Initiative (CHRI), Ms. Maja Daruwala. “The practice of torture is
shockingly widespread all over the Commonwealth, and OCPAT can be a major
weapon in fighting this scourge, ” she stated.

OPCAT aims to prevent torture and other forms of ill-treatment through a
system of regular visits to places of detention by independent international
and national bodies. The serious need for this instrument has been fuelled
by several recent cases of torture which have been reported in various parts
of the world - including countries which traditionally have a positive human
rights record. The war on terror is being used to lower human rights
standards and justify practices which amount to torture in detention centres
or in the pursuit of extracting evidence.

Ms. Daruwala expressed extreme disappointment by the fact that, to date,
only four Commonwealth countries have ratified the OPCAT and expressed her
hope that more countries will follow soon. “The commitment of countries
towards human rights is clear from their signing and ratification of UN
treaties,” Ms. Daruwala stated. She also expressed her concern that so few
countries have signed and ratified the majority of major UN human rights
treaties and that many countries fail to fulfil their commitment to the
treaty bodies even when the treaties are signed and ratified.

“Early and wholehearted ratification of human rights treaties establishes a
country's credentials as a responsible member of the community of nations.
As well as the legal obligations that come with ratifying a treaty, doing so
can also be the spur to put in place effective systems to further human
rights compliance,” Ms. Daruwala said. “It also sends a strong signal down
the line that there is assured political will to protect and promote human
rights.”

Unfortunately, many Commonwealth countries are dragging their feet,
particularly in ratifying the two central treaties, the International
Covenant on Economic, Cultural and Social Rights (CECSR) and the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). There is also
a disappointing record when it comes to the Convention Against Torture
(CAT) - only half of the Commonwealth countries have signed on to it, so the
rest cannot sign and ratify OPCAT since this requires prior ratification of
the CAT. Ms. Daruwala pointed out that “it is not only ratification that is
important but also ensuring that the commitment to human rights is not
watered down through reservations which allow states to avoid certain
provisions in a treaty.”

Ms. Daruwala emphasised that a number of Commonwealth countries have
recently pledged their commitment towards human rights when announcing their
candidacies to the new UN Human Rights Council. The commitments made in
these pledges included the signing and ratification of major human rights
treaties. “It is vital that commitments towards the international community
are kept and it is the duty of civil society around the globe to monitor
countries in the fulfilment of these commitments,” Ms. Daruwala said. “It is
disappointing that only two of the Commonwealth countries who have been
recently elected to the Human Rights Council have, to date, ratified the
OPCAT. We hope that all member countries will ratify such treaties in the
near future”.

The poor record of so many Commonwealth countries with regards signing and
ratification of treaties has not gone unnoticed by the Commonwealth
Secretary-General, the Rt. Hon Donald McKinnon. At the Commonwealth Human
Rights Forum in Malta last November, McKinnon stated: "I have been strongly
encouraging those members which have not yet signed these two conventions
[the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights] to review
their positions." He also noted that in the future, full membership of the
Commonwealth may be dependent on ratifying such treaties.

“We hope that appropriate international attention is given to the signing
and ratification of major international treaties in order to bring about
consistent high standards for human rights on a global scale,” Ms. Daruwala
concluded. “We hope that civil society and the international community in
general step up their efforts to encourage countries to sign and ratify core
treaties and thus make governments accountable to their own people as well
as to the international community in general.”

Press release issued by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative
The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) is an independent,
non-partisan, international NGO working for the practical realisation of
human rights in the countries of the Commonwealth:
www.humanrightsinitiative.org

For further information please contact Ms. Maja Daruwala, Director of CHRI:
Tel: +91 9810 199 745 or email: [email][email protected]

Kind Regards,
Aditi

Aditi Datta
Media and Communications Officer
B-117, Sarvodaya Enclave, Second Floor
New Delhi 110017 INDIA
www.humanrightsinitiative.org