MODULE - 5 CHAPTER - II

HUMAN RIGHTS & UNITED NATIONS

 THE UNITED NATIONS
• The name "United Nations", coined by United States President Franklin
D. Roosevelt was first used in the Declaration by United Nations of 1
January 1942, during the Second World War, when representatives of
26 nations pledged their Governments to continue fighting together
against the Axis Powers.

• The Charter of the United Nations (UN Charter is an instrument of

international law, and UN Member States are bound by it) was signed on

26 June 1945, in San Francisco, at the conclusion of the United Nations

Conference on International Organization, and came into force on 24
October 1945.

• It is currently made up of 193 Member States.

• The United Nations officially came into existence on 24 October 1945,
when the Charter had been ratified by China, France, the Soviet Union,
UK , US and by a majority of other signatories.

• United Nations Day is celebrated on 24 October each year.

• Due to the powers vested in its Charter and its unique international
character, the United Nations can take action on the issues confronting
humanity in the 21st century, such as

– peace and security

– climate change

– sustainable development

– human rights

– disarmament

– terrorism

– humanitarian and health emergencies

– gender equality

– governance

– food production, and more.

• The UN also provides a forum for its members to express their views in
the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social
Council, and other bodies and committees.

• By enabling dialogue between its members, and by hosting negotiations,

the Organization has become a mechanism for governments to find areas
of agreement and solve problems together.

• The main organs of the UN are the General Assembly, the Security
Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the
International Court of Justice, and the UN Secretariat.

• All were established in 1945 when the UN was founded.

OBJECTIVES OF UN CHARTER

• Maintaining world wide peace & security.

• Developing relations among nations .

• Fostering cooperation between nations in order to solve

economic, social , cultural or humanitarian problems.

ORGANS OF UN

• General Assembly

• Security Council

• Economic and Social Council

• Trusteeship Council

• International Court of Justice

• Secretariat
1. The UN GeneralAssembly:-

• The only body in which all UN members are represented.

• The General Assembly exercises deliberative, supervisory, financial,
and elective functions relating to any matter within the scope of the
UN Charter.

• Its primary role, however, is to discuss issues and make

recommendations, though it has no power to enforce its resolutions or
to compel state action.

• Decisions usually are reached by a simple majority vote.

• It is the General Assembly that ultimately votes to adopt human rights
declarations and conventions, which are also called as treaties or
covenants.

• On important questions, however—such as the admission of new

members, budgetary matters, and peace and security issues—a two-
thirds majority is required.
• Other functions include admitting new members:-

– selecting members of the Economic and Social Council,

– the non permanent members of the Security Council, and the
Trusteeship Council;

– supervising the activities of the other UN organs, from which the

Assembly receives reports

– participating in the election of judges to the International Court

of Justice and

– selection of the secretary-general.

• 2. Security Council:-
• The UN Charter assigns to the Security Council, the primary responsibility
for maintenance of international peace and security.

• It has 15 members (5 permanent and 10 non permanent members)

• Each Security Council member is entitled to one vote.

• Any country—even if it is not a member of the UN—may bring a dispute
to which it is a party to the attention of the Security Council.

• If the council finds that there is a real threat to the peace, a breach of
the peace, or an act of aggression (as defined by Article 39 of the UN
Charter), it may call upon UN members to apply diplomatic or economic
sanctions.

• If these methods prove inadequate, the UN Charter allows the Security

Council to take military action against the offending country.
3. Economic and Social Council:-
• Designed to be the UN’s main venue for the discussion of
international economic and social issues.

• The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) directs and coordinates

the economic, social, humanitarian, and cultural activities of the UN
and its specialized agencies.

• Most of ECOSOC’s work is performed in functional commissions on

topics such as human rights, narcotics, population, social
development, statistics, the status of women, and science and
technology.

• It serves as the central mechanism for activities of the UN system.

4. Trusteeship Council:-
• The Trusteeship Council was designed to supervise the
government of trust territories and to lead them to self-
government or independence.

• With the independence of Palau, the last remaining trust territory,

in 1994, the council terminated its operations.

• Since 1994 new roles for the council have been proposed,
including administering the global commons (e.g., the seabed and
outer space) and serving as a forum for minority and indigenous
peoples.
5. International Court of Justice:-
• The International Court of Justice, commonly known as the World Court, is
the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.

• The court’s decisions are binding, and its broad jurisdiction encompasses
“all cases which the parties refer to it and all matters specially provided for
in the Charter of the United Nations or in treaties and conventions in force.”

• The court may give advisory opinions at the request of the General
Assembly or the Security Council or at the request of other organs and
specialized agencies authorized by the General Assembly.

• The 15 judges of the court are elected by the General Assembly and the
Security Council voting independently.

• No two judges may be nationals of the same state, and the judges are to
represent a cross section of the major legal systems of the world.

• Judges serve nine-year terms and are eligible for reelection.

6. Secretariat:-
• The secretary-general, the principal administrative officer of the
United Nations, is elected for a five-year renewable term by a two-
thirds vote of the General Assembly and by the recommendation of
the Security Council and the approval of its permanent members.

• The secretary-general serves as the chief administrative officer at

all meetings and carries out any functions that those organs entrust
to the Secretariat; he also oversees the preparation of the UN’s
budget.

• The secretary-general has important political functions, being

charged with bringing before the organization any matter that
threatens international peace and security.
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UNHRC
• UNHRC stands for United Nations Human Rights Council.
• The Council was created by the United Nations General Assembly on 15
March 2006 by resolution

• The Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the

United Nations system responsible for strengthening the promotion and
protection of human rights around the globe and for addressing
situations of human rights violations and make recommendations on
them.

• The Council is made up of 47 United Nations Member States which are

elected by the UN General Assembly.

• The Human Rights Council replaced the former United Nations

Commission on Human Rights (UNHCR)
Human Right Treaty Bodies of UN
• The human rights treaty bodies are committees of independent experts
that monitor implementation of the core international human rights
treaties. There are ten human rights treaty bodies :
– The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD)

– The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR)

– The Human Rights Committee

– The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)

– The Committee Against Torture (CAT)

– The Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC)

– Committee on Migrant workers

– Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture

– Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)

– Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED)

The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD)

• The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) is the

body of independent experts that monitors implementation of the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination by
its State parties.

• All States parties are obliged to submit regular reports to the Committee
on how the rights are being implemented.

• States must report initially one year after acceding to the Convention
and then every two years.

• The Committee examines each report and addresses its concerns and
recommendations to the State party in the form of “concluding
observations”.
The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR)

• The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) is

the body of 18 independent experts that monitors implementation
of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights by its States parties.

• All States parties are obliged to submit regular reports to the

Committee on how the rights are being implemented.

• States must report initially within two years of accepting the

Covenant and thereafter every five years.

• The Committee examines each report and addresses its concerns

and recommendations to the State party in the form of “concluding
observations”.
The Human Rights Committee

• The Human Rights Committee is the body of independent experts

that monitors implementation of the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights by its State parties.

• All States parties are obliged to submit regular reports to the

Committee on how the rights are being implemented.

• States must report initially one year after acceding to the Covenant
and then whenever the Committee requests (usually every four
years).

• The Committee examines each report and addresses its concerns

and recommendations to the State party in the form of
"concluding observations”.
 Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
(CEDAW)

• The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against

Women (CEDAW) is the body of independent experts that
monitors implementation of the Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

• CEDAW Committee consists of 23 experts on women’s rights from

around the world.

• Countries who have become party to the treaty (States parties)

are obliged to submit regular reports to the Committee on how
the rights of the Convention are implemented.

• During its sessions the Committee considers each State party

report and addresses its concerns and recommendations to the
State party in the form of concluding observations.
• The role of committee on the elimination of discrimination against women
are:-

– Watching progress made by women in those countries which are the

state parties

– Making recommendations on any issue affecting women to which it

believes the state parties should devote more attention.

– Eliminating discrimination to women in areas such as education,

employment , marriage and family relations, healthcare, politics,
finance and law.

– Receiving national reports including statistical data on the incidence of

violence against women.

– Providing legal recourse (a source of help in a difficult situation)

against violation of women’s human rights
– Collecting information on the provision of services to women victims,
and legislative and other measures taken to protect women against
violence.
The Committee Against Torture

• The Committee Against Torture (CAT) is the body of 10

independent experts that monitors implementation of the
Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or
Degrading Treatment or Punishment by its State parties.

• To make more effective the struggle against torture and other

cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
throughout the world

• All States parties are obliged to submit regular reports to the

Committee on how the rights are being implemented.

• States must report initially one year after acceding to the

Convention and then every four years.
The Committee on the Rights of the Child

• The Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is the body of

18 Independent experts that monitors implementation of
the Convention on the Rights of the Child by its State
parties.

• It also monitors implementation of two Optional Protocols to

the Convention, on involvement of children in armed conflict
and on sale of children, child prostitution and child
pornography.
Committee on Migrant workers

• The Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant

Workers and Members of their Families (CMW) is the body of
independent experts that monitors implementation of the
International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All
Migrant Workers and Members of their families by its State
parties.

• All States parties are obliged to submit regular reports to the

Committee on how the rights are being implemented. States
must report initially one year after acceding to the Convention
and then every five years.

• The Committee will also, under certain circumstances, be able to

consider individual complaints or communications from
individuals claiming that their rights under the Convention have
been violated.
Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture

• The Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and other Cruel,

Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (“SPT”) is a
new kind of treaty body in the United Nations human rights
system. It has a preventive mandate focused on an innovative,
sustained and proactive approach to the prevention of torture
and ill treatment.

• The SPT started its work in February 2007.

• The SPT has two primary operational functions.

– First, it may undertake visits to States Parties, during the
course of which it may visit any place where persons may
be deprived of their liberty.

– Second, it has an advisory function which involves

providing assistance and advice to States Parties on the
establishment of National Preventive Mechanisms (“NPM”)
Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)

• The Committee is a body of 18 independent experts which

monitors implementation of the Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities.

• The members of the Committee serve in their individual

capacity, not as government representatives.

• They are elected from a list of persons nominated by the States

at the Conference of the State Parties for a four year term with a
possibility of being re-elected once.

• All States parties have to submit regular reports to the

Committee on how the rights enshrined in the Convention are
being implemented.

• States must report initially within two years of ratifying the

Convention and, thereafter, every four years.
Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED)

• As the name suggests, enforced disappearance is the act of making

someone disappear against his or her will, often suddenly. It
therefore refers to the arrest, detention or abduction of a person,
followed by a refusal to acknowledge the fate of that person.

• The Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) oversees

implementation of the International Convention for the Protection
of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances (“the Convention”)
through its consideration of State reports, individual complaints,
and inter-State complaints; requests for urgent action and
inquiries; and, its preparation of general comments, substantive
statements, and thematic discussions.

• The CED consists of 10 independent experts who are elected for

four- year terms by States parties to the Convention.