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08 March 2001
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CERD
58th session
8 March 2001
Morning
The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination this morning reviewed the situation of racial discrimination and adherence to the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination in Togo and the Lao People's Democratic Republic.
Both nations are overdue in filing periodic reports with the Committee, as required by all States parties which sign the Convention. The Committee's Experts opted to review the countries' implementation of the tenets and mandates of the Convention without current reports. Later in its three-week session, the Committee is expected to review without reports the situation in Cote d'Ivoire, Fiji, Gambia, Jamaica, Senegal, and Sierra Leone.
Expert Ion Diaconu, who is the Committee's Rapporteur on Togo, said the Minister of Justice in Togo had said that the country did not have an administrative structure to draw up reports and that his Ministry was faced with enormous amounts of material and costs. When it was able to do so, the country would forward a report to the Committee.
Mr. Diaconu said the Commission on Human Rights’ commission of inquiry on Togo had issued a report suggesting that the Prime Minister of the country had encouraged armed militias to carry out human rights violations, including extrajudicial executions. There had been claims that the army had dumped bodies offshore, and that they had later washed up on the beaches. A letter from the Prime Minister suggested that the report was inaccurate, and questioned the objectivity of the members who drafted it.
Expert Regis De Gouttes, the Committee's Rapporteur on the Lao People's Democratic Republic, said the break off in dialogue with the Government could probably be attributed to the difficult times and the changes in the country. The country had not filed a report with the Committee since 1984, although, he noted, it did manage to submit its initial report in 1997 to the Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Mr. De Gouttes, prefacing several questions he said needed to be answered, maintained the next report should contain information on the political changes in the Lao People's Democratic Republic. There should be information on its Constitution, its principle of fundamental rights and its legislation about discrimination. Where did international conventions fit into the hierarchy of Lao law? In 1997, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had set up a Human Rights Bureau. What were the powers of this office, and what was its membership? Did it prepare reports to United Nations treaty bodies?
The Committee also discussed regional events in preparation for the World Conference against Racism, and spoke about other organizational matters.
The Committee will resume its meeting at 3 p.m. this afternoon to consider the initial and second periodic reports of Japan.
Rapporteur on Togo
ION DIACONU, the Rapporteur on the situation in Togo, said the Minister of Justice had set out the reasons for the delay in reporting to the Committee. He had said that since 1996, there had not been an administrative structure to draw up reports of this type. The Ministry was faced with enormous amounts of material and costs. The Togolese Minister said that when it was able to do so, the country would forward a report to the Committee.
Mr. Diaconu said the Committee had examined the situation in Togo in August 1996 without a report. No representative of the country took part in that meeting either. The last report was submitted by Togo to the Committee in 1991.
Mr. Diaconu said the Committee had an idea of the situation in Togo based on documents submitted in 1994 and 1996 which gave a brief picture about conditions there. The conclusions that could be drawn from available information were that there were about four million inhabitants. The 1992 Constitution prohibited discrimination based on ethnicity, as well as regional or family origin. The Constitution provided that any discriminatory manifestations were punishable by law. However, no law had been enacted to punish such acts.
There were references, Mr, Diaconu said, to indigenous people, but apparently the Government considered any people with Togolese heritage as indigenous persons. The background documents that had previously been submitted appeared to suggest that there were no racial discrimination problems in the country at all, which this Committee had never been able to accept.
There was a report from the Commission on Human Rights’ commission of inquiry on Togo that suggested that the Prime Minister of that country had encouraged armed militias to carry out human rights violations, including extrajudicial executions, Mr. Diaconu said. There were claims that the army had dumped bodies offshore, and that the water had later washed up the bodies on the beaches. A letter from the Prime Minister suggested that the report was inaccurate, and questioned the objectivity of the members who drafted it.
Rapporteur on Lao People's Democratic Republic
REGIS DE GOUTTES, the Rapporteur on the situation in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, said the Lao People's Democratic Republic had not filed a report since 1984, and it was reviewed in 1985. Since then, the Committee had reviewed the situation there in August 1992 and August 1996. The break off in dialogue with the Government could probably be attributed to the difficult times and the changes in the country. But the Lao Government did manage to submit its initial report in 1997 to the Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Mr. De Gouttes said the next report should contain information on the political changes in the Lao People's Democratic Republic. There should be information on its Constitution, its principle of fundamental rights and its legislation about discrimination. Where did international conventions fit into the hierarchy of Lao law? In 1997, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs set up a Human Rights Bureau. What were the powers of this office, and what was its membership? Did it prepare reports to United Nations treaty bodies?
Mr. De Gouttes said the 1984 report used figures from 1982 which showed that there were 68 ethnic groups within three main groups. The census of 1995 said that there were 47 ethnic groups. This information would have to be clarified in the next report.
Mr. De Gouttes said the next report should also include information about refugees, particularly those who fled the nation, and efforts at their repatriation. Were there restrictions on religious freedom? It would be useful if the country put in its next report information on efforts to disseminate the report to its citizens.
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58th session
8 March 2001
Morning
The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination this morning reviewed the situation of racial discrimination and adherence to the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination in Togo and the Lao People's Democratic Republic.
Both nations are overdue in filing periodic reports with the Committee, as required by all States parties which sign the Convention. The Committee's Experts opted to review the countries' implementation of the tenets and mandates of the Convention without current reports. Later in its three-week session, the Committee is expected to review without reports the situation in Cote d'Ivoire, Fiji, Gambia, Jamaica, Senegal, and Sierra Leone.
Expert Ion Diaconu, who is the Committee's Rapporteur on Togo, said the Minister of Justice in Togo had said that the country did not have an administrative structure to draw up reports and that his Ministry was faced with enormous amounts of material and costs. When it was able to do so, the country would forward a report to the Committee.
Mr. Diaconu said the Commission on Human Rights’ commission of inquiry on Togo had issued a report suggesting that the Prime Minister of the country had encouraged armed militias to carry out human rights violations, including extrajudicial executions. There had been claims that the army had dumped bodies offshore, and that they had later washed up on the beaches. A letter from the Prime Minister suggested that the report was inaccurate, and questioned the objectivity of the members who drafted it.
Expert Regis De Gouttes, the Committee's Rapporteur on the Lao People's Democratic Republic, said the break off in dialogue with the Government could probably be attributed to the difficult times and the changes in the country. The country had not filed a report with the Committee since 1984, although, he noted, it did manage to submit its initial report in 1997 to the Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Mr. De Gouttes, prefacing several questions he said needed to be answered, maintained the next report should contain information on the political changes in the Lao People's Democratic Republic. There should be information on its Constitution, its principle of fundamental rights and its legislation about discrimination. Where did international conventions fit into the hierarchy of Lao law? In 1997, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had set up a Human Rights Bureau. What were the powers of this office, and what was its membership? Did it prepare reports to United Nations treaty bodies?
The Committee also discussed regional events in preparation for the World Conference against Racism, and spoke about other organizational matters.
The Committee will resume its meeting at 3 p.m. this afternoon to consider the initial and second periodic reports of Japan.
Rapporteur on Togo
ION DIACONU, the Rapporteur on the situation in Togo, said the Minister of Justice had set out the reasons for the delay in reporting to the Committee. He had said that since 1996, there had not been an administrative structure to draw up reports of this type. The Ministry was faced with enormous amounts of material and costs. The Togolese Minister said that when it was able to do so, the country would forward a report to the Committee.
Mr. Diaconu said the Committee had examined the situation in Togo in August 1996 without a report. No representative of the country took part in that meeting either. The last report was submitted by Togo to the Committee in 1991.
Mr. Diaconu said the Committee had an idea of the situation in Togo based on documents submitted in 1994 and 1996 which gave a brief picture about conditions there. The conclusions that could be drawn from available information were that there were about four million inhabitants. The 1992 Constitution prohibited discrimination based on ethnicity, as well as regional or family origin. The Constitution provided that any discriminatory manifestations were punishable by law. However, no law had been enacted to punish such acts.
There were references, Mr, Diaconu said, to indigenous people, but apparently the Government considered any people with Togolese heritage as indigenous persons. The background documents that had previously been submitted appeared to suggest that there were no racial discrimination problems in the country at all, which this Committee had never been able to accept.
There was a report from the Commission on Human Rights’ commission of inquiry on Togo that suggested that the Prime Minister of that country had encouraged armed militias to carry out human rights violations, including extrajudicial executions, Mr. Diaconu said. There were claims that the army had dumped bodies offshore, and that the water had later washed up the bodies on the beaches. A letter from the Prime Minister suggested that the report was inaccurate, and questioned the objectivity of the members who drafted it.
Rapporteur on Lao People's Democratic Republic
REGIS DE GOUTTES, the Rapporteur on the situation in the Lao People's Democratic Republic, said the Lao People's Democratic Republic had not filed a report since 1984, and it was reviewed in 1985. Since then, the Committee had reviewed the situation there in August 1992 and August 1996. The break off in dialogue with the Government could probably be attributed to the difficult times and the changes in the country. But the Lao Government did manage to submit its initial report in 1997 to the Committee on the Rights of the Child.
Mr. De Gouttes said the next report should contain information on the political changes in the Lao People's Democratic Republic. There should be information on its Constitution, its principle of fundamental rights and its legislation about discrimination. Where did international conventions fit into the hierarchy of Lao law? In 1997, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs set up a Human Rights Bureau. What were the powers of this office, and what was its membership? Did it prepare reports to United Nations treaty bodies?
Mr. De Gouttes said the 1984 report used figures from 1982 which showed that there were 68 ethnic groups within three main groups. The census of 1995 said that there were 47 ethnic groups. This information would have to be clarified in the next report.
Mr. De Gouttes said the next report should also include information about refugees, particularly those who fled the nation, and efforts at their repatriation. Were there restrictions on religious freedom? It would be useful if the country put in its next report information on efforts to disseminate the report to its citizens.
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