Sub-commission discusses harmful traditional practices, forms of slavery, trade in light arms, treaty reservations

Sub-Commission on the Promotion
and Protection of Human Rights
54th session
13 August 2002
Afternoon


Debate on Terrorism and Human Rights Continues



The Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights reviewed this afternoon reports on traditional practices affecting the health of women and girls; the activities of the Sub-Commission's Working Group on contemporary forms of slavery; the effects on human rights of the trade, carrying, and use of small arms and light weapons; and the status and extent of reservations made by States parties to international human rights treaties.
Expert members of the panel debated, among other things, how long-standing cultures and social attitudes could be changed so that practices such as female genital mutilation could be ended; how international trafficking networks for prostitution could be dismantled; and what could be done to reduce the worldwide availability of light weapons.
Introducing her annual report on harmful traditional practices, Sub-Commission Expert Halima Embarek Warzazi said it was necessary for countries to pressure others to abolish practices harmful to the health of women and children, but States must not exploit this practice for political purposes. She added that many countries had succeeded in reducing such abusive practices, but there were still widespread problems with human rights violations such as honour killings and forced marriages.
Ms. Warzazi, as Chairperson-Rapporteur, also presented the report of the Working Group on contemporary forms of slavery, saying among other things that the group continued to focus on trafficking in women for purposes of prostitution and on trafficking in children, both for prostitution and domestic labour. She said poverty and desperation were at the root of these increasing problems.
Alternate Expert Barbara Frey said of her working paper on trade and use of small arms that easy access to weapons had a tremendous human cost -- it was estimated that at least half a million persons were killed each year by fire-arms, and twice that many were injured; and that there was growing concern in the international community about an increase in the deadliness of conflicts due to easy access to such weapons.
And Expert Francoise Jane Hampson said of her working paper on reservations to human rights treaties that the meat of the document rested in its annex, which listed the reservations made by various States parties to the main international treaties.
Earlier in the afternoon the Sub-Commission continued a debate on terrorism and human rights, based on a progress paper presented this morning by its Special Rapporteur on the topic, Kalliopi Koufa. Several Experts stressed that terrorism should never be connected with particular religions or ethnic groups, that human-rights standards had to be respected by Governments taking anti-terrorism measures, and that the root causes leading to terrorism had to be addressed by States and the international community. Differing opinions were expressed over what methods of armed resistance could be justified in self-defense, to resist occupation, or to legitimately exercise the right to self-determination.
Among those speaking over the course of the afternoon were Experts Yozo Yokota, Jose Bengoa, Vladimir Kartashkin, Iulia-Antoanella Motoc, Emmanuel Decaux, Soli Jehangir Sorabjee, El Hadji Guisse, Abdel Sattar, Leila Zerrougui, Asbjorn Eide, and Florizelle O'Connor.
Representatives of Turkey, Mexico, Pakistan, and Sudan and the following non-governmental organizations (NGOs) also delivered statements: the Indian Movement "Tupaj Amaru"; Dominicans for Justice and Peace (on behalf of Franciscans International); Zonta International (on behalf of the International Federation of University Women, the International Council of Women, and the International Council of Jewish Women); Franciscans International (on behalf of Caritas Internationalis and the International Confederation of Catholic Charities); International Fellowship of Reconciliation (on behalf of Japan Fellowship of Reconciliation); and the Association for World Education.
The Sub-Commission will meet in closed session on Wednesday morning, 14 August, to prepare for consideration of a series of draft resolutions and decisions. Action will be taken on those measures at a public session beginning at 3 p.m.

Statements on the Report on Terrorism and Human Rights
YOZO YOKOTA, Sub-Commission Expert, said that there were two approaches to the issue of terrorism and human rights, the security approach and the human rights approach. The two approaches needed to be balanced, it was not acceptable that human rights be violated in the name of security. It was also important that no group be subjected to prejudice and blamed for terrorism. The Security Council was important in international security, however, in the context of human rights it was necessary that bodies such as the Commission on Human Rights and the Sub-Commission became fully involved. It was stressed that root causes, particularly poverty, should be focused upon. It was necessary to avoid people resorting to violence as their last resort.
JOSE BENGOA, Sub-Commission Expert, said that in Latin America there were situations of extreme violence which could be resolved within the parameters of world efforts to combat terrorism; the study on terrorism and ensuing discussion was hence important there as well as elsewhere. He agreed that study was needed of more rational means of ending terrorism; and that terrorism should be battled within the context of the law -- the worst thing to do was to combat terrorism with terrorist-like methods; hard experience in Latin America had shown that. To do so would allow terrorism to triumph.
VLADIMIR KARTASHKIN, Sub-Commission Expert, said that he agreed with the overall assessment of the members of the Sub-Commission. In paragraph 63, the Special Rapporteur had said that questions had been raised as to whether a State even could be at a state of war with a terrorist group. The answer to the question was already contained in the Additional Protocol 2, which stated that an armed group in conflict with State must have some distinguishing features, such as a command structure. However, this did not mean that a terrorist group or a State was allowed to disregard the Geneva Conventions, particularly with regard to civilians. There had been a question raised about the root causes of terrorism. Mr. Kartashkin stressed that it was essential to focus on the real reasons and not superficial reasons claimed by the terrorist groups themselves. He had wanted to see further recommendations and conclusions. The Sub-Commission, at its next session, could perhaps assist in the development of a Convention against Terrorism
IULIA-ANTOANELLA MOTOC, Sub-Commission Expert, said Ms. Koufa had struck a good balance in covering a very difficult subject; she had fine-tuned her concepts since her first report. She needed to be able to make a further progress report, given recent developments to fuel the conceptual and practical debate on terrorism.
EMMANUEL DECAUX, Sub-Commission Expert, said the study on human rights and terrorism was an essential piece of work which underlined the pitfalls of the subject. When speaking about the causes, it was not enough to focus on poverty. There were other causes of terrorism. Concerning a definition of terrorism, he stressed that terrorism was defined by acts, such as the violation of the right to life. There needed to be punishment for these crimes as well as compensation for victims. Anti-terrorism measures needed to be conducted while respecting human rights. In this context, he stressed that it might be an idea for the Sub-Commission to look at states of emergency every year as opposed to every second year, given the urgency of this topic.
SOLI JEHANGIR SORABJEE, Sub-Commission Expert, said terrorism could never be justified. Perhaps there could be exceptions under extraordinary conditions -- he would hate to say what those might be -- but the killing of innocent people was utterly indefensible and could never be justified. At the same time, counter-terrorist measures also should not hurt innocent civilians. There was no vicarious liability -- because the terrorists who carried out the attacks of 11 September were of a certain group and claimed to represent a certain religion did not mean others who were of similar ethnic and religious affiliation could justifiably be hurt. Failing to respect and preserve human rights standards in anti-terrorism efforts would only increase terrorism. The challenge was to find a balance in combatting terrorism that respected human rights.
EL HADJI GUISSE, Sub-Commission Expert, said that with regards to what Mr. Decaux had said about the report, it seemed that he wanted to postpone until forever the investigation of the root causes of terrorism. One could not study how to combat terrorism from scratch, without taking account of its roots. Mr. Guisse said he also disagreed with the point made by Mr. Decaux and Mr Eide concerning the definition of terrorism since all acts of terrorism were considered by the terrorists themselves in their context as a fight for freedom. When people were oppressed, resistance was a duty. Why would that be classified as terrorism?
ABDEL SATTAR, Sub-Commission Expert, said terrorism had to be condemned and fought; it should not deflect the world community from promoting and protecting human rights -- measures against terrorism must respect human rights or they would generate more terrorism. And identification of terrorism with religion, race or region would violate principles of fraternity and non-discrimination. Islam was a religion of peace and tolerance, and it abhorred the killing of innocent people. He endorsed the proposal for an inquiry into the root causes of terrorism as a way of extirpating it.
LEILA ZERROUGUI, Sub-Commission Expert, echoed the sentiments expressed by all those speaking before her in encouraging the continuation of this work. She did not wish to enter into the controversies that had been raised. One could rest assured of the quality of the work of Ms Koufa. Next, year maybe other incidents would have taken place, which further highlighted the importance of her work. Ms. Zerrougui said she herself had faced a change, in legal and political terms, in her work over the past year. Personally, Ms. Zerrougui believed that Ms. Koufa would take all new developments into account in her work. Ms. Koufa had admirably not been jumping to any conclusions, but instead had decided to wait until "the dust settled" before coming out with complex recommendations and observations.
ASBJORN EIDE, Sub-Commission Expert, said that in response to Mr Guisse, perhaps there was a problem of interpretation. What he had said was that it was necessary to distinguish between the purpose of an act and the means used. Armed acts were permissible in a justified war of liberation, but terrorism was not justified. Notably, Nelson Mandela had noted at one point that armed response was necessary, but never did he condone or call for terrorism.
FRANCOISE JANE HAMPSON, Sub-Commission Expert, said individuals and states could act in self-defence, however not acts that terrorized civilian populations. Concerning the approach to such acts, in the future, the International Criminal Court would have jurisdiction over such matter, which seemed a preferable solution.
HŪSREV UNLER (Turkey) said the attacks of 11 September had opened a new era, although Turkey had long been familiar with terrorism. Whatever its stated objectives, terrorism was a flagrant attack against human rights. Generally these acts were perpetrated by non-State forces who fell outside the mechanisms of international and human-rights law. Each State had a responsibility to refuse to harbor terrorists, and everything should be done to ensure that no terrorist crime went unpunished; it was essential to have cooperation in the extradition of terrorists. Turkey was a little disappointed that Ms. Koufa's report had not dealt much with the issue of the responsibility of non-State actors. "Sub-State" terrorism, meanwhile, appeared to be an ambiguous term; perhaps "non-State actors" should be used instead.
EL HADJI GUISSE, Sub-Commission Expert, said that by those who colonized and those who sought their freedom, all types of acts had been taken with the greatest difficulty. Now, people who were seeking to become independent were called terrorists. They could not be called terrorists - they were only seeking their freedom. He was against all terrorist acts; however, people who sought their freedom were not terrorists.
JOSE BENGOA, Sub-Commission Expert, said a controversy seemed to be arising on a matter of great importance. There should be no misunderstanding. The Sub-Commission should perhaps make space or time to discuss this matter, if only next year. People had put forward different views on what was acceptable in struggling for freedom, and the matter needed further dialogue.
ERASMO MARTINEZ (Mexico) said this was an important matter for the entire international community. The Mexican Government attached great importance to human rights and the respect of human rights by States.
FARRUKH IQBAL KHAN (Pakistan) said there was an urgent need for clearly upholding the right to defense, especially against occupation, and in situations where the security forces of occupying powers grossly violated human rights to perpetuate their occupation. Second, it was necessary to address root causes that led individuals to take up arms to achieve legitimate rights to self-determination. Human rights should not be made hostage to political expediency. There should be a study of root causes, and in fact such a study could be a useful step towards defining terrorism. It also would be helpful if States allowed the Special Rapporteur to visit the "hot spots" mentioned in her report. And State terrorism must never be condoned.
LAZARO PARY, of the Indian Movement- Tupaj Amaru, said that he fully supported Mr. Guisse's view that it was not possible to study terrorism without analyzing the underlying causes giving rise to the phenomena. He drew the attention of the Sub-Commission to the fact that national liberation movements must not be arbitrarily viewed as terrorists. Such movements had existed far before 11 September in the face of military dictatorships and state terrorism. Combating terrorism must be the role of the United Nations and not that of one single economic power.
KALLIOPI KOUFA, Sub-Commission Expert and Special Rapporteur on human rights and terrorism, said too much had been expressed for her to respond to specifically. She agreed there should not be "double standards" in responding to terrorism. Clearly there were disagreements on the matter of a definition and on the matter of self-determination. Perhaps, since the subject was so broad, some aspects of it could be addressed through other studies or working papers. And obviously the root causes of terrorism were a vital matter to be explored. She would carefully consider all the concerns expressed and try to address as many as possible in her next paper.

Debate on the Report on the Elimination of Traditional Practices Affecting Women
Under this agenda item, the Sub-Commission has before it the sixth report on the situation regarding the elimination of traditional practices affecting the health of women and the girl child produced by Sub-Commission Expert Halima Embarek Warzazi (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2002/32). The report consists of a section on female genital mutilation, which includes accounts on national, regional and international initiatives as well as the activities of the Special Rapporteur. Other traditional practices are also covered in a section which contains information supplied by Governments, other sources of information and general comments. The report concludes that for over 15 years, the Special Rapporteur has placed the discussion of harmful traditional practices in the context of the status of women in society and therefore welcomes the fact that among the information supplied to her, many items view harmful practices as a socially legitimized form of violence against women. It is becoming increasingly clear that female genital mutilation, crimes of honour, forced marriages and other practices will not be eradicated until women are considered as full and equal members of the social, economic, cultural and political life of their communities. The various policies and actions aimed at terminating harmful practices must necessarily be directed towards strengthening the status of women in society from the earliest age.
HALIMA EMBAREK WARZAZI, Sub-Commission Expert and Special Rapporteur on traditional practices affecting the health of women and the girl child, said her report analyzed information given to her by several countries and international organizations on traditional practices that affected the health of women and children. The results to date underscored that her work against such practices was on the right path. With patience and determination, obstacles could be overcome. Practically all the follow-up materials of the United Nations had consisted of sections on traditional practices that affected the health of women and children.
This year, her attention had been drawn to a seminar held in Sudan which had ran counter to the abolition of female genital mutilation. She had approached the Sudanese Government about the seminar, and the Government had sent a letter, which stated that Sudan was determined to expose such practices and encourage communities to abolish them. To the best of their knowledge, no minister had been present in the above seminar and no minister would encourage female genital mutilation.
It was necessary for all countries to pressurize others to abolish practices harmful to the health of women and children. However, States must not exploit this practice for political purposes. Many countries had succeeded in the cutting back of this phenomenon, however still faced problems such as honour killings and forced marriages. Ms. Warzazi suggested that penal legislation be put in practice for such actions. In Pakistan, the Government had made several attempts to study the situation of women in the country. The Government had informed her that efforts were also being made to revise current legislation affecting the legal status of women in Pakistan. Such developments must be welcomed. Concerning crimes of honour, she stressed that the Government of Senegal had reported that in that country honour killings were considered premeditated murders. Among the many comments made, the debate showed that honour and dowry crimes were crimes that must enjoy no indulgences by the Governments. She noted, with regret, that she had not enjoyed support from Asian non-governmental organizations. The situation in Africa had changed, and the same must happen in Asia. The progress recorded in awareness raising in Africa must mean that no subject was taboo when violating human rights.
M. MUBARAK RAHMATALLAH (Sudan) said that on the subject of the seminar held this summer in Khartoum, and all the possible misunderstandings around it, and the information -- unfounded and false -- circulated about it, he wished to confirm the tenor of the letter sent by the Foreign Minister to Ms. Warzazi. The Government was dedicated to combatting practices that had no foundation in Islam; the religion did not allow for female genital mutilation. Each time the subject came up in a meeting, Sudan tried to ensure European countries that progress was being made in the fight against female genital mutilation. Sudan welcomed all the international support it could receive in its efforts to abolish the practice.
AMIRA EL FADIL then went on to say she represented the largest women's NGO in Sudan, the Sudanese Women's Union, with more than 3 million members. One of the Union's main objectives was the elimination of female genital mutilation. The practice was something that had been inherited in the culture, and had become part of tradition; it was very difficult to change such things, but all were working very hard to raise the awareness of the traditional communities where this practise was carried out. A national workshop had been held by the Union on the topic. To say that female genital mutilation was related to Islam was false and exploitative.
EL HADJI GUISSE, Sub-Commission Expert, said that he wanted to add to the example given about Senegal. A girl had died as a result of harmful traditional practices recently, however, the Senegalese judiciary had acted quickly and the perpetrators had been imprisoned. He stressed that such practices were inculcated in the minds of several communities. Through the work of Ms Warzazi several communities had wiped out such practices.
ABDEL SATTAR, Sub-Commission Expert, said developing countries were developing in many ways, including political, social and cultural ways; there were some terribly objectionable legacies that needed to be overcome. The international community could play a very useful role here. In terms of women there needed to be much stronger and more affirmative action than appeared to have been taken so far in developing societies. There were things that could be done, and he hoped Mrs. Warzazi could consider some of them, such as representation of women in Parliament -- wherever that occurred, there had been an acceleration in respect for women's rights. Empowerment did work, and it could be the means for rectification of some of these inherited legacies. Affirmative action programmes also could help. He wondered if Mrs. Warzazi could recommend a set of affirmative measures which Governments could take to extricate their societies from the past.
SOLI JEHANGIR SORABJEE, Sub-Commission Expert, said the heart of the report was the last sentence of the conclusion, which stated that women must be strengthened from the earliest age possible. To achieve this it was necessary to change the mind set of both men - and women. There used to be a practice in India when women were expected to follow their husbands to their graves if the latter died. Such practices had been abolished as well as other discriminatory practices. The removal of deep-rooted prejudices against women would take time, however education was the key. There was also a need to dissociate religious affiliation from harmful traditional practices, since no religion encouraged these practices.
HALIMA EMBAREK WARZAZI, Sub-Commission Expert, said that a few years ago a plan of action had been adopted for the elimination of traditional practices; it had included very practical measures that could be taken by Governments and could be used to change attitudes. Lately she had been asking Governments what they were doing so that she could discover further useful steps. Changing attitudes was not easy, it was true, and that included attitudes of women; in many cases, it turned out, it was the women who had perpetuated many of these practices. Education was the point of departure for any type of reform or progress in this field.

Debate on the Report of the Working Group on Contemporary Forms of Slavery
Under this agenda item the Sub-Commission has before it the report of the Working Group on Contemporary Forms of Slavery on its twenty-seventh session (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2002/33). The report contains sections on the exploitation of children, particularly in the context of prostitution and domestic service; a review of the implementation and follow-up to the conventions on slavery; a review of developments in the field of contemporary forms of slavery and measures to prevent and repress all forms of slavery, including the consideration of corruption and international debt as promoting factors of contemporary forms of slavery; activities of the special rapporteur on violence against women; and activities of the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery. The report contains general recommendations, including: that all States which were not parties to the Slavery Convention and related conventions be called upon to become parties as soon as possible and to enact any legislation necessary to ensure that their laws conform to the terms of those treaties; and that the Secretary-General invite news agencies, the press, television and radio to contribute to the rapid elimination of slavery in all its contemporary forms by ensuring wide publicity; and that a similar campaign of awareness be promoted by the Department of Public Information of the Secretariat and reported on at the twenty-eighth session of the Working Group. The report also contains more specific recommendations on topics such as: exploitation of children in the context of prostitution and domestic servitude; traffic in persons and exploitation of the prostitution of others; bonded labour and debt bondage; elimination of child labour and forced labour; migrant workers and domestic migrant workers; United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery; the role of corruption in the perpetuation of slavery and the misuse of the Internet for the purpose of sexual exploitation.
HALIMA EMBAREK WARZAZI, Sub-Commission Expert, presented the report of the Working Group on contemporary forms of slavery, of which she was Chairperson-Rapporteur, saying among other things that a major area of focus continued to be trafficking in women for purposes of prostitution. Communications had been considered, and State representatives had been open and willing to listen and to cooperate. There had been a large number of non-governmental organizations present and they had enlarged the range of consideration of the meeting.
Exploitation of children for prostitution and domestic labour had been considered first, as it was every year, and there had been disquieting cases provided as always. Poverty and desperation were at the root of these abuses; people who sent their young daughters into prostitution, often unwittingly, were deluded and desperate. The children transported over borders thinking they would find rewarding work often did not arrive alive; if they did, they went on to experience a living hell. More had to be done to dismantle trafficking networks. Similarly, children used for domestic labour were often invisible and helpless in the host societies where they lived in subjectivity. It had been encouraging to receive an assurance from the Government of the United Arab Emirates, meanwhile, that the use of boys under the age of 15 as jockeys for camel racing would no longer be allowed.
NEZAR AHMED ABDOU (Sudan) said paragraph 42 of the report on the Working Group of contemporary forms of slavery contained information that was unfounded and reflected a situation not of "slavery", but where there had been mutual kidnapping of women between tribes in the south in a conflict related to grazing land. The Government had expressed its opposition to these practices and had taken steps to combat them. A decree had been issued by the appropriate ministry on the instructions of the Head of State. A number of civil-society organizations also had become involved. A number of kidnap victims had been recovered. The matter had involved kidnapping and not slavery.

Debate on the Report on Human Rights and Small Arms and Light Weapons
Under this agenda item, the Sub-Commission has before it a working paper submitted by Barbara Frey on the question of the trade, carrying and use of small arms and light weapons in the context of human rights and humanitarian norms (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2002/39). The working paper contains sections on the scope and definition; an overview of the problem of small arms and light weapons; action by the international community to regulate the transfer of small arms and light weapons; availability and misuse of small arms in relation to human rights violations; and existing human rights and humanitarian norms relevant to the availability and misuse of small arms. The working paper recommends, amongst other things, that United Nations human rights bodies: encourage States to adopt national laws regarding small arms that bring them into compliance with international human rights and humanitarian law norms; encourage States to provide training to armed forces and law enforcement with regard to weapons use, and to investigate and prosecute individuals who violate principles of international human rights and humanitarian law. It also recommends that special rapporteurs should seek out information and report specifically on human rights abuses committed with small arms and light weapons and that the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions should track in her annual report information regarding the cause and manner of death, and the type of weapons used in reported killings. The working paper also contains an annex on selected sources of international human rights and humanitarian law that limit transfer and misuse of small arms and lights weapons.
BARBARA FREY, Sub-Commission Expert, introducing her working paper on the trade, carrying and use of small arms and light weapons, said easy access to weapons had a tremendous human cost. It was estimated that at least half a million persons were killed each year by fire arms, and twice that many were injured. While small arms proliferation was not a new phenomenon, there was a growing concern in the international community about an increase in the deadliness of conflicts due to the parties' easy access to weapons.
Ms. Frey explained that the term 'small arms' referred to those weapons deigned for use by one person, including revolvers, pistols, rifles and carbines, sub-machine guns, assault rifles and light machine guns. The term 'light weapons' referred to those weapons designed for use by several persons serving as a crew. Light weapons included heavy machine guns, grenade launchers, portable anti-aircraft and anti-tank guns and rocket systems. For the sake of brevity she referred to both categories as small arms. She had attempted to provide an overview of the types of human rights and humanitarian violations that were carried out with such weapons. These violations were carried out in several contexts. In addition to armed conflict, arms-related violations occurred in many other contexts. Small arms-related deaths and injuries remained high in post-conflict situations. Even in relative peacetime situations, the availability of small arms had a serious impact on human rights.
One of the main observations in her working paper was that the use of guns by various actors to commit human rights violations was so widespread that it was almost taken for granted. She had also reviewed the actions taken in various international bodies to regulate the transfer and misuse of small arms. While there had been some progress to develop such measures, most efforts had been in the form of non-binding political agreements, and none of these efforts had adequately addressed the human rights dimension of the problem. She had also examined existing human rights and humanitarian norms relevant to the availability and misuse of small arms. Ms. Frey said she had observed two emerging norms that required further discussion and analysis by all interested parties. The first required States to exercise due diligence by taking effective measures to prevent and prosecute violations with small arms. The second required States to take effective measures to prevent the transfer of small arms to human rights abusers.
GODFREY BAYOUR PREWARE, Sub-Commission Expert, said the sheer numbers of peoples, groups, even States using this category of weapons contradicted the original definition of such weapons as "designed for personal use". That a minimum of 500,000 deaths were attributed to the use and misuse of these weapons showed that the issue was not just a humane one but a matter of national development. He was sceptical that a supply-side approach to reducing trafficking in such weapons would work; there was a valid perception that manufacturer nations were more interested in production lines and profit than they were concerned for human rights principles and norms. Sadly, even end-user control regimes were easily subverted, as some declared end-user States were known to have served as mere conduits for actual end-users who were other States or rebel factions in armed-conflict situations. Rising criminality, bungling State agents, and intra-State ethnic and factional conflicts all provided a wide theatre for human rights violations.
LEILA ZERROUGUI, Sub-Commission Expert, said Ms. Frey's insight into violations highlighted the complexity of the problem, particularly with regard to the illicit trade of small arms. The study would be more useful when realizing that international law had developed from concerning only State-actors. It would be interesting to see how far Ms. Frey could apply the developments of international law in this connection. The international community was beginning to become concerned by the impunity of violations by non-State actors. In Africa, sometimes conflicts were maintained just because of the trade in small arms, causing unspeakable suffering to nations and peoples. Given the responsibility of non-State actors with regard to small arms trade, she stressed that the development of international law must also cover non-State actors. When referring to this responsibility, she was not trying to call into question the supreme responsibility of States to protect the respect of human rights.
YOZO YOKOTA, Sub-Commission Expert, said he was happy to see landmines included in the definition of "ammunition"; he considered landmines among the most important and destructive light weapons, with many adverse effects on human rights. As for the request for a general comment on article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by the Human Rights Committee, he thought there should be comments on articles 7, 8, and 9 as well - that this also would be relevant to Ms. Frey's work.
FRANCOISE JANE HAMPSON, Sub-Commission Expert, said that transfer must be a priority. Such transfer went far beyond States and included individuals. A system of regulations needed to be created to regulate transfers. Such regulation needed to guarantee the adherence of all actors.
FLORIZELLE O'CONNOR, Sub-Commission Expert, said it was important in ongoing work that a distinction be made between States in which small arms were used for State activities, and States in which such arms were used primarily for criminal activities; in the Caribbean, the proliferation of small arms had been a result of the increase in the cocaine trade and not so much an increase in internal criminal activity. In such a situation, emphasis had to be placed on the supply side; there needed to be some form of accountability and sanctions worked out for those who made and supplied arms. She also was concerned about the Internet, where almost any child could now find out almost all he needed to know about guns, and how to use and obtain them. Perhaps Ms Frey's next paper could look at the shootings that had occurred in schools in the United States, and what had motivated the children who had carried out these crimes and how they had obtained the weapons they had used.
EL HADJI GUISSE, Sub-Commission Expert, said that the study should lead to some sort of determination of responsibility. In the South, it was believed that the manufacturers of small arms must be the first to be held responsible. Talking of movement of weapons, without taking account of the source, was pointless. They came from developed countries, and responsibility needed to be taken by such States.
BARBARA FREY, Sub-Commission Expert, said she took the comments on her working paper very seriously and would try to incorporate those remarks in her next report. She agreed that it was important to look at realities on the ground; that transfers were a vital aspect of problems with the small-arms trade; and that responsibilities of manufacturers and the easy accessibility to children of such weapons were topics that needed further exploration.

Debate on the Working Paper on Reservations to Human Rights Treaties
Under this agenda item, the Sub-Commission has before it a report on reservations to human rights treaties (E/CN.4/Sub.2/2002/34) by Sub-Commission Expert Francoise Jane Hampson consisting of charts of reservations made by various countries to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, including the First Optional Protocol; the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women; The Convention against Torture; and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
FRANCOISE JANE HAMPSON, Sub-Commission Expert, presenting her expanded working paper on reservations to human rights treaties, said the progress report was a document that contained an annex of charts of all the reservations to human rights treaties. The background to her work was the reluctance of the Commission on Human Rights for the Sub-Commission to deal with this topic as it feared duplication of work with the International Law Commission. Ms. Hampson stressed that the International Law Commission's work on reservation to treaties concerned all treaties, whereas her working paper was concerned with human rights. Whilst the Sub-Commission had been in session, the International Law Commission had authorized its Rapporteur to approach other people, including Ms. Hampson herself. She hoped that her future work and the link to the International Law Commission would be elucidated next year.

Statements on Specific Human Rights Issues
PHILIPPE LEBLANC, of the Dominicans for Justice and Peace, speaking on behalf of Franciscans International, raised the impact of sanctions on women and children. Their concern extended further to the use of depleted uranium and other instruments of war and their harmful and destructive consequences on vulnerable groups. Their stance on these issues was a humanitarian, ethical and moral one which stemmed from their grave concern about the devastation brought upon the lives of millions of women and children worldwide and because of the gross and ongoing violations of their fundamental rights and freedoms.
In this connection, the organizations raised the human rights violations of Iraqi children as a result of the sanctions against the country as a prime example. Most of the deaths in Iraq as a direct result of the sanctions were infants and children. None of these children had even been born at the time of the Gulf War. Added to this violation of human rights, there was the existence of depleted uranium and its affect on the health of the people of Iraq. Depleted uranium had first been used on a wide scale during the Gulf war. The Organization had a longstanding concern for the people of Iraq and had on-the-ground experience in Iraq. The situation was not acceptable, the population of Iraq - particularly women and children - was suffering the atrocious effects. Human rights were violated by the sanctions and the effects of the use of depleted uranium.
NASSIM MADJZOUB, of Zonta International, speaking on behalf of the International Federation of University Women, the International Council of Women, and the International Council of Jewish Women, said women's rights to equal opportunity, treatment and respect for their dignity were neither a luxury nor a favour but basic to the process of democratization and social justice. They were equally an economic imperative. Research indicated that one-third of the world's households were headed by women; neglect of women's access to lifelong education and training and to productive assets and credit not only deprived such families of income but also reduced the skill level of the nation's resources. No society could call itself fully democratic if legislation and entrenched customs prevented women from full participation in Government and society and if children grew up thinking that giving privileges to some and limiting the rights of others was permissible.
The limited access of women to decision-making also hindered the development of effective political, economic, and financial policies. Human-centred development depended on qualities traditionally perceived as "feminine", such as caring, nurturing and protecting. And many in the Sub-Commission knew that the peace movement in recent history could be traced back to women. The first Nobel Peace Prize, in fact, was awarded to a woman.
ALESSANDRA AULA, of Franciscans International, speaking on behalf of Caritas Internationalis and the International Confederation of Catholic Charities, said that slavery was an unacceptable crime against humanity and a flagrant violation of human rights. The practise of trafficking persons across borders for sexual exploitation was also deplorable. Such trafficked persons were the victims of poverty, unemployment, and the destruction of traditional life styles. Trafficking in humans was a very lucrative business and had become one of the main branches of organized transnational crime. All States should work for the universal ratification and the implementation of the provisions of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child concerning the sale of children. The Sub-Commission should call on all States to state that trafficking in human beings is a fundamental violation of human rights which should be punished.
JONATHAN SISSON, of International Fellowship of Reconciliation, speaking on behalf of Japan Fellowship of Reconciliation, said impunity for sexual violence during armed conflicts continued to be an obstacle to the protection of women's rights. There was continuing impunity related to military sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II, and the Japanese Government had neglected its obligation to investigate and sanction those responsible for these massive human rights violations. Encouragingly, this de facto impunity had been challenged by civil and political groups within Japan itself -- an international tribunal sponsored by non-governmental organizations had met in Tokyo and had ruled that the wartime system of sexual slavery did, in fact, constitute a crime against humanity; and a bill providing for state compensation of some of the women survivors had been introduced in the Japanese Diet on behalf of three major opposition parties.
The greatest shame of the post-war Government in Japan lay not in the wrong doings themselves but in the failure to fully come to terms with moral and legal obligations in this regard.
DAVID LITTMAN of the Association for World Education, drew the attention of the Sub-Commission to 'suicide bombings' as contained in the organization's 'Urgent Appeal' to the High Commissioner of 26 June, in the context of terrorism and human rights. In it, the Association explained why these inexact terms must be replaced by a more precise designation based on the avowed motivation of the terrorists themselves. This was 'jihadist bombers' and 'jihadist bombings'.
Concerning another crime against humanity - traditional slavery - the Association questioned which country on any continent had suffered such a hellish tragedy as a 20-year civil war during which over 2 million people had died and about 4.5 million had been displaced? Which African regime had declared a jihad-war many times over against its own population? Which country had been condemned by the Commission on Human Rights for condoning slavery and slavery-like practices and continued to be an accomplice to this crime against humanity? The enslavement of women and children - euphemistically called 'abduction' here and there - continued unabated in Southern Sudan. Yet slavery and slavery-like practices had been fully documented by successive Special Rapporteurs, the media and non-governmental organizations for over a decade. The Sub-Commission was called upon to respond to the overwhelming evidence on the subject.



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