SUBCOMMISSION EXPERTS DISCUSS QUESTION OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF CRIMES UNDER COLONIALISM, SLAVE TRADE

Subcommission on the Promotion
and Protection of Human Rights
53rd session
2 August 2001
Morning



The Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights continued debate this morning under its agenda item on the "question of the violation of human rights and fundamental freedoms. . . in all countries", hearing from a series of its Experts on the idea of acknowledgement or reparations for crimes committed under colonialism and the slave trade.

The subject was first broached Wednesday afternoon when Subcommission Expert El-Hadji Guisse remarked that a Preparatory Committee for the upcoming World Conference against Racism was under way across the hall and reportedly unable to reach consensus on whether or not the summit, scheduled for early September in Durban, South Africa, should address these topics. Subcommission members suggested Wednesday that they would table a resolution supporting at least acknowledgement by colonial powers and former slave-holding States that serious wrongs had occurred. It also was suggested that reparations or compensation might be made in various ways.

Expert Rajendra Kalidas Wikmala Goonesekere said there was a considerable amount of emotion on the issue, and emotion and urgency were not the best way to deal with such matters. It would be necessary to frame the issue fairly and decide what was just, he said -- slavery was to be found today in various parts of the world, for example, yet nobody was talking about reparations for it. He contended that slavery reparations, if made, should encompass all forms of slavery.

Expert Fried van Hoof said a proposal voiced Wednesday that debt relief offered by former colonial powers might be a way of making amends was worth considering as a way of linking past offenses with present actions. He added that he thought the Subcommission should signal its concerns to those who were preparing for the Durban World Conference, but that the Subcommission should suggest something precise that would benefit individual people and not States.

Expert Leila Zerrougui contended that former colonial powers would have to recognize their responsibility and to say so at the Durban Conference --- the countries that had been colonized were so run down socially and economically that some acknowledgement had to be made. There could be no fighting racism and no fighting impunity without looking at these wounds.
(more)
Experts also discussed the question of human-rights violations in various countries and territories, including occupied Palestine, northern Cyprus, Iraq (as a result of the international economic embargo imposed against the country), China, the United States, Togo, Kashmir, and Sri Lanka.

Among those addressing the morning session were Subcommission Experts or Alternates Halima Embarek Warzazi, Erica-Irene A. Daes, Asbjorn Eide, Stanislav Ogurtsov, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, Fan Guoxiang, and Miguel Alfonso Martinez.

Representatives of Egypt and Turkey spoke in exercise of the right of reply.

The Subcommission will reconvene in plenary at 10 a.m. on Friday, 3 August, its afternoon meeting today being given over to a sessional working group on economic, social and cultural rights.

Statements

RAJENDRA KALIDAS WIMALA GOONESEKERE, Subcommission Expert, said there was a considerable amount of emotion on the issue discussed yesterday about slavery and colonialization. Emotion and urgency was not the best way to deal with such an important issue. In the early sixteenth century, the Portuguese came and conquered Sri Lanka. After 100 years, the Dutch displaced them, persecuted the Catholics who had come into being under the Portuguese, and established the Dutch Reform Church. After another 100 years, the British came, and established the Anglican Church. Now, should there be reparations for all of these events? One could certainly see some clear and definite consequences of colonialism -- the exploitation of the minerals of the land, for example. There was also the question of bringing into the country various benefits -- technological and education practices, among others.

Corruption was brought into these countries. There was always talk about how corrupt local leaders were, but that was only half the story. Colonial powers tempted the leaders. In Nigeria, during the oil boom, oil companies came there and offered all these benefits -- construction of superhighways, for example. And the contracts always included something for the overseeing agent. Who was to blame -- the person tempting, or the one being tempted. In Nigeria, there was a beautiful highway, but on the sides of the roads, in the bush, people were walking, carrying their goods.

There was historical evidence that slavery was an accepted practice at certain times. Slavery practices did not end just with the colonial powers -- it was to be found today in various parts of the world. Nobody was talking about reparations for the slavery that was still going on. Slavery reparations should encompass all forms of slavery.

FRIED VAN HOOF, Subcommission Expert, said past wrongdoings and present consequences were an interesting matter, and the difficulties of restitution and compensation were complex. The proposal voiced yesterday that debt relief might be a way of making amends was worth considering as a way of linking past offenses with present actions; he also agreed that the Subcommission should signal its concerns to those who were preparing for the Durban World Conference, but he thought what the Subcommission should be precise and specific and reparations should be made to the benefit of individual people and not States, because it was of course individuals who were the bearers of human rights.

He had been somewhat alarmed that this discussion had begun yesterday when the list of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) ready to speak on the agenda item had been exhausted, Mr. Van Hoof said; it was surprising there were not more NGOs involved in the discussion, especially considering previous years' debate under agenda item 2. Apparently the changes ordered in the way the Subcommission dealt with item 2 were changing outside perceptions of the Subcommission's relevance in addressing situations in specific countries, and that was a cause of concern that perhaps should be noted by the Commission on Human Rights.

He agreed with Ms. Hampson's statement yesterday that the recent Israeli assassinations in Palestine would only lead to greater violations of human rights in that conflict, Mr. Van Hoof said; and agreed with her opinions about the abysmal conditions of detention in some countries.

HALIMA EMBAREK WARZAZI, Subcommission Expert, said to speak of the violation of human rights meant to recall the intolerable situation in the occupied territory of Palestine. What was seen was people armed with only rocks and courage, standing up to people with guns and sophisticated weaponry. The Israeli army had been acting with full impunity. How could this still continue? Where were the voices demanding a stop to the crimes? The veto being used in the Security Council was against the spirit of the United Nations Charter. How could it be said that those who favoured human rights had any credibility when they closed their eyes to this behaviour? All violations should be denounced. In most cases, there was agreement with the allegations of the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) about the developing countries. But there should also be criticisms of the Western world. These governments had set a task for themselves to set a model for democracy, which was the only model they would recognize.

Human rights violations were countless in the new globalized war. So many women were in prostitution, and children were exposed to paedophiles. Migrant workers and immigrants suffered, and there was no recourse available to them. Racism was a serious problem. The football association, FIFA, had organized a conference to make people aware of racism in football. A study carried out showed that many French people were oblivious to the problem of racism. In many countries, very serious instances of racism had taken place. A leader in Italy suggested building a 260-kilometre wall to separate Italy from Slovenia. The High Commissioner for Refugees had recently expressed deep concern over that issue. In the United States, racism and the mistreatment of minorities by police did not seem to bother the people who wrote reports on other countries.

There were massive violations of human rights in Iraq. The embargo had caused so many young people and other civilians to die. It led China and others to take a stand against it, as the sanctions were supposed to be against the regime and not the people. The uranium utilized was also causing disasters. The oil-for-food programme was being blocked on several fronts. Vaccinations were being blocked, and various contracts had been suspended that totalled over $3 billion.

ERICA-IRENE A. DAES, Subcommission Expert, said that for 27 years the human rights and fundamental freedoms of Cypriots had been violated by successive Turkish Governments in close cooperation with the illegal regime of the Turkish-Cypriot community of the occupied northern region of Cyprus. The European Court of Human Rights had found in a judgement of 10 May by a vote of 16 to 1 -- the lone negative vote coming from a Turkish judge -- that Turkey was responsible in occupied Cyprus for 14 violations of the European Convention of Human Rights related to such matters as missing persons; refusal to allow the return of displaced persons; failure to provide Greek Cypriots with remedies to contest interferences with their rights; restriction of freedom of movement; censorship of school books; and discrimination against Greek Cypriots living in the Karpas area. The Court also found that the rights of Turkish Cypriots living in northern Cyprus had been violated among other things through the Turkish practice of trying civilians by military courts.

Illegal settlers in northern Cyprus now outnumbered Turkish Cypriots in the occupied area of Cyprus, Mrs. Daes said. It was Turkey's policy to change the island's demography. Some 200,000 Greek Cypriots had been forced to leave their homes and lands and had never been allowed to return. The religious and cultural heritage of Greek Cypriots in the occupied northern territory had been systematically destroyed or plundered.

The parameters of a solution to the Cyprus problem had been clearly and repeatedly codified in a number of United Nations resolutions, Mrs. Daes said. Such a just solution would restore the territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus and also respect for the human rights of all Cypriots.

LEILA ZERROUGUI, Subcommittee Expert, said in less than a month, the World Conference against Racism would take place in Durban. The international community would look at the causes of racism, xenophobia and intolerance. The victims of these practices, and those who defended them were expecting specific measures to combat this plague. In order to reach a degree of consensus on the Declaration and Programme of Action, compromise would be needed. The former colonial powers would have to recognize their responsibility. The countries that were colonized were so run down socially and economically. There could be no fighting racism and impunity without looking at these wounds. This debate showed the Subcommission's usefulness. For 50 years, the Palestinian people had been suffering violations of their most basic rights. The High Commissioner for Human Rights said she did not want the World Conference to just be a talking shop. But if these situations were not talked about, then the international community would be missing the boat. It was hoped that the World Conference would overcome the difficulties that it was facing in the preparatory phase.

ASBJORN EIDE, Subcommission Expert, said he was concerned about matters of capital punishment and the administration of justice in two countries. In China, with its "strike hard" policy, there seemed to be an escalating number of executions, and without sufficient regard for fair-trial safeguards. In the United States, the number of executions had increased, and the United States was practically the only country that executed those who had committed crimes when under age 18. In addition, there appeared to be a racial bias in justice in the United States -- the percentage of blacks in prison was much higher than in the population at large -- and racist behaviour among American police officers seemed to be a problem. He hoped these matters would be addressed at the Durban Conference.

In Europe, Mr. Eide said, he was concerned about the increasing numbers of aliens in detention and prison. While there might be some legitimate reason for that, he feared that the growing incarceration of aliens reflected an overall bias on the part of police against aliens and a lack of fairness in the administration of justice.

STANISLAV OGURTSOV, Subcommission Expert, said it was regrettable that human rights violations were taking new, more cruel forms. There were flagrant violations of human rights in certain conflicts. Many people were awaiting greater assistance from the international community -- they wanted more than words. They wanted to break the cycle of violence. There were more than one billion people who did not have the means to eat. More than 250 million children had to work. So many people lived in abject poverty and misery. They could not realize their basic rights. HIV/AIDS had claimed millions of victims, and millions of children had been orphaned. Discrimination was a basic factor in the world today. Rules could be changed, but it did not work fast enough. Inequality continued to spread throughout the world. Equal chance of employment, equity of pay -- these issues were given plenty of lip service, but they were not applied. There was also the question of the administration of justice. Too often principles of justice were not respected. The respect for these rights should be absolute. In many countries, the judiciary was under the political powers. The fight to ensure more transparency, to ensure the freedom of opinion and freedom of association, was necessary.

In many countries, there were limitations on the activities of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and limitations on the activities of women. In many countries, journalists, trying to tell the truth, had been arrested, detained, beaten up, killed, or had disappeared. People wanted to live without fear. In the past year, there were millions of refugees because of internal conflicts -- which had claimed over five million lives in the last few years. In many countries, people were being held without trial. Often, the police and the army was used to fight against people trying to make changes. With globalization, there was increasing poverty and increasing inequalities.

Slavery was a problem that was extremely complex because it included various aspects -- personal, social, economic and political. It begged the question of what angle the Subcommission should look at it from. The Subcommission must have dignity, and had to do its work in dignity.

PAULO SERGIO PINHEIRO, Subcommission Expert, said the Subcommission had in the past alerted the Commission on Human Rights on the situation in Togo, and an international commission of inquiry had been established with the cooperation of the Organization of African Unity. The results of the inquiry had been summarized, and he invited Subcommission Experts to read the relevant documents. He had been a member of the three-person inquiry team himself, and the investigation had been carried out according to international norms. There had been allegations that hundreds of bodies had been found in the sea just offshore of Togo, and the inquiry commission during its five-week mission found that a number of accounts substantiated those reports; however, there were widely divergent estimates of the number of bodies; nor could the commission confirm or deny allegations that the bodies had been dumped from aircraft used by the Togolese armed forces. The commission was convinced that creation of a Togo human-rights institution would improve international cooperation with Togolese authorities, and recommended that Special Rapporteurs on extrajudicial executions and related matters make regular visits to Togo.

Togo had established a national commission of inquiry which had published its findings, Mr. Pinheiro said. The Government, as an annex to the report, had surprised him by suggesting that Togo be considered under the Commission on Human Rights 1503 procedure. The situation in Togo continued to be under the scrutiny of the Commission on Human Rights, and perhaps at its next session the Commission would review matters there under its confidential procedure.

FAN GUOXIANG, Subcommission Expert, said massive violations of human rights originated both internally and internationally. Much had been said about domestic issues. More and sufficient attention should be paid to the international aspect, with a view to bringing about a full implementation of the promotion and protection of human rights. Before the twentieth century, history was about colonial empires which perpetrated in plundering, massacring indigenous people, slave trade, and the building up the primitive accumulation of wealth of the colonizers at the expense of basic human rights of the colonized population. In the present day world, violations of human rights had to be examined more extensively and should not to be limited to certain cases in specific countries. The right to peace and the right to development should not be viewed as personal rights of individuals. International peace and world sustainable development per se were indispensable to the effective realization of human rights.

The end of the Cold War had ushered in a new perspective for arms control and disarmament, which, in their turn, had offered a greater opportunity to the enjoyment of human rights, associated with peace and security. The new century could have announced more favourable circumstances to peace, development and human rights, had the conservative administration of a superpower not created one obstacle after another -- the Kyoto Protocol and the denial of post-Cold War arms control multilateral agreements, for example. In protecting human rights, there needed to be a protection of the principles of justice, equality and democracy, both within and among nations. The reason given by a superpower to reject the interests of the entire international community was simply the protection of its national interests and its commercial interests. Since it was rich and strong, it wished to be 100 per cent invulnerable militarily and economically, leaving the weak to be humiliated. The resurgence of "might is right" was not simply a strategic question of international relations, but also a challenge, both conceptual and factual, to the promotion and protection of human rights. The United Nations faced three major obstacles -- maintenance of international peace and security, sustainable economic development, and promotion and protection of human rights. Human rights, as important components of superstructure, relied heavily on peace and development -- the infrastructure. They were indivisible.

MIGUEL ALFONSO MARTINEZ, Subcommission Expert, said the debate had taken an interesting turn and had opened a range of possibilities for pursuit of the Subcommission's discussions under agenda item 2. The agenda item did mention colonialised countries, and in the past reference often had been made to problems caused by foreign domination and to the importance of self-determination. More recently increasing reference had been made to human rights as linked to development and trade matters, including trade blockades of the sort that now were being applied to some countries, including Cuba. Irredentism had to be linked to colonialism -- peoples were being deprived of the right to self-determination, not only by the original colonialists but by the subsequent cycles of revolt and insurrection they had been subject to. Colonialism had to be attacked wherever it occurred, including in occupied Palestine. The matter had to be addressed, had to be dealt with -- he was not sure how, as the Subcommission's resources were scarce.

The colonial phenomenon was not something in the past that should be looked at in terms of correcting the distortions that had been created. There were more than distortions -- whole countries had been divided up, after all, in such places as Africa. There also was the pervasive silence created by certain socio-political organizations of a neo-liberal character. Capitalism as it existed now cared nothing about social concerns but cared only about the bottom line. An awful distortion had resulted for the developing countries -- the more they paid, the more they owed.

If the process continued, Mr. Alfonso Martinez said, it was going to generate social explosions, although no one talked about it much; everyone ignored the fact that people without hope, without jobs, with less and less control over their lives, were fated to blow up sooner or later. The Subcommission should not ignore these matters in its new approach to item 2. It should deal with all violators of human rights; it should hold them all to account. The Subcommission must consider how to banish the lengthy shadow of colonialism, and must see it not only in terms of the past but of the present.

MR. PINHEIRO said he agreed with Mr. Alfonso Martinez that there needed to be a creative and imaginative approach to this agenda item. It was hoped that he would help with creative ideas on the situation in Palestine and in other situations.

MR. ALFONSO MARTINEZ said he had never defined himself as a lover of the double standard. The Subcommission's ingenuity should be extended to all cases. The question was how. In Ms. Hampson's statement yesterday there was food for thought; the facts of the past could not be judged by today's criteria, particularly those acts that were licit at the time they were perpetrated. But he had reservations about laws that led to historical impunity. Well, apartheid was legal at the time, too -- could it not be judged based on more just criteria. The matter had to be further discussed.

MR. EIDE said there had been thematic approaches in the Subcommission. The subject of reparation for slavery was discussed in depth. One of the serious problems was the situation of the Israelis and the Palestinians. Israel was created largely because of the atrocities which came out of World War II, which was largely created by Europeans. Israelis wanted a place to be safe, however, it had generated a new sense of conflict. At the moment, it seemed there was no exit and no light at the end of the tunnel. The issue of settlements had to be taken very seriously. The possibility of living in peace in the future had to wait until this issue could be addressed. The situation in Kashmir was another problem that had to be faced. It mixed religious extremism with over-reaction and too much violence being exercised. The right to self-determination had been used throughout the history of the United Nations. On the other hand, the concept of self-determination should be looked at through human rights law. Very often, self-determination was linked through exclusiveness, which was the cause of the problems in the former Yugoslavia, and was the current cause of the problems in Sri Lanka. Greater attention should be given to the issue of standards of humanity. That was a theme the Subcommission should give attention to in the future.


Rights of reply

A Representative of Egypt, speaking in right of reply, said there had been allegations by some non-governmental organizations about Egypt relating among other things to the arrest of Baha'i believers. The Egyptian Constitution guaranteed freedom of religion to all; however, that was different from illegal activities which involved attacks against Islam and the Government. It had been noted by the High Court that individuals had to take into account the rights of others when they were exercising their own rights; the Baha'is in question had not respected the rights of citizens of the Islamic religion, as those arrested by the police had been found in possession of documents harmful to Islam.

A Representative of Turkey, speaking in right of reply, said his written response would be distributed to the members of the Subcommission shortly.


CORRIGENDUM

In press release HR/SC/3 of 1 August, 2001, the statement by the International League for the Rights and Liberation of People on page 7 should read as follows:


JULEN ARZUAGA, of the International League for the Rights and Liberation of People, said Vieques, Puerto Rico had been used as a place of training by the United States, which had caused health and environmental problems. The continuing military practices had to stop, the Navy should evacuate and the land should be cleansed. The Governor had said the people had spoken clearly, 80 per cent of the 5,900 voters had supported these requests, and she would deliver the message to the President and the Congress of the United States. The Vieques citizens had little possibility of having their results respected. Puerto Rico was one of the areas where there was no movement toward decolonization. Puerto Ricans should be able to choose self-determination.

In the case of the Western Sahara, it was difficult to understand why the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity's plan to carry out the self-determination plan could be replaced by a new plan. This new plan only offered restricted autonomy. At this point, this situation became more tense, increasing the possibility of a return to war. Both of these circumstances reaffirmed the right to self-determination needed to be applied urgently.