Racial Discrimination Convention – CERD report (excerpts)

Report of the

Committee on the Elimination

of Racial Discrimination

General Assembly

Official Records  Fifty-third Session

Supplement No. 18 (A/53/18)

Letter of transmittal

21 August 1998

Sir,

In recent years, the Chairman of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, when submitting to you the annual reports of the Committee, has regularly stressed the importance of international action to prevent escalation of ethnic and racial conflicts.  The events of the past year lead me, once again, to draw to your attention the value of preventive action before tensions are transformed into armed conflicts.  Chapter II of this report contains an account of our contribution to the preventive process.

Chapter I shows that, as a result of the 1998 election, the Committee no longer includes any members who are nationals of States in sub-Saharan Africa.  It is to be hoped that you will draw the attention of States to article 8, paragraph 1, of the Convention, which stipulates that consideration should be given to equitable geographical distribution.

In the present report, the Committee has indicated its views that it should meet periodically at United Nations Headquarters in New York, in accordance with article 10, paragraph 4, of the Convention.  A significant number of States parties to the Convention, virtually all from developing countries, lack diplomatic representation in Geneva but have permanent missions in New York.  Our experience has demonstrated that many of these States are frequently unable to send representatives to Geneva to present reports submitted to the Committee.  Chapter I contains a decision recommending the convening of periodic meetings in New York, and another decision recommending that the duration of one of our annual sessions be extended.

Chapter III sets out the Committees observations on the reports of 21 States and our reviews of the implementation of the Convention in States whose reports are seriously overdue.  Chapter V, on Non-Self-Governing Territories, takes up a responsibility of the Committee which we have not been able to discharge so effectively since all our sessions were transferred to Geneva in 1987.

In chapter VIII, the Committee has indicated its initial suggestions for the agenda for the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, as well as ideas the World Conference may take into consideration in any declaration and programme of action it may decide to adopt.

Article 10 of the Convention states, in paragraph 3, that the secretariat of the Committee shall be provided by the Secretary-General of the United Nations.  Your predecessors provided an adequate secretariat.  This is no longer the case.  Our workload increases, but the resources for assisting our work decline.  We are able to discharge our obligations only because outside parties fund the employment of additional personnel.  This situation is unfavourable to the effective performance of our work.

Accept, Sir, the assurances of my highest consideration.

(Signed)  Mahmoud Aboul-Nasr           

Chairman                     

Committee on the Elimination

of Racial Discrimination     

His Excellency Mr. Kofi Annan

Secretary­General of the United Nations

New York

Chapter I

Organizational and related matters

A.  States parties to the International Convention on the

    Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination

1. As at 21 August 1998, the closing date of the fifty-third session of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, there were 150 States parties to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, which was adopted by the General Assembly in resolution 2106 A (XX) of 21 December 1965 and opened for signature and ratification in New York on 7 March 1966.  The Convention entered into force on 4 January 1969 in accordance with the provisions of its article 19.

2. By the closing date of the fifty-third session, 25 of the 150 States parties to the Convention had made the declaration envisaged in article 14, paragraph 1, of the Convention.  Article 14 of the Convention entered into force on 3 December 1982, following the deposit with the Secretary-General of the tenth declaration recognizing the competence of the Committee to receive and consider communications from individuals or groups of individuals who claim to be victims of a violation by the State party concerned of any of the rights set forth in the Convention.  Lists of States parties to the Convention and of those that have made the declaration under article 14 are contained in annex I to the present report, as is a list of the 24 States parties that have accepted the amendments to the Convention adopted at the Fourteenth Meeting of States Parties, as at 21 August 1998.

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Chapter III

Consideration of reports, comments and information submitted

by States parties under article 9 of the Convention

23. At its fifty­second and fifty­third sessions, the Committee considered reports, comments and information from 23 States parties under article 9 of the Convention.  Country rapporteurs are listed in annex V.

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Israel

68. The Committee considered the combined seventh, eighth and ninth periodic reports of Israel (CERD/C/294/Add.1) at its 1250th and 1251st meetings, on 4 and 5 March 1998, and, at its 1272nd meeting, on 19 March 1998, adopted the following concluding observations.

A.  Introduction

69. The Committee welcomes the submission of the report but regrets that it does not follow the Committees reporting guidelines.

70. The Committee regrets that the dialogue between its members and representatives of the State party was not always of a constructive nature.  It nevertheless welcomes the replies of the delegation to some of the Committees questions and their expression of willingness to contribute to a dialogue.

71. The Committee concludes that the Convention is far from fully implemented in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, and that the shortfall contributes very significantly to the dangerous escalation of tension in the region.

72. The Committee notes with regret the stalemate in the peace process in the region.

73. It takes note of the establishment of the Palestinian Authority which has certain responsibilities in parts of the occupied Palestinian territory.

B.  Positive aspects

74. The measures taken by the State party to prohibit the activities of racist political parties such as Kahana (Kach) are welcomed.

75. The amendment of the Equal Opportunity in Employment Law, prohibiting discrimination in the labour sphere on the grounds of national ethnic origin, country of origin, beliefs, political views, political party, affiliation or age, is welcomed, as is the revision of the National Insurance Law.

76. The Government's efforts to reduce and eventually eradicate the economic and educational gap between the Jewish majority and the Arab minority are commended.

C.  The Occupied Palestinian Territory

77. The Committee reiterates its view that the Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory are not only illegal under contemporary international law but are an obstacle to peace and to the enjoyment of human rights by the whole population in the region, without distinction as to national or ethnic origin.  Actions that change the demographic composition of the occupied Palestinian territory evoke concern as violations of contemporary international humanitarian law.

78. Accordingly, the Committee calls for a halt to the demolition of Arab properties in East Jerusalem and for respect for property rights irrespective of the ethnic origin of the owner.

79. The Committee reiterates its opinion of 1991 that the report of Israel should encompass the entire population under the jurisdiction of the Government of Israel (A/46/18, para. 368).  Israel is accountable for the implementation of the Convention, including the reporting obligation, in all areas over which it exercises effective control.

D.  Concerns and recommendations

80. With respect to articles 1 and 6 of the Convention, the Committee requests the State party to supply it with details of court decisions or other authoritative sources which make a distinction between inequality of treatment on the grounds of race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin and inequality of treatment on other grounds such as those related to public security.

81. The Committee recommends that the State party extend its legislation against the promotion of racial hatred by completing its implementation of the requirements of article 4 of the Convention.  The Committee has earlier held that when anyone makes threats in public against the security of persons of another ethnic origin, criminal proceedings must be initiated with due diligence and expedition.  The State party should give this priority attention.

82. The Committee concludes that comprehensive legislation and accompanying measures of implementation will need to be introduced for the State party to meet all the requirements of article 5 of the Convention.

83. The Committee expresses its profound concern that detained persons of Arab ethnic origin are disproportionately subjected to inhuman and degrading interrogation under the Landau Commission rules and that the Supreme Court has failed to declare this illegal.

84. The Committee recommends that the State party reinforce its efforts to reduce the persisting gap between the living standards and the involvement in national affairs of the Jewish majority and the Arab minority, and that it does this in a manner consistent with the measures adopted for assisting the integration of Ethiopian Jews.  The Committee encourages the State party to adopt new labour legislation in order to secure the protection against ethnic discrimination of the rights of Palestinians working in Israel on a daily basis; the rights of migrant workers, including undocumented workers, are also a matter of concern.

85. The right of many Palestinians to return and possess their homes in Israel is currently denied.  The State party should give high priority to remedying this situation.  Those who cannot repossess their homes should be entitled to compensation.

86. While noting the special budget for public housing in the Arab sector, the Committee remains concerned about ethnic inequalities, particularly those centring upon what are known as unrecognized Arab villages.

87. While recognizing the great diversity of opinion within the Israeli public, and the Governments actions to implement article 7 of the Convention, the Committee expresses concern about the findings of social surveys which report that very many Jewish young people believe that Arab citizens should not be accorded equal rights.

88. The Committee hopes to find in the next periodic report a comprehensive statement of the Governments vision of the future of its Arab, Bedouin and Druse citizens, together with an indication of how its objectives are to be attained and a review of the effectiveness of its measures to combat discrimination.  Any statistics should show whether governmental expenditure and service provision are proportionate to the size of the different ethnic groups.

89. In order to be able to evaluate the implementation of article 6 of the Convention, the Committee requests the State party to present information on the number of complaints, judgements and compensation awards arising from racist acts, regardless of their nature.  At the same time, the Committee would like to have any other information, from whatever reliable source, about any inequalities suggestive of discrimination in the administration of criminal justice.

90. Since time did not permit a full exchange of views on many of the issues raised by members at the fifty-second session, the Committee requests the State party to reflect further on the remaining issues and to furnish additional information on these matters in the next report.

91. The tenth periodic report of Israel was due on 2 February 1998.  In accordance with article 9 of the Convention, the Committee will expect the submission of a combined tenth and eleventh periodic report by 2 February 2000.  The report should be a comprehensive one, follow the reporting guidelines and take account of the Committee's general recommendations.

92. The Committee recommends that the State party ratify the amendments to article 8, paragraph 6, of the Convention, adopted on 15 January 1992 at the Fourteenth Meeting of States Parties.

93. It is also noted that the State party has not made the declaration provided for in article 14 of the Convention, and some members of the Committee request that the possibility of making the declaration be considered.

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