PLACE DU PETIT-SACONNEX
1211 GENEVA 19 SWITZERLAND
| INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION PLACE DU PETIT-SACONNEX 1211 GENEVA 19 SWITZERLAND |
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Press release of the Inter-Parliamentary Union
An appeal for the release of Mr Vincent Cochetel , a delegate of the High Commissioner for Refugees taken hostage in Chechnya six months ago, was launched from the rostrum of the 100th Inter-Parliamentary Conference by the leader of the French delegation. Mr Yves Tavernier asked the President of the Conference Guennady Seleznev to ensure that every endeavour was made to secure the release of the HCR delegate. Mr Seleznev said that in consultation with the State security services he would strive for a rapid solution to the situation and promised to bring all his influence to bear. The French parliamentarian's appeal is directly linked to the issue of the safety of humanitarian personnel in the field, contained in the resolution on “ Strong action by national parliaments in the year of the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (...)”, on which the bulk of the Conference's work focused. The resolution calls on States to "sign and ratify the Convention on the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel of 9 December 1997". The resolution was adopted without a vote, with a few reservations from the delegations of China, Sudan and the Syrian Arab Republic concerning the "early signature and ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court - adopted in Rome on 17 July 1998 - by all States which have not already done so ”. Korea and the Syrian Arab Republic expressed reservations about paragraph 5 iv) concerning the production, use and stockpiling of landmines; and the Syrian Arab Republic expressed reservations about the provisions on the elimination of the practice of torture. The resolution addresses a number of major issues: “ Considering that the international community must go beyond merely reviewing the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights or calling for the respect of the principles enshrined in it, and acknowledging that human rights, democracy, development and peace are interrelated and interdependent ”, the 100th Conference also refers in this resolution to the fact that “ extreme poverty prevents the full exercise of human rights ” and reaffirms “ the great importance of the right to development as an integral part of basic human rights for developing countries ”. The resolution expresses parliamentarians' concern at “ the situation of indigenous peoples whose cultural identity is fading away as a result of the policy of resettlement and assimilation pursued by some States ”. It also asserts that “ the rights of parliamentarians must be protected to enable them to protect and promote human rights and fundamental freedoms in their respective countries ”. The 100th Conference also calls on “ all parliaments and their members to ensure that parliamentarians have the right to visit prisons and re-education centres at any time in order to investigate the human rights situation there ; to work actively to ban the production, use and stockpiling of landmines ; to urge governments to adhere to international instruments aimed at securing refugee protection principles and the protection of the victims of armed conflict ; and to take measures to prevent the recruitment of children as soldiers ”. Paragraph 8 of the resolution highlights the question of gender equality, calling on governments to ensure that women have “ effective and equal participation in public life ”. Paragraph 9 asks governments and parliaments to “ ensure the universal adoption and ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women ” and to “ enact and enforce laws on the prevention and elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls, including trafficking in women and girls, rape and genital mutilation ”. Lastly, the resolution asks States and the world community to ensure that women and girls have access to education and to ensure access to drinking water so as to reduce the unproductive tasks performed by women. On Monday 7 September at its first sitting, the Conference decided to add a supplementary item to its agenda, entitled “ Action to combat the consumption and illicit trafficking of drugs and organised crime ”. In the resolution adopted on Friday to reduce drug demand, the 100th Conference “ recommends the development of drug control strategies to reduce demand through education, prevention, treatment, public awareness and community anti-drug coalitions and campaigns ” and recommends that States, governments and international organisations, "provide the human, technical and financial resources needed to combat the supply and demand of illicit drugs, and offer treatment and rehabilitation to addicts to facilitate their social reintegration ”. The 100th Conference also addressed the issue of water. The resolution on this item notes that “ the pollution of global water resources and the deterioration in their quality have continued unabated for years and water consumption has increased, leading to water shortages ”. “ Still today, more than one-fifth of the world population has no access to safe drinking water ”. The 100th Conference recommends that governments and parliaments “ implement globally valid minimum standards for basic supplies of potable water and water-related sanitation services ”.
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