What are general comments by the Human Rights Committee?
A general comment is a treaty body’s interpretation of human rights treaty provisions, thematic issues or its methods of work. General comments often seek to clarify the reporting duties of State parties with respect to certain provisions and suggest approaches to implementing treaty provisions.
What is a general comment?
General Comments clarify the content of the rights set out in the treaty in question, sometimes outline potential violations of those rights and offer advice to states parties on how best to comply with their obligations under the human rights treaty.
What is the purpose of Human Rights Committee?
The Human Rights Committee is the body of independent experts that monitors implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by its State parties. All States parties are obliged to submit regular reports to the Committee on how the rights are being implemented.
How do you reference UN General Comment?
Cite a General Comment from the Human Rights Committee General form: Treaty Body abbreviation, title and number of comment, Session, date of adoption, UN document number, online: . Example: UNHRC, General Comment No.
Are General Comments binding?
2.3. It is commonly acknowledged that General Comments are not legally binding. The views expressed by governments and judges bear this out, with both groups stating that General Comments are important and expert pronouncements on Covenant issues, but not legally binding.
What is the general comment 36?
On 30 October 2018, the UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) finally adopted the long-awaited General Comment no. GC 36, which replaces GC 6 (1982) and GC 14 (1984), is an impressively long and thorough document, which provides a detailed account of how the HRC interprets the many facets of the right to life.
What are concluding observations?
Concluding Observation Concluding observations refer both to positive aspects of a State’s implementation of the treaty and areas where the treaty body recommends that further action needs to be taken by the State.
Are Human Rights Committee decisions binding?
As Attorney-General Lavarch had stated in Parliament in 1994: The Human Rights Committee is not a court. It does not make binding decisions. It has no power of enforcement.
What power does the Human Rights Committee have?
The Human Rights Committee is the United Nations human rights treaty body responsible for overseeing implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) through its consideration of State reports, individual complaints, and inter-State complaints, and its preparation of general comments.
How do you cite UN General Comments Bluebook?
3): According to the Bluebook, when citing reports from UN committees the citation should include the name of the body and the subcommittee, if any, the title of the report, the document symbol, and the date. Many reports of major bodies of the General Assembly are printed as supplements to the Official Records. 4.
Are general comments authoritative?
Their highly authoritative character based on the provisions of the Convention is recognized in International law in Article 31 of the 1965 Vienna Convention on Law of Treaties, stipulating that treaties need continuous contextual interpretation. …
Are General Comments legislation?
It is commonly acknowledged that General Comments are not legally binding. These norms can also assist legislators who are trying to draft laws in compliance with the Covenant.