Book Review: Covenant on Civil and Political Rights – CCPR Commentary
| DOI | 10.1177/016934419401200313 |
| Date | 01 September 1994 |
| Published date | 01 September 1994 |
| Subject Matter | Part D: DocumentationBook Review |
NQHR 3
/1994
undeniable progress in the field of economic and social rights. In many countries changes
in the economic position of the people has set the stage for more far-reaching
developments in the political field.
If
the same happens in Indonesia, Nasution's book is
not unlikely to become an influential guide for constitutional change in that country.
Manfred Nowak, U.N. Covenant on Civil and Political Rights -CCPR Commentary
N.P. Engel Publisher, KehllStrasbourg/Arlington 1993, xxviii +947 pp.
ISBN 3-88357-107-'1
The English edition of Manfred Nowak's standard work on the Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights (CCPR) was published in a period in which the interest for this treaty is
distinctly increasing , in Europe as well as in other parts of the world. This is due to, inter
alia, the large number of recent ratifications and accessions . The CCPR has become a
genuine global treaty , it has 125 States parties of which 76 are also parties to the First
Optional Protocol. At the same time the case-law of the Human Rights Committee is
expanding, as well as gaining respect in the international community. It is appropriate that
there finally is a book which dedicates this subject the attention it deserves . Nowak deals
with the Covenant , including the First (on the individual complaint procedure) and Second
(aimed at the abolition of the death penalty) Optional Protocols on an article-by-article
basis, which makes the information easily accessible. In dealing with an article , first its
text is included , in English as well as in French ; followed by an overview of its drafting
history and its general significance. Next , the author deals with the relevant case-law and
literature on the basis of topics.
If
applicable, a comparison is made with provisions of
other international instruments.
The book contains a large amount of useful appendices , including: the text of the
CCPR and the Protocols; text of reservations and declarations made upon ratification or
accession (as well as an index to these by article); the Human Rights Committee 's rules
of procedure; important Committee decisions; the general comments adopted on the basis
of Article 40 , paragraph 4, CCPR; the guidelines for reporting; a table of ratifications;
a table of documents relating to the reporting procedure; a table of individual
communications dealt with by the Committee (including communication number , name
of the plaintiff, state concerned, reference to sources); a table of the membership of the
Committee; a table of documents relating to the CCPR; a model complaint form and a
bibliography.
This book's great value is in its completeness and in the fact that it has made the
material so easily accessible, it is a handbook in the real sense of the word .
Dominic McGoldrick, The Human Rights Committee -Its Role in the Development
of
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Clarendon Press, Oxford
1994, lxvi +576 pp., ISBN 0-19-825278-1, ISBN 0-19-825894-1 (paperback edition)"
This book deals with the Human Rights Committee's activities under the Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights (CCPR) and the First Optional Protocol thereto . Unlike most
others, the author does not only deal with the Committee's case-law under the individual
complaints procedure , he also studies the issues which were raised within the framework
Ineke Boerefijn, researcher at SIM, Utrecht Univer sity
356
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