II European Union
| Published date | 01 March 2001 |
| Date | 01 March 2001 |
| DOI | 10.1177/092405190101900106 |
| Author | Mielle Bulterman |
| Subject Matter | Article |
NQHR 112001
Optional Protocol to CEDA W
On 22 September 2000 the tenth ratification
of
the Optional Protocol to the CEDAW was
deposited. Accordingly, it entered into force on 22 December 2000.
Special session
of
the Commission on Human Rights
At the request
of
the Council of Arab Permanent Representatives and the Members of the
League
of
Arab States, Algeria requested that a special session
of
the Commission on
Human Rights be convened 'to discuss the grave and massive violations of the human
rights
of
the Palestinian people by the Israeli occupying power'.13 The session took place
from 17-19 October 2000 in Geneva. The resolution that was adopted strongly condenmed
'the disproportionate and indiscriminate use of force in violation
of
international
humanitarian law', and called upon Israel to put an immediate end to any use of force. It
was decided to establish, on an urgent basis, a human rights inquiry commission. Further,
the High Commissioner for Human Rights was requested to undertake an urgent visit to
the occupied Palestinian territories to take stock
of
the violations
of
the human rights of
the Palestinian people. A number of special rapporteurs and working groups
of
the
Commission of Human Rights were requested to carry out immediate missions to the
occupied Palestinian territories and to report the findings to the Commission, and, on an
interim basis, to the General Assembly."
II EUROPEAN UNION
Mielle Bulterman
A. EU
Charter
of
Fundamental
Rights
On 7 December 2000, the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights was formally proclaimed in
Nice, by means of its signature by the presidents of the European Parliament, the European
Commission, and the European Council I. During the informal Council
of
Biarritz (October
2000), the European Council had already approved the text
of
the draft EU Charter as
presented by the 'convention' in October 2000. However, it is still unclear what the status
of
the EU Charter will be (political declaration or legally binding text). According to the
Conclusions of the Presidency of the Nice European Council, the question as to the status
of the Charter 'will be considered later'. It is in itself to be regretted that the Member
States failed to reach agreement on the status
of
the Charter. The fact that no time-table is
given on when a decision will be taken on the status
of
the EU Charter is even more
disturbing. One
of
the aims
of
the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is to enhance the
visibility of the fundamental rights binding at EU level. This aim will not be attained as
long as the status
of
the EU Charter is not decided upon. As long as the status of the EU
Charter is unclear, its meaning will be object of discussion. For instance, while British
ministers emphasise that the EU Charter is - and will be - nothing more than a political
declaration, French and German authorities clearly see the promulgation
of
the EU Charter
as a first step towards a legally binding human rights document.
.3
14
92
Letter dated 3 October 2000 from the Permanent Representative
of
Algeria to the United Nations Office
at Geneva, addressed to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
E/CN.4/RES/S-5/1, Grave and massive violations
of
the human rights
of
the Palestinian people by Israel.
Adopted on 19 October 2000, by a roll-call vote of 19 votes to 16, with 17 abstentions.
For the text
of
the EU Charter see http://ue.eu.int/df/default.asp?lang=en)
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