Transnational Radical Party's position paper on the "Interdependence Between Democracy and Human Rights". Seminar of the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (Geneva 25-26 November 2002)

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25/11/2002 | Transnational Radical Party's position paper on the "Interdependence Between Democracy and Human Rights". Seminar of the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (Geneva 25-26 November 2002)

The Transnational Radical Party (TRP) notes the contribution made by the General Assembly by adopting almost every year one resolution on some aspects of democracy; and appreciates the work of the Commission on Human Rights, in particular, in establishing natural links between human rights and democracy, so as to evolve democracy as a human right. Although the word “democracy” per se is not to be found in the UN Charter, the latter contains fundamental principle of democracy; the will of the peoples. General Assembly’s landmark achievement in adopting Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights not only proclaims but provides legal basis of individuals’ participation in democracy process.
TRP also welcomes the adoption of the Commission on Human Rights Resolution 2001/41 on the “Continuing dialogue on measures to promote and consolidate democracy” adopted on 23 April 2001 and the decision to organize the “Seminar on the interdependence between democracy and Human Rights, and to submit the seminar’s report to the 2003 session of the Commission of Human Rights. TRP fully shares Commission’s believes that democracy, development and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms are interdependent and mutually reinforcing; and that free and fair elections are an essential feature of democracy and must be part of a broader process that strengthens democratic principles, values, institutions, mechanisms and practices, which underpin formal democratic structures and the rule of law.
TRP has long been working for individual’s rights, freedom and democracy, and of late, has raised the same issues at the Second Conference of the Community of Democracies held in Seoul, Republic of Korea, from 10 to 12 November 2002 and at the parellel NGOs forum; a process that started in Warsaw in 2000 where over hundred governments gathered from around the world for the first Community of Democracies ministerial meeting, and affirmed and adopted what has since been known as Warsaw Declaration; a comprehensive set of democratic principles and practices.

In TRP’s 2nd session of its 38th Congress held in Tirana, Albania, from 31 October to 3 November 2002, was adopted a General Motion not only to affirm the link and interdependence of human rights and democracy, but to make concrete proposals and suggestions to globalize democracy (TRP documents are available at www.radicalparty.org) .

Though TRP expresses solidarity with the seminar’s dual objectives, to add to the concept of democracy and its relationship with human rights, and to search concrete ways and means to promote and consolidate democracy, it remains concerned at the lack of efficacy of UN Human Rights treaty mechanism as a whole, and the fact that the international legal norms and obligations of human rights, which represent the legal basis of an effective democratic society, are systematically disregarded, with no consequences, by a large part of the member States of the United Nations, that voluntarily ratified these treaties. Equally, TRP is continuously concerned by the fact that dozens of States members of the UN are led by governments which are non-democratic, and express opposition to international norms which guarantee the respect of fundamental freedoms.
Ineffectiveness of UN Human Rights treaty mechanism has been reflected in a document on Viet Nam submitted by TRP to the July 75th session of the UN Human Rights Committee which contains an analysis of the Vietnamese Constitution and its legal system and their non compliance with the ICCPR (see separate document available in the rooom). The “Concluding Observations” issued by the Committee, which called for the establishment of an opener society where civil and political rights are enjoyed by the totality of the population regardless of their ethnicity or religious and political belief, has remained unheeded by the Vietnamese authorities. As often happens, the “Concluding Observation” of the Human Rights Committee are dead letters, and ignored with no practical effects on the lives of millions of people.
This very fact highlights what is one of the main unresolved issues of the international human rights law: the lack of effective compliance mechanisms to enforce international norms, capable to ensure the respect of human rights and the right of democracy. The TRP believes that this issue should receive serious attention and be analysed in the workings of this seminar, especially by the panel on “The United Nations and the promotion and strengthening of democracy”.
The crisis of the Human Rights treaty system is in fact self-evident. In particular, the lack of a follow up procedure to the so-called “constructive dialogue” between the State and the Human Rights bodies is evident, and the effects of such situation are that, even in the cases in which it ascertained a very poor performance by the States in the implementation of the norms of the treaties or of the Covenants, the concrete consequences of the State reporting system on the States concerned are very little. This means that the effects of international norms on the enjoyment of human rights and democracy for hundreds of million of people are very little as well.
To have an idea of the prevailing situation of the human rights treaty system, it is sufficient to note the figures of the workload of the Human Rights Committee. As of the 1st of January 2000 the number of overdue States reports for the ICCPR was 144; from 1976 to the end of 1999 the Human Rights Committee examined 254 States reports. This means, there are an ongoing “structural” violations of the norms of the Covenant by many States parties and by the Human Rights Committee itself.
So, in reality, over the years there has been massive violation of the reporting duties by the States parties. It has become an endemic problem which affects all the Human Rights treaty bodies that deal with the implementation of human rights. Unfortunately, the condition of work and the productivity of the treaty bodies are such that even if the States parties would submit all their overdue reports in few weeks, it would not be possible for the Committee to guarantee a regular and periodic examination of the States reports.
The practice followed by the States on the submission of their reports has been substantially tolerated by the treaty bodies, and the reasons may be the lack of legal sanctions in the norms of the Covenant in case of violations by the States Parties of the reporting duties; and the deficiencies of the treaty bodies’ human and economic resources in the exercise of their functions.
This being the situation, in respect of the States reporting system obligations, it is not difficult to imagine that the enforcement of the substantive norms which affirm the existence of fundamental human, civil and political rights is much more difficult. In general, it is true that these norms cannot be enforced if the State party to the treaty is not willing to do so.
While the UN Human Rights treaty mechanism has failed to deliver, the demand for the respect of the basic human rights and democracy has increased massively in the last years, and the explosion of the number of international NGOs which dedicate themselves to advocate and promotion, and in particular the enforcement, of such values, testify the existence of a developed awareness of the international public opinion of the importance of human rights and democracy.
What is thus needed to the Human Rights treaty system and to the democracy promotion procedures and mechanisms is a reform, or a process, which could improve the efficacy of the supervision on the implementation of the fundamental human, civil and political rights, which are the very basis of democracy.
There are examples of development of international mechanisms and procedures, and even setting-up of new bodies to enforce international norms. The International Criminal Court is such a process in which the TRP has been deeply and successfully involved in cooperation with many democratic Governments all over the world since 1993.
As noted, bulks of UN members are subscribers of undemocratic practices. But that said, UN General Assembly indeed is the author of the universal democratic and human rights norms, and have developed the universal mechanisms, however unsatisfactory. Hence, the General Assembly, and the Commission on Human rights as well, has legitimate interest, and right, to assess and examine not only the norms but also the mechanism of compliance.
And this is preciously, TRP believes, why efforts should be concentrated to gain enough supports among member nations, or at least some that subscribed and endorsed the said Warsaw Declaration, or which are part of the UN efforts that carried out through the series of “Conferences on New and Restored Democracies”, to initiate a process in General Assembly in line with its resolution on Declaration on Democracy to explore possible democracy compliance mechanism. Principles, without compliance cannot have any legitimacy.
The process could be for the General Assembly to constitute an independent Committee to study and recommend a democracy compliance mechanism. It could either be carried out by the International Law Commission that is mandated to assist in progressive development of international law, or an external-appointed body or even an expert could conduct such a study.
What is necessary is to kick-start such a process in General Assembly by some governments, agreed and interested, to do something against the status quo; governments that are friendly, and committed to democracy, not only to the principles but also to the practices, to propose and take lead. Taking leadership would be necessary and important here.
A global democracy compliance mechanism, in the final analysis, have to be a finely crafted governmental mechanism, since governments essentially have to observe the norms, but in consultation with, and inputs from others. But like many other process, the momentum have to be created, and pressure generated, by the non-government initiatives, and in close coordination with some friendly governments.
The next session of the Commission of Human Rights could be an ideal forum where, together with the results of this seminar, Governments and NGOs could start a common dialogue and engagement aimed at fostering and unifying the different efforts which are already taking place at the international level, such as the UN resolutions on promotion of democracy, the Ministerial Conferences of the “Community of democracies” and the UN “Conferences on New and Restored Democracies”.
Finally the TRP wishes to bring to the attention of the experts and of the Government delegates present at this seminar, some of the suggestions and proposals which were contained in the General Motion adopted by the 2nd session of the 38th Congress of the TRP in Albania from October 31st to November 3, 2002, aimed at the institution of a “World Democracy Organization” capable to enforce democracy at the international level:
1) The formal establishment of a permanent Secretariat of the Community of Democracies, made up of representatives of the group of the convening countries, having the task of fully enforcing the Warsaw Declaration of 2000, the Action Plan which will be adopted at the Seoul Conference and of working out a project that - through Preparatory Intergovernmental Conferences - may then achieve the objective of convening a Diplomatic Conference leading up to the formal establishment of a World Organisation of Democracy.
2) The formal setting up of "Democracy Caucuses" , i.e. groups of democratic countries, within the United Nations system and other international regional organisations, such as the Council of Europe and the Organisation of American States, building upon what was enshrined in the Warsaw Declaration and the Joint Communiqué of the Foreign Ministers of the convening countries, adopted in September 2000; these caucuses should meet at least 6 times a year to address the issue of the actual enforcement of the Charters establishing these international organisations;
3) In the relevant international fora and in the "Democracy Caucuses", priority should be given to the adoption of respect for human rights and democratic principles, when these states are elected to the bodies of these organisations and when experts are elected within monitoring bodies.
4) Promotion, both within the Commission on Human Rights and within the General Assembly, of resolutions aiming at establishing a Preparatory Committee whose duty is to present proposals for a new segment of international law able to lead to the birth of the World Organisation of Democracy;
5) Promotion of UN initiatives that - through resolutions adopted by the General Assembly - recognise the Security Council's remit in situations where the systematic violation of human rights, democracy and the rule of law is considered a threat to peace and international security
The Transnational Radical Party invites all participants of the Seminar on the Interdependence between Democracy and Human Rights to consider seriously the flaws of the present system of enforcement of human rights, and to join in the process to develop an effective mechanism of compliance of human rights and democracy through the institution of a “World Democracy Organization”.

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