Extraterritorial application of the right to life on the high sea . Commentary to the Views adopted by the Human Rights Committee of 27 January 2021, A.S., D.I., O.I. and G.D. against Italy, Communication No. 3042/2017

The Subject ◽

The subject matter of this commentary, which instigates the Views of the Human Rights Committee of 27 January 2021, is the protection of one of the fundamental human rights – the right to life. The Committee, as an authority appointed to oversee compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, had to decide on the issue of Italy’s responsibility for failing to provide assistance to a boat in distress, even if the area in which the vessel was located was not within the territory of this state and other acts of international law attribute the responsibility for executing the rescue operation to a third country. According to the Committee’s views, which applied extraterritorial approach to the protection of the right to life, whenever states have the opportunity to take action for the protection of human rights they should do everything possible in a given situation to help people in need.

Views adopted by the Committee under article 5(4) of the Optional Protocol, concerning A.S., D.I., O.I., and G.D. V. Italy, Communication No. 3042/2017 (U.N. Hum. Rts. COMM.)

International Legal Materials ◽

10.1017/ilm.2021.29 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-20

Author(s):

Patricia Vella De Fremeaux (Mallia) ◽

Felicity G. Attard

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

United Nations ◽

Political Rights ◽

Right To Life ◽

Optional Protocol ◽

Introductory Note ◽

The Right ◽

Article 5

On January 27, 2021, the United Nations Human Rights Committee (HRC or Committee) published two separate decisions in response to communications brought against Malta and Italy. Both decisions concerned the same incident, which occurred on October 11, 2013, where over 200 migrants drowned in a shipwreck in the Mediterranean. The first complaint brought against Malta was dismissed by the Committee on procedural grounds. In the second case, A.S., D.I., O.I. and G.D. v. Italy, the HRC found that Italy had failed to protect the right to life of the migrants under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). This introductory note discusses the significance of the Committee's findings in this decision and its ramifications with respect to the protection of human rights at sea.

Wolności i prawa polityczne dziecka

Studia Prawnoustrojowe ◽

10.31648/sp.5186 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 7-25

Author(s):

Marek Bielecki

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Subject Matter ◽

Positive Impact ◽

International Standards ◽

Political Freedom ◽

Political Rights ◽

Developmental Issues ◽

The Subject

The subject matter of the present paper is the analysis of particular normative solutions as well as the position of the judiciary and the interpretations of the doctrine in the scope of political freedom and rights that may be applied by a child. A child, as an entity equipped with the attribute of inherent and inalienable dignity, is a benefciary of the guarantees concerning the protection of human rights and freedoms proclaimed in both the national and international standards. Due to the existence of some objective obstacles such as age or developmental issues, certain rights cannot be fully applied by a child. While analyzing the indicated issues, the author of the study evaluates existing regulations as well as presents proposals for changes that could have a positive impact on children’s situation concerning the implementation of his/her political rights.

Non-universal Human Rights? How Article 6 (2) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Undermines Human Rights

International Human Rights Law Review ◽

10.1163/22131035-00901004 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 99-117

Author(s):

Billy Holmes

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Death Penalty ◽

Human Dignity ◽

Final Section ◽

Political Rights ◽

Right To Life ◽

Universal Human Rights ◽

Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights facilitates inequality regarding the imposition of the death penalty and thus, it cannot ensure universality for the protection of the right to life. Paragraph two of this article states: ‘sentence of death may be imposed only for the most serious crimes.’ This article argues that the vagueness of the phrase ‘the most serious crimes’ allows states to undermine human rights principles and human dignity by affording states significant discretion regarding the human rights principles of equality and anti-discrimination. The article posits that this discretion allows states to undermine human dignity and the concept of universal human rights by challenging their universality; by facilitating legal inequality between men and women. Accordingly, it asserts that the implications of not expounding this vague phrase may be far-reaching, particularly in the long-term. The final section of this article offers a potential solution to this problem.

The Right to Life

10.1093/law/9780199559695.003.0015 ◽

2014 ◽

Author(s):

William A. Schabas

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Use Of Force ◽

International Humanitarian Law ◽

Political Rights ◽

Humanitarian Law ◽

Right To Life ◽

Rules And Principles ◽

The Right ◽

Self Defence

This chapter examines the rules and principles of the international humanitarian law (IHL) governing the right to life. It discusses the origins and scope of the right to life and clarifies that the protection provided by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) does not cease in times of war. It also considers some widely-recognized exceptions to or limitations upon the right to life, including killing in self-defence and the lethal use of force by the authorities in order to prevent crime. This chapter argues that while resorting to armed force may be necessary to prevent human rights violations, its benefits should not be exaggerated.

Freedom of Speech in International Law

The Oxford Handbook of Freedom of Speech ◽

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198827580.013.12 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 192-212

Author(s):

Michael Hamilton

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

International Law ◽

Freedom Of Speech ◽

Political Rights ◽

The Right ◽

Domestic Law

This chapter traces the broad contours of the right to freedom of speech as it has evolved in international law, principally under Article 19(2) of the 1996 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR or ‘the Covenant’). Any speech protective principles deriving from the international jurisprudence are qualified by the following factors: the contextual contingency of the value of speech, the inherently limited reach of international scrutiny, the changing nature of the marketplace, and emerging forms of censorship. The chapter then outlines the key human rights treaty protections for freedom of speech, before further exploring the scope of the right. It examines the permissible grounds for speech restriction, highlighting two contested categories of speech—namely, incitement to hatred and glorification of terrorism—where international law not only concedes the low value of such speech, but specifically mandates its prohibition in domestic law. States that introduce broadly framed speech restrictions may claim to be acting in satisfaction of this prohibitory requirement. In consequence, the intensity of any ensuing international scrutiny will inevitably be substantially reduced.

Jamaica Withdraws the Right of Individual Petition under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

The American Journal of International Law ◽

10.2307/2997931 ◽

1998 ◽

Vol 92 (3) ◽

pp. 563-568 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Natalia Schiffrin

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

United Nations ◽

Legal Protection ◽

Political Rights ◽

Optional Protocol ◽

The Right ◽

Roll Back ◽

Individual Petition

In October 1997, a little-noticed event took place at the United Nations that may roll back the international legal protection of human rights. Jamaica became the first country to denounce the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and thus withdrew the right of individual petition to the UN Human Rights Committee (Committee). Although it is provided for under the Protocol’s Article 12, no state has previously made such a denunciation.

The Human Rights Committee, the Right to Life and Nuclear Weapons: The Committee’s General Comment No 36 on Article 6 of the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

New Zealand Yearbook of International Law ◽

10.1163/9789004423268_010 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 263-276

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Nuclear Weapons ◽

Political Rights ◽

Right To Life ◽

Citizenship Deprivation under the European Convention-System: A Case Study of Belgium

10.35715/scr1002.114 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 1 (2) ◽

pp. 263-282

Author(s):

Louise Reyntjens

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Fundamental Rights ◽

European Convention ◽

Political Rights ◽

System A ◽

The Right ◽

Foreign Fighters

In response to Islamic-inspired terrorism and the growing trend of foreign fighters, European governments are increasingly relying on citizenship deprivation as a security tool. This paper will focus on the question of how the fundamental rights of individuals deprived of their citizenship are affected and which protection is offered for them by the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (‘ECHR’). In many countries, these new and broader deprivation powers were left unaccompanied by stronger (procedural) safeguards that protect the human rights they might affect. Unlike the Universal Declaration of Human Rights or the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the ECHR does not provide for an explicit right to citizenship. The question therefore rises what protection, if any, is offered by the ECHRsystem against citizenship deprivation and for the right to citizenship. Through a case study of the Belgian measure of citizenship deprivation, the (implicit) protection provided by the Convention-system is demonstrated.

General Comment No. 36 (2018) on Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, on the Right to Life (H.R. Comm.)

International Legal Materials ◽

10.1017/ilm.2019.31 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 58 (4) ◽

pp. 849-871

Author(s):

Sarah Joseph

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

United Nations ◽

Political Rights ◽

Right To Life ◽

The United Nations ◽

In October 2018, the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) adopted General Comment 36 on Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the guarantee of the right to life.

Reservations to Treaties and Human Rights Committee General Comment No. 24(52)

International and Comparative Law Quarterly ◽

10.1017/s0020589300060486 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 46 (2) ◽

pp. 390-412 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Catherine J. Redgwell

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Subject Matter ◽

Political Rights ◽

Effective Implementation ◽

Rights Of The Child ◽

Human Rights Treaties ◽

The Subject ◽

Made In

On 2 November 1994 the Human Rights Committee adopted General Comment No.24(52) relating to reservations made on ratification or accession to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It is addressed to States party to the Covenant and indicates the manner in which reservations to Covenant guarantees will be treated. The fact that the Committee has issued a general comment on the topic of reservations is clear expression of the Committee's concerns regarding the number and scope of reservations which have been made. In its view these threaten to undermine the effective implementation of the Covenant as well as impair the performance of the Committee in respect of the subject matter to which the reservations apply. Though not as seriously afflicted by reservations as some other human rights treaties, most notably the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Covenant has nonetheless been the object of some sweeping reservations to which few objections have been made. There is the concern that the integrity of the Covenant may have been sacrificed in order to ensure widespread participation. “Indeed”, suggests Higgins, “one might almost say that there is a collusion to allow penetrating and disturbing reservations to go unchallenged.”