[Original: English] [21 September 1994] CONTENTS Chapter Paragraphs Page I. ORGANIZATIONAL AND OTHER MATTERS ..................... 1 - 31 1 A. States parties to the Covenant ................... 1 - 4 1 B. Sessions and agenda .............................. 5 1 C. Membership and attendance ........................ 6 - 8 1 D. Solemn declaration ............................... 9 2 E. Working groups ................................... 10 - 12 2 F. Other matters .................................... 13 - 26 3 G. Staff resources .................................. 27 5 H. Publicity for the work of the Committee .......... 28 - 30 5 I. Adoption of the report ........................... 31 6 II. ACTION BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY AT ITS FORTY-EIGHTH SESSION AND BY THE COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS AT ITS FIFTIETH SESSION ..................................... 32 - 35 7 III. METHODS OF WORK OF THE COMMITTEE UNDER ARTICLE 40 OF THE COVENANT: OVERVIEW OF PRESENT WORKING METHODS ... 36 - 56 8 A. List of issues to be taken up in connection with the consideration of periodic reports of States parties .......................................... 38 - 40 8 B. Comments of the Committee at the end of the consideration of reports of States parties ....... 41 - 44 9 C. The Committee's procedures in dealing with emergency situations ............................. 45 - 47 9 D. Implementation of the Covenant in new States that constituted parts of former States parties to the Covenant ......................................... 48 - 49 10 E. General comments ................................. 50 11 F. Overdue reports .................................. 51 - 53 11 G. Format of the annual report of the Committee under article 45 of the Covenant ....................... 54 - 56 12 -iii- CONTENTS (continued) Chapter Paragraphs Page IV. SUBMISSION OF REPORTS BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 40 OF THE COVENANT ........................... 57 - 61 14 A. Reports submitted by States parties under article 40 of the Covenant during the period under review ........................................... 60 14 B. Special decisions by the Human Rights Committee concerning reports of particular States .......... 61 14 V. STATES THAT HAVE NOT COMPLIED WITH THEIR OBLIGATIONS UNDER ARTICLE 40 ..................................... 62 - 67 16 VI. CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS SUBMITTED BY STATES PARTIES UNDER ARTICLE 40 OF THE COVENANT ..................... 68 - 370 19 A. Iceland .......................................... 69 - 83 19 B. Norway ........................................... 84 - 97 21 C. Japan ............................................ 98 - 116 23 D. Malta ............................................117 - 131 26 E. Romania ..........................................132 - 149 28 F. Costa Rica .......................................150 - 165 31 G. Mexico ...........................................166 - 182 33 H. Cameroon .........................................183 - 208 36 I. El Salvador ......................................209 - 224 38 J. Libyan Arab Jamahiriya ........................... 225 41 K. Jordan ...........................................226 - 244 41 L. Togo .............................................245 - 270 44 M. Italy ............................................271 - 290 47 N. Azerbaijan .......................................291 - 311 50 O. Cyprus ...........................................312 - 333 53 P. Slovenia .........................................334 - 353 56 Q. Burundi ..........................................354 - 370 58 -iv- CONTENTS (continued) Chapter Paragraphs Page VII. GENERAL COMMENTS OF THE COMMITTEE ....................371 - 373 62 VIII. CONSIDERATION OF COMMUNICATIONS UNDER THE OPTIONAL PROTOCOL .............................................374 - 468 63 A. Progress of work .................................376 - 382 63 B. Growth of the Committee's case-load under the Optional Protocol ................................383 - 384 65 C. New approaches to examining communications under the Optional Protocol ............................385 - 387 65 D. Individual opinions ..............................388 - 389 66 E. Issues considered by the Committee ...............390 - 457 66 F. Remedies called for under the Committee's views .. 458 83 G. Follow-up activities .............................459 - 468 84 Annexes I. States parties to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and to the Optional Protocols and States which have made the declaration under article 41 of the Covenant as at 29 July 1994 .................................................. 89 A. States parties to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ............................................. 89 B. States parties to the First Optional Protocol ................ 92 C. States which have made the declaration under article 41 of the Covenant ..................................................... 94 D. Status of the Second Optional Protocol aiming at the abolition of the death penalty ......................................... 95 II. Membership and officers of the Human Rights Committee, 1993-1994 . 97 A. Membership ................................................... 97 B. Officers ..................................................... 97 III. Submission of reports and additional information by States parties under article 40 of the Covenant during the period under review .. 98 IV. Status of reports considered during the period under review and of reports still pending before the Committee ....................... 104 -v- CONTENTS (continued) Page V. General comments under article 40, paragraph 4, of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ............. 107 General comment No. 23 (50) (art. 27) ............................ 107 VI. Amended rules of procedure ....................................... 111 VII. Letter from the Chairman of the Committee concerning an overdue report ........................................................... 114 VIII. Lists of States Parties' delegations that participated in the consideration of their respective reports by the Human Rights Committee at its forty-ninth, fiftieth and fifty-first sessions .. 115 IX. Views of the Human Rights Committee under article 5, paragraph 4, of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights* X. Decisions of the Human Rights Committee declaring communications inadmissible under the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights* XI. Recommendation submitted by the Committee to the Subcommission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities concerning a draft third optional protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ........................... 120 XII. List of documents issued during the reporting period ............. 121 ________________________ * See Official Records of the General Assembly, Forty-ninth Session, Supplement No. 40 (A/49/40), vol. II. -vi- -5- I. ORGANIZATIONAL AND OTHER MATTERS A. States parties to the Covenant 1. As at 29 July 1994, the closing date of the fifty-first session of the Human Rights Committee, 127 States had ratified, acceded or succeeded to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and 76 States had ratified or acceded to the Optional Protocol to the Covenant. Both instruments were adopted by the General Assembly in resolution 2200 A (XXI) of 16 December 1966 and opened for signature and ratification in New York on 19 December 1966. They entered into force on 23 March 1976 in accordance with the provisions of their articles 49 and 9 respectively. Also, as at 29 July 1994, 44 States had made the declaration envisaged under article 41, paragraph 1, of the Covenant, which came into force on 28 March 1979. 2. The Second Optional Protocol aiming at the abolition of the death penalty, which was adopted and opened for signature, ratification or accession by the General Assembly in resolution 44/128 of 15 December 1989, entered into force on 11 July 1991 in accordance with the provisions of its article 8. As at 29 July 1994, there were 23 States parties to the Second Optional Protocol. 3. A list of States parties to the Covenant and to the Optional Protocols, with an indication of those which have made the declaration under article 41, paragraph 1, of the Covenant, is contained in annex I to the present report. 4. Reservations and other declarations made by a number of States parties in respect of the Covenant or the Optional Protocols are set out in document CCPR/C/2/Rev.3 and in notifications deposited with the Secretary-General. By a note of 18 January 1994, the Government of Iceland notified the Secretary- General of the withdrawal of its reservation to article 8, paragraph 3 (a), of the Covenant. Similarly, by a note of 12 April 1994, the Government of Ireland notified the Secretary-General of the withdrawal of its reservation to article 6, paragraph 5, of the Covenant. B. Sessions and agenda 5. The Human Rights Committee has held three sessions since the adoption of its last annual report. The forty-ninth session (1263rd to 1291st meetings) was held at the United Nations Office at Geneva from 18 October to 5 November 1993, the fiftieth session (1292nd to 1319th meetings) was held at United Nations Headquarters from 21 March to 8 April 1994, and the fifty-first session (1320th to 1357th meetings) was held at the United Nations Office at Geneva from 4 to 29 July 1994. C. Membership and attendance 6. At the forty-ninth session (1273rd meeting),