Commentary on The United States’ compliance with The International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights -- and the implications of such U.S. policy for
Ukraine and Russia.
So, you'd think that the United States of America, the home
of the free, the land of the brave and the cradle of democracy is at the
forefront of supporting and promulgating The International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights (ICCPR)?
Wrong!
And guess what?
I don't think that the U.S. will be pushing the new
pro-U.S. Ukrainian government to comply with the ICCPR any time soon -- with
all ensuing (non-democratic) consequences for Ukrainians!
"In 1994, the United Nations' Human Rights Committee
expressed concerns with compliance [by the Unites States]:[93]
Indeed, the United
States has not accepted a single
international obligation required under the Covenant. It has not changed its
domestic law to conform with the strictures of the Covenant.[94]
Its citizens are not permitted to sue to enforce their basic
human rights under the Covenant.[94] It has not ratified the Optional Protocol
to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT).
As such, the Covenant has been rendered ineffective, with the
bone of contention being United States officials' insistence upon preserving a
vast web of sovereign, judicial, prosecutorial, and executive branch immunities
that often deprives its citizens of the "effective remedy" under law
the Covenant is intended to guarantee.
In 2006, the Human Rights Committee expressed concern over what
it interprets as material non-compliance, exhorting the United States to take immediate
corrective action:[95]"
So what does this covenant contain that provoked the United States'
"material non-compliance?"
Probably some repulsive, communist, socialist, anarchist and
other pink-o liberal junk that only card-carrying members of the ACLU would
dare support?
Let's look at some select articles of the Covenant that
apparently are repulsive to American politicians who, having sworn an oath to defend
The U.S. Constitution (including its Bill of Rights), stubbornly refuse to
ensure U.S.
compliance with the Covenant and its provisions:
"Article 6 of the Covenant recognises the individual's
"inherent right to life" and requires it to be protected by law.[18]
It is a "supreme right" from which no derogation can be permitted,
and must be interpreted widely.[19] It therefore requires parties to take
positive measures to reduce infant mortality and increase life expectancy, as
well as forbidding arbitrary killings by security forces.[19]
Article 7 prohibits torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading
punishment.[23] As with Article 6, it cannot be derogated from under any
circumstances.[16] The article is now interpreted to impose similar obligations
to those required by the United Nations Convention Against Torture, including
not just prohibition of torture, but active measures to prevent its use and a
prohibition on refoulement.[24] In response to Nazi human experimentation
during WW2 this article explicitly includes a prohibition on medical and
scientific experimentation without consent.[23]
Article 9 recognises the rights to liberty and security of the
person. It prohibits arbitrary arrest and detention, requires any deprivation
of liberty to be according to law,[27] and obliges parties to allow those
deprived of their liberty to challenge their imprisonment through the
courts.[28] These provisions apply not just to those imprisoned as part of the
criminal process, but also to those detained due to mental illness, drug
addiction, or for educational or immigration purposes.[29]
Articles 9.3 and 9.4 impose procedural safeguards around arrest,
requiring anyone arrested to be promptly informed of the charges against them,
and to be brought promptly before a judge.[30]
It also restricts the use of pre-trial detention,[31] requiring
it to be imposed only in exceptional circumstances and for as short a period of
time as possible.[29]
Article 10 requires anyone deprived of liberty to be treated
with dignity and humanity.[32]
Article 12 guarantees freedom of movement, including the right
of persons to choose their residence and to leave a country.[47]
Article 14 recognizes and protects a right to justice and a fair
trial.
Article 18 mandates freedom of religion.[55]
Article 19 mandates freedom of expression.[56]
Article 20 mandates sanctions against inciting hatred.[57]
Articles 21 and 22 mandate freedom of association.
Article 27 mandates the rights of ethnic, religious and
linguistic minority to enjoy their own culture, to profess their own religion,
and to use their own language.[62]"
Wow, aren't you glad that the U.S. Political Establishment
refuses to support this Covenant and its apparently anti-democratic and
anti-American provisions that freedom loving Americans just wouldn't want the
United Nations to shove down their throats?
And with all that in mind the United
States is going to try to lead the crusade for freedom
and democracy around the world, including Ukraine
and Russia?
As they say,
charity starts at home.
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