VZCZCXYZ0001
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUCNDT #1045/01 3211839
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 171839Z NOV 09
FM USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7646
INFO RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 3947

UNCLAS USUN NEW YORK 001045 
 
DEPT FOR IO/HR, DRL/MLGA, PRM/PIP, S/GWI 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM SOCI UNGA MY
SUBJECT: THIRD COMMITTEE HEARS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS 
AND SPECIAL ADVISOR ON MYANMAR 
 
¶1. SUMMARY: High Commissioner for Human Rights, Pillay, told the UN 
Third Committee of her priorities for the upcoming year and 
justified the controversial Goldstone Report on human rights 
violations in the Gaza Strip. END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. Following are summary points of the High Commissioner for Human 
Rights' (HCHR) statement to the UN General Assembly's Third 
Committee on October 21.  HCHR Pillay, referring to the Goldstone 
report, now in the hands of the UNGA, said that possible effects on 
the peace process are not a sufficient rationale to ignore 
accountability for human rights violations.  She noted that her 
office, OHCHR, has identified six thematic priorities to guide its 
upcoming work: 
- Ensuring the realization of human rights in the context of 
migration; 
- Eliminating racial, gender, and religious discrimination; 
- Protecting economic, social and cultural rights in efforts to 
combat inequalities; 
- Protecting human rights in armed conflict, violence, and 
insecurity; 
- Combating impunity and strengthening accountability and rule of 
law; 
- Strengthening international human rights mechanisms. 
¶3. Pillay reported that OHCHR had established an internal Task Force 
to strengthen its work on racism and intolerance and that OHCHR had 
joined the SG's High-Level Task Force on the food crisis and 
participated in the GA High-Level Conference on the financial 
crisis.  She highlighted the Early Warning and Urgent Action 
Procedure of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial 
Discrimination as a model to be utilized and emulated.  She noted 
that OHCHR had deployed a fact-finding mission to Honduras on 
October 18th, and said she will submit her report during the 13th 
session of the Human Rights Council.  Pillay added that she will 
address the Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee, stressing 
the need to uphold human rights while fighting terrorism. 
 
COUNTRY QUESTIONS 
 
¶4. Chile and Colombia asked what Pillay's views were on the creation 
of a mechanism that gave special attention to women and girls and 
what mechanisms would be put in place to boost cooperation with 
States, including national partners, such as civil society 
organizations.  Sudan and Maldives asked if more attention would be 
given to the effects of climate change.  China remarked that the 
HCHR should receive more guidance from the HRC and that the GA 
should take more of a hand in determining her mandate.  Sweden, New 
Zealand,  and Liechtenstein asked how the Office would improve the 
follow-up procedure of treaty monitoring bodies and how States could 
best support efforts to mainstream human rights within the UN.  They 
also asked how accountability to violations would be supported. 
 
¶5. Syria, Palestine, Egypt and Sweden referred to the Goldstone 
Report, asking what the international community needed to do, 
including UN, to ensure accountability.  Egypt also asked for more 
information about the trafficking-in-persons programs and her views 
on the overall gender coordination efforts within the UN.  Pakistan, 
Malaysia, and India wanted to know about work being done on the 
issues of inter-religious and inter-faith dialogue and what her 
Office was doing to ensure that special procedures upheld the code 
of conduct.  They also asked about the geographic imbalance in her 
Office and how she planned to remedy it. 
 
¶6. Mexico's delegate wanted more information on achievements of the 
rights of migrants.  The U.S. and Australian representatives asked 
Pillay to elaborate on strengthening human rights mechanism, 
including their weaknesses, and how their independence could be 
ensured.  The delegate of the United Kingdom welcomed the 
establishment of the office in Nepal and asked how that office would 
inform work being done elsewhere.  Iran asked about good practices 
initiatives and the provision of technical assistance.  Benin asked 
how her activities could reach everyday people at the grass-roots 
level.  Several countries asked about MDGs 
 
HIGH COMMISSIONER'S RESPONSE 
 
¶7. Responding, Ms. Pillay said the Human Rights Council was an 
essential element of the overall UN reform, including its Universal 
Periodic Review.  Regarding her Office's independence.  She said 
transparency, discussion and dialogue would provide a better 
understanding of the work and independence of the Office.  She said 
improving the geographical diversity of her Office was imperative 
and that reform measures were improving the diversity of her staff. 
She also noted that she had to abide by the staffing rules, 
including internal candidates, set forth by the General Assembly and 
if there was dissatisfaction, perhaps those rules should be 
reviewed. 
 
¶8. Regarding fears that special procedures were exceeding their 
mandates, she said the mandate-holders had taken the code of conduct 
 
 
very seriously and had engaged in ongoing dialogue with Member 
States.  Concerning implementation, she said she had asked for 
States to be given technical assistance and resources to support the 
implementation of recommendations and she would like to see greater 
coordination among civil society and treaty bodies to implement 
recommendations resulting from the UPR. 
 
¶9. Responding to Benin's delegate, she said it was developing human 
rights education and training materials and could be used to support 
national efforts.  To date, over 200 non-governmental organizations 
had participated in her Office's training sessions but noted that 
more still needed to be done in training workshops.  Regarding 
questions on the MDG, she stressed that human rights values 
permeated and underpinned all eight goals.  She was trying to ensure 
that that specific human rights language was inserted in the MDGs. 
 
¶10. Responding to Mexico, she said her Office was preparing for the 
Global Forum on Migration and Development.  She had addressed a 
panel on alternatives to detention and the conditions of detained 
migrants and said the Convention for the Protection of the Right of 
All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families was the basis on 
which her Office would plan its actions.  On questions relating to 
women's rights and gender, she strongly supported a new gender 
architecture.  She mentioned that she wanted to participate in the 
process to select the head of that entity. 
 
¶11. She acknowledged that climate change effects were felt not only 
by States or economies, but by individuals.  She called on all 
States to abolish the use of the death penalty and ratify the second 
optional protocol of the International Covenant on Civil and 
Political Rights. 
 
¶12. Regarding achievements in Nepal, she said a judicial commission 
was established to investigate serious incidents.  It had led to 
laws being amended, including a draft bill criminalizing 
disappearances and creating a commission on disappearances.  In 
response to Sweden, she said investigations into human rights 
violations required independent expert mechanisms that were free 
from interference by parties to a conflict.  She said assistance 
provided by her office to national investigations and prosecutions 
was done based on the principles in the Rome Statute. 
 
¶13. In regard to Palestine, Egypt, Syria and Sweden on the situation 
in Palestine and the Goldstone Report, she said that the Human 
Rights Council had addressed that matter, and 25 Member States had 
adopted a resolution placing it under the Assembly's jurisdiction. 
Nevertheless, she said the Goldstone report had made important 
recommendations aimed at ending impunity, and accountability should 
not be sidelined in the name of the peace process.  Regarding people 
under foreign occupation, she said she recognized the vulnerability 
of such persons and had always insisted on the full application of 
international law, including refugee and international criminal law, 
and was providing assistance in the Occupied Palestinian Territories 
and other places. 
 
MYANMAR 
 
¶14. Mr. Ibrahim Gambari, Special Advisor to the Secretary-General, 
introduced the report on the situation of human rights in Myanmar 
from August 25, 2008 to August 25, 2009.  It covered the SG's visit 
on July 3-4, 2009, where he laid out his five-point agenda:  1) the 
release of political prisoners, 2) the promotion of dialogue with 
stakeholders, 3) creating conditions conducive to a credible 
electoral process, 4) addressing the country's economic challenges, 
and 5) regularizing engagement through UN good offices.  He urged 
political parties and ethnic nationality groups to engage 
constructively in the political process. 
 
¶15. Gambari assessed the high turnout at a meeting of the Group of 
Friends on Myanmar as a demonstration of strong interest in the 
future of Myanmar and a unity of purpose in three areas:  1) to 
encourage Myanmar to work with the UN to ensure an inclusive 
dialogue process, 2) to maintain the role of the UN in helping 
Myanmar meet its immediate and long-term challenges, and 3) to 
signal the international community's willingness to help the people 
of Myanmar address its political, humanitarian and development 
challenges, especially the MDG.  At the General Assembly, Prime 
Minister Thein Sein said Myanmar was committed to hold free and fair 
elections in 2010. 
 
¶16. Gambari noted two particular issues of interest since the SGs 
visit last July.  He said the trial and sentencing of Daw Aung San 
Suu Kyi was a missed opportunity to signal commitment to a new era 
of political openness and inclusiveness.  Also, tensions had flared 
between the Government and armed ethnic groups in August, 
highlighting the importance of dialogue.  However, the SG was 
encouraged by the release of over 130 political prisoners and 
resumed talks between Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the Government. 
Gambari said three concerns still needed to be addressed or 
 
 
Myanmar's commitment to the political process would be in doubt:  1) 
the release of all political prisoners and their free participation 
in the political realm, 2) a dialogue between the Government and 
opposition ethnic groups, and 3) conditions conducive to credible 
elections.  Myanmar, he said, still needed to address the pressing 
humanitarian and socio-economic challenges facing its people, 
especially in regard to the MDGs. 
 
STATEMENT BY MYANMAR 
 
¶17. The delegate of Myanmar stated that progress had been made since 
the SG's visit and that the report failed to note that over 7,000 
prisoners were released last month.  He also said that every right 
of defense and appeal had been granted to Aung San Suu Kyi.  He 
denied that anyone had been jailed because of his or her beliefs. 
 
Q&A 
 
¶18. Japan and the U.S. asked about further plans to release more 
political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi.  Mr. Gambari 
suggested that the question on the release of more political 
prisoners be directed to Myanmar because he had no information, but, 
based on past experience, he said he believed that the Government 
would continue granting amnesty to political prisoners.  Mr. Gambari 
assured the delegate from Japan that the SG had coordinated with the 
Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), and that the Group 
of Friends of the SG on Myanmar had had nine meetings.  In terms of 
lowering tension between the Government and armed ethnic groups, he 
said the SG's good offices had a good understanding of underlying 
causes and believed that there was no alternative besides dialogue. 
 
 
¶19. Gambari said his mandate had obligated him to coordinate his 
activities with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human 
rights in Myanmar, exchanging views before, during, and after each 
visit.  They have also discussed their draft reports to the General 
Assembly. 
 
 
Rice