Palais Wilson, Geneva HQ for the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights;
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights;
formerly for the League of Nations
In case anybody thinks this is some flaky group of Third World Rabble making frivolous and vexatious allegations about a serious civilized nation like Canada, the current members are listed on the Committee's site, as are the CV's.
These include the Vice-Chair, Felice Gaer of the United States, whose partial CV looks like this:
1983-present: Jacob Blaustein Institute for the Advancement of Human Rights American Jewish Committee, Director
1991-1992: United Nations Association of the United States of America, Executive Director, European Programmes
1982-1991: International League for Human Rights, Executive Director
1974-1981: The Ford Foundation, Programme Officer International Division (1976-1981); Assistant Programme Officer (1974-1976); Member, Public Policy Committee (1976-1981)
Other service
- International Human Rights Council, the Carter Centre, Emory University, 1994-present
- Chair, Steering Committee, National Coalition on the 50th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1997-1999
- Board of Directors, Andrei Sakharov Foundation, 1993-present
- Steering Committee, Human Rights Watch/Helsinki, 1996-present
- Founding member, Washington Working Group on the Human Rights of Women, 1994-present
- Vice-President and Board of Governors, International League for Human Rights, 1991-present
- President, International Friends of the Chilean Human Rights Commission, 1985-1990
- Committee on Human Rights, New York Academy of Sciences, 1982-1992
- Board of Directors, International Dispute Resolution Associates, 1995-present
- Advisory Panel on Ethnic Conflict, Minority and Individual Rights, The Atlantic Council, 1993-1995
- Advisory Board, Early Warning, Minorities and Conflict Resolution Project -Minority Rights Group, United States of America, 1994-1997
- Council on Foreign Relations, 1991-present
- Alumnae Achievement Award, Wellesley College, 1995
- Advisory Panel on Housing Rights, United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat II), New York, January 1996
- Consultant, The Rockefeller Foundation, 1982-1983
Public member of United States delegation to:
- World Conference on Human Rights, Vienna, June 1993
- Fourth World Conference on Women, Beijing, September 1995
- Preparatory Committee, Second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II), February 1996
- Commission on Human Rights, Geneva, 1994-1999
Excerpts from the report:
Canada
1.
The
Committee against Torture considered the sixth periodic report of Canada (CAT/C/CAN/6)
at its 1076th and 1079th meetings, held on 21 and 22 May 2012 (CAT/C/SR.1076 and 1079), and adopted
the following concluding observations at its 1087th and 1088th
meetings (CAT/C/SR.1087 and 1088).
A. Introduction
2.
The
Committee welcomes the submission of the sixth periodic report by the State
party, which broadly comply with the guidelines on the form and content of
periodic reports, but regrets that it was submitted three years late.
3.
The
Committee welcomes the open dialogue with the inter-ministerial delegation of
the State party as well as its efforts to provide comprehensive responses to
issues raised by Committee members during the dialogue. The Committee further
commends the State party for the detailed written replies to the list of issues,
which was however submitted three months late, just before the dialogue. Such
delay prevented the Committee from conducting a careful analysis of the
information provided by the State party.
4.
The
Committee is aware that the State party has a federal structure, but recalls
that Canada
is a single State under international law and has the obligation to implement
the Convention in full at the domestic level.
...
10. The Committee
regrets the State party’s failure to comply in every instance with the
Committee’s decisions under article 22 of the Convention and requests for interim measures of protection,
particularly in cases involving deportation and extradition (with
reference to communications Nos. 258/2004, Mostafa
Dadar v. Canada and 297/2006, Bachan
Singh Sogi v. Canada), might
undermine its commitment to the Convention. The Committee
recalls that the State party, by ratifying the Convention and voluntarily
accepting the Committee’s competence under article 22, undertook to cooperate
with the Committee in good faith in applying and giving full effect to the
procedure of individual complaints established thereunder. Consequently the
Committee considers that, by deporting complainants despite the Committee’s decisions
or requests for interim measures, the State party has committed a breach of its
obligations under articles 3 and 22 of the Convention. (arts. 3 and
22)
The State party should fully cooperate with the Committee, in
particular by respecting
in every instance its decisions and requests for interim
measures. The
Committee recommends the State party to review its policy in this respect, by
considering requests for interim measures in good faith and in accordance with
its obligations under articles 3 and 22 of the Convention.
11.
While
noting the State party’s statement that the Canadian Forces assessed the risk
of torture or ill-treatment before transferring a detainee into Afghan custody
(CAT/C/CAN/Q/6/Add.1, para. 155), the Committee is concerned about several
reports that some prisoners transferred by Canadian Forces in Afghanistan into
the custody of other countries have experienced torture and ill-treatment.
(art. 3)
The State party should adopt a policy for future military
operations which clearly prohibits the prisoner transfers to another country
when there are substantial grounds for believing that he or she would be in
danger of being subjected to torture, and recognizes that diplomatic assurances
and monitoring arrangements will not be relied upon to justify transfers when
such substantial risk of torture exists.
