The States Parties to
this Convention,
Considering that the
Charter of the United Nations is based on the principles of the dignity and
equality inherent in all human beings, and that all Member States have pledged
themselves to take joint and separate action, in co-operation with the
Organization, for the achievement of one of the purposes of the United Nations
which is to promote and encourage universal respect for and observance of human
rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction as to race, sex,
language or religion,
Considering that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
proclaims that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights
and that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set out therein,
without distinction of any kind, in particular as to race, colour or national
origin,
Considering that all human beings are equal before the law and
are entitled to equal protection of the law against any discrimination and
against any incitement to discrimination,
Considering that the United Nations has condemned colonialism
and all practices of segregation and discrimination associated therewith, in
whatever form and wherever they exist, and that the Declaration on the Granting
of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples of 14 December 1960 (General
Assembly resolution 1514 (XV)) has affirmed and solemnly proclaimed the
necessity of bringing them to a speedy and unconditional end,
Considering that the United Nations Declaration on the
Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination of 20 November 1963 (General
Assembly resolution 1904 (XVIII)) solemnly affirms the necessity of speedily
eliminating racial discrimination throughout the world in all its forms and
manifestations and of securing understanding of and respect for the dignity of
the human person,
Convinced that any doctrine of superiority based on racial
differentiation is scientifically false, morally condemnable, socially unjust
and dangerous, and that there is no justification for racial discrimination, in
theory or in practice, anywhere,
Reaffirming that discrimination between human beings on the
grounds of race, colour or ethnic origin is an obstacle to friendly and
peaceful relations among nations and is capable of disturbing peace and security
among peoples and the harmony of persons living side by side even within one
and the same State,
Convinced that the existence of racial barriers is repugnant to
the ideals of any human society,
Alarmed by manifestations of racial discrimination still in
evidence in some areas of the world and by governmental policies based on
racial superiority or hatred, such as policies of apartheid, segregation or
separation,
Resolved to adopt all necessary measures for speedily
eliminating racial discrimination in all its forms and manifestations, and to
prevent and combat racist doctrines and practices in order to promote
understanding between races and to build an international community free from
all forms of racial segregation and racial discrimination,
Bearing in mind the Convention concerning Discrimination in
respect of Employment and Occupation adopted by the International Labour
Organisation in 1958, and the Convention against Discrimination in Education
adopted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
in 1960,
Desiring to implement the principles embodied in the United
Nations Declaration on the Elimination of Al l Forms of Racial Discrimination
and to secure the earliest adoption of practical measures to that end,
Have agreed as follows:
PART I
Article I
1. In this Convention,
the term "racial discrimination" shall mean any distinction,
exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent, or
national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or
impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of human
rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural or
any other field of public life.
2. This Convention shall not apply to distinctions, exclusions,
restrictions or preferences made by a State Party to this Convention between
citizens and non-citizens.
3. Nothing in this Convention may be interpreted as affecting in
any way the legal provisions of States Parties concerning nationality,
citizenship or naturalization, provided that such provisions do not
discriminate against any particular nationality.
4. Special measures taken for the sole purpose of securing
adequate advancement of certain racial or ethnic groups or individuals requiring
such protection as may be necessary in order to ensure such groups or
individuals equal enjoyment or exercise of human rights and fundamental
freedoms shall not be deemed racial discrimination, provided, however, that
such measures do not, as a consequence, lead to the maintenance of separate
rights for different racial groups and that they shall not be continued after
the objectives for which they were taken have been achieved.
Article 2
1. States Parties
condemn racial discrimination and undertake to pursue by all appropriate means
and without delay a policy of eliminating racial discrimination in all its
forms and promoting understanding among all races, and, to this end:
(a) Each State Party
undertakes to engage in no act or practice of racial discrimination against
persons, groups of persons or institutions and to en sure that all public
authorities and public institutions, national and local, shall act in
conformity with this obligation;
(b) Each State Party undertakes not to sponsor, defend or
support racial discrimination by any persons or organizations;
(c) Each State Party shall take effective measures to review
governmental, national and local policies, and to amend, rescind or nullify any
laws and regulations which have the effect of creating or perpetuating racial
discrimination wherever it exists;
(d) Each State Party shall prohibit and bring to an end, by all
appropriate means, including legislation as required by circumstances, racial
discrimination by any persons, group or organization;
(e) Each State Party undertakes to encourage, where appropriate,
integrationist multiracial organizations and movements and other means of
eliminating barriers between races, and to discourage anything which tends to
strengthen racial division.
2. States Parties
shall, when the circumstances so warrant, take, in the social, economic,
cultural and other fields, special and concrete measures to ensure the adequate
development and protection of certain racial groups or individuals belonging to
them, for the purpose of guaranteeing them the full and equal enjoyment of
human rights and fundamental freedoms. These measures shall in no case en tail
as a con sequence the maintenance of unequal or separate rights for different
racial groups after the objectives for which they were taken have been
achieved.
Article 3
States Parties
particularly condemn racial segregation and apartheid and undertake to prevent,
prohibit and eradicate all practices of this nature in territories under their
jurisdiction.
Article 4
States Parties condemn
all propaganda and all organizations which are based on ideas or theories of
superiority of one race or group of persons of one colour or ethnic origin, or
which attempt to justify or promote racial hatred and discrimination in any
form, and undertake to adopt immediate and positive measures designed to
eradicate all incitement to, or acts of, such discrimination and, to this end,
with due regard to the principles embodied in the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and the rights expressly set forth in article 5 of this
Convention, inter alia:
(a) Shall declare an
offence punishable by law all dissemination of ideas based on racial
superiority or hatred, incitement to racial discrimination, as well as all acts
of violence or incitement to such acts against any race or group of persons of
another colour or ethnic origin, and also the provision of any assistance to
racist activities, including the financing thereof;
(b) Shall declare illegal and prohibit organizations, and also
organized and all other propaganda activities, which promote and incite racial
discrimination, and shall recognize participation in such organizations or
activities as an offence punishable by law;
(c) Shall not permit public authorities or public institutions,
national or local, to promote or incite racial discrimination.
Article 5
In compliance with the
fundamental obligations laid down in article 2 of this Convention, States
Parties undertake to prohibit and to eliminate racial discrimination in all its
forms and to guarantee the right of everyone, without distinction as to race,
colour, or national or ethnic origin, to equality before the law, notably in
the enjoyment of the following rights:
(a) The right to equal
treatment before the tribunals and all other organs administering justice;
(b) The right to security of person and protection by the State
against violence or bodily harm, whether inflicted by government officials or
by any individual group or institution;
(c) Political rights, in particular the right to participate in
elections-to vote and to stand for election-on the basis of universal and equal
suffrage, to take part in the Government as well as in the conduct of public
affairs at any level and to have equal access to public service;
(d) Other civil rights, in particular:
(i) The right to
freedom of movement and residence within the border of the State;
(ii) The right to leave any country, including one's own, and to
return to one's country;
(iii) The right to nationality;
(iv) The right to marriage and choice of spouse;
(v) The right to own property alone as well as in association
with others;
(vi) The right to inherit;
(vii) The right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion;
(viii) The right to freedom of opinion and expression;
(ix) The right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association;
(e) Economic, social
and cultural rights, in particular:
(i) The rights to
work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work,
to protection against unemployment, to equal pay for equal work, to just and
favourable remuneration;
(ii) The right to form and join trade unions;
(iii) The right to housing;
(iv) The right to public health, medical care, social security
and social services;
(v) The right to education and training;
(vi) The right to equal participation in cultural activities;
(f) The right of
access to any place or service intended for use by the general public, such as
transport hotels, restaurants, cafes, theatres and parks.
Article 6
States Parties shall
assure to everyone within their jurisdiction effective protection and remedies,
through the competent national tribunals and other State institutions, against
any acts of racial discrimination which violate his human rights and
fundamental freedoms contrary to this Convention, as well as the right to seek
from such tribunals just and adequate reparation or satisfaction for any damage
suffered as a result of such discrimination.
Article 7
States Parties
undertake to adopt immediate and effective measures, particularly in the fields
of teaching, education, culture and information, with a view to combating
prejudices which lead to racial discrimination and to promoting understanding,
tolerance and friendship among nations and racial or ethnical groups, as well
as to propagating the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United
Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations
Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, and this
Convention.
PART II
Article 8
1. There shall be
established a Committee on the
Elimination of Racial Discrimination (hereinafter
referred to as the Committee) consisting of eighteen experts of high moral
standing and acknowledged impartiality elected by States Parties from among
their nationals, who shall serve in their personal capacity, consideration
being given to equitable geographical distribution and to the representation of
the different forms of civilization as well as of the principal legal systems.
2. The members of the
Committee shall be elected by secret ballot from a list of persons nominated by
the States Parties. Each State Party may nominate one person from among its own
nationals.
3. The initial election
shall be held six months after the date of the entry into force of this
Convention. At least three months before the date of each election the
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall address a letter to the States
Parties inviting them to submit their nominations within two months. The
Secretary-General shall prepare a list in alphabetical order of all persons
thus nominated, indicating the States Parties which have nominated them, and
shall submit it to the States Parties.
4. Elections of the
members of the Committee shall be held at a meeting of States Parties convened
by the Secretary-General at United Nations Headquarters. At that meeting, for
which two thirds of the States Parties shall constitute a quorum, the persons
elected to the Committee shall be nominees who obtain the largest number of
votes and an absolute majority of the votes of the representatives of States
Parties present and voting.
5.
(a)
The members of the Committee shall be elected for a term of four years.
However, the terms of nine of the members elected at the first election shall
expire at the end of two years; immediately after the first election the names
of these nine members shall be chosen by lot by the Chairman of the Committee;
(b) For the filling of
casual vacancies, the State Party whose expert has ceased to function as a
member of the Committee shall appoint another expert from among its nationals,
subject to the approval of the Committee.
6. States Parties
shall be responsible for the expenses of the members of the Committee while
they are in performance of Committee duties. (amendment (see General Assembly
resolution 47/111 of 16 December 1992))
Article 9
1. States Parties
undertake to submit to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, for
consideration by the Committee, a report on the legislative, judicial,
administrative or other measures which they have adopted and which give effect
to the provisions of this Convention:
(a)
within one year after the entry into force of the Convention for the State concerned;
and
(b) thereafter every
two years and whenever the Committee so requests. The Committee may request
further information from the States Parties.
2. The Committee shall
report annually, through the Secretary General, to the General Assembly of the
United Nations on its activities and may make suggestions and general
recommendations based on the examination of the reports and information
received from the States Parties. Such suggestions and general recommendations
shall be reported to the General Assembly together with comments, if any, from
States Parties.
Article 10
1. The Committee shall
adopt its own rules of procedure.
2. The Committee shall
elect its officers for a term of two years.
3. The secretariat of
the Committee shall be provided by the Secretary General of the United Nations.
4. The meetings of the
Committee shall normally be held at United Nations Headquarters.
Article 11
1. If a State Party
considers that another State Party is not giving effect to the provisions of
this Convention, it may bring the matter to the attention of the Committee. The
Committee shall then transmit the communication to the State Party concerned.
Within three months, the receiving State shall submit to the Committee written
explanations or statements clarifying the matter and the remedy, if any, that
may have been taken by that State.
2. If the matter is
not adjusted to the satisfaction of both parties, either by bilateral
negotiations or by any other procedure open to them, within six months after
the receipt by the receiving State of the initial communication, either State
shall have the right to refer the matter again to the Committee by notifying
the Committee and also the other State.
3. The Committee shall
deal with a matter referred to it in accordance with paragraph 2 of this
article after it has ascertained that all available domestic remedies have been
invoked and exhausted in the case, in conformity with the generally recognized
principles of international law. This shall not be the rule where the
application of the remedies is unreasonably prolonged.
4. In any matter
referred to it, the Committee may call upon the States Parties concerned to
supply any other relevant information.
5. When any matter
arising out of this article is being considered by the Committee, the States
Parties concerned shall be entitled to send a representative to take part in
the proceedings of the Committee, without voting rights, while the matter is
under consideration.
Article 12
1.
(a)
After the Committee has obtained and collated all the information it deems
necessary, the Chairman shall appoint an ad hoc Conciliation Commission
(hereinafter referred to as the Commission) comprising five persons who may or
may not be members of the Committee. The members of the Commission shall be
appointed with the unanimous consent of the parties to the dispute, and its
good offices shall be made available to the States concerned with a view to an
amicable solution of the matter on the basis of respect for this Convention;
(b) If the States
parties to the dispute fail to reach agreement within three months on all or
part of the composition of the Commission, the members of the Commission not
agreed upon by the States parties to the dispute shall be elected by secret
ballot by a two-thirds majority vote of the Committee from among its own
members.
2. The members of the
Commission shall serve in their personal capacity. They shall not be nationals
of the States parties to the dispute or of a State not Party to this
Convention.
3. The Commission
shall elect its own Chairman and adopt its own rules of procedure.
4. The meetings of the
Commission shall normally be held at United Nations Headquarters or at any
other convenient place as determined by the Commission.
5. The secretariat
provided in accordance with article 10, paragraph 3, of this Convention shall
also service the Commission whenever a dispute among States Parties brings the
Commission into being.
6. The States parties
to the dispute shall share equally all the expenses of the members of the
Commission in accordance with estimates to be provided by the Secretary-General
of the United Nations.
7. The
Secretary-General shall be empowered to pay the expenses of the members of the
Commission, if necessary, before reimbursement by the States parties to the
dispute in accordance with paragraph 6 of this article.
8. The information
obtained and collated by the Committee shall be made available to the
Commission, and the Commission may call upon the States concerned to supply any
other relevant information.
Article 13
1. When the Commission
has fully considered the matter, it shall prepare and submit to the Chairman of
the Committee a report embodying its findings on all questions of fact relevant
to the issue between the parties and containing such recommendations as it may
think proper for the amicable solution of the dispute.
2. The Chairman of the
Committee shall communicate the report of the Commission to each of the States
parties to the dispute. These States shall, within three months, inform the
Chairman of the Committee whether or not they accept the recommendations
contained in the report of the Commission.
3. After the period
provided for in paragraph 2 of this article, the Chairman of the Committee
shall communicate the report of the Commission and the declarations of the
States Parties concerned to the other States Parties to this Convention.
Article 14
1. A State Party may
at any time declare that it recognizes the competence of the Committee to
receive and consider communications from individuals or groups of individuals
within its jurisdiction claiming to be victims of a violation by that State
Party of any of the rights set forth in this Convention. No communication shall
be received by the Committee if it concerns a State Party which has not made
such a declaration.
2. Any State Party
which makes a declaration as provided for in paragraph I of this article may
establish or indicate a body within its national legal order which shall be
competent to receive and consider petitions from individuals and groups of
individuals within its jurisdiction who claim to be victims of a violation of
any of the rights set forth in this Convention and who have exhausted other
available local remedies.
3. A declaration made
in accordance with paragraph 1 of this article and the name of any body
established or indicated in accordance with paragraph 2 of this article shall
be deposited by the State Party concerned with the Secretary-General of the
United Nations, who shall transmit copies thereof to the other States Parties.
A declaration may be withdrawn at any time by notification to the
Secretary-General, but such a withdrawal shall not affect communications
pending before the Committee.
4. A register of
petitions shall be kept by the body established or indicated in accordance with
paragraph 2 of this article, and certified copies of the register shall be
filed annually through appropriate channels with the Secretary-General on the
understanding that the contents shall not be publicly disclosed.
5. In the event of
failure to obtain satisfaction from the body established or indicated in
accordance with paragraph 2 of this article, the petitioner shall have the
right to communicate the matter to the Committee within six months.
6.
(a)
The Committee shall confidentially bring any communication referred to it to
the attention of the State Party alleged to be violating any provision of this
Convention, but the identity of the individual or groups of individuals
concerned shall not be revealed without his or their express consent. The
Committee shall not receive anonymous communications;
(b) Within three
months, the receiving State shall submit to the Committee written explanations
or statements clarifying the matter and the remedy, if any, that may have been
taken by that State.
7.
(a)
The Committee shall consider communications in the light of all information
made available to it by the State Party concerned and by the petitioner. The
Committee shall not consider any communication from a petitioner unless it has
ascertained that the petitioner has exhausted all available domestic remedies.
However, this shall not be the rule where the application of the remedies is
unreasonably prolonged;
(b) The Committee
shall forward its suggestions and recommendations, if any, to the State Party
concerned and to the petitioner.
8. The Committee shall
include in its annual report a summary of such communications and, where
appropriate, a summary of the explanations and statements of the States Parties
concerned and of its own suggestions and recommendations.
9. The Committee shall
be competent to exercise the functions provided for in this article only when
at least ten States Parties to this Convention are bound by declarations in
accordance with paragraph I of this article.
Article 15
1 . Pending the
achievement of the objectives of the Declaration on the Granting of
Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, contained in General Assembly
resolution 1514 (XV) of 14 December 1960, the provisions of this Convention
shall in no way limit the right of petition granted to these peoples by other
international instruments or by the United Nations and its specialized
agencies.
2.
(a)
The Committee established under article 8, paragraph 1, of this Convention
shall receive copies of the petitions from, and submit expressions of opinion
and recommendations on these petitions to, the bodies of the United Nations
which deal with matters directly related to the principles and objectives of
this Convention in their consideration of petitions from the inhabitants of
Trust and Non-Self-Governing Territories and all other territories to which
General Assembly resolution 1514 (XV) applies, relating to matters covered by
this Convention which are before these bodies;
(b) The Committee
shall receive from the competent bodies of the United Nations copies of the
reports concerning the legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures
directly related to the principles and objectives of this Convention applied by
the administering Powers within the Territories mentioned in subparagraph (a)
of this paragraph, and shall express opinions and make recommendations to these
bodies.
3. The Committee shall
include in its report to the General Assembly a summary of the petitions and
reports it has received from United Nations bodies, and the expressions of
opinion and recommendations of the Committee relating to the said petitions and
reports.
4. The Committee shall
request from the Secretary-General of the United Nations all information
relevant to the objectives of this Convention and available to him regarding
the Territories mentioned in paragraph 2 (a) of this article.
Article 16
The provisions of this
Convention concerning the settlement of disputes or complaints shall be applied
without prejudice to other procedures for settling disputes or complaints in
the field of discrimination laid down in the constituent instruments of, or
conventions adopted by, the United Nations and its specialized agencies, and
shall not prevent the States Parties from having recourse to other procedures
for settling a dispute in accordance with general or special international
agreements in force between them.
PART III
Article 17
1. This Convention is
open for signature by any State Member of the United Nations or member of any
of its specialized agencies, by any State Party to the Statute of the
International Court of Justice, and by any other State which has been invited
by the General Assembly of the United Nations to become a Party to this
Convention.
2. This Convention is
subject to ratification. Instruments of ratification shall be deposited with
the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Article 18
1. This Convention
shall be open to accession by any State referred to in article 17, paragraph 1,
of the Convention. 2. Accession shall be effected by the deposit of an
instrument of accession with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Article 19
1. This Convention
shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the date of the deposit with
the Secretary-General of the United Nations of the twenty-seventh instrument of
ratification or instrument of accession.
2. For each State
ratifying this Convention or acceding to it after the deposit of the
twenty-seventh instrument of ratification or instrument of accession, the
Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the date of the
deposit of its own instrument of ratification or instrument of accession.
Article 20
1. The
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall receive and circulate to all
States which are or may become Parties to this Convention reservations made by
States at the time of ratification or accession. Any State which objects to the
reservation shall, within a period of ninety days from the date of the said
communication, notify the Secretary-General that it does not accept it.
2. A reservation
incompatible with the object and purpose of this Convention shall not be
permitted, nor shall a reservation the effect of which would inhibit the operation
of any of the bodies established by this Convention be allowed. A reservation
shall be considered incompatible or inhibitive if at least two thirds of the
States Parties to this Convention object to it.
3. Reservations may be
withdrawn at any time by notification to this effect addressed to the
Secretary-General. Such notification shall take effect on the date on which it
is received.
Article 21
A State Party may
denounce this Convention by written notification to the Secretary-General of
the United Nations. Denunciation shall take effect one year after the date of
receipt of the notification by the Secretary General.
Article 22
Any dispute between
two or more States Parties with respect to the interpretation or application of
this Convention, which is not settled by negotiation or by the procedures
expressly provided for in this Convention, shall, at the request of any of the
parties to the dispute, be referred to the International Court of Justice for
decision, unless the disputants agree to another mode of settlement.
Article 23
1. A request for the
revision of this Convention may be made at any time by any State Party by means
of a notification in writing addressed to the Secretary-General of the United
Nations.
2. The General
Assembly of the United Nations shall decide upon the steps, if any, to be taken
in respect of such a request.
Article 24
The Secretary-General
of the United Nations shall inform all States referred to in article 17,
paragraph 1, of this Convention of the following particulars:
(a)
Signatures, ratifications and accessions under articles 17 and 18;
(b) The date of entry
into force of this Convention under article 19;
(c) Communications and
declarations received under articles 14, 20 and 23;
(d) Denunciations
under article 21.
Article 25
1. This Convention, of
which the Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish texts are equally
authentic, shall be deposited in the archives of the United Nations.
2. The
Secretary-General of the United Nations shall transmit certified copies of this
Convention to all States belonging to any of the categories mentioned in
article 17, paragraph 1, of the Convention.
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