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Fourteen international
human rights treaties apply to Hong Kong.
Six are particularly important because
they oblige governments to submit periodic
reports to the UN treaty monitoring bodies.
At the end of 2005, the position regarding
the Government's reporting obligations
was:
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(a) |
the
ICCPR: the UN Human Rights
Committee will hear the second report
in March 2006; |
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(b) |
the
ICESCR: the UN Committee
on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
heard the second report (as part of
China's first) in April 2005; |
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(c) |
the
International Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Racial Discrimination:
the initial report — part of
China's eighth and ninth — was
examined by the UN Committee on Elimination
of Racial Discrimination in 2001; |
| |
(d) |
the
Convention against Torture and Other
Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment
or Punishment: the UN Committee
against Torture examined the initial
report — part of China's third
— in 2000. The second report
will form part of China's combined
fourth and fifth; |
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(e) |
the
Convention on the Rights of the Child
(CRC): the UN Committee on
the Rights of the Child heard the
initial report — part of China's
second — in September 2005;
and |
| |
(f) |
the
Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination Against Women
(CEDAW): the Committee on
the Elimination of Discrimination
against Women heard the initial report
— part of China's combined third
and fourth — in 1999. The second
report, part of China's combined fifth
and sixth, was submitted in early
2004 and will be examined in August
2006. |
With the exception of
the ICCPR, to which China is not yet a
party, Hong Kong teams attend hearings
as part of the Chinese delegations. In
the case of the ICCPR, Hong Kong attends
alone, though formally led by the Chinese
Permanent Ambassador to the UN. |