The International Covenant On Civil And Political Rights And Its First Optional Protocol

The Human Rights Committee has, in its many years of existence, developed an extensive jurisprudence made up of concluding observations prepared in response to state reports, general comments on the interpretation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and views expressed in individual cases submitted under the First Optional Protocol. The ICCPR as a human rights treaty confers rights on individuals. Individuals are not only the bearers of these rights but also the ones who, filing their complaints to the Human Rights Committee, enable the committee to clarify the meaning of these rights. This book unites all elements of the jurisprudence of the Human Rights Committee. The views concerning individuals in concrete situations form the core of this book.

Now in its third edition, this book is the authoritative text on one of the world's most important human rights treaties, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The Covenant is of universal relevance. Adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1966 and in force from 1976, it commits the signatories and parties to respect the civil and political freedoms and rights of individuals. Monitored by the UN Human Rights Committee, the Covenant ratified by the majority of UN member states. The book meticulously extracts and analyzes the jurisprudence over nearly forty years of the UN Human Rights Committee, on each of the various ICCPR rights, including the right to life, the right to freedom from torture, the right of freedom of religion, the right of freedom of expression, and the right to privacy, as well as admissibility criteria under the First Optional Protocol. Key miscellaneous issues, such as reservations, derogations, and denunciations, are also thoroughly assessed. Comprehensively indexed and cross-referenced, this book offers elegant and straight-forward access to the jurisprudence of the Human Rights Committee and other UN human rights treaty bodies. Presented in a clear and illuminating manner, it will be of use to the judiciary, human rights practitioners, human rights activists, government institutions, academics, and students alike.

This Guide to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) condenses the guidance of the Human Rights Committee and accompanying legal scholarship into an easily accessible reference handbook for understanding the nature and scope of rights set forth in the ICCPR. The ICCPR offers the most widely accepted definition of civil and political rights at the international level, and as such this practical guide serves as an indispensable tool for legal practitioners and others who are dedicated to the promotion and protection of civil and political rights throughout the globe. It is also a useful source of information for introductory courses in international human rights law. Published under the Transnational Publishers imprint.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights [ICCPR] is the most important human rights treaty in the world: it is of universal relevance, being open for ratification to all States. Now fully updated and in its second edition, this book provides a comprehensive collation and analysis of the jurisprudence of the Human Rights Committee, the monitoring body established under the ICCPR. The substantive articles of the ICCPR, as well as the admissibility provisions of the FirstOptional Protocol, are analysed, incorporating excerpts from decisions arising from individual communications under the First Optional Protocol, as well as relevant General Comments and Concluding Observations on States parties. Decisions under other United Nations treaties, such as theInternational Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, are also extracted to highlight complementary UN human rights jurisprudence. Comprehensively indexed and cross-referenced, this book offers ready access to the jurisprudence of the Human Rights Committee and other UN human rights treaty bodies. Presented in a clear and illuminating manner, it will be of use to the judiciary, human rights practitioners, human rightsactivists, government institutions, academics, and students alike.

"The first ideas ... originated from a conference held in Utrecht on ... the 35th anniversary of the two 1966 Covenants, the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights."--Foreword.

Art. 6 Right to life