Overview 111th Session – General Comment on Article 9
Right to liberty and security of persons will be Human Rights Committee’s topic of next general comment
During the 111th session, the Committee discussed various proposals received from States, NGOs and academia, as well as its own members on the draft General Comment on Art.9. This was the second reading of the draft comment, after the previous session of March 2014. Committee members took stock of observations made by some States that its general observations were not legally binding. However, recalling the International Court of Justice’s Diallo case, the Committee emphasized that its observations played an important role in both jurisprudence and the formation of customary international law. The relations between human rights law and international humanitarian law, addressed in paragraph 15, were subject to lengthy discussions. However, Committee members concurred that article 9 of the ICCPR does systematically apply in times of armed conflict. On the issue of detention of children, members chose to devote a new paragraph to the topic, which will be discussed in October. The issues of detainees with disabilities and involuntary hospitalization were also addressed during the discussion. Finally, Committee members rejected a government-backed amendment which could ease trying persons by courts from a distance for fear regarding the conditions in which suspects would be held during the distance-trial.
For a more thorough overview of the review, see the 4 dedicated webpages on the HR Cttee webpage (17 July, 18 July, 22 July, and 24 July)
