AG/RES. 1478 (XXVII-O/97)
OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON THE ANNUAL REPORT
OF THE INTER-AMERICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
(Resolution adopted at the seventh plenary session, held on June 5, 1997)
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,
HAVING SEEN the Annual Report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
(CP/doc.2882/97) and the presentation thereof by the Chair of the Commission, as well as
the observations and recommendations of the Permanent Council on the Annual Report of the
Inter- American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) (AG/doc.3492/97); and
CONSIDERING:
That the member states of the Organization of American States have proclaimed in the
Charter, as one of their principles, respect for the fundamental rights of the individual,
without distinction as to race, nationality, creed, or sex;
That the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, established at the Fifth Meeting of
Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, held in Santiago in 1959, has as its
principal function, pursuant to the Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights,
that of promoting the observance and protection of human rights;
That numerous member states have expressed the view that, when the IACHR is preparing a
report on the human rights situation in a specific state, that state should be given the
opportunity within a reasonable time to review the report so that it may present its
observations; and
That the member states have reaffirmed the inextricable link between human rights,
democracy, and development,
RESOLVES:
- To take note of and express appreciation for the Annual Report of the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights.
- To urge the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to continue to promote
the observance and protection of the human rights established in the American Declaration
of the Rights and Duties of Man and the American Convention on Human Rights; to recognize
the Commission's efforts to that end in the Hemisphere; and to urge the member states to
continue to assist and support the Commission and to provide it with the resources it
needs in order to fulfill its functions, within allocated resources approved in the
program-budget and other resources.
- To welcome the observations and recommendations presented by the Permanent Council and
to transmit them to the Commission along with those contained in this resolution.
- To express its satisfaction with the progress made in the effective observance of human
rights in the region, in particular the measures being adopted by the member states to
strengthen the promotion, observance, and defense of human rights in their respective
countries; and to appeal to the member states to overcome the difficulties that still
hinder the full exercise of human rights.
- To recommend to member states that have not yet done so that they sign, ratify, or
accede to, as appropriate, in accordance with their constitutional and statutory
requirements, the American Convention on Human Rights (Pact of San Jos�, Costa Rica); the
Additional Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights in the Area of Economic,
Social, and Cultural Rights, "Protocol of San Salvador"; and the other
inter-American instruments for the promotion and protection of human rights.
- To urge the member states to guarantee and exercise special vigilance with regard to
the human rights of indigenous populations, minors at risk, refugees, persons with
disabilities, migrant workers and their families, detainees and prisoners, undervalued or
minority groups, and victims of racial discrimination; to urge the member states to
establish conditions that foster harmony and tolerance among them and all sectors of
society; and to call upon the IACHR to continue paying special attention to these matters.
- To request the IACHR to continue to report on measures taken in response to the
observations and recommendations of the Permanent Council that were transmitted by the
General Assembly.
- To call the attention of the IACHR to the issue of the prior review by the concerned
state of reports on the human rights situation in a specific state.
- To call upon the IACHR to continue to place special importance on dialogue with the
member states regarding the progress achieved and the difficulties encountered in terms of
effective promotion and protection of human rights in the Hemisphere.
- To condemn emphatically all forms of racism, racial or religious discrimination,
xenophobia, and intolerance; and to urge the member states to adopt effective measures to
promote tolerance and eliminate all racist and discriminatory conduct.
- To request the IACHR to continue its work on the project to promote and protect the
right of women in the Hemisphere to be free from discrimination against women, in
conjunction with the member states and the competent bodies of the inter-American system.
- To thank the Commission for beginning to evaluate the situation of migrant workers and
their families in the Hemisphere, to call upon the Commission to complete its evaluation
as soon as possible, and to invite the member states to continue to assist the Commission
when it so requests.
- To note with satisfaction the growing use of the friendly settlement mechanism, and to
call upon the member states and the IACHR to continue to use this mechanism, within a
framework of cooperation, in cases where it can produce a solution.
- To reiterate the importance of retaining the impartial and independent character of the
membership of the IACHR as a key factor in the promotion and protection of human rights in
the Hemisphere.
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