Resolution 52/64
(December 10, 1997)
The General Assembly,
Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United
Nations,
Guided also by the principles of international humanitarian law, in
particular the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian
Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, 1/ as well as international
standards of human rights, in particular the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights 2/ and the International Covenants on Human Rights, 3/
Recalling its relevant resolutions, including resolution 2443 (XXIII)
of 19 December 1968, and relevant resolutions of the Commission on Human
Rights,
Recalling also relevant resolutions of the Security Council,
Aware of the lasting impact of the uprising (intifada) of the
Palestinian people,
Convinced that occupation itself represents a primary violation of
human rights,
Having considered the reports of the Special Committee to Investigate
Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People
and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories 4/ and the relevant reports
of the Secretary-General, 5/
Recalling the signing of the Declaration of Principles on Interim
Self-Government Arrangements by the Government of the State of Israel and
the Palestine Liberation Organization in Washington, D.C., on
13 September 1993, 6/ as well as the subsequent implementation
agreements, including the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement on the
West Bank and the Gaza Strip signed in Washington, D.C., on
28 September 1995, 7/
Expressing the hope that, with the progress of the peace process, the
Israeli occupation will be brought to an end and therefore violation of
the human rights of the Palestinian people will cease,
1. Commends the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices
Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of
the Occupied Territories for its efforts in performing the tasks assigned
to it by the General Assembly and for its impartiality;
2. Demands that Israel cooperate with the Special Committee in
implementing its mandate;
3. Deplores those policies and practices of Israel which violate the
human rights of the Palestinian people and other Arabs of the occupied
territories, as reflected in the reports of the Special Committee
covering the reporting period;
4. Expresses concern about the recent deterioration of the situation
in the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, as a result
of Israeli practices and measures and the impasse facing the Middle East
peace process;
5. Requests the Special Committee, pending complete termination of the
Israeli occupation, to continue to investigate Israeli policies and
practices in the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem, and
other Arab territories occupied by Israel since 1967, especially Israeli
lack of compliance with the provisions of the Geneva Convention relative
to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, of 12 August 1949, 1/
and to consult, as appropriate, with the International Committee of the
Red Cross according to its regulations in order to ensure that the
welfare and human rights of the peoples of the occupied territories are
safeguarded and to report to the Secretary-General as soon as possible
and whenever the need arises thereafter;
6. Also requests the Special Committee to submit regularly to the
Secretary-General periodic reports on the current situation in the
occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem;
7. Further requests the Special Committee to continue to investigate
the treatment of prisoners in the occupied Palestinian territory,
including Jerusalem, and other Arab territories occupied by Israel since
1967;
8. Requests the Secretary-General:
(a) To provide the Special Committee with all necessary facilities,
including those required for its visits to the occupied territories, so
that it may investigate the Israeli policies and practices referred to
in the present resolution;
(b) To continue to make available such additional staff as may be
necessary to assist the Special Committee in the performance of its
tasks;
(c) To circulate regularly to Member States the periodic reports
mentioned in paragraph 6 above;
(d) To ensure the widest circulation of the reports of the Special
Committee and of information regarding its activities and findings, by
all means available, through the Office of Communications and Public
Information of the Secretariat and, where necessary, to reprint those
reports of the Special Committee that are no longer available;
(e) To report to the General Assembly at its fifty-third session on
the tasks entrusted to him in the present resolution;
9. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its fifty-third
session the item entitled “ Report of the Special Committee to Investigate
Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People
and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories.”
69th plenary meeting
10 December 1997
Notes
1/ United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, No. 973.
2/ Resolution 217 A (III).
3/ Resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex.
4/ See A/52/131 and Add.1 and 2.
5/ A/52/550-553.
6/ A/48/486-S/26560, annex; see Official Records of the Security Council,
Forty-eighth Year, Supplement for October, November and December 1993,
document S/26560.
7/ A/51/889-S/1997/357, annex; see Official Records of the Security
Council, Fifty-second Year, Supplement for April, May and June 1997,
document S/1997/357.
Sources: The United Nations |