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China's Position Paper on UN Reforms (full text)
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2005-06-08 11:35 9. Peacebuilding
China supports the establishment of
the Peacebuilding Commission. The responsibilities of the Commission should
focus on assisting the planning of the transition from conflict to post-conflict
reconstruction and coordinating international efforts. China endorses the
Secretary-General's view that the Commission is largely an advisory body without
early warning or monitoring function.
The Commission will be responsible
mainly to the Security Council, which is in the interest of its efficiency and
effectiveness. China also supports the Economic and Social Council's full
participation in the Commission's work.
The Secretariat should follow the
principles of efficiency and effectiveness in setting up the Peacebuilding
Support Office.
III. Rule of Law, Human Rights and
Democracy
1. Responsibility to
Protect
Each state shoulders the primary responsibility to
protect its own population. However, internal unrest in a country is often
caused by complex factors. Prudence is called for in judgin g a government's
ability and will to protect its citizens. No reckless intervention should be
allowed.
When a massive humanitarian crisis occurs, It is the legitimate
concern of the international community to ease and defuse the crisis. Any
response to such a crisis should strictly conform to the UN Charter and the
opinions of the country and the regional organization concerned should be
respected. It falls on the Security Council to make the decision in the frame of
UN in light of specific circumstances which should lead to a peaceful solution
as far as possible. Wherever it involves enforcement actions, there should be
more prudence in the consideration of each case.
2. International
Criminal Court
China supports the establishment of an
International Criminal Court characterized by its independence, impartiality,
effectiveness and universality, capable of punishing the gravest international
crimes.
In view of some deficiencies in the Rome Statute of the
International Criminal Court which may hinder the just and effective functioning
of the Court, China has not yet acceded to the Statute. But we still hope that
the Court will win the confidence of non-Contracting Parties and wide acceptance
of the international community through its work.
The Security Council
should act with prudence as to whether to refer a certain situation to the
International Criminal Court.
3. The International Court of
Justice
China is in favor of strengthening the role of the
International Court of Justice, improving its working methods and enhancing its
efficiency. The right of each country to choose freely peaceful means to settle
disputes should be respected.
4. Human
rights
China is in favor of and supports the reform of UN human
rights bodies. The essence of the reform is depoliticizing human rights issues,
rejecting double standards, reducing and avoiding confrontation and promoting
cooperation, so as to gear more resources to human rights technical cooperation
projects and countries' human rights capacity building.
Equal importance
should be given to the economic, social and cultural rights on the one hand and
the civil and political rights on the other. Emphasis on one category of human
rights to the neglect of the other should be redressed.
The UN Commission
on Human Rights has played an important role in the area of international human
rights. Its role and contribution should not be denied.
The UN human
rights bodies must abide by the principle of equitable geographical distribution
in their composition to ensure broad representation. To have a small "Human
Rights Council" to replace the Commission may not possibly overturn the serious
"credit deficit" in the human rights area. It is necessary to conduct serious
discussions on ways to improve the work of UN human rights
agencies.
China agrees to the global program to equip United Nations
inter-agency country teams to work with Member States to bolster their national
human rights promotion. The "country teams" should respect the sovereignty and
laws of Member States, give full consideration to the actual needs of Member
States in the human rights area and take the capacity building of Member States
as the objective. An annual report on the work of the "country teams" should be
submitted for the deliberations of Member States.
China supports the High
Commissioner for Human Rights in playing a more active role in the UN system
within his/her term of reference. The Security Council and the proposed
Peacebuilding Commission can invite, if needed, the High Commissioner to
participate in relevant deliberations.
The Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights should be granted adequate resources to strengthen
its capability to perform its functions. Meanwhile, its funds should be used
more efficiently. The composition of the Office of High Commissioner for Human
Rights should better reflect the principle of geographical equality so as to win
broader support of Member States.
China is in favor of reforming the
current reporting and reviewing system so as to avoid redundancy of various
treaty bodies' work and lighten the burden on Contracting Parties. A working
code should be formulated for treaty bodies to strengthen communication and
dialogue with Contracting Parties.
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