Expression of Appreciation to the Government and People of Venezuela on the Occasion of the 6th United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders

A/RES/35/173View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 65 Crime prevention and control, published in 1981.

What subjects does this mandate have?

2 subjects

Host Country Relations Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic Of)

What’s in this document?

16 operative paragraphs

Welcoming the spirit of co-operation and the progress achieved in the field of crime prevention and the treatment of offenders during the Sixth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, I.

Declares the following:

The success of criminal justice systems and strategies for crime prevention, especially in the light of the growth of new and sophisticated forms of crime and the difficulties encountered in the administration of criminal justice, depends above all on the progress achieved throughout the world in improving social conditions and enhancing the quality of life; it is thus essential to review traditional crime prevention strategies based exclusively on legal criteria.

Crime prevention and criminal justice should be considered in the context of economic development, political systems, social and cultural values and social change, as well as in the context of the new international economic order.

It is a matter of great importance and pnonty that programmes for crime prevention and the treatment of offenders should be based on the social, cultural, political and economic circumstances of each country, in a climate of freedom and respect for human rights, that Member States should develop an effective capacity for the formulation and planning of criminal policy, and that all crime-prevention policies should be co-ordinated with strategies for social, economic, political and cultural development.

There is a need to promote scientific research, taking into account the particular circumstances and priorities of each country or region.

Member States should ensure that those responsible for the functioning of the criminal justice system at all levels should be properly qualified for their tasks and should perform them in a manner which is independent of personal or group interest.

Criminal policy and the administration of justice should be based on principles that will guarantee the equality of everyone before the law without any discrimination, as well as the effective right of defence and the existence of judicial organs that are equal to the task of providing speedy and fair justice and of ensuring greater security and protection of the rights and freedoms of all people.

Continuous efforts should be made to seek new approaches and to develop better techniques for crime prevention and the treatment of offenders, and to that end criminal law should be developed in such a way as to play an effective and important role in creating stable social conditions free from oppression and manipulation.

The family, school and work have a vital part to play in encouraging the development of social policy and of positive attitudes that will assist in preventing crime, and these factors should be taken into consideration in national planning and in the development of criminal policy and crime prevention programmes.

Having regard to the vital role played by the United Nations in encouraging international co-operation and the development of norms and guidelines in the field of criminal policy, it is important that the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council should ensure that appropriate measures are taken to strengthen, as necessary, the activities of the competent United Nations organs

concerned with crime prevention and the treatment of offenders, especially activities at the regional and subregional levels, taking into account the specific needs of each region, including the establishment of institutes for research, training and technical assistance in those regions which lack such bodies, and the strengthening of existing institutes, and, further to give effect to the conclusions of the Sixth United Nations Congress, including those relating to new perspectives for international co-operation in crime prevention, and to ensure that all United Nations organs co-operate effectively with the Committee on Crime Prevention and Control in pursuance of the relevant resolutions of the General Assembly. 2.

Invites the General Assembly, in the light of the importance attached to the terms of the present Declaration by the States participating in the Sixth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders to take appropriate action at the earliest opportunity in accordance with the Declaration.

35 / 172.

Arbitrary or summary executions

Urges Member States concerned:

To respect as a minimum standard the content of the provisions of articles 6, 14 and 15 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and, where necessary, to review: their legal rules and practices so as to guarantee the most careful legal procedures and the greatest possible safeguards for the accused in capital cases;

To examine the possibility of making automatic the appeal procedure, where it exists, in cases of death sentences, as well as the consideration of an amnesty, pardon or commutation in these cases;

To provide that no death sentence shall be carried out until the procedures of appeal and pardon have been terminated and, in any case, not until a reasonable time after the passing of the sentence in the court in the first instance;

Requests the Secretary-General to use his best endeavours in cases where the minimum standard of legal safeguards referred to in paragraph I above appears not to be respected;

Further requests the Secretary-General to seek from Member States, specialized agencies, regional intergovernmental organizations and concerned nongovernmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council views and observations concerning the problem of arbitrary executions and summary executions, and to report to the Committee on Crime Prevention and Control at its seventh session.

35 / 173.

Expression of appreciation to the Government and people of Venezuela on the occasion of the Sixth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders

Expresses its deep appreciation to the Government and people of Venezuela for acting as host to the Sixth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders.

15 December 1980 "' Resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

Arbitrary or summary executions

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