Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions

A/RES/53/147View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, published in 1999.

What other versions does this mandate have?

15 versions · 1997–2024

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/79/176

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2024	A/RES/79/176	Extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions	3,431	84%Compare
2023	A/RES/77/218	Extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions	3,316	74%Compare
2020	A/RES/75/189	Extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions	2,727	96%Compare
2019	A/RES/73/172	Extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions	2,647	89%Compare
2017	A/RES/71/198	Extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions	2,441	89%Compare

What subjects does this mandate have?

8 subjects

Capital Punishment Extralegal Executions Gender-Based Violence Information Exchange Law Enforcement Officials Special Rapporteurs Summary Executions Training Programmes

What’s in this document?

24 operative paragraphs

Strongly condemns once again all the extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions that continue to take place throughout the world;

Demands that all Governments ensure that the practice of extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions be brought to an end and that they take effective action to combat and eliminate the phenomenon in all its forms;

Reiterates the obligation of all Governments to conduct exhaustive and impartial investigations into all suspected cases of extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, to identify and bring to justice those responsible, to grant adequate compensation to the victims or their families and to adopt all necessary measures to prevent the recurrence of such executions;

Notes the encouragement given to the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions to continue, within the framework of her mandate, to collect information from all concerned and to seek the views and comments of Governments so as to be able to respond effectively to reliable information that comes before her and to follow up communications and country visits;

Reaffirms Economic and Social Council decision 1998/265 of 30 July 1998, in which the Council endorsed the decision of the Commission on Human Rights, in its resolution 1998/68, to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur for three years;

Takes note of the statement made by the Special Rapporteur before the General Assembly on 4 November 1998;⁹

⁹See A/C.3/53/SR.34.

Notes the important role the Special Rapporteur has played towards the elimination of extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions;

Notes that the Commission, in its resolution 1998/68, requested the Special Rapporteur, in carrying out her mandate:

To continue to examine situations of extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions and to submit her findings on an annual basis, together with conclusions and recommendations, to the Commission, as well as such other reports as the Special Rapporteur deems necessary to keep the Commission informed about serious situations of extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions that warrant its immediate attention;

To respond effectively to information that comes before her, in particular when an extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary execution is imminent or threatened or when such an execution has occurred;

To enhance further her dialogue with Governments, as well as to follow up recommendations made in reports after visits to particular countries;

To continue to pay special attention to extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions of children and women and to allegations concerning violations of the right to life in the context of violence against participants in demonstrations and other peaceful public manifestations or against persons belonging to minorities;

To pay special attention to extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions where the victims are individuals carrying out peaceful activities in the defence of human rights and fundamental freedoms;

To continue to monitor the implementation of existing international standards on safeguards and restrictions relating to the imposition of capital punishment, bearing in mind the comments made by the Human Rights Committee in its interpretation of article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,2 as well as the Second Optional Protocol thereto;¹⁰

¹⁰Resolution 44/128, annex.

To apply a gender perspective in her work;

Strongly urges all Governments to respond to the communications transmitted to them by the Special Rapporteur, and urges them and all others concerned to cooperate with and assist the Special Rapporteur so that she may carry out her mandate effectively, including, where appropriate, by issuing invitations to the Special Rapporteur when she so requests;

Encourages Governments, international organizations and non-governmental organizations to organize training programmes and to support projects with a view to training or educating military forces, law enforcement officers and government officials, as well as members of United Nations peacekeeping or observer missions, in human rights and humanitarian law issues connected with their work, and appeals to the international community to support endeavours to that end;

Urges the Special Rapporteur to continue to draw to the attention of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights such situations of extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions as are of particularly serious concern to her or where early action might prevent further deterioration;

Welcomes the cooperation established between the Special Rapporteur and other United Nations mechanisms and procedures relating to human rights, as well as with medical and forensic experts, and encourages the Special Rapporteur to continue efforts in this regard;

Calls upon the Governments of all States in which the death penalty has not been abolished to comply with their obligations under relevant provisions of international human rights instruments, keeping in mind the safeguards and guarantees referred to in Economic and Social Council resolutions 1984/50 and 1989/64;

Again requests the Secretary-General to continue to use his best endeavours in cases where the minimum standard of legal safeguards provided for in articles 6, 9, 14 and 15 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights appears not to have been respected;

Requests the Secretary-General to provide the Special Rapporteur with an adequate and stable level of human, financial and material resources to enable her to carry out her mandate effectively, including through country visits;

Also requests the Secretary-General to continue, in close collaboration with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in conformity with the High Commissioner’s mandate established by the General Assembly in its resolution 48/141 of 20 December 1993, to ensure that personnel specialized in human rights and humanitarian law issues form part of United Nations missions, where appropriate, in order to deal with serious violations of human rights, such as extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions;

Requests the Special Rapporteur to submit an interim report to the General Assembly at its fifty-fifth session on the situation worldwide in regard to extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions and her recommendations for more effective action to combat that phenomenon.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

What other versions does this mandate have?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

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