Recalling its resolutions 32/197 of 20 December 1977 on the restructuring of the economic and social sectors of the United Nations system and 33/118 of 19 December 1978, especially paragraph 4, in which it welcomed the intention of the Committee for Programme and Co-ordination to conduct an in-depth study of the programme planning process during its nineteenth session, Having considered the report of the Committee for Programme and Co-ordination on the work of its nineteenth session 47/ and the reports of the Secretary-General 48/ and of the Joint Inspection Unit 49/ on medium-term planning in the United Nations, Considering that medium-term planning should, among other things, strengthen the relationship between planning and development and contribute to a better and more rational management of United Nations activities, to better interagency co-ordination and to the attainment of the objectives of the new international economic order and of the international development strategies, 1. 2. Takes note with satisfaction of the aforementioned reports; Endorses the conclusions and recommendations contained in the aforementioned report of the Committee for Programme and Co-ordination 50/ and decides to establish the following principles and guidelines for medium-term planning in the United Nations: (a) The planning process, which is a part of the over-all management process, should be forward-looking and dynamic, the plan should be deductive, with its strategy, orientation, goals and activities deriving from the objectives and policy orientations set by the intergovernmental organs; (b) The medium-term plan should be a faithful translation of legislative mandates into programmes; (c) The plan remains a proposal until adopted by the General Assembly, after adoption, it becomes a principal policy directive; 51/ (d) The medium-term plan should be comprehensive and not staggered; (e) The flexibility of the plan should be achieved through reviews by intergovernmental organs as detailed as required to incorporate the programme implications of the resolutions and decisions adopted by those organs or international conferences since the adoption of the plan; (£) The effective participation of central and regional, sectoral and functional bodies in the formulation, consideration, review and evaluation of the plan should be achieved by means of an appropriate preparation period and greater co-ordination of their calendars of meetings; (q) The introduction to the plan, which constitutes a key integral element in the planning process, should highlight the policy orientations of the United Nations system and indicate the medium-term objectives and strategies and the trends deduced from the mandates which reflect the priorities set by the intergovernmental organs; 47 48/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Thirty-fourth Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/34/38). 49/ A/34/84. 50/ Official Records of the General Assembly, Thirty-fourth Session, Supplement No. 38 (A/34/38), chap. II, par as. 71-72. 51/ Reaffirmation of the principle already established in resolution 31/93. 2. For each State ratifying the present Convention or acceding to it after the deposit of the twentieth instrument of ratification or accession, the Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the date of the deposit of its own instrument of ratification or accession. Article 28 1. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall receive and circulate to all States the text of reservations made by States at the time of ratification or accession. 2. A reservation incompatible with the object and purpose of the present Convention shall not be permitted. 3. Reservations may be withdrawn at any time by notification to this effect addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall then inform all States thereof. Such notification shall take effect on the date on which it is received. Article 29 If 1. Any dispute between two or more States Parties concerning the interpretation or application of the present Convention which is not settled by negotiation shall, at the request of one of them, be submitted to arbitration. within six months from the date of the request for arbitration the parties are unable to agree on the organization of the arbitration, any one of those parties may refer the dispute to the International Court of Justice by request in conformity with the Statute of the Court. 2. Each State Party may at the time of signature or ratification of this Convention or accession thereto declare that it does not consider itself bound by paragraph 1 of this article. The other States Parties shall not be bound by that paragraph with respect to any State Party which has made such a reservation. 3. Any State Party which has made a reservation in accordance with paragraph 2 of this article may at any time withdraw that reservation by notification to the Secretary-General of the United Nations. Article 30 The present Convention, the Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish texts of which are equally authentic, shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, duly authorized, have signed the present Convention. >/34/169. Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials Date: 17 December 1979 Adopted without a vote Meeting: 106 The General Assembly, Considering that the purposes proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations include the achievement of international co-operation in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion, Recalling, in particular, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 91/ and the Recalling also the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Being Subjected to Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 3452 (XXX) of 9 December 1975, Mindful that the nature of the functions of law enforcement in the defence of public order and the manner in which these functions are exercised have a direct impact on the quality of life of individuals as well as of society as a whole, Conscious of the important task which law enforcement officials are performing diligently and with dignity, in compliance with the principles of human rights, Aware, nevertheless, of the potential for abuse which the exercise of such duties entails, Recognizing that the establishment of a code of conduct for law enforcement officials is only one of several important measures for providing the citizenry served by law enforcement officials with protection of all their rights and interests, Aware that there are additional important principles and prerequisites for the hum ane performance of law enforcement functions, namely: (a) That, like all agencies of the criminal justice system, every law enforcement agency should be representative of and responsive and accountable to the community as a whole, (b) That the effective maintenance of ethical standards among law enforcement officials depends on the existence of a well-conceived, popularly accepted and humane system of laws, (c) That every law enforcement official is part of the criminal justice system, the aim of which is to prevent and control crime, and that the conduct of every functionary within the system has an impact on the entire system, (d) That every law enforcement agency, in fulfilment of the first premise of every profession, should be held to the duty of disciplining itself in complete conformity with the principles and standards herein provided and that the actions of law enforcement officials should be responsive to public scrutiny, whether exercised by a review board, a ministry, a procuracy, the judiciary, an ombudsman, a citizens' committee or any combination thereof, or any other reviewing agency, (e) That standards as such lack practical value unless their content and meaning, through education and training and through monitoring, become part of the creed of every law enforcement official, Adopts the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials set forth in the annex to the present resolution and decides to transmit it to Governments with the recommendation that favourable consideration should be given to its use within the framework of national legislation or practice as a body of principles for observance by law enforcement officials. ANNEX Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials Article 1 Law enforcement officials shall at all times fulfil the duty imposed upon them by law, by serving the community and by protecting all persons against illegal acts, consistent with the high degree of responsibility required by their profession. 91/ Resolution 217 A (III). Commentary: 93/ (a) The term "law enforcement officials" includes all officers of the law, whether (b) In countries where police powers are exercised by military authorities, whether uniformed or not, or by state security forces, the definition of law enforcement officials shall be regarded as including officers of such services. (c) Service to the community is intended to include particularly the rendition of services of assistance to those members of the community who by reason of personal, economic, social or other emergencies are in need of immediate aid. (d) This provision is intended to cover not only all violent, predatory and harmful It extends to acts, but extends to the full range of prohibitions under penal statutes. conduct by persons not capable of incurring criminal liability. Article 2 In the performance of their duty, law enforcement officials shall respect and protect human dignity and maintain and uphold the human rights of all persons. Commentary: (a) The human rights in question are identified and protected by national and international law. Among the relevant international instruments are the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Being Subjected to Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Radial Discrimination, the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination, the International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. (b) National commentaries to this provision should indicate regional or national provisions identifying and protecting these rights. Article 3 Law enforcement officials may use force only when strictly necessary and to the extent required for the performance of their duty. Commentary: (a) This provision emphasizes that the use of force by law enforcement officials should be exceptional; while it implies that law enforcement officials may be authorized to use force as is reasonably necessary under the circumstances for the prevention of crime or in effecting or assisting in the lawful arrest of ofenders or suspected offenders, no force going beyond that may be used. (b) National law ordinarily restricts the use of force by law enforcement officials in accordance with a principle of proportionality. It is to be understood that such national principles of proportionality are to be respected in the interpretation of this provision. In no case should this provision be interpreted to authorize the use of force which is disproportionate to the legitimate objective to be achieved. (c) The use of firearms is considered an extreme measure. Every effort should be made to exclude the use of firearms, especially against children. In general, firearms should not be used except when a suspected offender offers armed resistance or otherwise jeopardizes the lives of others and less extreme measures are not sufficient to restrain or apprehend the suspected offender. In every instance in which a firearm is discharged, a report should be made promptly to the competent authorities. Article 4 Matters of a confidential nature in the possession of law enforcement officials shall be kept confidential, unless the performance of duty, or the needs of justice, strictly require otherwise. 93/ The commentaries provide information to facilitate the use of the Code within the framework of national legislation or practice. In addition, national or regional commentaries could identify specific features of the legal systems and practices of different States or regiona! intergovernmental organizations which would promote the application of the Coce. Commentary: By the nature of their duties, law enforcement officials obtain information which may relate to private lives or be potentially harmful to the interests, and especially the reputation, of others. Great care should be exercised in safeguarding and using such information, which should be disclosed only in the performance of duty or to serve the needs of justiæ. Any disclosure of such information for other purposes is wholly improper. Article 5 No law enforcement official may inflict, instigate or tolerate any act of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, nor may any law enforcement official invoke superior orders or exceptional circumstances such as a state of war or a threat of war, a threat to national security, internal political instability or any other public emergency as a justification of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment Punishment. Commentary: (a) This prohibition derives from the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Being Subjected to Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, adopted by the General Assembly, according to which: Such an act is an offence to human dignity and shall be condemned as a denial of the purposes of the Charter of the United Nations and as a violation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights" 94/ and other international human rights instruments. "... torture means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted by or at the instigation of a public official on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or confession, punishing him for an act he has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating him or other persons. It does not include pain or suffering arising only from, inherent in or incidental to, lawful sanctions to the extent consistent with the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners." 95/ (c) The term "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment" has not been defined by the General Assembly, but shoul] be interpreted so as to extend the widest possible protection against abuses, whether physical or mental. Article 6 Law enforcement officials shall ensure the full protection of the health of persons in their custody and, in particular, take immediate action to secure medical attention whenever required. Commentary: (a) "Medical attention", which refers to services rendered by any medical personnel, including certified medical practitioners and paramedics, shall be secured when needed or requested. 94/ Article 2 of the Declaration. 95/ Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Offenders: First United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders: report by the Secretariat (United Nations publication, Sales No. 1956.IV.4), annex I.A. |