Urges States parties to the International Covenants on Human Rights to pay active attention to the protection and promotion of civil and political rights, as well as economic, social and cultural rights, taking into consideration their indivisible and interrelated character and the fact that the promotion and protection of one category of rights should never exempt or excuse States from the promotion and protection of the other rights; also urges States parties to fulfil their reporting obligations under the International Covenants on Human Rights; urges all States that have not yet done so to become parties to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and to consider acceding to the Optional Protocols to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; stresses the importance of avoiding the erosion of human rights by derogation, and underlines the necessity of strict observance of the agreed conditions and procedures for derogation under article 4 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; requests the Secretary-General to ensure that the Centre for Human Rights of the Secretariat effectively assists the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in the implementation of their respective mandates.

Adopted without vote, 75th meeting

4 p.

Adopted at the 75th plenary meeting, 17 Dec. 1991.