7 September 1999
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson
urged the Commission on Human Rights this morning to consider
holding a special session to examine the "extremely
serious" situation in East Timor.
Speaking at a meeting of the Bureau of the Commission at which
she also presented a consolidated report on the situation in
Kosovo, Mrs. Robinson said the ongoing violation of the right to
self-determination of the East Timorese, a continuing mass exodus
and arbitrary execution of civilians warranted her raising the
issue of a special session, even though, she pointed out, the
request for such a meeting must come from a member State of the
United Nations. The High Commissioner added that she hoped the
Commission would be able to consider the matter in the coming
days, "before the situation deteriorates even further".
In the last decade the Commission, which normally meets in the
spring in Geneva, has held three special sessions: in 1992 and
1993 on the situation in the former Yugoslavia, and in 1994 on the
situation in Rwanda. |