PART VI. International Oversight and Monitoring

Article 32

International Committee

1. There shall be established a Committee on the Regulation, Oversight and Monitoring of Private Military and Security Companies (hereinafter referred to as the Committee). The Committee shall consist, at the time of entry into force of the present Convention, of ten and, after the entry into force of the Convention for the forty-first State Party, of fourteen experts of high moral standing, impartiality and recognized competence in the field covered by the Convention[7] elected by States Parties from among their nationals, who shall serve in their personal capacity, consideration being given to equitable geographical distribution and to the principal legal systems.

2. The members of the Committee shall be elected by secret ballot from a list of persons nominated by the States Parties. Each State Party may nominate one person from among its own nationals.

3. The initial election shall be held six months after the date of the entry into force of this Convention. At least three months before the date of each election the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall address a letter to the States Parties inviting them to submit their nominations within two months. The Secretary-General shall prepare a list in alphabetical order of all persons thus nominated, indicating the States Parties which have nominated them, and shall submit it to the States Parties.

4. Elections of the members of the Committee shall be held at a meeting of States Parties convened by the Secretary-General at United Nations Headquarters. At that meeting, for which two thirds of the States Parties shall constitute a quorum, the persons elected to the Committee shall be nominees who obtain the largest number of votes and an absolute majority of the votes of the representatives of States Parties present and voting.

5. (a) The members of the Committee shall be elected for a term of four years. However, the terms of nine of the members elected at the first election shall expire at the end of two years; immediately after the first election the names of these nine members shall be chosen by lot by the Chairperson of the Committee;

(b) If a member dies or resigns or declares that for any other cause she or he can no longer perform her or his duties, The States party who nominated the member shall appoint another expert possessing the qualifications and meeting the requirements set out in the relevant provisions of this article, to serve for the remainder of the term, subject to the approval of the Committee.

6. States Parties shall be responsible for the expenses of the members of the Committee while they are in performance of Committee duties.

Article 33

Reporting Obligations[8]

1. States Parties undertake to submit to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, for consideration by the Committee, a report on the legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures which they have adopted and which give effect to the provisions of this Convention:

(a) within two years after the entry into force of the Convention for the State Party concerned; and

(b) thereafter every four years and whenever the Committee so requests. The Committee may request further information from the States Parties.

2. A State party which has submitted a comprehensive initial report to the Committee need not, in its subsequent reports, repeat information previously provided.

3. Each report shall be considered in public session in the presence of State Party representatives. The Committee shall make such observations and recommendations on the report and on the examination thereon, as it may consider appropriate. The Committee may request further information from States Parties relevant to the implementation of the present Convention.

4. If a State Party is significantly overdue in the submission of a report, the Committee may notify the State Party concerned of the need to examine the implementation of the present Convention in that State Party, on the basis of reliable information available to the Committee, if the relevant report is not submitted within three months following the notification. The Committee shall invite the State Party concerned to participate in such examination. Should the State Party respond by submitted the relevant report, the provisions of paragraph 3 of this article shall apply.

5. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall make available the reports to all States Parties.

6. States Parties shall make their reports widely available to the public in their own countries and facilitate access to the observations and recommendations relating to these reports.

7. The Committee shall transmit, as it may consider appropriate, to the specialized agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations and other competent bodies, reports from States Parties in order to address a request or indication of a need for technical advice or assistance contained therein, along with the Committee’s observations and recommendations, if any, on these requests or indications.

Article 34

Interpretative Comments by the Committee

The Committee shall issue interpretative comments on the provisions of this Convention, as appropriate.

Article 35

Rules of procedure, elections, sessions

1. The Committee shall adopt its own rules of procedure.

2. The Committee shall elect its officers for a term of two years.

3. The secretariat of the Committee shall be provided by the Secretary General of the United Nations.

4. The Committee shall hold two sessions per year and meetings shall normally take place at United Nations Headquarters or at the United Nations Offices in Geneva.

Article 36

Inquiry Procedure[9]

1. If the Committee receives reliable information which appears to it to contain well-founded indications that private military companies and/or private security companies are operating in violation of international humanitarian law and international human rights norms, the Committee shall invite the State where the offenses have been reported to have occurred and/or the State of registration of said companies to co-operate in the examination of the information and to this end to submit observations with regard to the information concerned.

2. Taking into account any observations which may have been submitted by the State(s) concerned as well as any other relevant information available to it, the Committee may, if it decides that this is warranted, designate one or more of its members to make a confidential inquiry and to report to the Committee urgently.

3. If an inquiry is made in accordance with paragraph 2, the Committee shall seek the co-operation of the States concerned. In agreement with the State(s) concerned, such an inquiry may include a visit in loco.

4. After examining the findings of its member or members submitted in accordance with paragraph 2, the Committee shall transmit these findings to the State(s) concerned together with any comments or suggestions which seem appropriate in view of the situation.

5. All the proceedings of the Committee referred to in paragraphs 1 to 4 of this article shall be confidential, and at all stages of the proceedings the co-operation of the State(s) concerned shall be sought. After such proceedings have been completed with regard to an inquiry made in accordance with paragraph 2, the Committee may, after consultations with the State(s) concerned, decide to include a summary account of the results of the proceedings in its annual report to the General Assembly made in accordance with article 42.

Article 37

Complaints against Parties

1. If a Party to this Convention considers that another Party is not giving effect to the provisions of this Convention, it may bring the matter to the attention of the Committee. The Committee shall then transmit the complaint to the Party concerned. Within three months, the receiving Party shall submit to the Committee written explanations or statements clarifying the matter and the remedy, if any, that may have been taken by that Party.

2. If the matter is not adjusted to the satisfaction of both parties, either by bilateral negotiations or by any other procedure open to them, within six months after the receipt by the receiving Party of the initial complaint, either State shall have the right to refer the matter again to the Committee by notifying the Committee and also the other Party.

3. The Committee shall deal with a matter referred to it in accordance with paragraph 2 of this article after it has ascertained that all available domestic remedies have been invoked and exhausted in the case, in conformity with the generally recognized principles of international law. This shall not be the rule where the application of the remedies is unreasonably prolonged.

4. The Committee shall hold closed meetings when examining complaints under this article.[10]

5. In any matter referred to it, the Committee may call upon the Parties concerned to supply any other relevant information.

6. When any matter arising out of this article is being considered by the Committee, the Parties concerned shall be entitled to send a representative to take part in the proceedings of the Committee, without voting rights, while the matter is under consideration.

Article 38

Conciliation Commission

1. (a) After the Committee has obtained and collated all the information it deems necessary, the Chairperson shall appoint an ad hoc Conciliation Commission (hereinafter referred to as the Commission) comprising five persons who may or may not be members of the Committee. The members of the Commission shall be appointed with the unanimous consent of the parties to the dispute, and its good offices shall be made available to the States concerned with a view to an amicable solution of the matter on the basis of respect for this Convention;

(b) If the States parties to the dispute fail to reach agreement within three months on all or part of the composition of the Commission, the members of the Commission not agreed upon by the States parties to the dispute shall be elected by secret ballot by a two-thirds majority vote of the Committee from among its own members.

2. The members of the Commission shall serve in their personal capacity. They shall not be nationals of the States parties to the dispute or of a State not Party to this Convention.

3. The Commission shall elect its own Chairperson and adopt its own rules of procedure.

4. The meetings of the Commission shall normally be held at United Nations Headquarters or at any other convenient place as determined by the Commission.

5. The secretariat provided in accordance with article 35, paragraph 3, of this Convention shall also service the Commission whenever a dispute among States Parties brings the Commission into being.

6. The States parties to the dispute shall share equally all the expenses of the members of the Commission in accordance with estimates to be provided by the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

7. The Secretary-General shall be empowered to pay the expenses of the members of the Commission, if necessary, before reimbursement by the States parties to the dispute in accordance with paragraph 6 of this article.

8. The information obtained and collated by the Committee shall be made available to the Commission, and the Commission may call upon the States concerned to supply any other relevant information.

Article 39

Report of the Conciliation Commission

1. When the Commission has fully considered the matter, it shall prepare and submit to the Chairperson of the Committee a report embodying its findings on all questions of fact relevant to the issue between the parties and containing such recommendations as it may think proper for the amicable solution of the dispute.

2. The Chairperson of the Committee shall communicate the report of the Commission to each of the States parties to the dispute. These States shall, within three months, inform the Chairperson of the Committee whether or not they accept the recommendations contained in the report of the Commission.

3. After the period provided for in paragraph 2 of this article, the Chairperson of the Committee shall communicate the report of the Commission and the declarations of the States Parties concerned to the other States Parties to this Convention.

Article 40

Individual and Group Petitions

1. A Party may at any time declare that it recognizes the competence of the Committee to receive and consider petitions from or on behalf of individuals or groups of individuals within its jurisdiction claiming to be victims of a violation by that Party of any of the rights set forth in this Convention. No petition shall be received by the Committee if it concerns a Party which has not made such a declaration.

2. Any Party which makes a declaration as provided for in paragraph I of this article may establish or indicate an entity within its national legal order which shall be competent to receive and consider petitions from individuals and groups of individuals within its jurisdiction who claim to be victims of a violation of any of the rights set forth in this Convention and who have exhausted other available local remedies.

3. A declaration made in accordance with paragraph 1 of this article and the name of any entity established or indicated in accordance with paragraph 2 of this article shall be deposited by the Party concerned with the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall transmit copies thereof to the other Parties. A declaration may be withdrawn at any time by notification to the Secretary-General, but such a withdrawal shall not affect petitions pending before the Committee.

4. A register of petitions shall be kept by the body established or indicated in accordance with paragraph 2 of this article, and certified copies of the register shall be filed annually through appropriate channels with the Secretary-General on the understanding that the contents shall not be publicly disclosed.

5. In the event of failure to obtain satisfaction from the body established or indicated in accordance with paragraph 2 of this article, the petitioner shall have the right to communicate the matter to the Committee within six months.

6. (a) The Committee shall confidentially bring any petition referred to it to the attention of the Party alleged to be violating any provision of this Convention, but the identity of the individual or groups of individuals concerned shall not be revealed without his or their express consent. The Committee shall not receive anonymous petitions;

(b) Within three months, the receiving Party shall submit to the Committee written explanations or statements clarifying the matter and the remedy, if any, that may have been taken by that Party.

7. (a) The Committee shall consider petitions in the light of all information made available to it by the Party concerned and by the petitioner. The Committee shall not consider any petition unless it has ascertained that the same matter, submitted by the same petitioner, has not been already examined or is not in the process of examination before another international instance of individual investigation or settlement. Moreover, the Committee shall ascertain that the petitioner has exhausted all available and effective domestic remedies. However, the rule of exhaustion of domestic remedies shall be waived where the application of the remedies is unreasonably prolonged;

(b) The Committee shall forward its suggestions and recommendations, if any, to the Party concerned and to the petitioner.

8. The Committee shall include in its annual report a summary of such petitions and, where appropriate, a summary of the explanations and statements of the Parties concerned and of its own conclusions and recommendations.

9. The Committee shall be competent to exercise the functions provided for in this article only when at least ten Parties to this Convention are bound by declarations in accordance with paragraph I of this article.

10. States parties shall adopt enabling legislation so as to facilitate the implementation or enforcement of the Committee’s conclusions and recommendations in the State party concerned.

Date: 2015-02-03; view: 730