The two UN human rights conventions are the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights as well as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. They were passed in 1966 and became effective in 1976.
At a press conference on Taiwan’s second national report on the two conventions on Monday, President Ma said although Taiwan is not a member of the United Nations, the two conventions were signed into law in 2009 and measures implemented to protect human rights in Taiwan. Ma also said the justice ministry has actively reviewed rules and regulations that are inconsistent with the two UN human rights conventions.
President Ma said four other UN conventions were also incorporated into domestic law. They are: the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Conventions on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.
The Presidential Office Human Rights Consultative Committee was set up in 2010 to build Taiwan’s human rights reporting system and to promote dialogue with the international community.
With regard to the latest controversy over whether Taiwan should abolish the death penalty, Ma said the two conventions have made clear the conditions for carrying out executions and Taiwan meets all three requirements.
The president was referring to Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Under Article 6, “sentence of death may be imposed only for the most serious crimes” and it must be a “final judgment.” Furthermore, no executions should violate the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.