A/HRC/8/47
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taken to resolve the problem of prison overcrowding, and whether measures are being envisaged to
prevent or reduce the consequences of nuclear tests for the population living in overseas territories.
14.
Albania welcomed France’s role in the creation of the Human Rights Council and its
contribution to the negotiation and adoption of the International Convention on the Protection of All
Persons from Enforced Disappearance, and recommended that France complete the domestic
process in order to ratify it as soon as possible. It noted the reasons provided by France regarding
the reasons it cannot consider acceding to the ICRMW. In this regard, Albania stated that holding
the presidency of the European Union later in 2008 will offer an opportunity for France to take the
initiative with a view to ratifying the convention on the issue at the regional level.
15.
Cameroon noted with interest the attention France attaches to combating racism and
xenophobia and all forms of discrimination and the important legislative apparatus in this area; the
concern to find appropriate solutions to the problem of overpopulation in prisons and securing
police operations; equality of gender; and clandestine migration. Cameroon asked whether the
multiplication of institutions in charge of human rights issues leads to problems of coordination and
whether the reservations to treaties and conventions ratified by France do not considerably reduce
their implementation at the national level.
16.
Mexico commended France on its initiative to promote a European Pact on Migration and
recommended that in the elaboration of this initiative, central attention be given to the consideration
of human rights to ensure that its implementation is guaranteed for all migrants regardless of their
status. Mexico recognized France’s commitment in regard to international criminal justice and
recommended the withdrawal of the declaration under article 124 of the Rome Statute of the
International Criminal Court. Mexico enquired about an independent study which refers to the
compatibility of French legislation with international human rights standards regarding the rights
and protection of migrants, including migrant workers, and suggested the elaboration of an
independent study addressing the concerns expressed in the subparagraph 1 of paragraph 13 of the
national report. Mexico endorsed the concerns expressed by the Special Rapporteur on the
protection of human rights while countering terrorism contained in its communication dated 26
April 2006 regarding the extension of the criminal definition of terrorism, the period of detention of
suspects and the period of getting access to a lawyer and recommended to France to respond to the
aforementioned communication.
17.
Switzerland raised three issues: violence against women, conditions of detention and fight
against recidivism. On violence against women, Switzerland asked for more information regarding
measures which may be taken to reduce domestic violence. Is this type of offence automatically
prosecuted or only following a complaint? Switzerland recommended that France introduce
automatic prosecution for all acts of domestic violence, if this is not done already. Switzerland
further recommended that France take into account the concerns of the Special Rapporteur on
violence against women regarding the absence of an agency in charge of gathering information on
violence against women, particularly regarding homicides in the context of domestic violence.
Switzerland expressed concerns about conditions of detention, particularly overpopulation, and
asked for more information on measures planned to remedy this issue. Switzerland asked whether it
was possible to provide a date for the appointment of a Contrôleur des lieux privatifs de liberté. It
then asked for more details on the new legislation on stricter penalties for recidivists, particularly
minors, and enquired about consequences of such a law on a system that appears to already have
reached the limit of its capacities. Switzerland recommended that France pursue efforts to foster
social integration and reinsertion of recidivist minors. It welcomed France’s efforts to combat
torture and requested a copy of France’s manual on detecting signs of torture.
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