A/HRC/17/39 the right to freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief, continued to bring, directly or indirectly, wars and great suffering to humankind. Proposed standards 1. Individuals have the right to conscientious objection and to be protected in the effective exercise of this right. 2. States have the obligation to prevent members of any military or other security institution from taking part in wars of aggression or other armed operations, whether international or internal, which violate the principles and norms of international human rights law or international humanitarian law. Members of any military or other security institutions have the right to disobey orders that are manifestly contrary to the above-mentioned principles and norms. The duty to obey military superior orders does not exempt from the observance of these obligations, and disobedience of such orders shall in no case constitute a military offence.42 3. Individuals have the right to expect that States pay special attention to help solve conflicts related to religious and ethnic issues in cooperation with civil society. G. Private military and security companies 45. The Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination recommended in July 2010 that its draft proposal for a possible new international legal instrument regulating private military and security companies be carefully considered. The draft of a possible convention on private military and security companies defines in article 3 as its scope of application States and intergovernmental organizations within the limits of their competence with respect to private military and security companies, their activities and personnel. It would apply to “all situations whether or not the situation is defined as an armed conflict”. 46. Pursuant to its resolution 15/26, the Human Rights Council has set up an open-ended intergovernmental working group to consider the possibility of elaborating an international regulatory framework on the regulation, monitoring and oversight of the activities of private military and security companies. Proposed standards 1. States shall refrain from outsourcing inherently State military and security functions to private contractors. States shall establish an international regime with clear rules regarding the functions, oversight and monitoring of existing private military and security agencies. 2. States shall ensure that private military and security companies, their personnel and any structures related to their activities perform their respective functions under officially enacted laws consistent with international human rights and humanitarian law. They shall take such legislative, administrative and other measures as may be necessary to ensure that such companies and their personnel are held accountable for violations of applicable national or international law. Any responsibility attributable to a 42 12 See Santiago Declaration, art. 5, para. 4.