Question of human rights in Chile.

1985/47. Question of human rights in Chile[1]134

1. Commends the Special Rapporteur for his report on the situation of human rights in Chile, prepared in accordance with its resolution 1984/63;

2. Once again expresses its dismay at the suppression in Chile of the traditional democratic legal order and its institutions and their replacement by a Constitution which does not reflect the will of the people freely expressed and whose provisions considerably reduce the enjoyment and exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms through the institutionalization and consolidation of states of emergency and the extension of the jurisdiction of the military tribunals, all of which amounts to an integrated system negating civil and political rights and freedoms;

3. Expresses its indignation at the persistence of and increase in serious and systematic violations of human rights in Chile, as described in the report of the Special Rapporteur, and in particular at the violent suppression of popular protest in the face of the refusal by the authorities to restore the democratic order, which has led to mass arrests and large numbers of dead and injured;

4. Denounces once again the fact that the repressive and arbitrary activities of the police and security agencies, in particular of the National Information Agency (CNI), have gone administratively and judicially unpunished;

5. Reiterates its profound concern about the ineffectiveness of the remedies of habeas corpus or of amparo and of protection, owing to the fact that the judiciary does not exercise its powers of investigation, monitoring and supervision in this respect and performs its functions under severe restrictions which undermine its independence;

6. Once again calls urgently on the Chilean authorities to restore and respect human rights in accordance with the obligations they have assumed, under various international instruments and to re-establish the principle of legality, democratic institutions and the effective enjoyment and exercise of civil and political rights and fundamental freedoms, and in particular:

(a) To put an end to the régime of exception and especially the practice of declaring states of emergency, under which serious and continuing violations of human rights are committed;

(b) To investigate and clarify without delay the fate of persons who were arrested for political reasons and later disappeared, to assist and inform their families of the results of such investigation and to bring to trial and punish those responsible for their disappearance;

(c) To put an immediate end to intimidation and persecution, as well as to arbitrary and unlawful arrests and imprisonment in secret places, and to respect the right to life and to physical and moral integrity, halting the practice of torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment which have in some cases resulted in unexplained deaths;

(d) To respect the right of Chilean nationals to live in and freely enter and leave their country, without restrictions or conditions of any kind, and to cease the practices of relegación (assignment to forced residence) and forced exile;

(e) To restore the full enjoyment and exercise of labour rights, in particular the right to organize trade unions, the right to collective bargaining and the right to strike;

(f) To respect and, where necessary, restore economic, social and cultural rights, in particular the rights intended to preserve the cultural identity and improve the economic and social status of the indigenous populations, including the right to their land;

7. Once again exhorts the Chilean authorities to co-operate with the Special Rapporteur and to submit their comments on his report to the Commission on Human Rights at its forty-second session;

8. Decides to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur for a year and to request him to report on the situation of human rights in Chile to the General Assembly at its fortieth session and to the Commission on Human Rights at its forty-second session;

9. Recommends to the Economic and Social Council that it maker appropriate arrangements to ensure that the necessary financial resources and sufficient staff are provided to implement this resolution;

10. Decides to consider at its forty-second session, as a matter of high priority, the question of human rights in Chile.