Political prisoners.

1989/56. Political prisoners

The Commission on Human Rights, Guided by the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Mindful of article 9 of the international Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantees the right to liberty and security of person, Mindful also of articles 18 and 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantee the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion and the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Further mindful of articles 21, 22 and 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantee the rights of peaceful assembly and freedom of association and the right to take part in the conduct of public affairs, Recalling that, in accordance with article 5 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, no right may be implied for any State, group or person to engage in any activity or perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms recognized in the Covenant or at their limitation to a greater extent than is therein provided for, Further recalling its resolution 1988/39 of 8 March 1988,

1. Expresses its concern at the fact that in many parts of the world numerous persons are detained for seeking to exercise peacefully their human rights and fundamental freedoms, in particular the rights to freedom of expression, of assembly and of association, as provided for in the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, or to promote and defend those rights and freedoms, and that these persons are often exposed to special dangers as regards the protection of their human rights and fundamental freedoms;

2. Requests all Governments to release all persons deprived of their liberty for seeking peacefully to exercise those rights and freedoms or to promote and defend them;

3. Calls on all Governments, pending the release of such persons, to take effective measures to safeguard their human rights and fundamental freedoms;

4. Decides to consider this question anew at its forty-sixth session, under the agenda item "Question of the human rights of all persons subjected to any form of detention or imprisonment".

53rd meeting
7 March 1989
[Adopted without a vote. See chap. X.]
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