National Consultation to assess human rights condition in country concludes

Speed Post News Network

New Delhi: The two-nday national consultation organised by the National Human Rights Commission to assess human rights situation in the country ended in New Delhi on Saturday with several suggestions to bring improvements in the civil, political, economic, social, cultural rights as well as the rights of women and children. NHRC Member S C Sinha chaired the concluding the session.

Prior to this national consultation, the NHRC had completed six regional consultations covering all the states on the issues of rights. A report, based on these wide consultations, will be prepared and submitted to the Human Rights Council mandated by the United Nations to hold the 3^rd Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Human Rights situations in all 193 member countries.

During the discussions it was recognized that whereas in some key areas of human rights concern, though various new laws have been enacted and amendments have been made in the existing ones, a little more is required to be done to either cut short on the inherent contradictions or amendments in the available provisions.  It was also felt that training,  awareness and sensitization programmes about legal provisions for common people as well as for those working at various levels in government machinery need to be organised on a  regular basis.

Some of the significant suggestions made at the two-day meet included doing away with separate age limits for children to extend them entitlements under child rights and their trial for criminal offences, doing away with provisions under Section 377 and 375 IPC, which are contradictory to each other as acts that are non-criminal under Section 375 IPC remain criminal under Section 377 IPC andincreasing expenditure on health up to 3 % of the GDP, according to an NHRC release.