The Unsorted BBS Collection/thegreatunsorted.tar/thegreatunsorted/texts/bbs_legal_info/icescr.txt

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▓▓▓▓▓║                                                                  ║░░░▓▓▓▓
▓▓▓▓▓║  INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS  ║░░░▓▓▓▓
▓▓▓▓▓║ Adopted by General Assembly res 2200 A (XXI) of 16 December 1966 ║░░░▓▓▓▓
▓▓▓▓▓║  Entry into force 3 January 1976 in accordance with article 17   ║░░░▓▓▓▓
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                                  PREAMBLE

THE STATES PARTIES TO THE PRESENT COVENANT,

CONSIDERING that, in accordance with the principles proclaimed in the Charter
  of the United Nations, recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal
  and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation
  of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

RECOGNIZING that these rights derive from the inherent dignity of the human
  person,

RECOGNIZING that, in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human
  Rights, the ideal of free human beings enjoying freedom from fear and want
  can only be achieved if conditions are created whereby everyone may enjoy
  his economic, social and cultural rights, as well as his civil and
  political rights,

CONSIDERING the obligation of States under the Charter of the United Nations
  to promote universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and
  freedoms,

REALIZING that the individual, having duties to other individuals and the
  community to which he belongs, is under a responsibility to strive for the
  promotion and observance of the rights recognized in the present Covenant,

AGREE upon the following articles:

                               PART I

Article 1

(1) All peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right
  they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their
  economic, social and cultural development.

(2) All people may, for their own ends, freely dispose of their natural wealth
  and resources without prejudice to any obligations arising out of
  international economic co-operation, based upon the principle of mutual
  benefit, and international law. In no case may a people be deprived of its
  own means of subsistence.

(3) The States Parties to the present Covenant, including those having
  responsibility for the administration of Non-Self-Governing and Trust
  Territories, shall promote the realization of the right to self-
  determination, and shall respect that right, in conformity with the
  provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.

                              PART II

Article 2

(1) Each State Party to the present Covenant undertakes to take steps,
  individually and through international assistance and cooperation,
  especially economic and technical, to the maximum of its available
  resources, with a view to achieving progressively the full realization of
  the rights recognized in the present Covenant by all appropriate means,
  including in particular the adoption of legislative measures.

(2) The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to guarantee that the
  rights enunciated in the present Covenant will be exercised without
  discrimination of any kind as to race, colour, sex, language, religion,
  political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or
  other status.

(3) Developing countries, with due regard to human rights and their national
  economy, may determine to what extent they would guarantee the economic
  rights recognized in the present Covenant to non-nationals.

Article 3

  The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to ensure the equal
  right of men and women to the enjoyment of all economic, social and
  cultural rights set forth in the present Covenant.

Article 4

  The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize that, in the enjoyment
  of those rights provided by the State in conformity with the present
  Covenant, the State may subject such rights only to such limitations as are
  determined by law only in so far as this may be compatible with the nature
  of these rights and solely for the purpose of promoting the general welfare
  in a democratic society.

Article 5

(1) Nothing in the present Covenant may be interpreted as implying for any
  State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform
  any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms
  recognized herein, or at their limitation to a greater extent than is
  provided for in the present Covenant.

(2) No restriction upon or derogation from any of the fundamental human rights
  recognized or existing in any country in virtue of law, conventions,
  regulations or custom shall be admitted on the pretext that the present
  Covenant does not recognize such rights or that it recognizes them to a
  lesser extent.

                              PART III

Article 6

(1) The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right to work,
  which includes the right of everyone to the opportunity to gain his living
  by work which he freely chooses or accepts, and will take appropriate steps
  to safeguard this right.

(2) The steps to be taken by a State Party to the present Covenant to achieve
  the full realization of this right shall include technical and vocational
  guidance and training programmes, policies and techniques to achieve steady
  economic, social and cultural development and full and productive
  employment under conditions safe-guarding fundamental political and
  economic freedoms to the individual.

Article 7

  The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone
  to the enjoyment of just and favourable conditions of work which ensure, in
  particular:

   (a) Remuneration which provides all workers, as a minimum, with:

     (i) Fair wages and equal remuneration for work of equal value without
  distinction of any kind, in particular women being guaranteed conditions of
  work not inferior to those enjoyed by men, with equal pay for equal work;

     (ii) A decent living for themselves and their families in accordance
  with the provisions of the present Covenant;

   (b) Safe and healthy working conditions;

   (c) Equal opportunity for everyone to be promoted in his employment to
  an appropriate higher level, subject to no considerations other than those
  of seniority and competence;

   (d) Rest, leisure and reasonable limitation of working hours and
  periodic holidays with pay, as well as remuneration for public holidays.

Article 8

(1) The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to ensure:

   (a) The right of everyone to form trade unions and join the trade union
  of his choice, subject only to the rules of the organization concerned, for
  the promotion and protection of his economic and social interests. No
  restrictions may be placed on the exercise of this right other than those
  prescribed by law and which are necessary in a democratic society in the
  interests of national security or public order or for the protection of the
  rights and freedoms of others;

   (b) The right of trade unions to establish national federations or
  confederations and the right of the latter to form or join international
  trade-union organizations;

   (c) The right of trade unions to function freely subject to no limitations
  other than those prescribed by law and which are necessary in a democratic
  society in the interests of national security or public order or for the
  protection of the rights and freedoms of others;

   (d) The right to strike, provided that it is exercised in conformity with
  the laws of the particular country.

(2) This article shall not prevent the imposition of lawful restrictions on
  the exercise of these rights by members of the armed forces or of the
  police or of the administration of the State.

(3) Nothing in this article shall authorize States Parties to the International
  Labour Organization Convention of 1948 concerning Freedom of Association and
  Protection of the Right to Organize to take legislative measures which would
  prejudice, or apply the law in such a manner as would prejudice, the
  guarantees provided for in that Convention.

Article 9

  The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone
  to social security, including social insurance.

Article 10

  The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize that:

(1) The widest possible protection and assistance should be accorded to the
  family, which is the natural and fundamental group unit of society,
  particularly for its establishment and while it is responsible for the care
  and education of dependent children. Marriage must be entered into with the
  free consent of the intending spouses.

(2) Special protection should be accorded to mothers during a reasonable
  period before and after childbirth. During such period working mothers
  should be accorded paid leave or leave with adequate social security
  benefits.

(3) Special measures of protection and assistance should be taken on behalf of
  all children and young persons without discrimination for reasons of
  parentage or other conditions. Children and young persons should be
  protected from economic and social exploitation. Their employment in work
  harmful to their morals or health or dangerous to life or likely to hamper
  their normal development should be punishable by law. States should also
  set age limits below which the paid employment of child labour should be
  prohibited and punishable by law.

Article 11

(1) The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone
  to an adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including
  adequate food, clothing and housing, and to the continuous improvement of
  living conditions. The States Parties will take appropriate steps to ensure
  the realization of this right, recognizing to this effect the essential
  importance of international cooperation based on free consent.

(2) The States Parties to the present Covenant, recognizing the fundamental
  right of everyone to be free from hunger, shall take, individually and
  through international co-operation, the measures, including specific
  programmes, which are needed:

   (a) To improve methods of production, conservation and distribution of
  food by making full use of technical and scientific knowledge, by
  disseminating knowledge of the principles of nutrition and by developing or
  reforming agrarian systems in such a way as to achieve the most efficient
  development and utilization of natural resources;

   (b) Taking into account the problems of both food-importing and food-
  exporting countries, to ensure the equitable distribution of world food
  supplies in relation to need.

Article 12

(1) The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone
  to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental
  health.

(2) The steps to be taken by the States Parties to the present Covenant to
  achieve the full realization of this right shall include those necessary
  for:

   (a) The provision for the reduction of the stillbirth-rate and of infant
  mortality and for the healthy development of the child;

   (b) The improvement of all aspects of environmental and industrial
  hygiene;

   (c) The prevention, treatment and control of epidemic, endemic,
  occupational and other diseases;

   (d) The creation of conditions which would assure to all medical service
  and medical attention in the event of sickness.

Article 13

(1) The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone
  to education. They agree that education shall be directed to the full
  development of the human personality and the sense of its dignity, and
  shall strengthen the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
  They further agree that education shall enable all persons to participate
  effectively in a free society, promote understanding, tolerance and
  friendship among all nations and all racial, ethnic or religious groups,
  and further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of
  peace.

(2) The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize that, with a view to
  achieving the full realization of this right:

   (a) Primary education shall be compulsory and available free to all;

   (b) Secondary education in its different forms, including technical and
  vocational secondary education, shall be made generally available and
  accessible to all by every appropriate means, and in particular by the
  progressive introduction of free education;

   (c) Higher education shall be make equally accessible to all, on the
  basis of capacity, by every appropriate means, and in particular by the
  progressive introduction of free education;

   (d) Fundamental education shall be encouraged or intensified as far as
  possible for those persons who have not received or completed the whole
  period of their primary education;

   (e) The development of a system of schools at all levels shall be
  actively pursued, an adequate fellowship system shall be established, and
  the material conditions of teaching staff shall be continuously improved.

(3) The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to have respect for
  the liberty of parents and, when applicable, legal guardians to choose for
  their children schools, other than those established by the public
  authorities, which conform to such minimum educational standards as may be
  laid down or approved by the State and to ensure the religious and moral
  education of their children in conformity with their own convictions.

(4) No part of this article shall be construed so as to interfere with the
  liberty of individuals and bodies to establish and direct educational
  institutions, subject always to the observance of the principles set forth
  in paragraph 1 of this article and to the requirement that the education
  given in such institutions shall conform to such minimum standards as may
  be laid down by the State.

Article 14

  Each State Party to the present Covenant which, at the time of becoming a
  Party, has not been able to secure in its metropolitan territory or other
  territories under its jurisdiction compulsory primary education, free of
  charge, undertakes, within two years, to work out and adopt a detailed plan
  of action for the progressive implementation, within a reasonable number of
  years, to be fixed in the plan, of the principle of compulsory education
  free of charge for all.

Article 15

(1) The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of
  everyone:

   (a) To take part in cultural life;

   (b) To enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications;

   (c) To benefit from the protection of the moral and material interests
  resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he
  is the author.

(2) The steps to be taken by the States Parties to the present Covenant to
  achieve the full realization of this right shall include those necessary
  for the conservation, the development and diffusion of science and culture.

(3) The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to respect the
  freedom indispensable for scientific research and creative activity.

(4) The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the benefits to be
  derived from the encouragement and development of international contacts
  and co-operation in the scientific and cultural fields.

                              PART IV

Article 16

(1) The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to submit in
  conformity with this part of the Covenant reports on the measures which
  they have adopted and the progress made in achieving the observance of the
  rights recognized herein.

(2) (a) All reports shall be submitted to the Secretary-General of the
  United Nations, who shall transmit copies to the Economic and Social
  Council for consideration in accordance with the provisions of the present
  Covenant.

   (b) The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall also transmit to
  the specialized agencies copies of the reports, or any relevant parts
  therefrom, from States Parties to the present Covenant which are also
  members of these specialized agencies in so far as these reports, or parts
  therefrom, relate to any matters which fall within the responsibilities of
  the said agencies in accordance with their constitutional instruments.

Article 17

(1) The States Parties to the present Covenant shall furnish their reports in
  stages, in accordance with a programme to be established by the Economic
  and Social Council within one year of the entry into force of the present
  Covenant after consultation with the States Parties and the specialized
  agencies concerned.

(2) Reports may indicate factors and difficulties affecting the degree of
  fulfillment of obligations under the present Covenant.

(3) Where relevant information has previously been furnished to the United
  Nations or to any specialized agency by any State Party to the present
  Covenant, it will not be necessary to reproduce that information, but a
  precise reference to the information so furnished will suffice.

Article 18

  Pursuant to its responsibilities under the Charter of the United Nations in
  the field of human rights and fundamental freedoms, the Economic and Social
  Council may make arrangements with the specialized agencies in respect of
  their reporting to it on the progress made in achieving the observance of
  the provisions of the present Covenant falling within the scope of their
  activities. These reports may include particulars of decisions and
  recommendations on such implementation adopted by their competent organs.

Article 19

  The Economic and Social Council may transmit to the Commission on Human
  Rights for study and general recommendation or, as appropriate, for
  information the reports concerning human rights submitted by States in
  accordance with articles 16 and 17, and those concerning human rights
  submitted by the specialized agencies in accordance with article 18.

Article 20

  The States Parties to the present Covenant and the specialized agencies
  concerned may submit comments to the Economic and Social Council on any
  general recommendation under Article 19 or reference to such general
  recommendation in any report of the Commission on Human Rights or any
  documentation referred to therein.

Article 21

  The Economic and Social Council may submit from time to time to the General
  Assembly reports with recommendations of a general nature and a summary of
  the information received from the States Parties to the present Covenant
  and the specialized agencies on the measures taken and the progress made in
  achieving general observance of the rights recognized in the present
  Covenant.

Article 22

  The Economic and Social Council may bring to the attention of other organs
  of the United Nations, their subsidiary organs and specialized agencies
  concerned with furnishing technical assistance any matters arising out of
  the reports referred to in this part of the present Covenant which may
  assist such bodies in deciding, each within its field of competence, on the
  advisability of international measures likely to contribute to the
  effective progressive implementation of the present Covenant.

Article 23

  The States Parties to the present Covenant agree that international action
  for the achievement of the rights recognized in the present Covenant
  includes such methods as the conclusion of conventions, the adoption of
  recommendations, the furnishing of technical assistance and the holding of
  regional meetings and technical meetings for the purpose of consultation
  and study organized in conjunction with the Governments concerned.

Article 24

  Nothing in the present Convention shall be interpreted as impairing the
  provisions of the Charter of the United Nations and of the constitutions of
  the specialized agencies which define the respective responsibilities of
  the various organs of the United Nations and of the specialized agencies in
  regard to the matters dealt with in the present Covenant.

Article 25

  Nothing in the present Covenant shall be interpreted as impairing the
  inherent right of all peoples to enjoy and utilize fully and freely their
  natural wealth and resources.

                               PART V

Article 26

(1) The present Covenant is open for signature by any State Member of the
  United Nations or member of any of its specialized agencies, by any State
  Party to the Statute of the International Court of Justice, and by any
  State which has been invited by the General Assembly of the United Nations
  to become a party to the present Covenant.

(2) The present Covenant is subject to ratification. Instruments of
  ratification shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United
  Nations.

(3) The present Covenant shall be open to accession by any State referred to
  in Paragraph 1 of this article.

(4) Accession shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument of accession
  with the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

(5) The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall inform all States which
  have signed the present Covenant or acceded to it of the deposit of each
  instrument of ratification or instrument of accession.

Article 27

(1) The present Covenant shall enter into force three months after the date of
  the deposit with the Secretary-General of the United Nations of the thirty-
  fifth instrument of ratification or instrument of accession.

(2) For each State ratifying the present Covenant or acceding to it after the
  thirty-fifth instrument of ratification or instrument of accession, the
  present Covenant shall enter into force three months after the date of the
  deposit of its own instrument of ratification or instrument of accession.

Article 28

  The provisions of the present Covenant shall extend to all parts of federal
  States without any limitations or exceptions.

Article 29

(1) Any State Party to the present Covenant may propose an amendment and file
  it with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. The Secretary-General
  shall thereupon communicate any proposed amendment to the States Parties to
  the present Covenant with a request that they notify him whether they
  favour a conference of States Parties for the purpose of considering and
  voting upon the proposals. In the event that at least one third of the
  States Parties favours such a conference, the Secretary-General shall
  convene the conference under the auspices of the United Nations. Any
  amendment adopted by a majority of the States Parties present and voting at
  the conference shall be submitted to the General Assembly of the United
  Nations for approval.

(2) Amendments shall come into force when they have been approved by the
  General Assembly of the United Nations and accepted by a two thirds
  majority of the States Parties to the present Covenant in accordance with
  their respective constitutional processes.

(3) When amendments come into force they shall be binding on those States
  Parties which have accepted them, other States Parties still being bound by
  the provisions of the present Covenant and any earlier amendment which they
  have accepted.

Article 30

  Irrespective of the notifications made under Article 26, paragraph 5, the
  Secretary-General of the United Nations shall inform all States referred to
  in paragraph 1 of the same article of the following particulars:

   (a) Signatures, ratifications and accessions under Article 26;

   (b) The date of the entry into force of the present Covenant under
  article 27 and the date of entry into force of any amendments under
  article 29.

Article 31

(1) The present Covenant, of which the Chinese, English, French, Russian and
  Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited in the archives of
  the United Nations.

(2) The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall transmit certified
  copies of the present Covenant to all States referred to in article 26.


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