Revisiting General Comment No. 29 of the United Nations Human Rights Committee: About Fair Trial Rights and Derogations in Times of Public Emergency

Abstract

In July 2001 the Human Rights Committee of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights issued a General Comment on the possibility of member states derogating from human rights in case of emergency. Basing its analysis on the issue of limitation of fair trial rights during a state of emergency, this article suggests a critical analysis of the reasoning, rather than the conclusions, of the Committee. Expanding arguments developed by monitoring bodies of the American and European Conventions on Human Rights, the author suggests alternative reasoning according to which the right to a fair trial is inalienable. She argues in particular that this right constitutes a guarantee necessary to the effective enjoyment of all human rights, the preservation of legality in a democratic society, and the effectiveness of the principle of separation of powers.