Chapter 2 • The Major Universal Human Rights Instruments and the Mechanisms for Their Implementation The right to self-determination The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights contain a common article 1(1) proclaiming the right of all peoples to self-determination, by virtue of which they “freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development”. Furthermore, common article 1(2) provides that “all peoples may, for their own ends, freely dispose of their natural wealth and resources” and that “in no case may a people be deprived of its own means of subsistence”. The right to self-determination in the widest sense is consequently considered to be a precondition for the full enjoyment of civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights. This common article can also be read in the light of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly at the height of the decolonization process in 1960 and which equated “the subjection of peoples to alien subjugation, domination and exploitation” to a denial of human rights and a violation of the Charter of the United Nations (operative paragraph 1). The following is a list of the extensive rights guaranteed by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: v the right to life – art. 6;7 v the right to freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, including a prohibition on being subjected to medical or scientific experimentation without one’s free consent – art. 7;8 v the right to freedom from slavery, the slave-trade and servitude – art. 8(1) and (2); v the right to freedom from forced and compulsory labour – art. 8(3); v the right to liberty and security of person, including freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention – art 9;9 v the right of persons deprived of their liberty to be treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person – art. 10;10 v prohibition of imprisonment merely on the ground of inability to fulfil a contractual obligation – art. 11; v liberty of movement and freedom to choose one’s residence – art. 12(1); v the right to be free to leave any country, including one’s own – art. 12(2); v the right not to be arbitrarily deprived of the right to enter one’s own country – art. 12(4); 7 General Comment No. 6, in United Nations Compilation of General Comments, pp. 114-116 and General Comment No. 14, ibid., pp. 126-127. 8 General Comment No. 7, ibid., pp. 116-117, which is replaced and further developed by General Comment No. 20, ibid., pp. 139-141. 9 General Comment No. 8, ibid., pp. 117-118. 10 General Comment No. 9, ibid., pp. 118-119, which is replaced and further developed by General Comment No. 21, ibid, pp. 141-143. Human Rights in the Administration of Justice: A Manual on Human Rights for Judges, Prosecutors and Lawyers 33