A/HRC/34/54/Add.3
423. The Special Rapporteur regrets that the Government of Sierra Leone has not replied
to the present communication, thereby failing to cooperate with the mandate issued by
the Human Rights Council in its resolution 25/13.
424. In the absence of information to the contrary, the Special Rapporteur concludes that
there is substance in the allegations presented in the initial communication, available via
the link above, and is therefore of the view that the Government of Sierra Leone, in
delaying the adoption of the 2015 Safe Abortion Bill, has violated the right of women to
be free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, as provided by articles 1,
2 and 16 of the Convention against Torture.
425. The Special Rapporteur reminds the Government that, as observed in his 2013
thematic report to the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/22/53), “international and
regional human rights bodies have begun to recognize that abuse and mistreatment of
women seeking reproductive health services can cause tremendous and lasting physical
and emotional suffering, inflicted on the basis of gender” (para. 46). Moreover, the
Committee against Torture has expressed concerns about restrictions on access to
abortion as violating the prohibition of torture and ill-treatment (CAT/C/PER/CO/4,
para. 23.).
426. It has come to the attention of the Special Rapporteur that, as of the drafting of this
report, the President again refused to sign the Bill, after it was returned to him unaltered
from Parliament, and instead referred the Bill to the Constitutional Review Committee,
where it remains stalled. The Rapporteur strongly urges the Government of Sierra
Leone to finalize the adoption of the 2015 Safe Abortion Bill, which would bring its
legislation in line with international human rights law and standards.
Singapore
JUA 18/05/2016 Case No. SGP 3/2016 State Reply: 27/06/2016 Allegations
concerning the alleged scheduled execution of Mr. Kho Jabing, a 31-year-old
Malaysian national for unintentional homicide.
427. The Special Rapporteur thanks the Government of the Republic of Singapore for its
reply, dated 27 June 2016, to the present communication.
428. The Special Rapporteur takes note of the information provided by the Government
that Mr. Kho Jabing was sentenced to death by the High Court of Singapore and that he
unsuccessfully appealed his sentence before the High Court and the Court of Appeal,
and sought clemency from the President of the Republic of Singapore. However, the
Rapporteur finds that the Government, in its reply, does not sufficiently address the
concerns, legal obligations, and questions raised in the initial communication, which
prompts him to conclude that the Government fails to fully and expeditiously cooperate
with the mandate issued by the Human Rights Council in its resolution 25/13.
429. As observed by the Special Rapporteur in his 2012 report to the General Assembly
(A/67/279), there is evidence of an evolving standard within international bodies and a
robust State practice to frame the debate about the legality of the death penalty within
the context of the fundamental concepts of human dignity and the prohibition of torture
and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. This evolving standard,
along with the resulting illegality of the death penalty under such prohibition, is
developing into a norm of customary law, if it has not already done so (para. 74). The
Special Rapporteur calls upon all States to reconsider whether the use of the death
penalty per se respects the inherent dignity of the human person, causes severe mental
78
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