BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 21. The 142nd session of the UN Human Rights Committee is being held at the UN office in Geneva, Trend reports.
According to the information, the session will hear reports from several countries, as well as France's report on the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The countries that have acceded to the document following the Covenant must promote and respect the right to self-determination of peoples living in territories held under de facto colonization.
As is known, France is a state pursuing a policy of colonialism and neo-colonialism.
The Baku Initiative Group (BIG) submitted an alternative report to the UN Human Rights Committee exposing France's colonial policy. The UN Human Rights Committee published this report on its official website.
On October 21, the Human Rights Committee hosted a meeting for interested parties the day before the French national report. Representatives of New Caledonia and French Polynesia participated in the meeting through the Baku Initiative Group and the organization. Executive Director of BIG Abbas Abbasov made a statement in the committee.
He denounced France's illegal referendum in New Caledonia and
its ambition to forcefully introduce constitutional amendments to
the electoral code. Abbasov emphasized that this French step, which
sparked protests from the Kanak people, resulted in more than 10
deaths and about 400 injuries in New Caledonia.
Furthermore, Abbasov noted that France's nuclear tests in Polynesia
seriously damaged the local population's health. The people of
French Polynesia are striving for independence, and France's
resistance is impeding the implementation of UN resolution
67/265.
Abbasov also spoke about historical injustice, economic difficulties, and the lack of sovereignty of other territories enslaved by France.
He also spoke in detail about Azerbaijan's work in combating colonialism on international platforms as Chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement and currently a member of the Troika.
Moreover, he called for the holding of a new UN-controlled referendum in New Caledonia, the withdrawal of French military forces from the nation, and an assessment of the situation by the UN Special Committee on Decolonization.
At the same time, he demanded that France compensate French Polynesia for its nuclear tests and called for recognition of the right of the peoples of New Caledonia and French Polynesia to self-determination. He emphasized the importance of UN oversight of this process.
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