The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and International Humanitarian Law

Abstract

This Article reviews the jurisprudence of one of the principal human rights treaty bodies, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (tCERD,t tCommittee,t or tRace Committeet). It examines CERD's general approach to interpreting the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (tRace Conventiont), addressing relevant issues of international law, and addressing the rules of international humanitarian law. The chapter considers relevant decisions and recommendations that CERD has produced to date, including its decisions on Individual Communications (or Individual Complaints), General Recommendations, Concluding Observations, and the Decisions and Recommendations issued through its early-warning measures and urgent procedures, respectively. CERD applies the principles of the Race Convention to the human rights contained in all the instruments that comprise international human rights and humanitarian law; focuses on protecting vulnerable groups such as refugees, displaced persons, non-citizens, and other minority groups; and urges cooperation and compliance with international tribunals. Keywords:human rights; international humanitarian law; jurisprudence; Racial Discrimination