《经济、社会和文化权利国际公约任择议定书》中的调查程序

On the Inquiry Procedure Formulated in the OP- ICESCR

调查程序是《经济、社会和文化权利国际公约任择议定书》中规定的一项准司法程序,对《经济、社会和文化权利国际公约》及其任择议定书规定的缔约国报告程序、个人来文程序和国家间指控程序具有辅助作用。在《经济、社会和文化权利国际公约任择议定书》制定之前,经济、社会和文化权利委员会为了审议多米尼加共和国和巴拿马两国的国家报告,曾成功地对两国开展过调查活动。在起草该任择议定书的过程中,对是否规定以及如何规定调查程序曾发生过一些争论。《经济、社会和文化权利国际公约任择议定书》中的调查程序继承和发展了此前联合国人权公约中的调查程序,并对此后的人权公约中的调查程序提供了借鉴。迄今为止,该任择议定书的20个缔约国中只有4个接受调查程序,比例明显偏低。该调查程序的批准和实施都不会是一帆风顺的,但它毕竟为《经济、社会和文化权利国际公约》的实施增加了一种监督程序,为经济、社会和文化权利提供了潜在的更广泛的保护空间。

The inquiry procedure is quasi- judicial formulated in the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic,Social and Cultural Rights（ OP- ICESCR）,which plays an auxiliary role for the state party report procedure,individual communication procedure and inter- state accusation procedure regulated in the ICESCR and its Optional Protocol. Prior to the promulgation of the OP- ICESCR,the Committee on Economic,Social and Cultural Rights（ CESCR） have successfully conducted two inquiries in order to review the state party reports of Dominican Republic and Panama on the case of Dominican Republic and that of Panama. In drafting the OP- ICESCR,controversies arise on whether and how to formulate the inquiry procedure. The inquiry procedure in OP- ICESCR has inherited and developed those provided in the UN human rights treaties and has provided a reference for the latter. Up till now four out of twenty State parties of OP-ICESCR have declared to accept the inquiry procedure,and obviously the percentage is relatively low. The approval and implementation of the inquiry procedure is definitely far from smooth,yet it offers an additional supervision mechanism for implementing the ICESCR,and provides an extensive and potential space to protect economic,social and cultural rights.