A/HRC/RES/51/8
United Nations
General Assembly
Distr.: General
12 October 2022
Original: English
Human Rights Council
Fifty-first session
12 September–7 October 2022
Agenda item 3
Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil,
political, economic, social and cultural rights,
including the right to development
Resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council
on 6 October 2022
51/8.
Arbitrary detention
The Human Rights Council,
Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,
Reaffirming articles 3, 9, 10 and 29 and other relevant provisions of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights,
Recalling articles 9 to 11 and 14 to 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights,
Recalling also Commission on Human Rights resolutions 1991/42 of 5 March 1991
and 1997/50 of 15 April 1997, and Human Rights Council resolutions 6/4 of 28 September
2007, 10/9 of 26 March 2009, 15/18 of 30 September 2010, 20/16 of 6 July 2012, 24/7 of 26
September 2013, 33/30 of 30 September 2016 and 42/22 of 26 September 2019,
Recalling further General Assembly resolution 60/251 of 15 March 2006 on the
Human Rights Council,
Recalling Human Rights Council resolution 5/1 on institution-building of the Council
and resolution 5/2 on the Code of Conduct for Special Procedure Mandate Holders of the
Council, of 18 June 2007, and stressing that the mandate holder shall discharge his or her
duties in accordance with those resolutions and the annexes thereto,
1.
Recognizes that arbitrary detention is a violation of the right to liberty;
2.
Also recognizes that persons who are unlawfully or arbitrarily deprived of their
liberty are vulnerable to extrajudicial killings, torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment or punishment, enforced disappearances and other human rights violations and
abuses, such as sexual and gender-based violence;
3.
Further recognizes the right to legal assistance, the importance that such legal
assistance be prompt and effective, and the paramount importance that detainee registers have
in preventing instances of arbitrary deprivation of liberty;
4.
Detention;
GE.22-16499(E)
Stresses the importance of the work of the Working Group on Arbitrary