CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.9
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2.
The permissible limitations which may be imposed on the rights protected under
article 12 must not nullify the principle of liberty of movement, and are governed by the
requirement of necessity provided for in article 12, paragraph 3, and by the need for
consistency with the other rights recognized in the Covenant.
3.
States parties should provide the Committee in their reports with the relevant
domestic legal rules and administrative and judicial practices relating to the rights
protected by this article, taking into account the issues discussed in this General
Comment. They must also include information on remedies available if these rights are
restricted.
Liberty of movement and freedom to choose residence (paragraph 1)
4.
Everyone lawfully within the territory of a State enjoys, within that territory,
the right to move freely and to choose his or her place of residence. In principle,
citizens of a State are always lawfully within the territory of that State. The question
whether an alien is “lawfully” within the territory of a State is a matter governed by
domestic law, which may subject the entry of an alien to the territory of a State to
restrictions, provided they are in compliance with the State’s international obligations.
In that connection, the Committee has held that an alien who entered the State illegally,
but whose status has been regularized, must be considered to be lawfully within the
territory for the purposes of art 122. Once a person is lawfully within a State, any
restrictions on his or her rights guaranteed by article 12, paragraphs 1 and 2, as well
as any treatment different from that accorded to nationals, have to be justified under
the rules provided for by article 12, paragraph 33. It is, therefore, important that
States parties indicate in their reports the circumstances in which they treat aliens
differently from their nationals in this regard, and how they justify this difference in
treatment.
5.
The right to move freely relates to the whole territory of a State, including all
parts of federal States. According to article 12, paragraph 1, persons are entitled to
move from one place to another, and to establish themselves in a place of their choice.
The enjoyment of this right must not be made dependent on any particular purpose or
reason for the person wanting to move or to stay in a place. Any restrictions must be
in conformity with paragraph 3.
6.
The State party must ensure that the rights guaranteed in article 12 are
protected not only from public but also from private interference. In the case of women,
this obligation to protect is particularly pertinent. For example, it is incompatible
with article 12, paragraph 1, that the right of a woman to move freely and to choose her
residence be made subject, by law or practice, to the decision of another person,
including a relative.
7.
Subject to the provisions of article 12, paragraph 3, the right to reside in a
place of one’s choice within the territory includes protection against all forms of
forced internal displacement. It also precludes preventing the entry or stay of persons
20.
2
Communication No. 456/1991, Celepli vs. Sweden, para. 9.2.
3
General Comment No. 15, para. 8, in HRI/GEN/1/Rev. 3, 15 August 1997, p.