United Nations A/RES/56/144 General Assembly Distr.: General 6 February 2002 Fifty-sixth session Agenda item 119 (a) Resolution adopted by the General Assembly [on the report of the Third Committee (A/56/583/Add.1)] 56/144. International Covenants on Human Rights The General Assembly, Recalling its resolutions 54/157 of 17 December 1999 and 55/90 of 4 December 2000 and Commission on Human Rights resolution 2000/67 of 26 April 2000, 1 Mindful that the International Covenants on Human Rights 2 constitute the first all-embracing and legally binding international treaties in the field of human rights and, together with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 3 form the core of the International Bill of Human Rights, Taking note of the report of the Secretary-General 4 on the status of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 2 the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 2 and the Optional Protocols to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 5 Recalling the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and reaffirming that all human rights and fundamental freedoms are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated and that the promotion and protection of one category of rights should never exempt or excuse States from the promotion and protection of the other rights, Recognizing the important role of the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in examining the progress made by States parties in fulfilling the obligations undertaken in the International Covenants on Human Rights and the Optional Protocols to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and in providing recommendations to States parties on their implementation, _______________ 1 See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 2000, Supplement No. 3 and corrigendum (E/2000/23 and Corr.1), chap. II, sect. A. 2 Resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex. 3 Resolution 217 A (III). 4 A/56/178. 5 See resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex, and resolution 44/128, annex. 01 48506