美洲年長者權利公約之分析

Analyses of the Inter-American Convention on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons

美洲年長者權利公約在2015年6月通過，成為國際上第一部保障年長者權利之條約。公約強調應從人權角度處理老年及老齡問題，全面性的公約將顯著地確保年長者充分享有及行使權利。
年長者應享有與其他人相同的人權及基本自由，亦應享有其生活特質所需之權利，因而公約共保障27項權利，相當廣泛。公約採用禁止規定、國家義務、權利規定等三種權利規範模式。然而禁止規定及國家義務並未直接確保權利，恐非妥善之模式。締約國必須承擔一般義務及對於個別權利之義務，這些國家義務內涵成為公約之內容，亦為審酌國家是否履行公約之重要準則。
公約亦設立後續追蹤機制，包括締約國會議及專家委員會，以監測本公約之承諾，並促進其有效執行。公約亦設立實踐機制，其賦予美洲人權委員會接受個人申訴及國家申訴之職權，並提供締約國諮詢協助及技術合作。而美洲人權法院負責審理國家訴訟。
更重要的是公約要能具體實踐，才能確保及實踐權利。希冀公約能引導其他區域及聯合國簽訂年長者權利公約，使得年長者權利保障確實成為普世人權之重要價值。

The Inter-American Convention on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons (Convention) was adopted in June 2015, becoming the first international treaty to guarantee the rights of older persons. The Convention emphasizes the need to address old age and ageing from a human rights perspective, and a comprehensive convention will significantly ensure the full enjoyment and exercise of rights by older persons.
Older persons should enjoy the same rights as everyone else, as well as the rights necessary for the character of their life. The Convention therefore guarantees 27 rights, which is quite broad. The Convention adopts three modes of rights norms, including prohibitions, state obligations and rights provisions. However, prohibitions and state obligations do not directly ensure rights and may not be an appropriate model. States parties must assume general obligations as well as obligations with respect to individual rights, the contents of which constitute the true value of the Convention and important criteria for judging whether States comply with the Convention.
The Convention establishes follow-up mechanisms, including Conference of States Parties and Committee of Experts, to monitor the commitments of the Convention and promote their effective implementations. The Convention also sets up implementation mechanisms, that give the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights the competence to receive individual and inter-state complaints and to provide advisory assistance and technical cooperation to States parties and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights the jurisdiction to hear inter-state litigations.
Even more important is that the Convention must be fully implemented so to ensure rights. It is hoped that the Convention will lead other regions and the UN to sign related treaties, so that the protection of the rights of old persons will indeed become an important value of universal human rights.