Human rights
The present position
2.1 Human rights are commonly understood as being those rights which are inherent to the human being. Human rights are legally guaranteed by human rights law, which consists of the treaties as well as declarations, guidelines and principles that have been agreed under the auspices of the United Nations since 1945. A treaty is an agreement by states to be bound by particular rules. General principles of human rights law, to which most states would agree, are often stated in declarations, proclamations, standard rules, guidelines, recommendations and principles. These documents include the Declarations and the Programmes of Action agreed at major UN World Conferences. They represent a broad consensus on the part of the international community on actions required to implement those rights and have a strong moral force on the practice of states. The human rights framework provides a basis for both legal measures to promote institutional change and interventions to create consensus around the values and norms they represent.
2.2 UN human rights instruments have been developed on the basis of international government and civil society debate and agreement. The increasing openness of the UN system to civil society perspectives means that human rights law responds to the views, interests and needs of many different groups of people around the world. The UN human rights institutions continue to evolve and this is reflected in the development of new guidelines on issues such as reproductive rights and child labour. The interpretation and application of these instruments change and develop, over time and are subject to political controversy and debate, globally and within countries, communities and families. The international human rights framework reflects the consensus of the international community at any one time and provides the basis for establishing rights at the national level.
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The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was the starting
point for the development of legally binding international human rights
treaties. The consequent International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights came into force in 1976. Currently there are some 140 States Parties
to the former and 137 to the latter. In addition to the two covenants, there are
four core thematic human rights treaties: The Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Convention against Torture and other
Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the Convention on
the Rights of the Child. There are a number of other UN instruments setting
accepted human rights standards in particular areas e.g. aspects of the
treatment of prisoners, rights of persons belonging to minorities, right to
development, the ILO Conventions on workers' rights as well as international
humanitarian law and refugee law. |
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Regional Human Rights Charters are based on the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other Conventions. They provide a means of bringing international law and standards closer to people in different parts of the different parts of the world. Regional charters include the African Charter ion Human and Peoples' Rights, the American Convention on Human Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights. The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights was adopted by the Organization of African Unity (OAHU) in 1981 and entered into force in 1986. It is a legally binding treaty to which, by August 1997, there were 51 State Parties. It contains civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. It also includes various peoples' rights, such as the right to a healthy environment, which are not reflected in other international or legally binding instruments. Implementation of the African Charter is supervised by the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights which was established in November 1987. An African Court of Human Rights has yet to be established. ' The American Convention on Human Rights was adopted by the Organisation of American States (OAS) in 1969 and has been ratified by 25 countries. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, one of the principal organs of the OAS, reviews complaints and communications relating to the Convention. Governments and the Inter-American Commission may submit cases to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. The European Convention on Human Rights was adopted on 4 November 1950. The Human Rights Act of 1998 committed the UK Government to incorporate the Convention into domestic law. Asia does not currently have either a regional charter or a court of human rights. Many Asian states, however, are parties to a broad range of global human rights instruments and mechanisms. |
2.4 Poor people have rights to education and health, to an adequate livelihood including food, water and housing, to just and favourable conditions of work, to security and freedom from violence. They cannot access these rights when their voices are not heard, when they are discriminated against, or when the state is not accountable for its human rights obligations.
Participation
2.5 Participation usually means participation in the community or in development projects. Participatory methods have been used to ascertain local level needs and priorities. These findings, however, have not always been fed into state policy and budget formulation processes. Formal political processes provide one means of enabling citizens to have some say in the policies of their country. An increasing number of countries have become committed to democratic political participation. But even where they operate in a relatively free and fair manner, voting, lobbying and political parties are not sufficient to empower poor people. One of the key findings from the World Bank's series of consultations with the poor is that many people in developing countries, including those with democratically elected governments, consider themselves to be powerless and lacking influence over the key decisions which affect their lives3
2.6 People are not only concerned with having a say in decision-making processes. In South Africa in 1998, people said that they wanted much more information about the decisions that had been made at national and local levels as well as more feed-back on the activities of political representatives and government workers.4
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Participation is central to enabling people to claim all their
human rights. The key challenge is to ensure that actions to increase citizens'
participation: in decision-making processes empower the poor and not just local
elites. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights defines people's rights to
take part in formal political processes (UHDR 21). Article 20 affirms the right
to freedom of association and Article 23 includes the right to form and join
trade unions. Both the: Copenhagen and Beijing declarations emphasise the
importance of promoting the participation of excluded people in governmental
processes and bodies. Rights to participation are linked to information rights.
Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights defines the right to
freedom of opinion and expression. This right includes the right to receive and
impart information and ideas through any media regardless of
frontiers. |
2.8 As the World Bank's series of consultations with the poor indicates, many people in developing countries are concerned with issues of corruption among government officials at both local and national levels. Access to information enables citizens to monitor the actions of government workers and guard against corruption.
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The Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS), or Association for
the Empowerment of Workers and Farmers, is a civil society movement which grew
in response to evidence of local government corruption in the north Indian state
of Rajasthan. The group promotes the idea that citizens have a right both to
know how they are governed and to participate actively in the process of
auditing their representatives. Work with poorer sections of society in the
early nineties highlighted the role of government corruption in keeping wages
low when it became clear that local authorities were billing central and state
governments for higher amounts than were being paid to workers. Their work also
showed that goods delivered through the Public: Distribution System, designed to
provide subsidised essentials for poor people, were being diverted and sold on
the open market. In response to these findings, MKSS developed a method of
collective 'social audit' to analyse official information. In a series of
'public hearings', local people have been invited to give testimonies which
highlight discrepancies between the official record and their own experiences as
labourers on public-works projects, applicants for the means-tested,
anti-poverty schemes, or consumers in ration shop.5 |
2.10 The right to freedom of association is central to achieving just and fair conditions at work as well as ensuring that civil society is able to operate as an effective monitor of government actions. A 1999 survey by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) 6shows that 123 trade unionists were murdered in 1998, 1,650 individuals were attacked or injured, 3,660 were arrested, and over 21,000 were sacked for trade union activities. The survey cites a record number of 119 countries where either the right to organise is still formally denied or informally abused. The great majority of poor women and men working in the informal sector in developing countries are only just beginning to learn to organise themselves and defend their rights at work - very often through grass-roots and community-based organisations.
Inclusion
2.11 Poverty is not simply the consequence of a lack of resources. Some people are unable to access existing resources because of who they are, what they believe or where they live. Such discrimination is a form of social exclusion and a cause of poverty. Political commitment to the principle of the universality of all rights provides a basis for the development of socially inclusive and equitable societies.
2.12 It is often particular groups within societies which suffer from multiple deprivation of rights. Work to understand gender inequality provides insight into the causes of discrimination more generally. Discrimination may be the product of legal inequalities in status and entitlements. Discrimination also occurs where the needs and rights of particular people are not recognized in policies or provided for through budgetary allocations. Social values and norms may result in discriminatory practices in the implementation of policies as well as in people's relationships within households and communities In many countries, people receive differential treatment from government officials because of their class, religious identity, disability, age, ethnicity or skin colour.7
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A socially inclusive society is one in which all people are
able! to claim all their rights. The
principle of equality of all rights for all people forms the basis of the
definition of social inclusion agreed at the 1995 Social Development Summit in
Copenhagen. This definition is based on the first and second articles of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that all: human beings are
born free and equal in dignity and rights, and that everyone is entitled to all
human rights without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex,
language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin,
property, birth or other status. The human rights framework acknowledges that
some people suffer particular rights deficits through reference to specific
forms of discrimination. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of:
Discrimination Against Women, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Racial Discrimination and the Convention on the Rights of the Child take account
of forms of discrimination on the basis of gender, race and age. International
standards for upholding the rights of people with disabilities are set out in
the UN Standard Rules on the Equalization of: Opportunities for Persons with
Disabilities. Human rights which are of particular concern to: indigenous and
minority peoples include rights to land, cultural integrity, participation in
decision-making, health and a healthy environment.8 The UN
instruments which define these rights include the International Covenants, the
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial
Discrimination and the International Labor Organisation Convention No 169
concerning Indigenous and Tribal People in Independent Countries. |
2.14 In cases such as the Roma in Eastern Europe, exclusion has led in the recent past to denial of citizenship rights because they are seen by the majority as 'undesirable'. In their most extreme forms, racism and discrimination on the basis of ethnicity have led to conflict and genocide. Addressing the rights of the excluded is central to the prevention of conflict and the promotion of socially inclusive societies in which all people can enjoy lives of freedom and security.
Fulfilling obligation
2.15 Where human rights are not legally protected or recognised in the policies and practices of service providers, people are unable to claim entitlements, even where resources are available. Ratification of human rights treaties and the incorporation of human rights norms into domestic legislation are necessary for the protection of human rights. But states have very different capacities to reform legislation and ensure that it is enforced. Building governments' capabilities to provide accessible justice and legal redress, based on respect for human rights, is central to the realisation of human rights for poor people.10
2.16 Legislation alone is not sufficient to ensure the realisation of human rights. Constitutional commitments often remain as abstract principles because governments fail to address their obligations through budget and policy formulation processes which allocate resources to particular sectors and define the levels and standards of provision that all citizens can expect. At the local level, people need a clear understanding of what particular rights mean in terms of concrete entitlements in order to be able to claim them.
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States have obligations to protect, promote and ensure the
realisation of all human rights. International and national human rights
institutions provide channels for monitoring violations of human rights. Legal
action provides another channel for ensuring citizens are protected. The
Universal Declaration of Human Rights defines individuals' rights to equality
before the law, to protection from arbitrary arrest, detention and exile and to
a fair and public hearing by an independent tribunal (Universal Declaration of
Human Rights 8,9,10,11). States' obligations also require positive action to
promote human rights.11 Clear performance standards, civil society
action and political mechanisms are central to ensuring the accountability of
the state for its obligations to promote all human rights. States also have
international obligations to promote human rights globally. While states have
primary responsibilities for ensuring the realisation of human rights, all
people have general duties to exercise their rights responsibly and respect the
rights of others. Article 29 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights makes
clear that human rights are not just a matter of citizen-state relations.
Everyone has a duty to the community. |
2.18 Protecting and promoting human rights during violent conflict is one of the most difficult challenges for the international community. The nature of violent conflict has changed. Where conflicts used to be 'set-piece' battles between armies, civilians are now most likely to become war casualties, made homeless or maimed. Most of these are women and children. Also, most armed conflicts are now internal, not international. Sometimes they are 'civil wars'; sometimes they are acts of aggression by one party (often states), against the civilian population. The mechanisms to protect civilians are also developing, mostly contained within international humanitarian law. When people flee to other countries they are entitled to international protection. Countries receiving refugees may need assistance to cope with a large influx of people in desperate conditions.
2.19 As the international community recognises that the human rights of civilians are violated in conflict, distinctions between international humanitarian law, human rights law and refugee law are blurring. UN agencies such as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the UN High Commission for Refugees and the International Committee of the Red Cross are having to develop their strategies in this respect.
Footnote
3 Global Synthesis: Consultations with the Poor. World Bank 1999.4 Poverty and Human Rights. National Speak Out on Poverty Hearings, March to June 1998.
5 Jenkins and Goetz. Accounts and Accountability. Theoretical Implications of the Right-to Information Movement in India, 1999.
6 ''1999 ICFTU Annual Survey of Violations of Trade Union Rights.
7. See also the DFID strategy paper, Poverty elimination and the empowerment of women and the DFID issues papers, Disability, poverty and development (DFID 2000); Helping not hurting children (DFID 1999).
8 Fergus MacKay: The Rights of Indigenous People in International Law: A Briefing Paper for DFID.
9 Rosalind Petchesky and Karen Judd. Negotiating Reproductive Rights. Zed Press 1998.
10 "DFID Strategy Paper: Making government work for poor people. June 2000.
11 Human Development Report 2000
