COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS CONTINUES DEBATE ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS

Commission on Human Rights
MORNING
30 March 2005


Hears from Experts on an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant
on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Structural Adjustment
Policies, Extreme Poverty and the Right to Food


The Commission on Human Rights this morning continued its general debate on economic, social and cultural rights, hearing from the Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group to consider options regarding the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Independent Expert on the effects of structural adjustment policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights, the Independent Expert on human rights and extreme poverty, and the Special Rapporteur on the right to food.

Catarina de Albuquerque, Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group to consider options regarding the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, expressed the hope that future deliberations over an Optional Protocol would lead to a more effective implementation of the International Covenant by ensuring that a violation of any human right was treated as a serious matter, whether that right was considered civil, cultural, economic, political or social.

Bernards A. N. Mudho, Independent Expert on the effects of structural adjustment policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights, said dozens of poor and middle-income countries were forced to spend significant portions of their income to service their unpaid and unpayable debt, undermining their ability to invest in human capital and infrastructure.

Arjun Sengupta, Independent Expert on human rights and extreme poverty, said poverty could be regarded as deprivation of human development, and extreme poverty as extreme or severe deprivation. If extreme poverty could be identified in itself as a violation of human rights, it would become an obligation for both the concerned States and the international community to make the best efforts directly to remove it.

Jean Ziegler, Special Rapporteur on the right to food, said all human beings had the right to live in dignity, free from hunger. The right to food was a human right that was protected by international human rights law. Governments should fulfil their commitments to respect, protect and fulfil the human right to food of every human being. Eradicating hunger and poverty was not only a question of finding resources. It was also a question of Governments and other actors refraining from taking actions that caused great hunger, poverty and inequality. He said he had undertaken missions to Ethiopia, Mongolia and Guatemala in the context of his mandate.

Responding as a concerned country, Ethiopia said that the Government had made much progress in the realization of the right to food by making food security a key priority. While the Government agreed with most of the Special Rapporteur's recommendations, it remained concerned that he seemed to imply that land and food aid had been used in a political context. No evidence had been found to substantiate any allegations in that regard.

Also responding as a concerned country, Mongolia said after a long period of recession, the Mongolian economy was recovering gradually. The Government had taken measures, using all the resources available to it, to improve the situation, and had declared war against poverty in order to improve food security. Further measures were also undertaken to improve access to food for the most vulnerable groups of the society.

Guatemala, responding as a concerned country, said the conclusions and recommendations of the Special Rapporteur were helping to strengthen actions taken by the Government to reduce poverty and ensure the population was receiving an adequate diet. Before Congress this week was a Bill on nutritional and food security which acknowledged the population's right to food and enshrined this at the highest level.

In the context of the interactive dialogue with the Experts, the Commission heard from Argentina, Cuba, Congo, Luxembourg (on behalf of the European Union), Peru, Egypt, China, and Indonesia.

Presenting general statements were the Representatives of Eritrea, Mauritania, Argentina, Nepal, Republic of Korea, Kenya, Armenia, Kuwait, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Iran, Yemen, Iraq, the World Bank, UN-Habitat, Viet Nam, Switzerland, and Chile.

The Commission will reconvene this afternoon at 3 p.m. to continue its debate on economic, social and cultural rights.

Documents on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

Under this agenda item, the Commission has a number of documents.

There is a report submitted by Bernards A. N. Mudho, the Independent Expert on the effects of structural adjustment policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly, economic, social and cultural rights (E/CN.4/2005/42). The report was prepared in response to the Commission's request for draft guidelines to be produced for States and private and public, national and international financial institutions in the decision-making and execution of debt repayments and structural reform programmes. The report particularly highlights the World Bank's new approach to debt sustainability, which advocates country-specific approaches in developing appropriate external borrowing strategies.

The addendum to the report (Add.1) outlines the Independent Expert's mission to Kyrgyzstan and, among other things, expresses concern about the deterioration of facilities and the prevalence of informal payments in education and health sectors, which undermine the availability of accessibility by the poor and the vulnerable to these services and the enjoyment of their rights to education and health.

There is a report from the Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Jean Ziegler, (E/CN.4/2005/47) which provides an overview of the current situation of world hunger, reviews the activities of the Special Rapporteur and then addresses current situations of special concern with regard to the right to food, as well as positive initiatives being taken. The report also explores the emerging issue of "extraterritorial" responsibilities in relation to the right to food. The Special Rapporteur is gravely concerned at persistent, man-made violations of the right to food that persist across the world and is concerned about widespread hunger and loss of livelihoods caused by natural disasters and the failure to respond fully to the need for aid in situations such as the locust infestations across West Africa. He reports on positive initiatives being undertaken to fight hunger at both global and local levels and on the adoption of new internationally accepted voluntary guidelines for the progressive realization of the right to food adopted by the Food and Agriculture Organization Council in November 2004 and approved by all Governments.

The first addendum to the report (Add.1) provides an overview of famine and food insecurity, hunger and malnutrition in Ethiopia. The report finds that Ethiopia has made food security the key priority of Government policy and has made important advances in the realization of the right to food, through averting widespread deaths from famine and increasing food production. However, Ethiopia, the report states, remains one of the poorest countries in the world and hunger and food insecurity continue to affect half of Ethiopia's people. Among other things, the Special Rapporteur calls for an urgent need to invest in long-term development and in increasing access of the hungry to productive resources to enable them to feed themselves. There is also a need for the Government of Ethiopia to ensure equity between the regions and reduce the potential for violations of the right to food, such as the use of food aid for political patronage.

The second addendum to the report (Add.2) reviews the impact of the harsh winters and dzuds, and gives an overview of levels of undernourishment, hunger and poverty in Mongolia. The key finding of the report is that there is a serious gap in addressing issues of food insecurity and the lack of access to food in Mongolia. While attention has been paid in Government policies and programmes to issues of nutrition, little attention has been paid to issues of access to food and chronic undernourishment. The report recommends, among other things, that an urgent study be carried out to fully determine the situation of undernourishment, food insecurity and access to food. Protection of the right to food, it states, must be strengthened, and Government policies must be put in place to reverse the apparent regression in the realization of the right to food.

There is also a report by the Independent Expert on the question of human rights and extreme poverty, Arjun Sengupta, (E/CN.4/2005/49) in which he proposes a definition of poverty and extreme poverty; explores how this definition can be linked to human rights; and suggests a few concrete actions which could contribute to a more efficient eradication of poverty based on the realization of human rights. The Independent Expert proposes a number of concrete recommendations which would contribute to more effective poverty eradication strategies. These include a proposal that extreme poverty should be defined as a composite of income poverty, human development poverty and social exclusion, to encompass the notions of lack of basic security and capability deprivation, and a proposal for the establishment at the international level of a mechanism aimed at coordinating development cooperation activities of different Governments and agencies.
There is the report of the open-ended Working Group to consider options regarding the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on its second session (E/CN.4/2005/52) as presented by its Chairperson/Rapporteur Catarina de Albuquerque. The second session, which took place in January 2005, heard a statement by the High Commissioner who said the Working Group was among the most important initiatives currently under consideration by the Commission as it offered an opportunity to ensure that economic, social and cultural rights would receive the same attention as civil and political rights. Much of the reticence around proposals for an Optional Protocol turned around questions of the justiciability of economic, social and cultural rights; however, courts were increasingly playing a vital role in enforcing economic, social and cultural rights, the report states.

Presentation by Chairperson of Working Group to Elaborate an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

CATARINA DE ALBUQUERQUE, Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group to consider options regarding the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, said the Working Group met this year for the second time. The debates took place in accordance with the programme of work that had been previously agreed upon in November 2004, based on the relevant provisions of Commission resolution 2004/29, which requested the Chairperson-Rapporteur to identify Experts to be invited for future sessions of the Working Group.

The programme of work was divided into three different parts. The first consisted of different interactive dialogues with Experts whose field of competence dealt with the issues before the Working Group, the first of which took place with Special Rapporteurs. A second interactive dialogue occurred with Experts from the ILO and UNESCO. Another meeting was devoted to an interactive dialogue with treaty body experts. Finally, during the fifth and sixth meetings, the Working Group held interactive dialogues with Experts from two regional human rights mechanisms. The second part of the programme of work focused on the discussion of options regarding the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The last part of the second session was devoted to the discussion of two reports of the Secretary-General containing comparative summaries of existing communications and inquiry practices under international human rights instruments and under the United Nations system. The debate concluded with a discussion of options for an Optional Protocol, during which the Chairperson-Rapporteur was requested to draft a paper containing a non-judgemental analysis of different options for an Optional Protocol, which were to be drawn from a list of elements suggested by delegations.

This paper would be prepared and presented to delegates before the third session of the Working Group, and it was hoped that it would be able to contribute to the Working Group making further progress in its future deliberations and having a more focused discussion at its third session. Referring to the consensus agreed at Vienna in 1993 that all human rights were indivisible, interdependent and inter-related, the Chairperson-Rapporteur expressed the hope that the future deliberations over an Optional Protocol would lead to a more effective implementation of the Covenant by ensuring that a violation of any human right was treated as a serious matter, whether that right was considered civil, cultural, economic, political or social.

Presentation by Independent Expert on Structural Adjustment Policies

BERNARDS ANDREW NYAMWAYA MUDHO, Independent Expert on the effects of structural adjustment policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights, recalled that the Millennium Project report "Investing in Development" had painted a bleak picture of highly indebted poor countries, who had seen their incomes rise only from $ 298 per capita to $ 337 between 1997 and 2002, while the volume of world trade had almost doubled during the same period. Dozens of poor and middle-income countries were forced to spend significant portions of their income to service their unpaid and unpayable debt, undermining their ability to invest in human capital and infrastructure. Moreover, some creditor countries provided development assistance with one hand, and withdrew it in debt servicing with the other.

The Independent Expert said he had undertaken a mission to Kyrgyzstan in June 2004. He noted that the country remained highly indebted, despite progress in macroeconomic reforms and the Paris Club debt restructuring in 2002. The Government had not wished to join the highly indebted poor countries initiative for fear of tarnishing its image and discouraging the foreign investment necessary to accelerate the transition process. Generally, there had been clear political commitment to address challenges of transition, poverty, governance and human rights, as manifested by the National Poverty Reduction Strategy and other laws and declarations. Further effort was needed to translate those commitments into reality, however. Of particular concern was the deterioration of infrastructures and public services in public education, health and other social sectors. Expressing hope that the current political crisis would not have a negative impact on the country's long-term development prospects, he stressed that Kyrgyzstan's experience demonstrated that, while good national policies were necessary to debt sustainability, they were not sufficient. International cooperation, in the form of grants and debt relief, remained essential, and should be additional to ongoing official development assistance.

Also noting that he had been mandated to develop draft general guidelines for States and private and public national and international financial institutions to follow in decision-making and execution of debt repayments and compliance with the commitments derived from foreign debt, he said he had sought to identify some elements to be considered in that process, but felt that there was a need for further in-depth dialogue with international financial institutions and the Member States who would be the beneficiaries of the guidelines. The Commission should authorize an expert consultation and invite international financial institutions to participate in it.

Interactive Dialogue

SERGIO CERDA (Argentina) said paragraph 54 contained a proposal for the guidelines, and wondered how these guidelines could have be taken into account by the international financial institutions in a case like the recent negotiations involving Argentina, which had been totally on an individual basis. What would be the impact of these general guidelines, and how did the Rapporteur envisage country negotiations being influenced by them when these were already so complicated.

JORGE FERRER RODRIGUEZ (Cuba) said the focus on creating guidelines was very interesting. Regarding debt sustainability as part of the approach, until now this had simply ensured the sustainability of payments to creditors, and no marked reduction of the foreign debt burden affecting developing countries. Debt had been increasing as a proportion of gross GDP and in terms of exports. Social organizations in the North and South and the Social Forum had questioned the strategy used up to now with regard to debt, and a number of countries in the Southern Hemisphere had carried out initiatives to cut debt, and some ideas were floating around with regard to the creation of regional monetary funds, consisting solely of the countries of the South. How did the Special Rapporteur view these and the measures developing countries were adopting in the hope of finding a lasting solution to their external debt?

JEAN-PASCAL OBEMBO (Congo) said regarding the weight of the debt, how did it burden developing countries especially in the context of the Millennium Development Goals?

BERNARDS ANDREW NYAMWAYA MUDHO, Independent Expert on the effects of structural adjustment policies and foreign debt on the full enjoyment of all human rights, said that the proposed draft guidelines would not have an impact on negotiations until they were adopted, but once they were, he felt the main impact would ensure that countries' abilities to fulfil their obligations to their citizens in fulfilment of enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights were not undermined. He also noted that one could not ensure debt sustainability without addressing other issues such as those referred to in his report. Regional funds by themselves were not likely to solve the issue of debt sustainability. For that reason, he had concluded in his report that, in addition to official development assistance and debt relief, it was necessary to ensure market access for indebted countries, to enable them to meet their financial obligations. As to how the debt burden of heavily indebted countries would affect achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, he said that heavily indebted countries must obviously continue to service their debts, and that, as noted in his report, the HIPC initiative had proved inadequate. For HIPC countries to meet their obligations, there must be increased allocation of resources to them, over and above what was received in terms of the HIPC initiative.

Presentation by Independent Expert on Human Rights and Extreme Poverty

ARJUN SENGUPTA, Independent Expert on human rights and extreme poverty, said poverty had been conventionally viewed as the lack of income or purchasing power to secure basic needs. The distinction between poverty and extreme poverty in the framework of income poverty would be essentially a question of degree or extent of the phenomenon. In the last two decades, the poverty discourse had moved much beyond the income criterion. People living in poverty were now considered as subject of extreme deprivation of "well being" in which income was only one constituent element. It also and more importantly played an instrumental role determining the enjoyment of other elements constituting well being. A Human Rights Index representing well being formulated certain indicators of health, education, food, nutrition and other basic needs for a decent life, in addition to per capita income. Poverty could then be regarded as deprivation of human development, and extreme poverty as extreme or severe deprivation. When an individual suffered from deprivation due to the lack of adequate income or because of a failure in achieving different forms of human development, the condition could be analysed in terms of income poverty or human development poverty. But if an individual suffered from deprivation because of belonging to a social group whose interaction with other groups caused that deprivation, the problems could be analysed more pertinently in terms of social exclusion.

Human rights obligations were binding and mechanisms should be in place to enforce these obligations. The accountability of duty bearers was essential for the enforcement of human rights through legislation or executive actions, by special bodies or committees, separately from the countries' judicial system. The actions and policies of the States or the international institutions might not invariably lead to the intended results. But a binding obligation meant that those agents should be able to demonstrate that they made their best efforts to fulfil those rights by adopting policies and programmes, individually and in association with others, that had the maximum likelihood of achieving those results. If the eradication of extreme poverty could be described in terms of the realization of human rights, it would provide an enormous push towards international efforts in that direction. For that, it would first be necessary to consider the nature of extreme poverty as directly related to the non-fulfilment of human rights, and whether extreme poverty could be described as a violation of human rights, or whether it was a condition that was caused by human rights violations. The human rights community would therefore like to see extreme poverty as a violation or denial of human rights in the constitutive sense. If extreme poverty could be identified in itself as a violation of human rights, it would become an obligation for both the concerned States and the international community to make the best efforts directly to remove it.

Interactive Dialogue

SERGIO CERDA (Argentina) said the Independent Expert had mentioned the world campaign against unemployment, and asked whether the Independent Expert could associate himself with the work of the International Labour Organization (ILO) on that point. What modalities would he include in the campaign against unemployment?

ALPHONSE BERNS (Luxembourg), speaking on behalf of the European Union, asked the Independent Expert how he intended to improve coordination between himself and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in order to avoid duplication of their efforts. Also, how did he intend to report on the universality of poverty?

ELIANA BERAUN ESCUDERO (Peru) asked the Independent Expert about his views on the work being done by the Ad Hoc Expert Group charged with reviewing guidelines on implementation of human rights provisions in the campaign against extreme poverty. She also asked whether the Independent Expert was working with the ILO to fine-tune the proposals on job creation in the fight against extreme poverty.

ARJUN SENGUPTA, Independent Expert on human rights and extreme poverty, said the issue of employment had to be related to the International Labour Office (ILO) which should be brought into the programme of eradicating extreme poverty. The question of coordination was important with other mechanisms. The issue of the incorporation of human rights elements into extreme poverty was also essential. There was a conviction that human rights violations should be equated to extreme poverty and it was a matter of discussion. A joint session could also be held with the ILO to discuss extreme poverty. As one of the causes of extreme poverty, social exclusion should be understood at the level of each country. The argument of social exclusion should be studied on a case-by-case or country-by-country basis. Social exclusion in France might not be the same as that of India, for instance. The International Development Assistance programme of the World Bank and other unemployment projects of States should be seen from the point of view of eradicating extreme poverty.

Presentation of Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food

JEAN ZIEGLER, Special Rapporteur on the right to food, said every day, more than 17,000 children under the age of five died from hunger-related diseases. Millions of undernourished people across the world were condemned to lives that were physically and mentally stunted, that were too short and full of suffering. It appeared that hunger had increased every year since the 1996 World Food Summit, and this had made a mockery of the promises made by Governments at the World Food Summits in 1996 and in 2002, as well as the promises contained in the Millennium Development Goals. This was not acceptable. All human beings had the right to live in dignity, free from hunger. The right to food was a human right that was protected by international human rights law. Governments should fulfil their commitments to respect, protect and fulfil the human right to food of every human being.

Eradicating hunger and poverty was not only a question of finding resources. It was also a question of Governments and other actors refraining from taking actions that caused greater hunger, poverty and inequality. In many countries today, the poor were being dispossessed of the few resources they had. In some countries, food and water were deliberately used as an instrument of political or economic pressure. There were a number of situations of special concern in relation to the mandate where there were violations of the human right to food, including in the Darfur region of Sudan; the situation in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea; the situation in Iraq; and the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories. The Voluntary Guidelines to support the progressive realisation of the right to adequate food had been adopted by the Food and Agricultural Organization Council and approved by all Governments in November 2004, and this marked an important step forward, as this gave an internationally accepted understanding of the right.

Two missions had been undertaken, to Ethiopia, and to Mongolia. Regarding the first, food aid had not reduced the vulnerability of the Ethiopian people to future famines. There was an urgent need to invest in long-term development, and in increasing access of the hungry to productive resources to enable them to feed themselves. There was also a need for the Government to ensure equity between the regions and reduce the potential for violations of the right to food, such as the use of food aid for political patronage. Regarding the mission to Mongolia, the key finding of the report was that there was a serious gap in addressing issues of food insecurity and the lack of access to food in Mongolia. While attention had been paid in Government policies and programmes to issues of nutrition, little attention had been paid to issues of access to food and chronic undernourishment. The report on his mission to Guatemala would be presented to the sixty-first session of the Commission.

Response from Concerned Countries

LULIT ZEWDIE (Ethiopia), speaking as a concerned country, said that Ethiopia had made much progress in realization of the right to food by making food security a key priority. Sound policies and programmes, which placed rural and agricultural growth at their centre, had played an important role in increasing food production, in improving export performance, and in addressing problems of the poor and chronically food-insecure households. The food security budget had been doubled for the period 2004-2005, and a sub-budget line for the national safety net programme had been included in the federal budget. Social and environmental mitigation guidelines had been developed for individuals resettled from food-insecure to more productive areas as part of the food security programme. Development activities had also been undertaken to develop water and road infrastructure.

The Government remained committed to ensuring grassroots level participation on development issues and on social problems, including discrimination against women, she said. The recently amended penal code would adequately address the issue of violence against women, including rape, early marriage and abduction. Priority in implementing the national Land Certification Policy had been given to those regions in which sedentary agriculture dominated, although dialogues with community and clan leaders had also begun in pastoralist areas. The Policy was being applied in a consistent and non-discriminatory manner. Finally, she noted that while the Government agreed with most of the Special Rapporteur's recommendations, it remained concerned that he seemed to imply that land and food aid had been used in a political context. No evidence had been found to substantiate any allegations in that regard.

KHASBAZARYN BEKHBAT (Mongolia), speaking as a concerned country, said the Special Rapporteur's report following his visit to Mongolia was a serious one. The understanding of the situation with regard to the right to food was very important. The identification of the problem would assist the Government in improving the situation. After a long period of recession, the Mongolian economy was recovering gradually. The Government had taken measures, using all the resources available to it, to improve the situation. The authorities had declared war against poverty in order to improve food security. Further measures were also undertaken to improve access to food by the most vulnerable groups of the society. The country's transition to democracy since the 1990s had not been an easy process.. During the period of transition, extreme poverty had emerged and had affected food security, leading to hunger and malnutrition, which the country had never faced in the past. However, today, the situation had improved.

The Government of Mongolia would take the recommendations of the Special Rapporteur seriously. It would continue to strengthen its legal provisions and monitoring mechanisms to better protect the right to food. He thanked all those who helped the country to improve its food situation.

LARS PIRA PEREZ (Guatemala), speaking as a concerned country, said the visit by the Special Rapporteur had been appreciated. His conclusions and recommendations were helping to strengthen actions taken by the Government of Guatemala to reduce poverty and ensure the population was receiving an adequate diet. Before Congress this week was a Bill on nutritional and food security which acknowledged the population's right to food and enshrined this at the highest level. The aim was to eradicate malnutrition and create and strengthen the conditions so that the entire population had access to decent human development. The aim was also to encourage the achievement of the national objective for a healthy diet for the entire population to encourage the economic and social development of the entire country. Steps would be taken to improve or address the nutritional security of the poorest sections, and progress thus would be made towards the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals.

All sectors of society would be able to work together under the Bill to help improve the conditions that gave rise to the lack of sustainable development in the country. A dialogue had begun with the Special Rapporteur to obtain advice and assistance in the developments that were being made in the country.

Interactive Dialogue

JUAN ANTONIO FERNANDEZ PALACIOS (Cuba) said the prestige of the Commission on Human Rights was enhanced each time the Special Rapporteur on the right to food addressed it, as he displayed scientific rigour and truth. Cuba wished to ask what more could be done to disseminate the Guidelines of the Council of the Food and Agricultural Organization, which marked a milestone in the struggle to realize the right to food.

OMAR SHALABY (Egypt) said the situation of hunger in the world-at-large, and especially in Africa, was immoral and a shame on humanity. Agreeing that States must recognize their extraterritorial obligations to redress that dilemma, he wished to ask what additional measures, particularly financial and practical, could be taken at the international level to assist African countries in realizing the right to food.

SERGIO CERDA (Argentina) asked the Special Rapporteur how follow-up to his recommendation on emerging issues could be ensured.

ALPHONSE BERNS (Luxembourg), speaking on behalf of the European Union, asked the Special Rapporteur to indicate how he intended to enhance cooperation with the World Food Programme. He also asked the Special Rapporteur to elaborate on the way he envisaged strengthening cooperation among civil society, and among international organizations.

XIA JINGGE (China) said the Special Rapporteur had referred to agricultural subsidies and their effects on the enjoyment of the right to food. In many developing countries, agriculture as an industry remained important to guarantee the right to food. He asked whether the Special Rapporteur had had discussions with other international organizations, such as the World Trade Organization, as to their contributions in that regard in multilateral fora.

AGUNG CAHAYA SUMIRAT (Indonesia) said his Government held that food security remained of paramount importance, especially for the people of Indonesia. Issues of food security and access to food continued to need elaboration, and he asked how food buffer stocks were useful to ensuring the right to food. He also asked what would be the best system to increase access to food worldwide.

JEAN ZIEGLER, Special Rapporteur on the right to food, said the food aid to Ethiopia had doubled and the Government was doing all it could to distribute the food to maintain the food needs of its 70 million people. In Mongolia, the food situation had helped the most vulnerable sectors of the society. The law in Guatemala with regard to the food situation satisfied him. The broad opinion in Latin America had taken root that efforts were being made in upholding the right to food. The dialogue between Governments should be emphasised in all aspects, particularly concerning the right to food. The companies in Switzerland that produced food had the extra territorial obligations with regard to their food productions elsewhere. It was also necessary that countries receive guidelines in their efforts to strengthen their food situation. Food stocking was one of the good methods to fight hunger, as indicated by one delegate.

General Debate on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

AMARE TEKLE (Eritrea) said poverty continued to be the single most difficult obstacle to the attainment of economic, social and cultural rights, and indeed all human rights. Yet, it was optimistically assumed that it would not be difficult to overcome poverty given the goodwill and cooperation of nations and the proper setting of priorities. Among those priorities was education. The right to education assumed priority because it was essential at every level of human interaction, individual, family, community and nation. A decent education was the only avenue for the multitudes to be productive members of society and thus be able to secure a decent living for their families, contribute to the welfare of their communities and to enable their respective nations to avail themselves of a continued supply of skilled and trained populations.

Health was another priority. The age of highly sophisticated technology had enabled humanity to make significant advances in the discovery and production of medicines and the establishment of innovative healthcare techniques and procedures. Yet, that had benefited only some of the world's regions. It was a source of concern, dismay and frustration that malaria, tuberculosis and other easily preventable scourges were ravaging populations in developing countries. HIV/AIDS continued to be a devastating menace. The Government of Eritrea had, since independence, done much in the promotion, protection and consolidation of economic, social and cultural rights.

MOHAMED SALECK OULD MOHAMED LEMINE (Mauritania) said that poverty and underdevelopment constituted the principle obstacles to the full enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, which was why the fight against poverty had been made the cornerstone of the country's development policy. That strategic framework aimed to improve the living conditions of the population, to reduce inequalities and to reinforce national cohesion and solidarity. The results obtained as a result of the framework had been recognized by the international community, and had led to Mauritania being one of the first countries to benefit from the Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative. Furthermore, the financial resources generated by the related debt reduction had been dedicated to poverty reduction programmes, which addressed issues related to education, health, food and potable water, and improvement in agricultural, road and dam infrastructures, among others.

An agency providing universal access to basic social services had been established, he added, to provide drinking water, electricity and telecommunications to all towns of more than 1,000 by 2015. Another agency, concerned with urban development, had been established to deal with basic needs in the region of the capital and other large cities. Policies had also been developed to ensure the right to adequate housing and the right to food for the poor. The Government had undertaken large-scale irrigation and agricultural development projects. Regarding health care, he noted that hospitals had been built and rehabilitated, vaccination campaigns organized, and awareness raising campaigns on HIV/AIDS conducted. There had also been efforts to encourage research and publication in the cultural domain, including through the national campaign to promote books and reading, programmes to safeguard the national heritage of different communities, and the adoption of a law for mandatory primary education for all children from 6 to 14 years of age. The Government had also envisaged creation of an agency charged with youth employment.

SERGIO CERDA (Argentina) said that during the next session of the Working Group to consider options regarding the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, during discussions with Experts, priority should be given to the wealth of experience acquired in the Americas on this issue. The document prepared by the Chairperson-Rapproteur should contain elements necessary for the speedy development of the Optional Protocol, which should enable countries to ensure economic, social and cultural rights. Justicability of these rights should be enhanced and consolidated. There was support for the concept of globalization with a human face, both at the national level, and globally, in order to combat poverty and destitution. There should be good governance and participation, with measures that addressed the circumstances of the most disadvantaged, with a transparent form of Government enabling sustainable growth, but for this there needed to be a transparent international order characterised by a sense of solidarity and symmetry.

Regional integration within MERCOSUR was important. Economic, social and cultural rights were also linked to the availability of resources, and therefore sub-regional cooperation was very important. In this context there was a place for sustainable restructuring.

GYAN CHANDRA ACHARYA (Nepal) said Nepal was fully committed to the realization of the inalienable rights of economic, social and cultural rights of the people which were reflected in the Constitution and the various policy measures pursued by the Government. Widespread poverty compounded further by the ongoing deadly insurgency had posed a serious challenge to the country's efforts for sustained socio-economic development. The development policy of the Government was therefore guided by the objective of broad-based economic growth, social sector development including human development, targeted programmes with a focus on social inclusion of the marginalized and deprived communities, and good governance. As education also played a key role in any poverty alleviation programme, the Government had geared its efforts towards substantially increasing the enrolment of the children in the primary education up to 90 per cent by 2007 and providing universal access to quality basic education by 2015.

The "Education For All" vision of Nepal was to ensure that all children in Nepal had quality basic and primary education and received primary education, especially in their mother tongue, without feeling prejudices in the form of cultural, ethnic or caste discrimination. Nepal was also sensitive to the fact that the school and educational places should have gender balance in terms of staff and student enrolment. The Government had already made primary education free throughout the country and even textbooks were distributed free of cost to primary school children.

PARK IN-KOOK (Republic of Korea) said large segments of humanity continued to suffer from poverty, economic and social marginalization, and inequality, despite the many opportunities for economic growth and increased employment offered by the globalizing world. Such challenges threatened human security, as well as national and international peace. Thus, international and national action were both needed in order for States effectively to discharge their obligations with regard to economic, social and cultural rights. The benefits of globalization must be made available to all, but it must also be recognized that external assistance and cooperation would not lead to sustainability unless accompanied by individual country's efforts to transform their economic, social and political institutions. Good governance, which included the rule of law, transparency, accountability, democratic institutions, and coherent poverty reduction and education policies, was essential in that regard.
Associating strongly with the basic principle of the equal importance and indivisibility of civil and political rights and economic, social and cultural rights, he said that the Republic of Korea felt that further discussions were needed to work out the best way of promoting effective realization of economic, social and cultural rights, including the introduction of an individual complaints mechanism. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights should continue to provide general comments to serve as guides for State parties’ efforts to realize those rights, and to conclude its consideration of the draft general comment on article 3 of the Covenant, which would contribute to strengthening gender equality in the realization of all economic, social and cultural rights.

DANIEL K. KOTTUT (Kenya) said all human rights were indivisible, interrelated and interdependent. With international assistance and cooperation, Kenya believed it could progressively achieve the realisation of all the rights contained in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Poverty remained a major obstacle to efforts to realise the provisions of the Covenant. This was compounded by the crushing foreign debt burden, inaccessibility of foreign markets, low levels of overseas development aid and net financial outflows; these factors impeded efforts to ensure that Kenyans enjoyed economic, social and cultural rights. Developed countries should assist developing countries efforts in this regard.

The decision of the Commission to establish a Working Group to consider options for an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights was welcomed, and it was hoped that the Working Group at its next session would embark on the elaboration of the Optional Protocol. This would put economic, social and cultural rights on the same footing as civil and political rights, thereby reaffirming that all these rights were universal, indivisible, interrelated and interdependent. It would go a long way in stimulating States parties to take concrete steps towards the implementation of the International Covenant. It would also strengthen the principle of progressive realisation of the International Covenant’s rights, and would strengthen international enforcement of economic, social and cultural rights through a more structured relationship between the Committee and Member States.

ZOHRAB MNATSAKANIAN (Armenia) said Armenia continued to follow with considerable interest the ongoing process of elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which was taking place within the framework of the open-ended Working Group. While Armenia recognized the progressive nature of the realization of those rights, as well as the distinctions between that set of rights and civil and political rights, it gave due note to the present asymmetry in enforcement mechanisms available to civil and political rights on the one hand, and economic, social and cultural rights on the other. With respect to the work of the Working Group, as reflected in the report of the Chairperson-Rapporteur, Armenia saw considerable value in promoting the dialogue of the Working Group with relevant organizations within the United Nations system. Such interactions among all relevant players, including the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the ILO, and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization might provide considerable grounds for ensuring consistency and synergy of both international and policy interpretations and guidance with respect to that set of rights

The previous year had witnessed continued effort to further consolidate the institutional framework for the effective promotion of social and labour rights. Following Armenia's accession to the World Trade Organization and considerable progress in the establishment of a relevant legal environment for the evaluation of business practices within a market economy, Armenia had entered into the stage of consideration of a qualitatively new set of relationship among social partners.

JAWAHER AL SABAH (Kuwait) said Kuwait shared the view that education should focus on the full development of human identity to encourage respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. Each individual citizen should do his or her full part, and should enjoy their economic, social and cultural rights. The 1962 Constitution had enshrined economic, social and cultural rights nationally, and Kuwait had made education free and compulsory at all levels. The country also sought to rehabilitate those with specific needs, in order to enable them to take their place in the fabric of society, and had taken steps necessary to establish scientific and cultural institutions, which played an important role in innovation and creative engineering in the economic, social and cultural fields. Kuwait sought to show that education could embrace all facets of development in the scientific and cultural fields.

SARMAD SALAH NAFI (International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies), said the work of the Commission on economic, social and cultural rights was intertwined with the most basic international community objectives, as set forth in the Declaration adopted at the Millennium Summit and consolidated in the Millennium Development Goals. The achievement of the Goals would depend in large part on the willingness of Governments to reach out to the most vulnerable in their communities and to involve them in the design, implementation and monitoring of programmes to achieve the Goals. This was why the role of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in virtually every country of the world was so important.

Today the International Federation wished to show how its programming and activity supported the achievement of economic, social and cultural rights in even the most difficult of circumstances, and how that work sat alongside the international community's ambition to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. The example was Iraq, which underlined the belief that if the objectives set through the Millennium Development Goals were applied to assistance, even in the most difficult of circumstances, they could be a strong and persuasive influence as to the direction that assistance could most beneficially take. The work of the International Federation to promote human dignity and mobilise the power of humanity from the community level upwards helped unlock the door to achievement of development and the economic, social and cultural rights which the Commission had so high on its agenda.

MOSTAFA ALAEI (Iran) said poverty and exclusion were behind many of the security threats that the international community continued to face both within and across borders and thus placed at risk the promotion and protection of all human rights. Social and economic inequalities affected access to public life and to justice. Success in the progressive realization of economic, social and cultural rights at the national level depended to a large extent on effective international cooperation. Providing resources for developing countries and the creation of a conducive international economic environment for the realization of those rights was a common responsibility. Globalization had generated higher rates of economic growth, but too many of its benefits had been enjoyed unequally. Those who benefited from the lion's share of globalization had a real responsibility to assist the world community in combating poverty, hunger, malnutrition, unemployment and disease worldwide.

Global economic and political structures, which enjoyed the major share in the process of global decision-making, should be more accountable for the prosperity of the world citizens. Charity and donations did not represent real indicators and criteria for assessing the degree by which rich States had contributed to the realization of the Millennium Development Goals and the goals set further by the world conference.

MANAF AL SALAHI (Yemen) said Yemen had ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, as well as other international treaties drawn up by the International Labour Organization, and had adopted a series of legislation, strategies and plans in conformity with those instruments. Since 1995, the country had been implementing a general economic, financial and administrative reform programme in order to achieve economic stability and to restructure government institutions, in cooperation with the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and other donors.

The Government had also adopted a social security network to reduce the negative effects of the economic reform programme, he said, including by improving living standards in poor communities and providing health and educational services. The Social Care Fund, which covered nearly 550,000 cases, had been created, as had the Social Development Fund, whose beneficiaries now numbered 7 million, 49 per cent of them women. Also seeking to extend free and mandatory education, the country had adopted a number of strategies, including a national strategy on basic education, a national strategy on girls' education, a national strategy on combating illiteracy and adult education, and a strategic project "Yemen 2025".

OMER BERZINJI (Iraq) said as everyone knew, Iraq was a wealthy country with an ancient civilization that had gone through a very difficult situation; the erroneous policies of the previous regime had denied citizens their rights. Iraq was committed to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, but believed that militarization of its economy had impeded the achievement of the provisions of the Covenant. The new Government was dedicated to improving the rights of its citizens and work had begun in this respect. Previous policies had had the effect of a brain drain, even if there was an economic or political origin, but the new Government was trying to develop an educational system that should be compatible with the new stage in Iraq's history. Iraq was a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic country and the various ethnic groups had suffered under the previous regime. After the fall of that regime, there had been an opening-up in every area.

Despite the difficulties of the transition period, work was being carried out to establish a democratic, federal and pluralistic State, although the international community was required to help in establishing this and contributing towards Iraq's future.

JOSEPH K. INGRAM of the World Bank, said as the Secretary-General's recent reform proposals highlighted, it was time to taken the provision of economic, social and cultural rights seriously. The World Bank was therefore delighted by the recent visits to the Bank's Headquarters by the Independent Experts on structural adjustment and extreme poverty, and the Special Rapporteur on the right to health, since they gave the World Bank the opportunity to collaborate more closely with the Commission in identifying systematic as well as country specific deficiencies in the provision of economic, social and cultural rights. To further the realization of human rights, the World Bank assisted its client Governments in providing their citizens with more equitable access to basic services, including health, education and nutrition. The World Bank’s lending for policy reform also ensured that reforms were implemented with adequate consultations with all stakeholders, in a participatory and equitable manner.

The World Bank appreciated the work undertaken by the Commission on the theoretical connections between poverty reduction and human rights. An effective improvement in human rights conditions was mostly dependent on the county's willingness to respect, protect and fulfil human rights.

SELMAN ERGUDEN, of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), said that more than one billion people -- one-third of the world's population -- currently lived in slums. If no substantial measures were taken to stop current trends, the number of slum dwellers would reach 1.6 billion by 2020. Moreover, the Millennium Development Goal addressing slums -- which proposed that the lives of 100 million slum dwellers be significantly improved by 2020 -- would meet the needs of only 7 per cent of slum dwellers. Serious efforts were needed to stop new slum formation, and to improve the lives of current slum dwellers.

The United Nations Housing Rights Programme was the most significant UN-HABITAT initiative contributing to the realization of the right to adequate housing. The programme had established an informative website on housing rights, published reports on housing rights legislation and indigenous people, and advanced work on the establishment of a global system to monitor and evaluate progress in the realization of housing rights. Indicators on housing rights were being formulated, and the programme had organized regional consultations and capacity building workshops on housing rights. The preparation of training and capacity building guidelines for stakeholders was also envisaged.

PHAM QUOC TRU (Viet Nam) said it was essential to take a comprehensive and balanced approach in addressing the issue of human rights in all aspects. For developing countries, fundamental human rights could not be ensured and fully enjoyed if priority was given to civil and political rights and individual freedoms while due attention was not paid to economic, social and cultural rights which served as a foundation and precondition for the implementation of other fundamental human rights. The ultimate goal of the Government of Viet Nam was to strive for a strong country with wealthy people and a just, democratic and civilised society. To this end, it always took a people-centred approach in its economic and social policies in which human rights promotion and protection were regarded as an important factor for sustainable development.

Economic, social and cultural rights as well as civil and political rights for citizens were clearly stipulated by the Constitution and laws and were fully realised. The Millennium Development Goals on poverty alleviation had been achieved well ahead of the 2015 target. Viet Nam always gave top priority to the policy of healthcare, cultural and educational development. It was not an easy task to ensure the full enjoyment of human rights, including economic, social and cultural rights. Apart from continued efforts by the Government and people of each country, this required a strong commitment and joint actions. Viet Nam pledged to continue to stand firm with its commitment in this regard.

BLAISE GODET (Switzerland) said despite the efforts and good will, the means and existing standards to protect and promote economic, social and cultural rights were often insufficient. Although much still remained to be done, the progressive realization of the right to adequate food was on the right track. Switzerland called upon all States and other actors to give concrete support to the implementation of the provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and to use all their efforts to especially realize the right to food. The delegation also noted with satisfaction that the second session of the Working Group on the drafting of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant had been carried out in a constructive atmosphere. It was also satisfying that the Working Group had started dealing with specific issues. Such methods would allow States to deal with remaining issues still open with the view to strengthening economic, social and cultural rights and to achieve concrete results in the near future.

Because of the Commission's numerous challenges, it was difficult to introduce new themes. However, it seemed important to introduce the issue of water.
JUAN MARTABIT (Chile) said that successive Governments since 1990 had adopted a development strategy to improve the quality of life of the population, and to overcome poverty and social inequalities. Comprehensive cross-sector programmes in the favour of the most vulnerable groups had been implemented, including with regard to basic social services such as education and health care. A national plan on tolerance and non-discrimination had been adopted. Important progress had also been achieved on labour reforms, including unemployment security and laws against child labour, and in matters of the family.

In presenting its third periodic report to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights last year, Chile had shown that infant and maternal mortality rates had been significantly reduced and access to primary and secondary education had improved, she added. National plans like "Chile Solidarity" had sought improvement through diverse initiatives in favour of the indigenous people. Chile also attached great importance to areas of concern cited by the Committee and was working on follow-up. The progressive nature of economic, social and cultural rights did not exempt them from justicability, she affirmed. States must adopt policies for their implementation, and the international community must ensure the existence of effective remedies. In conformity with the position of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean Countries, Chile supported the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

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CORRIGENDA

In press release HR/CN/05/22 Rev. 1 of 23 March, the right of reply by Zimbabwe on the last page should read as follows:

CHITSAKA CHIPAZIWA (Zimbabwe), speaking in a right of reply in response to the right of reply by Australia, said Australia was unique in the so-called developed world. The Aboriginal people were pitied, as they had not been able to escape the murderous settlers. Africa had also suffered from this kind of slavery. The Commission had some terrible racist blood-thirsty members, and Australia was one of these, and it was not surprising it had rushed to join the killings in Iraq.

In press release HR/CN/05/23 of 29 March, the Representative of Myanmar was misidentified. The correct name of the speaker for Myanmar on page 11 is U Nyunt Maung Shein.

For use of information media; not an official record