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COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS CONTINUES DEBATE ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS
30 March 2005
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Commission on Human Rights
AFTERNOON
30 March 2005
Non-Governmental Organizations Decry Violations
of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
The Commission on Human Rights this afternoon continued its debate on the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, hearing from a series of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which spoke about the violation of those rights in many countries.
Stressing the universality, indivisibility and interdependence of all human rights, the NGOs said that the lack of effective national legislation or its insufficient application had impeded people from fully enjoying their economic, social and cultural rights as enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
Some speakers, including State Representatives, applauded the progress made in the Working Group which was working to elaborate a draft Optional Protocol to the International Covenant, which they said could assist victims to claim redress in the event of violation of their rights by a State party.
Taking part in the debate were the Representatives of Venezuela, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Morocco, Cameroon, Portugal, the Holy See and Senegal. The Representatives of the World Health Organization, UNAIDS, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and the African Union also spoke.
The following non-governmental organizations took the floor: International Commission of Jurists (speaking on behalf of Amnesty International and Colombian Commission of Jurists); Dominicans for Justice and Peace (speaking on behalf of Dominican Leadership Conference and Pax Christi International); Federation of Cuban Women (speaking on behalf of National Union of Jurists of Cuba); International Federation of University Women, (speaking on behalf of several NGOs1); Association for World Education (speaking on behalf of International Humanist and Ethical Union); International Federation of Human Rights Leagues; World Organization against Torture; Franciscans International; Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions; International Organization for the Development of Freedom of Education; International Federation of Rural Adult Catholic Movements; Europe-Third World Centre; Organization for the Solidarity of the Peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America; American Association of Jurists; Transnational Radical Party; Foodfirst Information and Action Network (FIAN); International Women's Rights Action Watch; Federacion de Asociaciones de Defensa y Promocion de los Derechos Humanos; International Fellowship of Reconciliation; Japanese Workers Committee for Human Rights; Movement against Racism and for Friendship among Peoples; World Federation of Democratic Youth; Human Rights Advocates (speaking on behalf of Earthjustice); Centro de Estudios sobre la Juventud; Liberation; Habitat International Coalition; Jubilee Campaign; Sociedad Cultural Jose Marti; International Movement for Fraternal Union among Races and Peoples; Marangopoulos Foundation for Human Rights; Centro de Estudios Europeos; Lutheran World Federation; Centrist Democratic International; Permanent Assembly for Human Rights; Organization of African Trade Union Unity; International Committee for the Respect and Application of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights; and International Federation for the Protection of The Rights of Ethnic, Religious, Linguistic & Other Minorities.
Nigeria exercised its right to reply.
When the Commission reconvenes at 10 p.m. on Thursday, 31 March, it will conclude its general debate on economic, social and cultural rights.
General Debate on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
TANYA NORTON, of World Health Organization (WHO) said the notion of a rights-based approach to health development had emerged as a new way of addressing public health challenges. Human rights could enhance accountability for health and support action in favour of addressing the health of vulnerable and marginalized population groups. In recent years, WHO had strengthened its work on health and human rights. Work in the area of human rights was a cross-cutting activity and all parts of WHO had been paying increased attention to these rights. The work of WHO on health and human rights spanned all of its health topics - from mental health to neglected diseases - and work was being done to make human rights an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of health-related policies and programmes in all spheres.
The Millennium Development Goals provided important milestones towards the progressive realization of the right to health. Tools and guides had been developed and good practices identified to support public health practitioners to integrate human rights principles in their public health agenda. The efforts of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health were applauded. In order to support ongoing activities and to provide an institutional platform for further operationalizing human rights in all aspects of WHO’s work, a process was underway to develop a health and human rights strategy for WHO.
DIEGO IBARRA (Venezuela) said Venezuela subscribed to the statement delivered by Mexico on behalf of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean Countries, including its call for the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Venezuela had established a series of programmes known as "missions", which sought to facilitate literacy education, access to health care, and realization of the right to food. These programmes intended to make full enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights a reality for the entire population of the country, including the rights to health, education, food, adequate standard of living and employment.
Extreme poverty and social exclusion violated human dignity, he stressed. To enable people to benefit from the full enjoyment of their economic, social and cultural rights, as well as from their civil and political rights, States had an obligation to show greater political will, and to implement commercial and financial policies conducive to international development.
BECHIR N'DAW, of Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), said the global impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic was devastating for all sectors of human life and development, especially in countries that lacked sufficient resources for treatment, care and support. The human tragedies would have dramatic long-term consequences if the international community did not take concrete action now. The world could no longer ignore the AIDS epidemic. Over 40 million people were estimated to be living with HIV and more than three million children, including those in the hardest hit countries in Africa, would be orphaned due to the pandemic. The epidemic was growing rapidly in other regions. If countries were seriously committed to promoting and protecting the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable physical and mental health, then tackling HIV/AIDS was possible.
Millions of people living with HIV in poor countries urgently needed antiretroviral treatment and very few in these areas had been receiving them. Without accelerated prevention and treatment, the AIDS epidemic would continue to destroy communities, health care systems and economies, placing a shadow upon the future of entire countries.
ALI DROUICHE (Algeria) said despite the annual debates within the heart of the Commission, there was a persistence of flagrant discrimination in the treatment of civil and political rights on one hand, and economic, social and cultural rights on the other, to the detriment of the latter. Although progress had been made in various fields, the goals set by the international community itself were still far from being reached. Whether it was the right to food, to housing, to education, as presented in the reports by the Special Rapporteurs, the results were the same - only strong actions by Governments and the international community together could result in significant progress.
There was a need to lift financial constraints on the access to information which the Special Rapporteurs continued to encounter in fulfilling their mandates. It was not possible to ignore the complementarity of all categories of human rights, given that economic, social and cultural rights, for example, provided a firm, indispensable base to civil and political rights. It was the grouping of these rights that made up liberty. Their complementarity should therefore be at the heart of the current reflection on the reform of the United Nations system, while bearing in mind the realization of the Millennium Development Goals.
AZAD JAFAROV (Azerbaijan) said Azerbaijan gave special importance to the progressive realization of the economic, social and cultural rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and emphasized the importance of that instrument’s universal ratification. Reaffirming the universality, interdependence and interrelatedness of civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights, his country supported the work of the open-ended Working Group considering options for the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant.
It was commonly held that the implementation of the right to development depended on the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), he observed, which reaffirmed that the relation between economic, social and cultural rights and the right to development and the MDGs should be the target of a common study and action in the months to come. The link between the Durban Declaration and Plan of Action on combating racism and the realization of economic, social and cultural rights should also be noted. Combating the sources, causes, forms and contemporary manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance would positively impact on those rights.
ABDELFATTAH KADIRI (Morocco) said if developed countries were able to fulfil their obligations by guaranteeing their citizens their rights, it was different for the developing countries that encountered difficulties of all kinds to ensure effective protection of the rights of their peoples. However, that difficulty was not due to a lack of will but a lack of sufficient financial resources and assistance. The policy of the programme of structural adjustment and budgetary austerity, introduced since 1980s, did not achieve the desired economic growth in developing countries. For that reason, the gap between the developed and the developing countries continued to increase. Morocco, as an African country, remained conscious that Africa was the most affected continent by the problem, which had impeded all efforts to promote and protect human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights.
The international community should intensify its efforts to encourage the initiatives such that of the New Partnership for African Development. Efforts should also be directed towards saving millions of human beings who lived under poverty. Morocco followed with interest the achievements of other countries in the realization of economic, social and cultural rights.
ODETTE MELONO (Cameroon) said almost 40 years after the adoption of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the majority of States had not managed to totally implement its key provisions. The situation of poverty and extreme poverty, which affected millions of humans, made the right to an adequate standard of living an illusion. The fight against poverty required the mobilization of important means, which developing countries, which were affected by this scourge, did not possess. It was therefore indispensable to translate international commitments into concrete action to promote a favorable environment for these efforts.
Despite difficulties to reconcile economic constraints with the needs of social development, Cameroon had made important efforts over the last years to set up the basis for the fight against poverty in the context of the Millennium Development Goals. The country had been assisted in this fight by having implemented a favorable political environment, complemented by a progressive return to economic growth and controlling inflation. Thanks to a catalogue of concrete actions, Cameroon was moving progressively towards improving the standard of living of its population, and believed that it could rely on this by developing a fruitful cooperation with the whole of the international community.
KISHORE SINGH, of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said that universal primary education was unlikely to be achieved by 2015 in many countries, as some 120 million children continued to have no access to education. Moreover, some 800 million adults remained illiterate, and literacy remained a low priority on many national agendas. It was imperative to accelerate the process of "Education for All", which constituted UNESCO's top priority. Advocacy for "Education for All" through partnership and alliances must be intensified, and it remained crucial to promote normative actions. States must be engaged to give full effect to the right to education.
Recognizing that education was a fundamental human right and a public good, UNESCO remained fully committed to transforming the right to education from an idea into a reality, he said. Normative implications of "Education for All", especially in its constitutional and legislative bases, deserved greater consideration than they had thus far received, to which end UNESCO continued to provide technical assistance to Member States to develop and/or modernize national legislation. Monitoring developments in "Education for All" through the "Education for All" Global Monitoring Reports also figured prominently in UNESCO's activities. UNESCO also continued to cooperate with professional bodies and the intellectual community, including through development of the Global Campaign on Education, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, and a network of ombudsmen in Latin and Central American States. UNESCO was also actively involved in the United Nations Global Initiative HIV/AIDS Education.
JOSE CAETANO DA COSTA PEREIRA (Portugal) said the promotion and protection of all human rights was a matter to which Portugal accorded the highest priority. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights put civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights on an equal footing, stemming from the inherent dignity of human rights. Portugal remained concerned that, 57 years after the adoption of the Declaration and 12 years after the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, the mechanism available to remedy violations of both sets of rights remained significantly different, with economic, social and cultural rights benefiting from weaker enforcement mechanisms than those available in the case of violations of civil and political rights.
Portugal welcomed the progress achieved during the last session for the Working Group established with a view to consider options regarding the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the Intentional Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Portugal hoped that the paper with elements for an optional protocol that the Chairperson of that Group had been requested to draft would enable a more focused discussion during the next session of the Group, thus enabling the Group’s work to progress further.
SILVANO TOMASI (Holy See) said the threats to human life and dignity, to economic and social development, and to global security that were posed by the illnesses of HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, all of which had reached pandemic proportions, required the urgent attention of the Commission and of the entire global community. These diseases were a threat to the most fundamental and sacred right, that of human life itself. They also interfered with the realization of the well-recognized right to development. The right to health, which was recognized and protected by various international bodies, including the Commission, by national Governments, and by faith- and community-based groups, would be more adequately realized only when concern for the protection of intellectual property rights, while legitimate in itself, was seen within the wider perspective of promoting the common good, building global solidarity, and prioritizing the life and dignity of the world's most vulnerable people.
There was a need for continued attention and effective action, on the part of the Commission and of the entire global community, in order to reach the health and development goals that would address the needs and human suffering produced by the three pandemics of HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria.
KHADIJA MASRI, of (African Union), said the Union's actions in adopting the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, creating the African Court of Human and People’s Rights, and establishing the Peace and Security Council, Pan-African Parliament and Economic, Social and Cultural Council underscored the continent's commitment to human rights, which had been underlined in the Union's Constitutive Act. The preamble declared the determination to promote socio-economic development in Africa and to respond more effectively to the challenges posed by globalization. The scourge of conflict, which constituted a major obstacle to socio-economic development on the continent, had been deplored, and the commitment to the promotion of peace, security and stability -- as prerequisites to socio-economic development and integration – had been recognized.
Reaffirming the Union's commitment to democratic principles, human rights, the rule of law and good governance, she said the strategic framework of the African Union had oriented the continent towards the protection and promotion of human rights. The enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights demanded the coordination of common efforts and the harmonization of programmes and activities of all parties.
OUSMANE CAMARA (Senegal) said Senegal's fundamental law guaranteed all citizens their economic and social rights, which included the right to education. That constitutional provision reflected the political will, which translated into a financial allocation of 40 per cent of the national budget to education. UNESCO had appreciated the efforts of Senegal in that regard, considering it as an example to be followed by others. Despite the efforts made by Senegal in the field of education, the lack of funds to finance education remained a problem. Senegal had called on the World Bank to provide for a large place for education in its policies and programmes. The international community should make the right to education, particularly that of girls, a priority by allocating sufficient funds.
The content of the educational programme should also be taken into consideration, he said. The education model should serve to promote non-discrimination, taking into consideration all aspects during the elaboration of the educational programme. The Senegalese delegation took note of the recommendations made by the Special Rapporteur to increase inter-agency cooperation with a view to develop indicators on the right to education.
CLAIRE MAHON, of International Commission of Jurists, speaking on behalf of Amnesty International and Colombian Commission of Jurists, said the substantial progress made by the Working Group towards ensuring the right to a remedy for violations of economic, social and cultural rights through its discussions of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights was welcomed. For too long the international community had denied victims of violations of these rights access to an effective remedy; an effective Optional Protocol had the potential to positively change the lives of people around the world. It was imperative that Member States now make swift progress towards drafting an effective instrument that would better protect economic, social and cultural rights and improve the lives of people around the world.
JEAN-BENOIT CHARRIN, of Dominicans for Justice and Peace, speaking on behalf of Dominican Leadership Conference and Pax Christi International, said that he was particularly concerned about the violation of the economic, social and cultural rights of people whose land was used for bombing practices by the military. In these situations, the rights of the people to health, to a safe environment, to sustainable development and to participation in the decisions affecting their lives were violated. The United States had used Vieques, Puerto Rico, for bombing practice for more than 60 years. Another example concerned the violation of people's rights at the Clark Air Force Base and Subic Air Force Base in the Philippines. The Commission should request the Special Rapporteurs on the illicit movement and dumping of toxic waste and the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health to examine and investigate the environmental and human rights violations in Vieques and the Philippines.
CAROLINA AMADOR PEREZ, of Federation of Cuban Women, speaking on behalf of National Union of Jurists of Cuba, said economic, social and cultural rights contained obligations that the international community should respect. The right to solidarity under the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the United Nations Charter and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights should be respected by the international community. The neo-liberal globalization of the imperialist expansion through transnational companies had impeded access by developing countries to their national resources and development. The international community was witnessing the work of multinational companies that were dominating the developing countries through their intellectual property patents and practices. The policy carried out by those companies had led the people of the developing countries to poverty.
CONCHITA PONCINI, of International Federation of University Women, speaking on behalf of several NGOs1, said the Charter of the United Nations was the first international instrument to recognize women's equal rights with men, and had created the impulse by providing a legal codification of these rights in national laws and policies. A commitment to gender equality and women's rights to sustainable economic and social development was contained in all recent world conferences and summits; comprehensive international norms, guidelines and processes for ensuring the implementation and fulfillment of the goals of gender equality existed, but these goals were still far from being reached. Current labour market policies reinforced the bias against women because they were first to suffer from a precarious situation, unemployment and opportunistic retrenchment practices. The challenge today was to shift the role of men towards advancing women's economic, social and cultural rights, and promoting gender equality through a better understanding and assessment of gender roles and related structural inequalities.
DAVID LITTMAN, of Association for World Education, speaking on behalf of International Humanist and Ethical Union, welcomed the efforts of the Special Rapporteur on the right to food and hailed the recent peace agreement between the Government of Sudan and the Sudan Peoples' Liberation Movement, which would make it possible to help the survivors of a long and destructive civil war realize their right to food and their right to life. Much of the population had been kept alive only through international food aid; two weeks ago, the World Food Programme's Director in Sudan had stated that the WFP did not have enough food for the people requiring assistance, and that the agency had only received 14 per cent of the 300 million dollars it required. Tragically, the Government-SPLM peace agreement did not cover the Darfur region, whose agricultural infrastructure had been deliberately destroyed. The threat of mass starvation had coincided with mass ethnic cleansing in Darfur; over the past 18 months, more than two million people had been displaced, and more than 180,000 had been killed in a reign of racist terror. The Commission on Human Rights should adopt a strong and credible resolution on the situation in Darfur.
SHARON HOM, of International Federation of Human Rights Leagues, said in the Russian Federation, social benefits for vulnerable groups were recently replaced by insufficient cash payments, in breach of the principles of non-retrogression, provided for under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The Federation remained very concerned about the fate of the several millions of homeless people and the economic and social situation of conscripts in the Russian Army. In China, the right to the highest attainable standard of health of the majority of the population had been undermined by the collapse of the social network. In order to put an end to the impunity concerning violations of economic, social and cultural rights, and to provide effective remedy to the victims, the Federation supported the adoption of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant.
TOM MCCARTHY, of World Organization against Torture, said there was deep concern for violations of economic, social and cultural rights; not only did they severely damage the lives of millions, but such violations were intimately connected with torture and other forms of violence. For those wishing to eliminate torture, it was also important to address the conditions which led to torture and made it possible. Social exclusion and extreme poverty were particularly important elements in widespread human rights violations of all kinds. The Commission should authorize the Working Group to begin drafting an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which should be comprehensive in scope, providing for individual and collective communications and the other elements set out by the non-governmental organizations coalition for the protocol.
VALSA JOSEPH, of Franciscans International, said that democracy had returned to Madagascar, which had worked together with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, to reduce both poverty and international debt. While the majority of the population continued to live below the poverty line, there were also situations of extreme poverty. Extreme poverty was not a question of well being; it was not reducible to the right to development, nor was it to be resolved by a general improvement in the political and economic situation in a country. Instead, extreme poverty demanded specific action. The Commission should reiterate that extreme poverty constituted a violation of human dignity, and that it impeded those who suffered from it from realizing their other human rights. It should also reaffirm that the fight against extreme poverty must be based upon respect for all other human rights in their interdependence and indivisibility.
MEGHNA ABRAHAM, of Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions, said the Nigerian Government was expected to forcibly evict more than 1,488 families from seven government-owned housing estates in Lagos on 31 March, leaving more than 9,000 people homeless. In India, the authorities had bulldozed 52,000 huts in Mumbai in December 2004, forcibly evicting 250,000 people. Most of the evicted people belonged to the Dalit, Adivasi or other economically and social disadvantaged communities and included 100,000 children who were now homeless. Earlier in the same year, 200,000 people were forcibly evicted in Delhi as part of a Government plan to transform the banks of the city's Yamuna River into a tourist and leisure centre. More than 3.5 million people in United States lived on city streets or in homeless shelters.
STEPHANIE DUPUY, of International Organization for the Development of Freedom of Education, said while cultures had often been perceived in the past as a brake to progress and universality, the international community had realized that cultural diversity was an inestimable resource. There was a need to clarify the definition of cultural rights at the heart of the human rights system, as well as to the nature and consequence of their violation. There was also a need to take into account cultural rights as a resource for peace and security. The cultural dimension of other human rights also needed to be measured. Faced with the current challenges, cultural rights did not have the priority attention that they deserved on the international level. A Special Rapporteur on diversity and cultural rights, or on the right to participate in the cultural life of the community, would give a more precise and coherent definition of cultural rights and methods for their protection.
PIERRE MIOT, of International Federation of Rural Adult Catholic Movements, said that economic, social and cultural rights had not been realized for many millions of people, including those engaged in agriculture, landless people, and members of indigenous communities. Small farmers, whether in the North or the South, were confronted by similar difficulties in protecting their families, their work, and their traditional knowledge. According to the Federation, there should be a move in agriculture to support local markets, and recognition of the place of priority of food sovereignty. Food sovereignty, which was based on multilateral negotiations within an international framework of justice and law, should not be confused with protectionism. Nor should food sovereignty be confused with food security or with the right to food, which were individual rights. Food sovereignty was a right of States which the international community should defend, protect and promote. The Commission should recognize that food sovereignty formed part of the fight against the political and economic forces that underpinned the liberal propositions of the World Trade Organization in the fields of agriculture and food.
MALIK OZDEN, of Europe-Third World Centre, said the debt issue had been compared to a disease and that in order to treat a sick person it was better to fight the disease at its origin. After many years of debate the issue deserved a response. The reading of the debt figures of the last three decades showed that the policies that were adopted up to now had only increased the agony. One could say that the international financial institutions used the debt as a means to exploit the wealthy by keeping the people dependent on them.
LURDES CERVANTES, of Organization for the Solidarity of the Peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America, said there should be respect for the economic, social and cultural rights of all human beings, but there had been a brutal structure of corruption, linked to colonialism at the hands of superpowers throughout history. The building-up of this was due to neo-liberal globalization serving the powers. Wealth and privileges were underpinned by the genocide committed by the wealthy. The beneficiaries of the wealth of the planet, led by the United States, had reaffirmed their selfishness and that their appetites were insatiable as they emphasized the unsustainableness of the present order. The Commission should dare to accuse those who had denied the rights of those who had been denied their economic, social and cultural rights, and uphold the successes of Cuba - a small country living under the permanent threat of aggression by a superpower which worked to help those living under threat.
CECILIA TOLEDO, of American Association of Jurists, said that the Commission had two important mechanisms linked to economic, social and cultural rights: the Working Group to draw up norms on transnational companies and that on the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Those who thought the drafting of norms on transnational companies was a mere panacea were wrong; the proposed norms had been opposed by a group of transnational corporations, who had submitted a document over 40 pages in length. She also noted that it had been nearly 10 years now that the project of an Optional Protocol on the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights had been before the international community, and one must conclude that progress had been made very slowly. The virtual standstill to which the drafting of the optional protocol had come reflected the thinking that the foundation of international law was the free market, which, in reality, served the purposes of transnational capital and the national and international political institution that bent it to their purposes. The Commission should reinvigorate these two mechanisms.
VANIDA THEPSOVANH, of Transnational Radical Party, said the Party was extremely concerned by the economic and social situation of the Laos people, particularly those of the 80 per cent of the population that was living in the rural areas, without any access to health services and education, despite assistance provided by the international community to the Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Laos. The implementation of the rights to education and health enshrined under the Universal Declaration on Human Rights were very limited or absent in the Democratic People's Republic of Laos. The activities of political parties, trade unions, non-governmental organizations and religious groups had been suspended or limited.
SANDRA RATJEN, of Foodfirst Information and Action Network (FIAN), said the Food and Agricultural Organization Voluntary Guidelines to support the progressive realization of the right to food in the context of national food security promoted a rights-based approach of national food security, taking stock and combining, in a mutually supportive way, legal instruments and procedures with development strategies and policies conducive to the realization of the right to adequate food. They also provided a framework for human rights-based approaches to specific polices and programmes to reduce hunger and malnutrition. However, considering the absence of significant progress in the struggle against hunger, States should pursue their efforts when it came to the realization of the Guidelines, and use them along with a rights-based approach in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.
REA A. CHIONGSON, of International Women's Rights Action Watch, welcomed the activities of the Special Rapporteurs on housing and health, particularly as they had made women's rights central to their mandates. Members of the Commission should encourage the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing to continue to focus his mandate on women, and to consolidate the gains of regional consultations and the answers to the questionnaire, and to pursue an in-depth analysis and discussion on the impact of cultural practices on women's right to housing, as well as the inter-linkages between women's housing rights and their enjoyment of their equal rights to land, property and inheritance. Also underscoring the importance of the proposed Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Political Rights, she said that document should cover all the rights set forth in the Covenant, all its components, and all levels of obligation. Failure to draft an Optional Protocol would result in a hierarchy of rights to the detriment of economic, social and cultural rights in favour of civil and political rights.
EMILIO JOSE GOMEZ CIRIANO, of Federacion de Asociaciones de Defensa y Promocion de los Derechos Humanos, said General Assembly resolution 421 of 4 December 1950 had asserted the indivisibility of human rights. The Vienna Conference on Human Rights of 1993 did the same by reiterating the universality, interdependence, interrelation and indivisibility of human rights. Many countries had also adopted legislation in that direction. However, the realization of economic, social and cultural rights still remained insufficient. Those rights did not receive enough protection despite the legislation put in place. The Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights might bring solutions to victims of the violations of economic, social and cultural rights.
NORZIN DOLMA, of International Fellowship of Reconciliation, said education in Tibet was used as a tool by the Chinese authorities to ensure political stability and ethnic unity within the region. In order to achieve these goals, education policies continued to undermine Tibetan identity through a biased representation of Tibetan history, a denial of their culture and traditions, and the relegation of Tibetan as a second-rate language. China had not yet integrated the rights of the Tibetan minority in its education policies. The political indoctrination also extended to religious institutions. The Commission should call upon China to respect Tibetan culture and language, make education accessible, affordable and free, and introduce curriculum based on the needs of the Tibetan people.
ATSUKO KOIDE, of Japanese Workers Committee for Human Rights, said she wished to draw the attention of the Commission to the case of the Night Work Exemption Programme at Japan Airlines International. Japan had the Night Work Exemption to support workers with small children or elderly family members. However, Japan Airlines International employees with small children were treated unfairly, if not with discrimination. Approximately 140 crew members had opted to work under the Night Work Exemption Programme, but the company allotted them far less days of work than their colleagues on the normal roster. Following the Cabin Attendant Union's rejection of a Japan Airlines International proposal, these crew members had been allocated only one to two workdays per month. This efficiency-oriented company not only abused the purpose of the exemption, but was also working counter to the social need to curb the drop in the national birthrate. The company's attitude seemed to be one of choosing between employment or child rearing. Japan Airlines International was a high-profile company and would have negative effects if such work practices were allowed to continue.
GIANFRANCO FATTORINI, of Movement against Racism and for Friendship among Peoples, said the United States military intervention in Iraq had violated the rules of international law, which had a massive destructive effect. The pretext of the intervention was to fight terrorism but today the reasons were known. Although a dictator had fallen down, the evolution in the country was not satisfying. Two years after the intervention, Iraq remained the most dangerous place on earth. The occupants and the resistant groups were all responsible for the chaotic situation reigning in the country. With regard to the treatment of prisoners, the Geneva Convention continued to be seriously violated.
ROLANDO YERO TRAVIESO, of World Federation of Democratic Youth, said a real world should be created where millions could live a cultural life in which they could comprehend the potential and culture of mankind. Culture was at risk of extermination at the hands of those regarded as human rights defenders. The international community could only produce a big laugh in response, and not allow itself to be manipulated by the long list of lies. The billions of dollars used in the arms race should be used for education. Culture produced freedom and its absence produced submission. Some solutions should be devised to allow the majority of humankind to realize that the imperial class controlled the future. There could be no time for duplicity, and there was a need for a new world justice. If the Commission could not change the world, the people of the world would.
CHRISTOPHER YOUNG, of Human Rights Advocates, speaking on behalf of Earthjustice, said that toxic waste affected the human rights to health, water, food, adequate housing and work, among others. People in developing countries faced the greatest danger, as their countries often lacked the technology to dispose of waste safely, while technically legal "trades" of toxic wastes had been the root cause of severe violations of human rights. For example, pesticides had contributed to human rights violations even when legally imported. Inadequate safety procedures exposed workers and citizens to pesticides, resulting in severe health problems. Electronic waste also posed a problem; discarded electronics contained numerous toxic chemicals such as lead and mercury. Governments and individuals, including corporations, were responsible for protecting human rights. The Commission should address the issue of toxic waste on two levels, expressing both the importance of States ratification of treaties governing hazardous materials, and encouraging the adoption of a code of conduct for corporations that exported and dealt in toxic wastes.
NATIVIDAD GUERRERO, of Centro de Estudios sobre la Juventud, said while Cuban youth considered the right to economic, social and cultural rights a priority, the country had been a victim of numerous violations with regard to development of children, youth and women. The youth had been victims of the economic blockade by the United States against Cuba. The aggressive blockade had badly affected the young generation of Cuba. The United States economic blockade had negative consequences on the country, most particularly to the young generation in terms of economic, social and cultural growth.
ANNE SENEGAS, of Liberation, said all basic rights, whether they were civil and political rights or economic, social and cultural rights, evolved from human dignity and the basic needs of a human person. The realization of the economic, social and cultural rights of the people was extremely important for providing opportunities of living decent lives. Governments were endowed with primary responsibility to ensure that conditions were created where all segments of the population got equal opportunities for their economic survival, development and progress. The international community had a responsibility to oversee that Governments were engaged in genuine efforts for the realization of the economic, social and cultural rights of all their people, particularly the downtrodden classes.
MURIELLE MIGNOT, of Habitat International Coalition, stressed that all human rights were intrinsically linked, and that no development was possible without respect for human rights. However, most development plans lacked the guiding human rights framework that characterized the Habitat II Agenda. Fundamental to correcting this retrogressive trend was full and democratic participation for those whom development plans were ostensibly intended. The Commission, and all responsible Governments, should ensure that the monitoring tools, legal framework and implementation mechanisms necessary for ensuring the participation of all, and respect for human rights, were in place. Treaty-bound national and local authorities of developing countries, as well as international financial institutions and development agencies, should address urban and rural development. Violations of indigenous peoples', forest dwellers', and farmers' rights over their land and natural resources must be redressed, while poor city dwellers must have security of tenure and freedom from dispossession and eviction. All should benefit from access to public and environmental goods and services, habitability, security, appropriate locations and culturally adequate housing.
ANNIGJE BUWALDA, of Jubilee Campaign, drew attention to the lack of the right to food for all of the citizens in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The World Food Programme had reported that another 6.5 million people would require food assistance in the year 2004 and 2005. More than four out of 10 children in the county suffered from chronic malnutrition. The international community should provide more food aid in order to deal with that crisis.
RAFAEL POLANCO BRAHOJOS, of Sociedad Cultural Jose Marti, said this agenda item made clear the reality of the world in which all had to live: on one hand the interests of a minority of rich and powerful countries, dedicated to preserving the order; and on the other those dedicated to curing this order. Within the rich countries, there were also marginalized sectors and victims of exclusion who had their economic, social and cultural rights violated. Cuba had worked consistently for these people. Today, efforts to enhance culture were tantamount to a revolution in the field, but these efforts were being frustrated by the United States blockade, which impeded cultural enjoyment on many levels. The United States' Government had been promoting a policy to weaken the role of States in many fields, including culture. The Commission should pay more attention to this issue in particular, as well as others.
PAUL BEERSMANS, of International Movement for Fraternal Union among Races and Peoples, said the United Nations had highlighted the universality of all human rights, and had reinforced the idea that human rights -- civil, cultural, economic, political and social -- should be taken in their totality. The disregard and infringement of these human rights and fundamental freedoms had brought, directly or indirectly, war and great suffering to humankind, especially where they had served as the means of foreign interference in the internal affairs of other States, and amounted to hatred between peoples and nations. For example, in Jammu and Kashmir, a spiral of violence had erupted leading to endless suffering on the part of Kashmiris; their economic, social and cultural rights had been violated both by the Jihad fighters, and by the Government. Those foreign mercenaries had blocked any progress towards a lasting solution to the conflict. A solution would only be found through peaceful means and in an atmosphere of friendship and harmony.
SIMOS A. ANGELIDES, of Marangopoulos Foundation for Human Rights, said Turkey was aspiring to joint the European Union, yet was currently occupying the territory of another European State. Although it was under an obligation to comply with the Copenhagen criteria of 1992, which referred to rule of law, democracy, protection of human rights and compliance with judgments by the European Courts, it had not done so and Europe had not reacted. Turkey was a member of the United Nations, yet it had not respected the United Nations Charter. Moreover, Turkey had signed the Geneva Convention and the two United Nations Covenants, yet had been continuously supporting and encouraging the policies of committing widespread war crimes and crimes against humanity.
LAZARO T. MORA SECADE, of Centro de Estudios Europeos, said in 17 years, nothing had been done in terms of achieving economic, social and cultural rights for the majority of the people of the planet. External debt was a form of plundering countries, and continued to be referred to in terms of sustainability, which was perpetuity, instead of being written off. This impeded the ability to develop so that citizens could enjoy these rights and others such as the right to food and housing. Developed countries lobbied in the World Trade Organization to encourage agreements, with the objectives of privatizing not just education and health, but even drinking water. Forces destroying the environment and the wealth of developing countries had also been on the rise. The Millennium Development Goals would not be met if this continued. Poverty was the flagrant expression of the denial of human rights for millions, and it would continue to grow. The present international economic order, based on exploitation, needed to come to an end.
ESTHER BARES, of Lutheran World Federation, said the Federation was pleased with the growing attention being paid to the problems caused by the debt burden, which affected human development in many countries. This problem must be analyzed in light of human rights, and a solution to the problem of external debt based on law must be found. That analysis should be based upon the principles of debt viability, and debt legitimacy. The concept of illegitimate debt was more than a slogan; it could also help to prevent and resolve crises linked to external debt. The illegitimate debt doctrine declared all debt that was illegal, unjust or which violated national principles illegitimate. To make such judgments, the conditions under which the original sums had been lent must be examined. Thus, loans to dictators, made without any assurance of democratic processes and for ends not to the benefit of the public, would be considered illegitimate. The creators of the debt burden would thus have to assume the risk for their decisions.
ANNA MARIA STAME CERVONE, of Centrist Democratic International, said currently, in Zimbabwe, any type of activities by international organizations that watched over human rights compliance was prohibited. Likewise, it was prohibited of any national organization to receive external aid, thus avoiding the absence of witnesses. In Equatorial Guinea, there was no development. Without democracy there could be no development, no respect for human rights, no freedom of the press, and no respect for popular will. The United Nations should implement a programme of democratic development.
CRISTINA MACJUS, of Permanent Assembly for Human Rights, said it was a priority to pay attention to the defence and promotion of economic, social and cultural rights. The increase of the levels of poverty around the world and in Latin America, in particular, gave evidence of the huge delay that took place with regard to the respect of human rights and of the urgent need to move towards the total enforcement and justiciability of economic, social and cultural rights, which next to civil and political rights, were an integral and indivisible body. It was important to consider the effect of external debt in the satisfaction of the economic, social and cultural rights of Latin American citizens. An Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights would provide an individual complaints mechanism and establish not only negative obligations to States but also positive ones so as to respect, protect, fulfill, facilitate and ensure these rights.
ABDOULAYE LELOUMA DIALLO, of Organization of African Trade Union Unity, said that economic, social and cultural rights should be seen as linked to access to decent employment, education, health care and participation in social life. Respect for economic, social and cultural rights was rendered problematic by the situation in Africa today, which was characterized by large external debt, high unemployment, and pandemics such as HIV/AIDS and lack of democracy, among other factors. Trade unions remained aware of their role to defend the modern worker, and were working with other sectors of civil society and Governments to ensure the respect of economic, social and cultural rights for workers. There were also attempts to provide training to give young workers real jobs. Appealing to solidarity among stakeholders at all levels -- national, regional and continental -- he also appealed to international organizations and donor countries to promote the creation of structures for the rule of law and democracy.
EVE BAZAIBA MASUDI, of International Committee for the Respect and Application of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, said the Committee was seriously concerned about the reoccurrence of armed conflicts in Africa which were the source of massive violations of economic, social and cultural rights. The enjoyment of those rights by the people was seriously affected by the conflicts in Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire and Sudan. Certain conflicts had led to violations of laws in countries.
NFOR NGALA NFOR, of International Federation for the Protection of The Rights of Ethnic, Religious, Linguistic & Other Minorities, said the statement by the Cameroon delegation concerning its commitment to respect human rights, as well as its declaration that the full realization of the civil and political rights of peoples were intimately linked to the enjoyment of economic and cultural rights, including the right to development, was amazing. Cameroon's track record included gross human rights abuses and obstructions to social and economic development in the Southern Cameroons. Given this underdevelopment, how could it be said that the Yaoundé Government was committed to the respect of the economic rights of the people and their right to development? The Commission should take note of the plight of the Southern Cameroons and their right to self-determination and ultimately their guarantee to enjoy their economic, social and cultural rights.
Right of Reply
J.J. ABULIMEN (Nigeria), speaking in exercise of the right of reply, said he had noted with disappointment the assertion made by the Center on Housing Rights that the Government of Nigeria was going to evict more than 100,000 families from Government-owned estates in Lagos tomorrow. That assertion was untrue. Since moving the capital from Lagos to Abuja, the Nigerian Government had provided alternative housing for public officials moving from Lagos to Abuja. The Government had established a fund to enable public officers to buy their own houses.
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1Joint statement on behalf of: International Federation of University Women; Pan Pacific and South East Asia Women's Association International; Women's International League for Peace and Freedom; Inter-African Committee on Traditional Practices affecting the Health of Women and Children; Women's International Zionist Organization; International Council of Women; International Council of Jewish Women; World Council of Catholic Women's Organizations; Soroptimist International; Femmes Africa Solidarité; Zonta International; Socialist International Women; Federation of American Women's Clubs Overseas and All India Women's Education Fund Association.
CORRIGENDUM
In press release HR/CN/05/22/Rev.1 of 24 March, the speaker for the Afro-Asian Peoples' Solidarity Organization on page 7 was misidentified. The correct name of the speaker is SHAUKAT BALOCH.
For use information media; not an official record
AFTERNOON
30 March 2005
Non-Governmental Organizations Decry Violations
of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
The Commission on Human Rights this afternoon continued its debate on the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, hearing from a series of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which spoke about the violation of those rights in many countries.
Stressing the universality, indivisibility and interdependence of all human rights, the NGOs said that the lack of effective national legislation or its insufficient application had impeded people from fully enjoying their economic, social and cultural rights as enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
Some speakers, including State Representatives, applauded the progress made in the Working Group which was working to elaborate a draft Optional Protocol to the International Covenant, which they said could assist victims to claim redress in the event of violation of their rights by a State party.
Taking part in the debate were the Representatives of Venezuela, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Morocco, Cameroon, Portugal, the Holy See and Senegal. The Representatives of the World Health Organization, UNAIDS, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and the African Union also spoke.
The following non-governmental organizations took the floor: International Commission of Jurists (speaking on behalf of Amnesty International and Colombian Commission of Jurists); Dominicans for Justice and Peace (speaking on behalf of Dominican Leadership Conference and Pax Christi International); Federation of Cuban Women (speaking on behalf of National Union of Jurists of Cuba); International Federation of University Women, (speaking on behalf of several NGOs1); Association for World Education (speaking on behalf of International Humanist and Ethical Union); International Federation of Human Rights Leagues; World Organization against Torture; Franciscans International; Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions; International Organization for the Development of Freedom of Education; International Federation of Rural Adult Catholic Movements; Europe-Third World Centre; Organization for the Solidarity of the Peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America; American Association of Jurists; Transnational Radical Party; Foodfirst Information and Action Network (FIAN); International Women's Rights Action Watch; Federacion de Asociaciones de Defensa y Promocion de los Derechos Humanos; International Fellowship of Reconciliation; Japanese Workers Committee for Human Rights; Movement against Racism and for Friendship among Peoples; World Federation of Democratic Youth; Human Rights Advocates (speaking on behalf of Earthjustice); Centro de Estudios sobre la Juventud; Liberation; Habitat International Coalition; Jubilee Campaign; Sociedad Cultural Jose Marti; International Movement for Fraternal Union among Races and Peoples; Marangopoulos Foundation for Human Rights; Centro de Estudios Europeos; Lutheran World Federation; Centrist Democratic International; Permanent Assembly for Human Rights; Organization of African Trade Union Unity; International Committee for the Respect and Application of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights; and International Federation for the Protection of The Rights of Ethnic, Religious, Linguistic & Other Minorities.
Nigeria exercised its right to reply.
When the Commission reconvenes at 10 p.m. on Thursday, 31 March, it will conclude its general debate on economic, social and cultural rights.
General Debate on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
TANYA NORTON, of World Health Organization (WHO) said the notion of a rights-based approach to health development had emerged as a new way of addressing public health challenges. Human rights could enhance accountability for health and support action in favour of addressing the health of vulnerable and marginalized population groups. In recent years, WHO had strengthened its work on health and human rights. Work in the area of human rights was a cross-cutting activity and all parts of WHO had been paying increased attention to these rights. The work of WHO on health and human rights spanned all of its health topics - from mental health to neglected diseases - and work was being done to make human rights an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of health-related policies and programmes in all spheres.
The Millennium Development Goals provided important milestones towards the progressive realization of the right to health. Tools and guides had been developed and good practices identified to support public health practitioners to integrate human rights principles in their public health agenda. The efforts of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health were applauded. In order to support ongoing activities and to provide an institutional platform for further operationalizing human rights in all aspects of WHO’s work, a process was underway to develop a health and human rights strategy for WHO.
DIEGO IBARRA (Venezuela) said Venezuela subscribed to the statement delivered by Mexico on behalf of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean Countries, including its call for the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Venezuela had established a series of programmes known as "missions", which sought to facilitate literacy education, access to health care, and realization of the right to food. These programmes intended to make full enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights a reality for the entire population of the country, including the rights to health, education, food, adequate standard of living and employment.
Extreme poverty and social exclusion violated human dignity, he stressed. To enable people to benefit from the full enjoyment of their economic, social and cultural rights, as well as from their civil and political rights, States had an obligation to show greater political will, and to implement commercial and financial policies conducive to international development.
BECHIR N'DAW, of Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), said the global impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic was devastating for all sectors of human life and development, especially in countries that lacked sufficient resources for treatment, care and support. The human tragedies would have dramatic long-term consequences if the international community did not take concrete action now. The world could no longer ignore the AIDS epidemic. Over 40 million people were estimated to be living with HIV and more than three million children, including those in the hardest hit countries in Africa, would be orphaned due to the pandemic. The epidemic was growing rapidly in other regions. If countries were seriously committed to promoting and protecting the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable physical and mental health, then tackling HIV/AIDS was possible.
Millions of people living with HIV in poor countries urgently needed antiretroviral treatment and very few in these areas had been receiving them. Without accelerated prevention and treatment, the AIDS epidemic would continue to destroy communities, health care systems and economies, placing a shadow upon the future of entire countries.
ALI DROUICHE (Algeria) said despite the annual debates within the heart of the Commission, there was a persistence of flagrant discrimination in the treatment of civil and political rights on one hand, and economic, social and cultural rights on the other, to the detriment of the latter. Although progress had been made in various fields, the goals set by the international community itself were still far from being reached. Whether it was the right to food, to housing, to education, as presented in the reports by the Special Rapporteurs, the results were the same - only strong actions by Governments and the international community together could result in significant progress.
There was a need to lift financial constraints on the access to information which the Special Rapporteurs continued to encounter in fulfilling their mandates. It was not possible to ignore the complementarity of all categories of human rights, given that economic, social and cultural rights, for example, provided a firm, indispensable base to civil and political rights. It was the grouping of these rights that made up liberty. Their complementarity should therefore be at the heart of the current reflection on the reform of the United Nations system, while bearing in mind the realization of the Millennium Development Goals.
AZAD JAFAROV (Azerbaijan) said Azerbaijan gave special importance to the progressive realization of the economic, social and cultural rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and emphasized the importance of that instrument’s universal ratification. Reaffirming the universality, interdependence and interrelatedness of civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights, his country supported the work of the open-ended Working Group considering options for the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant.
It was commonly held that the implementation of the right to development depended on the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), he observed, which reaffirmed that the relation between economic, social and cultural rights and the right to development and the MDGs should be the target of a common study and action in the months to come. The link between the Durban Declaration and Plan of Action on combating racism and the realization of economic, social and cultural rights should also be noted. Combating the sources, causes, forms and contemporary manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance would positively impact on those rights.
ABDELFATTAH KADIRI (Morocco) said if developed countries were able to fulfil their obligations by guaranteeing their citizens their rights, it was different for the developing countries that encountered difficulties of all kinds to ensure effective protection of the rights of their peoples. However, that difficulty was not due to a lack of will but a lack of sufficient financial resources and assistance. The policy of the programme of structural adjustment and budgetary austerity, introduced since 1980s, did not achieve the desired economic growth in developing countries. For that reason, the gap between the developed and the developing countries continued to increase. Morocco, as an African country, remained conscious that Africa was the most affected continent by the problem, which had impeded all efforts to promote and protect human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights.
The international community should intensify its efforts to encourage the initiatives such that of the New Partnership for African Development. Efforts should also be directed towards saving millions of human beings who lived under poverty. Morocco followed with interest the achievements of other countries in the realization of economic, social and cultural rights.
ODETTE MELONO (Cameroon) said almost 40 years after the adoption of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the majority of States had not managed to totally implement its key provisions. The situation of poverty and extreme poverty, which affected millions of humans, made the right to an adequate standard of living an illusion. The fight against poverty required the mobilization of important means, which developing countries, which were affected by this scourge, did not possess. It was therefore indispensable to translate international commitments into concrete action to promote a favorable environment for these efforts.
Despite difficulties to reconcile economic constraints with the needs of social development, Cameroon had made important efforts over the last years to set up the basis for the fight against poverty in the context of the Millennium Development Goals. The country had been assisted in this fight by having implemented a favorable political environment, complemented by a progressive return to economic growth and controlling inflation. Thanks to a catalogue of concrete actions, Cameroon was moving progressively towards improving the standard of living of its population, and believed that it could rely on this by developing a fruitful cooperation with the whole of the international community.
KISHORE SINGH, of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said that universal primary education was unlikely to be achieved by 2015 in many countries, as some 120 million children continued to have no access to education. Moreover, some 800 million adults remained illiterate, and literacy remained a low priority on many national agendas. It was imperative to accelerate the process of "Education for All", which constituted UNESCO's top priority. Advocacy for "Education for All" through partnership and alliances must be intensified, and it remained crucial to promote normative actions. States must be engaged to give full effect to the right to education.
Recognizing that education was a fundamental human right and a public good, UNESCO remained fully committed to transforming the right to education from an idea into a reality, he said. Normative implications of "Education for All", especially in its constitutional and legislative bases, deserved greater consideration than they had thus far received, to which end UNESCO continued to provide technical assistance to Member States to develop and/or modernize national legislation. Monitoring developments in "Education for All" through the "Education for All" Global Monitoring Reports also figured prominently in UNESCO's activities. UNESCO also continued to cooperate with professional bodies and the intellectual community, including through development of the Global Campaign on Education, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, and a network of ombudsmen in Latin and Central American States. UNESCO was also actively involved in the United Nations Global Initiative HIV/AIDS Education.
JOSE CAETANO DA COSTA PEREIRA (Portugal) said the promotion and protection of all human rights was a matter to which Portugal accorded the highest priority. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights put civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights on an equal footing, stemming from the inherent dignity of human rights. Portugal remained concerned that, 57 years after the adoption of the Declaration and 12 years after the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, the mechanism available to remedy violations of both sets of rights remained significantly different, with economic, social and cultural rights benefiting from weaker enforcement mechanisms than those available in the case of violations of civil and political rights.
Portugal welcomed the progress achieved during the last session for the Working Group established with a view to consider options regarding the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the Intentional Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Portugal hoped that the paper with elements for an optional protocol that the Chairperson of that Group had been requested to draft would enable a more focused discussion during the next session of the Group, thus enabling the Group’s work to progress further.
SILVANO TOMASI (Holy See) said the threats to human life and dignity, to economic and social development, and to global security that were posed by the illnesses of HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, all of which had reached pandemic proportions, required the urgent attention of the Commission and of the entire global community. These diseases were a threat to the most fundamental and sacred right, that of human life itself. They also interfered with the realization of the well-recognized right to development. The right to health, which was recognized and protected by various international bodies, including the Commission, by national Governments, and by faith- and community-based groups, would be more adequately realized only when concern for the protection of intellectual property rights, while legitimate in itself, was seen within the wider perspective of promoting the common good, building global solidarity, and prioritizing the life and dignity of the world's most vulnerable people.
There was a need for continued attention and effective action, on the part of the Commission and of the entire global community, in order to reach the health and development goals that would address the needs and human suffering produced by the three pandemics of HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria.
KHADIJA MASRI, of (African Union), said the Union's actions in adopting the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, creating the African Court of Human and People’s Rights, and establishing the Peace and Security Council, Pan-African Parliament and Economic, Social and Cultural Council underscored the continent's commitment to human rights, which had been underlined in the Union's Constitutive Act. The preamble declared the determination to promote socio-economic development in Africa and to respond more effectively to the challenges posed by globalization. The scourge of conflict, which constituted a major obstacle to socio-economic development on the continent, had been deplored, and the commitment to the promotion of peace, security and stability -- as prerequisites to socio-economic development and integration – had been recognized.
Reaffirming the Union's commitment to democratic principles, human rights, the rule of law and good governance, she said the strategic framework of the African Union had oriented the continent towards the protection and promotion of human rights. The enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights demanded the coordination of common efforts and the harmonization of programmes and activities of all parties.
OUSMANE CAMARA (Senegal) said Senegal's fundamental law guaranteed all citizens their economic and social rights, which included the right to education. That constitutional provision reflected the political will, which translated into a financial allocation of 40 per cent of the national budget to education. UNESCO had appreciated the efforts of Senegal in that regard, considering it as an example to be followed by others. Despite the efforts made by Senegal in the field of education, the lack of funds to finance education remained a problem. Senegal had called on the World Bank to provide for a large place for education in its policies and programmes. The international community should make the right to education, particularly that of girls, a priority by allocating sufficient funds.
The content of the educational programme should also be taken into consideration, he said. The education model should serve to promote non-discrimination, taking into consideration all aspects during the elaboration of the educational programme. The Senegalese delegation took note of the recommendations made by the Special Rapporteur to increase inter-agency cooperation with a view to develop indicators on the right to education.
CLAIRE MAHON, of International Commission of Jurists, speaking on behalf of Amnesty International and Colombian Commission of Jurists, said the substantial progress made by the Working Group towards ensuring the right to a remedy for violations of economic, social and cultural rights through its discussions of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights was welcomed. For too long the international community had denied victims of violations of these rights access to an effective remedy; an effective Optional Protocol had the potential to positively change the lives of people around the world. It was imperative that Member States now make swift progress towards drafting an effective instrument that would better protect economic, social and cultural rights and improve the lives of people around the world.
JEAN-BENOIT CHARRIN, of Dominicans for Justice and Peace, speaking on behalf of Dominican Leadership Conference and Pax Christi International, said that he was particularly concerned about the violation of the economic, social and cultural rights of people whose land was used for bombing practices by the military. In these situations, the rights of the people to health, to a safe environment, to sustainable development and to participation in the decisions affecting their lives were violated. The United States had used Vieques, Puerto Rico, for bombing practice for more than 60 years. Another example concerned the violation of people's rights at the Clark Air Force Base and Subic Air Force Base in the Philippines. The Commission should request the Special Rapporteurs on the illicit movement and dumping of toxic waste and the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health to examine and investigate the environmental and human rights violations in Vieques and the Philippines.
CAROLINA AMADOR PEREZ, of Federation of Cuban Women, speaking on behalf of National Union of Jurists of Cuba, said economic, social and cultural rights contained obligations that the international community should respect. The right to solidarity under the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the United Nations Charter and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights should be respected by the international community. The neo-liberal globalization of the imperialist expansion through transnational companies had impeded access by developing countries to their national resources and development. The international community was witnessing the work of multinational companies that were dominating the developing countries through their intellectual property patents and practices. The policy carried out by those companies had led the people of the developing countries to poverty.
CONCHITA PONCINI, of International Federation of University Women, speaking on behalf of several NGOs1, said the Charter of the United Nations was the first international instrument to recognize women's equal rights with men, and had created the impulse by providing a legal codification of these rights in national laws and policies. A commitment to gender equality and women's rights to sustainable economic and social development was contained in all recent world conferences and summits; comprehensive international norms, guidelines and processes for ensuring the implementation and fulfillment of the goals of gender equality existed, but these goals were still far from being reached. Current labour market policies reinforced the bias against women because they were first to suffer from a precarious situation, unemployment and opportunistic retrenchment practices. The challenge today was to shift the role of men towards advancing women's economic, social and cultural rights, and promoting gender equality through a better understanding and assessment of gender roles and related structural inequalities.
DAVID LITTMAN, of Association for World Education, speaking on behalf of International Humanist and Ethical Union, welcomed the efforts of the Special Rapporteur on the right to food and hailed the recent peace agreement between the Government of Sudan and the Sudan Peoples' Liberation Movement, which would make it possible to help the survivors of a long and destructive civil war realize their right to food and their right to life. Much of the population had been kept alive only through international food aid; two weeks ago, the World Food Programme's Director in Sudan had stated that the WFP did not have enough food for the people requiring assistance, and that the agency had only received 14 per cent of the 300 million dollars it required. Tragically, the Government-SPLM peace agreement did not cover the Darfur region, whose agricultural infrastructure had been deliberately destroyed. The threat of mass starvation had coincided with mass ethnic cleansing in Darfur; over the past 18 months, more than two million people had been displaced, and more than 180,000 had been killed in a reign of racist terror. The Commission on Human Rights should adopt a strong and credible resolution on the situation in Darfur.
SHARON HOM, of International Federation of Human Rights Leagues, said in the Russian Federation, social benefits for vulnerable groups were recently replaced by insufficient cash payments, in breach of the principles of non-retrogression, provided for under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The Federation remained very concerned about the fate of the several millions of homeless people and the economic and social situation of conscripts in the Russian Army. In China, the right to the highest attainable standard of health of the majority of the population had been undermined by the collapse of the social network. In order to put an end to the impunity concerning violations of economic, social and cultural rights, and to provide effective remedy to the victims, the Federation supported the adoption of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant.
TOM MCCARTHY, of World Organization against Torture, said there was deep concern for violations of economic, social and cultural rights; not only did they severely damage the lives of millions, but such violations were intimately connected with torture and other forms of violence. For those wishing to eliminate torture, it was also important to address the conditions which led to torture and made it possible. Social exclusion and extreme poverty were particularly important elements in widespread human rights violations of all kinds. The Commission should authorize the Working Group to begin drafting an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which should be comprehensive in scope, providing for individual and collective communications and the other elements set out by the non-governmental organizations coalition for the protocol.
VALSA JOSEPH, of Franciscans International, said that democracy had returned to Madagascar, which had worked together with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, to reduce both poverty and international debt. While the majority of the population continued to live below the poverty line, there were also situations of extreme poverty. Extreme poverty was not a question of well being; it was not reducible to the right to development, nor was it to be resolved by a general improvement in the political and economic situation in a country. Instead, extreme poverty demanded specific action. The Commission should reiterate that extreme poverty constituted a violation of human dignity, and that it impeded those who suffered from it from realizing their other human rights. It should also reaffirm that the fight against extreme poverty must be based upon respect for all other human rights in their interdependence and indivisibility.
MEGHNA ABRAHAM, of Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions, said the Nigerian Government was expected to forcibly evict more than 1,488 families from seven government-owned housing estates in Lagos on 31 March, leaving more than 9,000 people homeless. In India, the authorities had bulldozed 52,000 huts in Mumbai in December 2004, forcibly evicting 250,000 people. Most of the evicted people belonged to the Dalit, Adivasi or other economically and social disadvantaged communities and included 100,000 children who were now homeless. Earlier in the same year, 200,000 people were forcibly evicted in Delhi as part of a Government plan to transform the banks of the city's Yamuna River into a tourist and leisure centre. More than 3.5 million people in United States lived on city streets or in homeless shelters.
STEPHANIE DUPUY, of International Organization for the Development of Freedom of Education, said while cultures had often been perceived in the past as a brake to progress and universality, the international community had realized that cultural diversity was an inestimable resource. There was a need to clarify the definition of cultural rights at the heart of the human rights system, as well as to the nature and consequence of their violation. There was also a need to take into account cultural rights as a resource for peace and security. The cultural dimension of other human rights also needed to be measured. Faced with the current challenges, cultural rights did not have the priority attention that they deserved on the international level. A Special Rapporteur on diversity and cultural rights, or on the right to participate in the cultural life of the community, would give a more precise and coherent definition of cultural rights and methods for their protection.
PIERRE MIOT, of International Federation of Rural Adult Catholic Movements, said that economic, social and cultural rights had not been realized for many millions of people, including those engaged in agriculture, landless people, and members of indigenous communities. Small farmers, whether in the North or the South, were confronted by similar difficulties in protecting their families, their work, and their traditional knowledge. According to the Federation, there should be a move in agriculture to support local markets, and recognition of the place of priority of food sovereignty. Food sovereignty, which was based on multilateral negotiations within an international framework of justice and law, should not be confused with protectionism. Nor should food sovereignty be confused with food security or with the right to food, which were individual rights. Food sovereignty was a right of States which the international community should defend, protect and promote. The Commission should recognize that food sovereignty formed part of the fight against the political and economic forces that underpinned the liberal propositions of the World Trade Organization in the fields of agriculture and food.
MALIK OZDEN, of Europe-Third World Centre, said the debt issue had been compared to a disease and that in order to treat a sick person it was better to fight the disease at its origin. After many years of debate the issue deserved a response. The reading of the debt figures of the last three decades showed that the policies that were adopted up to now had only increased the agony. One could say that the international financial institutions used the debt as a means to exploit the wealthy by keeping the people dependent on them.
LURDES CERVANTES, of Organization for the Solidarity of the Peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America, said there should be respect for the economic, social and cultural rights of all human beings, but there had been a brutal structure of corruption, linked to colonialism at the hands of superpowers throughout history. The building-up of this was due to neo-liberal globalization serving the powers. Wealth and privileges were underpinned by the genocide committed by the wealthy. The beneficiaries of the wealth of the planet, led by the United States, had reaffirmed their selfishness and that their appetites were insatiable as they emphasized the unsustainableness of the present order. The Commission should dare to accuse those who had denied the rights of those who had been denied their economic, social and cultural rights, and uphold the successes of Cuba - a small country living under the permanent threat of aggression by a superpower which worked to help those living under threat.
CECILIA TOLEDO, of American Association of Jurists, said that the Commission had two important mechanisms linked to economic, social and cultural rights: the Working Group to draw up norms on transnational companies and that on the elaboration of an Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Those who thought the drafting of norms on transnational companies was a mere panacea were wrong; the proposed norms had been opposed by a group of transnational corporations, who had submitted a document over 40 pages in length. She also noted that it had been nearly 10 years now that the project of an Optional Protocol on the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights had been before the international community, and one must conclude that progress had been made very slowly. The virtual standstill to which the drafting of the optional protocol had come reflected the thinking that the foundation of international law was the free market, which, in reality, served the purposes of transnational capital and the national and international political institution that bent it to their purposes. The Commission should reinvigorate these two mechanisms.
VANIDA THEPSOVANH, of Transnational Radical Party, said the Party was extremely concerned by the economic and social situation of the Laos people, particularly those of the 80 per cent of the population that was living in the rural areas, without any access to health services and education, despite assistance provided by the international community to the Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Laos. The implementation of the rights to education and health enshrined under the Universal Declaration on Human Rights were very limited or absent in the Democratic People's Republic of Laos. The activities of political parties, trade unions, non-governmental organizations and religious groups had been suspended or limited.
SANDRA RATJEN, of Foodfirst Information and Action Network (FIAN), said the Food and Agricultural Organization Voluntary Guidelines to support the progressive realization of the right to food in the context of national food security promoted a rights-based approach of national food security, taking stock and combining, in a mutually supportive way, legal instruments and procedures with development strategies and policies conducive to the realization of the right to adequate food. They also provided a framework for human rights-based approaches to specific polices and programmes to reduce hunger and malnutrition. However, considering the absence of significant progress in the struggle against hunger, States should pursue their efforts when it came to the realization of the Guidelines, and use them along with a rights-based approach in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.
REA A. CHIONGSON, of International Women's Rights Action Watch, welcomed the activities of the Special Rapporteurs on housing and health, particularly as they had made women's rights central to their mandates. Members of the Commission should encourage the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing to continue to focus his mandate on women, and to consolidate the gains of regional consultations and the answers to the questionnaire, and to pursue an in-depth analysis and discussion on the impact of cultural practices on women's right to housing, as well as the inter-linkages between women's housing rights and their enjoyment of their equal rights to land, property and inheritance. Also underscoring the importance of the proposed Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Political Rights, she said that document should cover all the rights set forth in the Covenant, all its components, and all levels of obligation. Failure to draft an Optional Protocol would result in a hierarchy of rights to the detriment of economic, social and cultural rights in favour of civil and political rights.
EMILIO JOSE GOMEZ CIRIANO, of Federacion de Asociaciones de Defensa y Promocion de los Derechos Humanos, said General Assembly resolution 421 of 4 December 1950 had asserted the indivisibility of human rights. The Vienna Conference on Human Rights of 1993 did the same by reiterating the universality, interdependence, interrelation and indivisibility of human rights. Many countries had also adopted legislation in that direction. However, the realization of economic, social and cultural rights still remained insufficient. Those rights did not receive enough protection despite the legislation put in place. The Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights might bring solutions to victims of the violations of economic, social and cultural rights.
NORZIN DOLMA, of International Fellowship of Reconciliation, said education in Tibet was used as a tool by the Chinese authorities to ensure political stability and ethnic unity within the region. In order to achieve these goals, education policies continued to undermine Tibetan identity through a biased representation of Tibetan history, a denial of their culture and traditions, and the relegation of Tibetan as a second-rate language. China had not yet integrated the rights of the Tibetan minority in its education policies. The political indoctrination also extended to religious institutions. The Commission should call upon China to respect Tibetan culture and language, make education accessible, affordable and free, and introduce curriculum based on the needs of the Tibetan people.
ATSUKO KOIDE, of Japanese Workers Committee for Human Rights, said she wished to draw the attention of the Commission to the case of the Night Work Exemption Programme at Japan Airlines International. Japan had the Night Work Exemption to support workers with small children or elderly family members. However, Japan Airlines International employees with small children were treated unfairly, if not with discrimination. Approximately 140 crew members had opted to work under the Night Work Exemption Programme, but the company allotted them far less days of work than their colleagues on the normal roster. Following the Cabin Attendant Union's rejection of a Japan Airlines International proposal, these crew members had been allocated only one to two workdays per month. This efficiency-oriented company not only abused the purpose of the exemption, but was also working counter to the social need to curb the drop in the national birthrate. The company's attitude seemed to be one of choosing between employment or child rearing. Japan Airlines International was a high-profile company and would have negative effects if such work practices were allowed to continue.
GIANFRANCO FATTORINI, of Movement against Racism and for Friendship among Peoples, said the United States military intervention in Iraq had violated the rules of international law, which had a massive destructive effect. The pretext of the intervention was to fight terrorism but today the reasons were known. Although a dictator had fallen down, the evolution in the country was not satisfying. Two years after the intervention, Iraq remained the most dangerous place on earth. The occupants and the resistant groups were all responsible for the chaotic situation reigning in the country. With regard to the treatment of prisoners, the Geneva Convention continued to be seriously violated.
ROLANDO YERO TRAVIESO, of World Federation of Democratic Youth, said a real world should be created where millions could live a cultural life in which they could comprehend the potential and culture of mankind. Culture was at risk of extermination at the hands of those regarded as human rights defenders. The international community could only produce a big laugh in response, and not allow itself to be manipulated by the long list of lies. The billions of dollars used in the arms race should be used for education. Culture produced freedom and its absence produced submission. Some solutions should be devised to allow the majority of humankind to realize that the imperial class controlled the future. There could be no time for duplicity, and there was a need for a new world justice. If the Commission could not change the world, the people of the world would.
CHRISTOPHER YOUNG, of Human Rights Advocates, speaking on behalf of Earthjustice, said that toxic waste affected the human rights to health, water, food, adequate housing and work, among others. People in developing countries faced the greatest danger, as their countries often lacked the technology to dispose of waste safely, while technically legal "trades" of toxic wastes had been the root cause of severe violations of human rights. For example, pesticides had contributed to human rights violations even when legally imported. Inadequate safety procedures exposed workers and citizens to pesticides, resulting in severe health problems. Electronic waste also posed a problem; discarded electronics contained numerous toxic chemicals such as lead and mercury. Governments and individuals, including corporations, were responsible for protecting human rights. The Commission should address the issue of toxic waste on two levels, expressing both the importance of States ratification of treaties governing hazardous materials, and encouraging the adoption of a code of conduct for corporations that exported and dealt in toxic wastes.
NATIVIDAD GUERRERO, of Centro de Estudios sobre la Juventud, said while Cuban youth considered the right to economic, social and cultural rights a priority, the country had been a victim of numerous violations with regard to development of children, youth and women. The youth had been victims of the economic blockade by the United States against Cuba. The aggressive blockade had badly affected the young generation of Cuba. The United States economic blockade had negative consequences on the country, most particularly to the young generation in terms of economic, social and cultural growth.
ANNE SENEGAS, of Liberation, said all basic rights, whether they were civil and political rights or economic, social and cultural rights, evolved from human dignity and the basic needs of a human person. The realization of the economic, social and cultural rights of the people was extremely important for providing opportunities of living decent lives. Governments were endowed with primary responsibility to ensure that conditions were created where all segments of the population got equal opportunities for their economic survival, development and progress. The international community had a responsibility to oversee that Governments were engaged in genuine efforts for the realization of the economic, social and cultural rights of all their people, particularly the downtrodden classes.
MURIELLE MIGNOT, of Habitat International Coalition, stressed that all human rights were intrinsically linked, and that no development was possible without respect for human rights. However, most development plans lacked the guiding human rights framework that characterized the Habitat II Agenda. Fundamental to correcting this retrogressive trend was full and democratic participation for those whom development plans were ostensibly intended. The Commission, and all responsible Governments, should ensure that the monitoring tools, legal framework and implementation mechanisms necessary for ensuring the participation of all, and respect for human rights, were in place. Treaty-bound national and local authorities of developing countries, as well as international financial institutions and development agencies, should address urban and rural development. Violations of indigenous peoples', forest dwellers', and farmers' rights over their land and natural resources must be redressed, while poor city dwellers must have security of tenure and freedom from dispossession and eviction. All should benefit from access to public and environmental goods and services, habitability, security, appropriate locations and culturally adequate housing.
ANNIGJE BUWALDA, of Jubilee Campaign, drew attention to the lack of the right to food for all of the citizens in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The World Food Programme had reported that another 6.5 million people would require food assistance in the year 2004 and 2005. More than four out of 10 children in the county suffered from chronic malnutrition. The international community should provide more food aid in order to deal with that crisis.
RAFAEL POLANCO BRAHOJOS, of Sociedad Cultural Jose Marti, said this agenda item made clear the reality of the world in which all had to live: on one hand the interests of a minority of rich and powerful countries, dedicated to preserving the order; and on the other those dedicated to curing this order. Within the rich countries, there were also marginalized sectors and victims of exclusion who had their economic, social and cultural rights violated. Cuba had worked consistently for these people. Today, efforts to enhance culture were tantamount to a revolution in the field, but these efforts were being frustrated by the United States blockade, which impeded cultural enjoyment on many levels. The United States' Government had been promoting a policy to weaken the role of States in many fields, including culture. The Commission should pay more attention to this issue in particular, as well as others.
PAUL BEERSMANS, of International Movement for Fraternal Union among Races and Peoples, said the United Nations had highlighted the universality of all human rights, and had reinforced the idea that human rights -- civil, cultural, economic, political and social -- should be taken in their totality. The disregard and infringement of these human rights and fundamental freedoms had brought, directly or indirectly, war and great suffering to humankind, especially where they had served as the means of foreign interference in the internal affairs of other States, and amounted to hatred between peoples and nations. For example, in Jammu and Kashmir, a spiral of violence had erupted leading to endless suffering on the part of Kashmiris; their economic, social and cultural rights had been violated both by the Jihad fighters, and by the Government. Those foreign mercenaries had blocked any progress towards a lasting solution to the conflict. A solution would only be found through peaceful means and in an atmosphere of friendship and harmony.
SIMOS A. ANGELIDES, of Marangopoulos Foundation for Human Rights, said Turkey was aspiring to joint the European Union, yet was currently occupying the territory of another European State. Although it was under an obligation to comply with the Copenhagen criteria of 1992, which referred to rule of law, democracy, protection of human rights and compliance with judgments by the European Courts, it had not done so and Europe had not reacted. Turkey was a member of the United Nations, yet it had not respected the United Nations Charter. Moreover, Turkey had signed the Geneva Convention and the two United Nations Covenants, yet had been continuously supporting and encouraging the policies of committing widespread war crimes and crimes against humanity.
LAZARO T. MORA SECADE, of Centro de Estudios Europeos, said in 17 years, nothing had been done in terms of achieving economic, social and cultural rights for the majority of the people of the planet. External debt was a form of plundering countries, and continued to be referred to in terms of sustainability, which was perpetuity, instead of being written off. This impeded the ability to develop so that citizens could enjoy these rights and others such as the right to food and housing. Developed countries lobbied in the World Trade Organization to encourage agreements, with the objectives of privatizing not just education and health, but even drinking water. Forces destroying the environment and the wealth of developing countries had also been on the rise. The Millennium Development Goals would not be met if this continued. Poverty was the flagrant expression of the denial of human rights for millions, and it would continue to grow. The present international economic order, based on exploitation, needed to come to an end.
ESTHER BARES, of Lutheran World Federation, said the Federation was pleased with the growing attention being paid to the problems caused by the debt burden, which affected human development in many countries. This problem must be analyzed in light of human rights, and a solution to the problem of external debt based on law must be found. That analysis should be based upon the principles of debt viability, and debt legitimacy. The concept of illegitimate debt was more than a slogan; it could also help to prevent and resolve crises linked to external debt. The illegitimate debt doctrine declared all debt that was illegal, unjust or which violated national principles illegitimate. To make such judgments, the conditions under which the original sums had been lent must be examined. Thus, loans to dictators, made without any assurance of democratic processes and for ends not to the benefit of the public, would be considered illegitimate. The creators of the debt burden would thus have to assume the risk for their decisions.
ANNA MARIA STAME CERVONE, of Centrist Democratic International, said currently, in Zimbabwe, any type of activities by international organizations that watched over human rights compliance was prohibited. Likewise, it was prohibited of any national organization to receive external aid, thus avoiding the absence of witnesses. In Equatorial Guinea, there was no development. Without democracy there could be no development, no respect for human rights, no freedom of the press, and no respect for popular will. The United Nations should implement a programme of democratic development.
CRISTINA MACJUS, of Permanent Assembly for Human Rights, said it was a priority to pay attention to the defence and promotion of economic, social and cultural rights. The increase of the levels of poverty around the world and in Latin America, in particular, gave evidence of the huge delay that took place with regard to the respect of human rights and of the urgent need to move towards the total enforcement and justiciability of economic, social and cultural rights, which next to civil and political rights, were an integral and indivisible body. It was important to consider the effect of external debt in the satisfaction of the economic, social and cultural rights of Latin American citizens. An Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights would provide an individual complaints mechanism and establish not only negative obligations to States but also positive ones so as to respect, protect, fulfill, facilitate and ensure these rights.
ABDOULAYE LELOUMA DIALLO, of Organization of African Trade Union Unity, said that economic, social and cultural rights should be seen as linked to access to decent employment, education, health care and participation in social life. Respect for economic, social and cultural rights was rendered problematic by the situation in Africa today, which was characterized by large external debt, high unemployment, and pandemics such as HIV/AIDS and lack of democracy, among other factors. Trade unions remained aware of their role to defend the modern worker, and were working with other sectors of civil society and Governments to ensure the respect of economic, social and cultural rights for workers. There were also attempts to provide training to give young workers real jobs. Appealing to solidarity among stakeholders at all levels -- national, regional and continental -- he also appealed to international organizations and donor countries to promote the creation of structures for the rule of law and democracy.
EVE BAZAIBA MASUDI, of International Committee for the Respect and Application of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, said the Committee was seriously concerned about the reoccurrence of armed conflicts in Africa which were the source of massive violations of economic, social and cultural rights. The enjoyment of those rights by the people was seriously affected by the conflicts in Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire and Sudan. Certain conflicts had led to violations of laws in countries.
NFOR NGALA NFOR, of International Federation for the Protection of The Rights of Ethnic, Religious, Linguistic & Other Minorities, said the statement by the Cameroon delegation concerning its commitment to respect human rights, as well as its declaration that the full realization of the civil and political rights of peoples were intimately linked to the enjoyment of economic and cultural rights, including the right to development, was amazing. Cameroon's track record included gross human rights abuses and obstructions to social and economic development in the Southern Cameroons. Given this underdevelopment, how could it be said that the Yaoundé Government was committed to the respect of the economic rights of the people and their right to development? The Commission should take note of the plight of the Southern Cameroons and their right to self-determination and ultimately their guarantee to enjoy their economic, social and cultural rights.
Right of Reply
J.J. ABULIMEN (Nigeria), speaking in exercise of the right of reply, said he had noted with disappointment the assertion made by the Center on Housing Rights that the Government of Nigeria was going to evict more than 100,000 families from Government-owned estates in Lagos tomorrow. That assertion was untrue. Since moving the capital from Lagos to Abuja, the Nigerian Government had provided alternative housing for public officials moving from Lagos to Abuja. The Government had established a fund to enable public officers to buy their own houses.
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1Joint statement on behalf of: International Federation of University Women; Pan Pacific and South East Asia Women's Association International; Women's International League for Peace and Freedom; Inter-African Committee on Traditional Practices affecting the Health of Women and Children; Women's International Zionist Organization; International Council of Women; International Council of Jewish Women; World Council of Catholic Women's Organizations; Soroptimist International; Femmes Africa Solidarité; Zonta International; Socialist International Women; Federation of American Women's Clubs Overseas and All India Women's Education Fund Association.
CORRIGENDUM
In press release HR/CN/05/22/Rev.1 of 24 March, the speaker for the Afro-Asian Peoples' Solidarity Organization on page 7 was misidentified. The correct name of the speaker is SHAUKAT BALOCH.
For use information media; not an official record
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