DEBATE ON DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS FOCUSES ON EFFECTS OF EMBARGOES, DEBT BURDENS, WIDENING GAPS IN WEALTH
Press Release
HR/CN/829
DEBATE ON DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS FOCUSES ON EFFECTS OF EMBARGOES, DEBT BURDENS, WIDENING GAPS IN WEALTH
19980326 Chairman's Statement on Kosovo Calls For Independent Investigation into Alleged Extra-Judicial Killings(Reissued as received.)
GENEVA, 24 March (UN Information Service) -- The Commission on Human Rights continued this afternoon its annual discussion on economic development, hearing, as in previous years, repeated demands that economic rights be given the same emphasis and prominence around the world as civil and political rights. The practice of imposing international economic embargoes was criticized by several speakers.
Also this afternoon, in a Chairman's statement on the situation in Kosovo, the Commission expressed deep concern at the recent outbreak of violence in Kosovo in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and deplored the deaths of a large number of civilians, including women, children, and the elderly. It called on authorities in Belgrade to ensure international standards of human rights in Kosovo, and said Government authorities had a clear duty to protect the rights of all citizens and to ensure that public security forces acted with restraint and in full respect for internationally agreed norms and standards. It urged Yugoslav authorities and the leadership of the Kosovo Albanian community to start a genuine dialogue with the aim of finding a peaceful solution to the situation. The Commission also called on authorities in Belgrade to permit independent investigation into allegations of extra-judicial killings and, if these allegations were borne out, to prosecute and punish those responsible. There must be no impunity for such acts, the Commission stressed.
Antonio Garcia Revilla, Chairman-Rapporteur of the Commission's intergovernmental working group on the right to development, said the body had crafted a global strategy and a proposed mechanism for follow up. It had suggested that the High Commissioner for Human Rights play a coordinating role to ensure that the matter was taken into account in the various activities of the United Nations, and that all sectors of civil society be involved.
Measures to spur economic development were described, and pleas were heard, as in the past, for higher levels of overseas development assistance, international trade rules that took into account the needs of developing countries, and reductions in the external debt burdens of poorer nations.
A representative of the Holy See remarked that external debt was a serious handicap that could condemn poor countries to permanent underdevelopment. He said the international community should consider if it was right to demand repayment when this could mean political decisions which would bring hunger and despair to whole populations.
Statements were also made by the representatives of Peru, India, Holy See, Iraq, Paraguay, Sri Lanka, Morocco and Pakistan, as well as by a representative of the World Health Organization (WHO).
The following non-governmental organizations also spoke: International Federation of University Women; American Association of Jurists; Indian Movement "Tupaj Amaru"; International Movement of Apostolate in the Independent Social Milieus; African Commission of Health and Human Rights Promoters; International Association of Democratic Lawyers; Pax Romana; Centre Europe-Tiers Monde; International Educational Development; Human Rights Advocates; Baha'i International Community; International Union of Latin Notoriat; and the World Federation of Trade Unions.
Chairman's Statement on Kosovo
In a statement read out by Commission Chairman, Jacob Selebi (South Africa) on the situation in Kosovo, the Commission expressed deep concern at the recent outbreak of violence in Kosovo in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and deplored the death of a large number of civilians, including women, children, and the elderly. The Commission called on authorities in Belgrade to ensure recognized standards of human rights in Kosovo and said Government authorities had a clear duty to protect the rights of all citizens and to ensure that public security forces acted with restraint and in full respect for internationally agreed norms and standards.
The Commission stressed that it also condemned terrorism in all its forms and from any quarter, and denounced all acts of violence, including by Kosovo Albanian groups. It called on the leaders of the Kosovo Albanian community to make clear their total rejection of terrorism.
The Commission urged the two sides to start a genuine dialogue with the aim of finding a peaceful solution to the situation in Kosovo, taking into account the rights of Kosovo Albanians as well as others who lived there; supported the High Commissioner in her request to deploy human rights officers in Kosovo and to establish an office in Pristina; and requested authorities to
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cooperate with the investigations and proposed visits of relevant Special Rapporteurs.
The Commission also called on authorities in Belgrade to permit independent investigation into allegations of extra-judicial killings and, if these allegations were borne out, to prosecute and punish those responsible. There must be no impunity for such acts.
MUNIR AKRAM (Pakistan), on behalf of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), expressed extreme concern about the situation in Kosovo. The reign of repression by the authorities of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia had left many dead and displaced. Even today, five more innocent Kosovo civilians had been killed. The recent OIC Foreign Ministers' conference held in Doha, Qatar, adopted a resolution and communique regarding the situation in Kosovo, strongly condemning the large scale repression measures of discrimination and violations of human rights against the defenceless citizens of Kosovo committed by the authorities of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The OIC called for the immediate end of all human rights violations in Kosovo and the establishment of democratic institutions.
The OIC States welcomed the adoption of the Chairman's statement on the situation in Kosovo and hoped that the main operative provisions of the statement would be speedily implemented, he said. However, the OIC States were not entirely satisfied with the statement which was formulated and negotiated among a group of countries and then presented to OIC members and others, making clear that no substantive changes to the text would be entertained. The OIC countries hoped that in the future there would be a greater manifestation of the desire to promote transparency, democracy and consensus.
There were serious political flaws in the statement as formulated, he continued. In paragraph 3, the statement sought to equate unsubstantiated allegations of terrorism by the oppressed Kosovo Albanians with the atrocious human rights violations committed by the Belgrade authorities. This was entirely unjustified. The statement also did not refer to the fundamental human rights of Albanians or the need for democracy and democratic institutions.
Realization of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
The Commission started discussing this afternoon the realization in all countries of the economic, social and cultural rights contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. This debate traditionally encompasses a study of special problems developing countries face in their efforts to achieve these human rights including: problems related to the right to enjoy
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an adequate standard of living; foreign debt, economic adjustment policies and their effects on the full enjoyment of human rights and, in particular, on the implementation of the Declaration on the Right to Development; the effects of "the existing unjust international economic order" on the economies of the developing countries, and the obstacle that this represents for the implementation of human rights and fundamental freedoms.
The Commission has before it the final report on the question of the impunity of perpetrators of human rights violations prepared by El Hadji Guissé, Special Rapporteur (E/CN.4/Sub.2/1997/8), which recommends that a periodic high-level meeting should be organized to stimulate broad discussion of the question of the impunity of perpetrators of violations of economic, social and cultural rights, in association with institutions affiliated to the United Nations. Such a meeting can lead to a greater awareness on the part of the international community and States with a view not only to according these rights a greater juridical value and to punishing violations, but also to creating rules in domestic law that will ensure their juridical status and justiciability.
There is also a progress report submitted by Fatma Zohra Ksentini, Special Rapporteur on the adverse effects of the illicit movement and dumping of toxic and dangerous products and wastes on the enjoyment of human rights (E/CN.4/1998/10). The report states that Africa and other developing countries continue to be the chief targets of the illicit movement and dumping of toxic wastes and dangerous products. New countries are now involved, including the Baltic States, Russian Federation, Ukraine, Georgia, Slovenia, Romania, Poland and Armenia. The information and specific cases submitted to the Special Rapporteur indicate that the facts and incidents relating to the illicit movement and clandestine dumping of toxic wastes and products, generally in developing countries, are underpinned by fraudulent practices and accompanied by violations of various human rights.
The Special Rapporteur recommends that prevention is of crucial importance in avoiding adverse effects for the life and health of whole communities and irreparable damage to the environment. It is important to reinforce abilities of countries to detect and suppress any attempt to import toxic and dangerous products into their territory. The domestic capabilities of these countries could be strengthened by giving financial assistance and providing appropriate technology to them. These countries should also classify offences relating to illicit movement of such wastes and products as criminal offences under their domestic laws.
The Commission also has before it an addendum to Ms. Ksentini's report (E/CN.4/1998/10/Add.1) which lists comments on the issue of illicit movement and dumping of toxic products and wastes received from Austria, France,
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Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Philippines, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom and United States.
Another addendum to Ms. Ksentini's report (E/CN.4/1998/10/Add.2) -- on her mission to Africa -- notes that disparities in domestic legal standards between developed and developing countries as well as ambiguities in international instruments have provided an incentive for exporters of toxic and dangerous wastes and products to seek outlets in poorer, less industrialized countries which suffer from a lack of adequate legislation and human and financial resources to implement what legislation that exists. African countries lack the infrastructure for determining the nature of the goods they receive. One of the main problems remains the lack of reliable information on the movement of toxic wastes within countries and across borders.
A report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (E/CN.4/1998/21), meanwhile, states that the right to adequate food is firmly established in international law, but that its operational content and means of application are generally little understood; the right, therefore, remains scarcely implemented. The High Commissioner recommends, among other things, that it will be desirable for the Commission on Human Rights to explore ways in which it could advance, at the political level, the right to adequate food among its members as well as in the United Nations system.
The Commission is also considering a report by the Secretary-General on women's real enjoyment of their human rights (E/CN.4/1998/22), which concludes that women's full enjoyment of their human rights, including those relating to economic development and resources, is essential to any strategy aimed at poverty eradication and sustainable development. The Beijing Platform for Action addresses the human rights of women and women and poverty in specific critical areas of concern. Together with international human rights instruments, the Platform for Action emphasized that gender-based inequalities and disadvantages need to be addressed explicitly in all actions of Governments and of other actors entrusted with their implementation.
In a report on the creation of micro-credit programmes (E/CN.4/1998/23), the High Commissioner for Human Rights, draws the attention of the Commission to the World Bank's programme "Sustainable Banking for the Poor", a project which aims at improving the ability of donors, Governments and practitioners to design and implement policies and programmes to build sustainable financing institutions that are effective in reaching the poor.
The Commission also is reviewing a report of the Secretary-General on the importance of continuing to implement immediate, effective and durable actions for alleviating the debt and debt-service burden of developing countries in the framework of realizing economic, social and cultural rights
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(E/CN.4/1998/24). The report includes information provided by Ecuador, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), OXFAM International, and Foodfirst Information and Action Network on this issue.
In addition, a note before the Commission (E/CN.4/1998/26) reports on the appointment of Ismail-Sabri Abdalla (Egypt) as an independent expert to study the effects of structural adjustment policies on economic, social and cultural rights in cooperation with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Realization of Right to Development
The Commission has before it a report of the Secretary-General submitted in accordance with Commission resolution 1997/72 on the implementation of the provisions of the resolution relating to the right to development. The report lists responses received from Governments, United Nations bodies and specialized agencies and non-governmental organizations.
The Commission also has before it the report of the Chairman-Rapporteur of the intergovernmental group of experts on the right to development, Antonio Garcia Revilla (Peru). The group held its second session in Geneva from 29 September to 19 October 1997 (E/CN.4/1998/29). The report says the mandate of the group of experts is to elaborate a strategy for the implementation and promotion of the right to development. The report suggests that the High Commissioner for Human Rights should provide high-level coordination to ensure that the right to development is given appropriate consideration throughout the United Nations system. States are encouraged to consider legislative and constitutional changes to guarantee that treaty law takes precedence over internal law and that treaty provisions are directly applicable in the internal legal order. States are invited to adopt economic and social measures in order to avoid the exclusion of groups marginalized by extreme poverty, which directly denies the right to development.
Mr. Revilla also recommends that civil society groups representing vulnerable groups should be given effective roles and channels to communicate their interests in arenas of local and national decision-making. Follow-up mechanisms recommended by the group of experts include the need to coordinate and mainstream human rights and the right to development in the work of various United Nations organs.
Statements in Debate
ANTONIO GARCIA REVILLA, Chairman-Rapporteur of the intergovernmental working group on the right to development, presenting the group's report, said the body had been created in 1996 to elaborate a strategy for implementation
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of the right. There had been widespread participation in the work from all sectors; the intent was to function in a transparent manner and to achieve effective results.
The report presented a global strategy and a proposed mechanism for follow up, he said. A major idea was the launching of a group dedicated to the subject, backed by the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for Human Rights. It was suggested that the High Commissioner play a coordinating role to ensure that the matter was taken into account in the United Nations various activities. Treaty bodies would be called upon to include in their activities matters of implementation of the concept. Special attention was to be paid to persons suffering from such problems as extreme poverty.
He said States were requested to ratify human rights treaties and to develop relevant national legislation; direct measures to promote development were sought; broad participation by all sectors of civil society was recommended. Problems created by globalization were highlighted, and the report underlined the importance of creating systems of participatory democracy. Follow-up activities would be undertaken by various United Nations agencies, including the Bretton Woods institutions; annual reviews of accomplishments and progress would be submitted to the Commission on Human Rights.
EDUARD PEREY-DEL-SOLAR (Peru) said his country reaffirmed its commitment to respect citizens' civil and political rights. However, as was the case of most developing countries, Peru also had other priorities, including providing food, health, shelter and education to its people. As a stable regime, the Government of Peru was endeavouring to achieve the well-being of its people by undertaking measures involving social reforms in the short and long terms. At the same time, 40 per cent of the country's national budget went to social expenditure aimed at alleviating poverty and increasing productivity. In addition, per capita social expenditures had grown from $12 in 1990 to $156 in 1996. The rate of literacy had decreased from 12.8 per cent in 1993 to 10.5 in 1997, with a further 4 per cent reduction being aimed for by the end of the century. Extreme poverty had been reduced by 22 per cent in 1995. However, Peru believed that national efforts of development should be supported by international cooperation.
SAVITRI KUNADI (India) said that while the international consensus on the right to development had grown steadily, words had not been matched by action and the international community had yet to evolve and pursue a clear strategy for the promotion of that right. The right to development should bring countries together, not divide them. India believed that democracy and development were both essential for the full enjoyment of human rights and for ensuring human dignity. While poverty could not be an excuse to deny individuals their rights as human beings, there was a critical link between
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underdevelopment and the ability of all peoples to fully enjoy all inherent rights promised by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. While States had the primary responsibility for the creation of national and international conditions favourable to the realization of the right to development, the language of human solidarity must transcend that of competition-driven market forces if the process of economic globalization was to yield equitable results and not increase marginalizations.
She said that the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) policy document "Integrating Human Rights with Sustainable Development" favoured that UNDP be the main implementing agency for human rights with a heavy tilt towards governance-related political and civil rights. Any such trend would further exacerbate the existing imbalance between the two basic sets of rights. UNDP must concentrate its efforts on mainstreaming development. An open-ended Working Group of the Commission, supported by an independent expert of the highest competence on the substantive side and the High Commissioner for Human Rights on the implementation side, would be an appropriate vehicle for making progress on the implementation of the right to development both in its international and national dimensions.
ALI MCHUMO (United Republic of Tanzania) said that over the years wealth had been growing and increasing globally, but poverty, misery and inequality within and between States had been increasing at the same time. There was need for coherence between respect for the right to development and the functioning of the international trading system so as to protect the less-developed countries. The international community must adopt more effective measures to resolve the external debt of developing countries for more effective promotion of development. A comprehensive as opposed to a piecemeal approach was needed, covering commercial, bilateral and multilateral debt and also involving reduction of debt stock. There was need to reverse the decline in financial flows to developing countries and more political will was required for the developed countries to realize the target set for overseas development assistance to developing countries.
HIROSHI NAKAJIMA, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), said at the dawn of a new century, and particularly since the Vienna Conference, the world community had been working towards the realization of all human rights for all human beings. The same community had also been working towards the attainment of the highest standard of health. However, most of those efforts had been undertaken in parallel, with human rights advocates and their objectives on the one hand, and health professionals on the other. WHO's fullest expression of the "right to health" encompassed and was dependent on the enjoyment of many other human rights, including the right to a standard of living adequate for health and well-being, and rights to adequate food and education, among others. Just as health was a prerequisite for the full enjoyment of other human rights, so was enjoyment of all other
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human rights necessary for the realization of the highest attainable standard of health.
GIUSEPPE BERTELLO (Holy See) said the concept of development had evolved, and its understanding today underscored the need for a balanced approach. Development was not just a matter of economic growth -- it had to promote all men and allow a more humane quality of life.
He said experts emphasized the social impact of structural adjustment policies, an issue which the Holy See had raised in the past. External debt was a serious handicap which could condemn poor countries to permanent underdevelopment. The international community should consider if it was right to demand payment of the debt when that could mean political decisions which would bring hunger and despair to populations. Pope John Paul II had called for the flexible application of payment programmes. It was also necessary to underscore the importance of developing agriculture in debt ridden countries, both to meet the local food needs and to achieve better access to world markets.
MOHAMMED A. HUSSEIN (Iraq) said the international community absolutely must find the means for establishing the cooperation between developed and developing countries needed to foster widespread and fair economic development. New obstacles kept cropping up -- for example, the use of economic sanctions against various developing countries for political reasons. Military aggression against Iraq had demolished the country's infrastructure and had destroyed the health of its citizens; now the country suffered from the effects of the economic embargo imposed against it -- the health of mothers and children was suffering due to shortages of medicines and medical equipment; mortality rates had climbed; educational equipment was lacking; schools had gone unmaintained; providing safe drinking water was becoming a problem. The right to development could not be satisfied under such conditions, and Iraq pleaded to the Commission to call for an end to the embargo. The working group on development also should study the effects on human rights of such embargoes.
ELADIO LOIZAGA (Paraguay) said at the end of 1997 1,118 barrels of toxic materials had been discovered at the country's naval port. It was believed that the material came from industrialized countries. Following the discovery, the Government of Paraguay had requested the technical cooperation of the Secretariat of the Basel Convention in Geneva to evaluate and identify the content of the material. An expert sent to Paraguay on 19 January concluded that the material could be dangerous. However, due to a failure in the provision of technical assistance, the material was still deposited in the port of Asuncion, threatening to pollute the capital city of Paraguay.
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CONCHITA PONCINI, of the International Federation of University Women, said she was speaking on behalf of 25 international non-governmental organizations. It was essential that the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights by women be integrated into the terms of reference of the Special Rapporteur for economic, social and cultural rights. The realization of women's equal economic rights made it imperative that women had access to productive resources, land ownership, credit, technology, employment, equal pay for equal value, health care and social security, and life-long education and training. The Special Rapporteur should take into account the rights of women throughout their entire life span. In closing, the NGOs said they were very pleased that the Secretary-General had pledged his support for gender mainstreaming in his programme of reform for the United Nations.
CARLOS ANDREZ PEREZ, of the American Association of Jurists, said the documents presented under this agenda item, despite some tepid acknowledgements, ignored the basic issues. There was no examination of the causes, for example, of malnutrition and the roots of hunger around the world, such as unequal distribution of land and resources, and the monopoly exercised by a handful of transnational enterprises in the food sector. They had such control that they controlled the prices of basic foodstuffs; standard-making and institutional aspects, which the reports dealt with at length, did not reflect these matters, which were more basic. Transnational enterprises were at this point very far ahead in their aim of superseding States; multilateral trade regimes, as now structured, would relieve such transnationals from any obligations or control by States; they would become international dictatorships. Focus on the right to development should be more energetic, and transnational corporations should be made subject to codes of conduct that would obligate them to respect human rights.
LAZARO PARY, of Indian Movement"Tupaj Amaru", said the effective exercise of economic, social and cultural rights was directly related to the activities of transnational corporations. The activities and mobilities of those corporations were omnipresent among indigenous peoples. Since the 1970s, the international community had been engaged in regulating the activities and behaviour of transnational corporations in economic development. The legal status and nationality of those corporations was not yet defined in many cases. Their role and responsibilities in contaminating the "motherland" was not fully defined.
GILBERT ROSSARY, of the International Movement of Apostolate in the Independent Social Milieus, said he was marking the organization's first participation in the Commission with a statement which could be called "eradication of poverty, the best way to foster human rights". The 1997 Human Development report of the United Nations Development Programme was a shock to people of their circle. The organization's initial conviction, based on the Gospel, was that the implementation of human rights would be more effective if
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underdeveloped and developed countries gave priority to the elimination of poverty in the process of development. The organization wanted to prick the conscience of the well-to-do. There was a need to change structures through specific collective action. The international institutions, especially the United Nations, were the best means available to the world to ensure that the rights of all could become effective and realized. The organization hoped the Commission made mention of the eradication of poverty as something that could be achieved provided there was a political will to do so. The organization saw the eradication of poverty as a realistic challenge.
CHARLES GRAVES, of the African Commission of Health and Human Rights Promoters, said it appeared that those who decided to establish an embargo often did not fully research all the aspects of their decision. Hence, in acting with embargoes to bring a State or a people into compliance with their norms, the actors many times neglected to consider important norms such as development, health, cultural and social integrity, and the economic bases of protecting culture and society. The United Nations should really face the difficult task of determining whether the present forms of imposing embargoes really achieved all the aims the Organization had vis-a-vis certain people. A serious debate should be held within the United Nations so that at least innocent people in societies States suffering embargoes received assurances that the international community had not forgotten their rights.
RENEE BRIDEL, of International Association of Democratic Lawyers, said the continuation of the embargo imposed against the Iraqi people led to negative and grave consequences for Iraqi women and children in particular; the embargo had only increased the rate of infant mortality and reduced the life expectancy of aged persons. Her group demanded the lifting of the inhuman embargo and appealed to the international community to restore justice to the Iraqi people. The embargo, in effect for the past seven years, was the result of United States and United Kingdom interference in the internal affairs of Iraq. The Association reaffirmed its support for the defence of the sovereignty and unity of Iraq, and its territorial integrity. Also, the group demanded the withdrawal of the United States naval fleets from the Persian Gulf.
MARIA JOSEP PARES, of Pax Romana, in a joint statement with Franciscans International, expressed concern about the obstacles placed in front of the right to development by sanctions which led to hunger and violations of the basic rights of civilian populations. This was the situation affecting Iraq and Cuba. These sanctions were contrary to humanitarian laws. The organization welcomed the latest steps taken by the United States to ease the sanctions against Cuba, but hoped that the embargo could be totally lifted. Another serious problem to the right to development was the question of anti-personnel landmines. Landmines had an extremely serious effect on the level of economic development. Even the suspicion of the presence of
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landmines meant that people could not return to their homes and could not farm their fields. This slowed down the process of development and forced countries to import food. The organizations welcomed the Ottawa process that had led to the convention to ban landmines, but considered that much remained to be done, both in the Conference on Disarmament and other forums.
MALIK OZDEN, of Centre Europe-Tiers Monde, speaking also on behalf of the World Federation of Democratic Youth, said the economic embargo imposed against Iraq was insensitive and inexcusable, whatever the nature of the Iraqi Government. Hundreds of thousands were dying or suffering scars that would last the rest of their lives; it was unacceptable to cause such damage to innocent people; what the Security Council was doing with this embargo was no different than a man sitting in a chair and shooting off a rifle repeatedly, killing or wounding innocent people sitting outside the walls. Were the countries in favour of the embargo not possessors of weapons of mass destruction themselves of the same sort they sought to remove from Iraq? The embargo imposed upon Cuba by the arrogant will of the United States was unjustified and unjustifiable; it not only inflicted the embargo itself but forced the rest of the world to comply; such violations of human rights could not be excused in the name of international measures of coercion, even if supposedly they were in keeping with international law.
KAREN PARKER, of International Education Development (IED), said he wished to draw the attention of the Commission to the General Comment of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on the issue of economic sanctions, announced by the Committee on 5 December 1997. The Comment pointed out that insufficient attention was paid to the impact of economic sanctions on human rights, especially the rights of vulnerable groups. IDE fully supported the recommendations in the comment, especially the Committee's view that the imposition of sanctions raised obligations on the imposing party or parties to monitor the impact of such measures in order to insure the full rights of all vulnerable groups. IED considered the sanctions imposed on Iraq violated the economic, social and cultural rights as well as the civil and political rights of the Iraqi civilian population, especially the right to development. Conservative estimates had shown that more than one million children had died as a direct result of sanctions imposed on Iraq.
KRISTIN LAMSON, of Human Rights Advocates, said the organization was especially concerned that the illicit transport and mishandling of toxic substances continued to endanger fundamental human rights, particularly for individuals in developing countries. The international community had made some progress in developing standards to control the mishandling of toxins; while these conventions might assist in preventing human rights violations, the organization strongly cautioned the international community against relying solely on them as sufficient protection of human rights. Human Rights Advocates recommended coordination in the following areas of the Basel
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Convention: compensation for damages so that they included damages for violations of human rights; training and community education to include a human rights component, and reporting and tracking mechanisms to include instances of human rights violations.
MASHID FATIO, of the Baha'i International Community, speaking on behalf of 11 NGOs, said proponents of the world's material civilization seemed unsure of where they wanted to go, while promoting change and "progress" at an ever-increasing pace; was that what really was meant by development? What did the United Nations mean by "development"? Beyond specific measures to resolve pressing problems, what was the overall vision of development? Was there any correlation of such development with happiness, human dignity, fulfilment, or satisfaction? The present approach to economic and social development, to which an excessively materialistic conception of life had given rise, was not capable of meeting humanity's needs. Suicide was one of the leading causes of death in highly developed countries -- surely that indicated something more was needed for human progress than material wealth. Another tragedy was the ever-widening gap in living standards within and between countries, and the social inclusion it had engendered. Many of those who suffered were women. Unless society found a purpose for development beyond the mere amelioration of material conditions, it would fail to attain even such limited goals.
FRANCOIS DE TINGUY, of the International Union of Latin Notariat, said his organization, upon observing the widening gap between the developed and developing counties, had initiated a movement to increase human efforts. Recently, a meeting in which 200 representatives of international organizations participated had been organized in France to coordinate efforts on practical actions. At the same time, in order to boost actions concerning the manioc culture of Niger, several proposition had been advanced to create development facilities in the region.
GENEI SHINOJI, of the World Federation of Trade Unions, said the concept of development implied the overall realization of the potential of human beings. The arms race that had marked contemporary history was the worst threat to the realization of the right to development. For example, the billions spent by the United States on developing new bombers to target weaker nations should have legitimately been used to alleviate hunger and poverty in the ravaged lands of Africa. Even prosperous countries found that the realization of their national goals had been made hostage to the concerns of militarily powerful countries. The right to development by its very nature involved a collaborative effort among people living in different parts of the world. The preservations of the heritage, physical and spiritual, of all peoples was imperative if the process of development was to proceed smoothly. Yet inherited traditions and values that had allowed the maturing of civilizations were being usurped in the pursuit of material wealth and disturbing, destructive ways of life. If the right to development was to be
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truly realized, there had to be recognition that wealth only provided a false freedom.
S. PALIHAKKARA (Sri Lanka) said the delegation remained perplexed by the continuing debate and divisions, and above all by the reluctance to agree, in a cooperative spirit on concrete measures to ensure the realization of economic, social, and cultural rights and the right to development. What constituted a violation of economic, social and cultural rights, or of the right to development? Whom should one call or write to when hunger and poverty distorted the dignity of a human profile? How should the international community react when a nation, a democracy, grappled with unemployment and indebtedness? Ironically, in the pursuit of clarity, the international community seemed to have so confused the issue that in the minds of many the right to development remained an amorphous, homeless concept. Yet abject poverty remained the world's most efficient and ruthless killers; Sri Lanka had for decades invested heavily in human development and today continued efforts to maintain high standards in literacy, women's rights, children rights and health care -- that was how the country had achieved a much higher human development index rating than its relatively modest per capita income suggested.
NACER BENJELLOUN-TOUIMI (Morocco) said 12 years had elapsed since the General Assembly had adopted the Declaration on the Right to Development, yet significant progress had still not been reached in the promotion and implementation of the right to development. Yet, the realization of the right to development constituted a crucial issue for the developing countries, particularly to the less developed among them. The globalization and the growing liberalization of exchange and the flows of trade had reinforced economic interdependence and made weaker countries more vulnerable; that phenomenon risked leading to the marginalization of a number of countries. And yet, the objectives fixed by the developed nations to devote 0.7 per cent of gross national product to development assistance had never been attained.
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