ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL HEARS CALLS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS DIMENSION TO BE CENTRAL FACTOR IN UNITED NATIONS ACTIVITIES

17 July 1998

Press Release
ECOSOC/5782

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL HEARS CALLS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS DIMENSION TO BE CENTRAL FACTOR IN UNITED NATIONS ACTIVITIES

19980717 Rights Said to Be Integral to Development, Related Activities; Algeria Warns against Invocation for Political Purposes

Integration of a human rights aspect into the United Nations system should not serve as a pretext for political aims, the representative of Algeria told the Economic and Social Council this afternoon. The Council began the general discussion of its coordination segment focusing on follow-up to the 1993 World Conference on Human Rights.

Instead of promoting development, human rights were often made a subject of political action, the representative said. Human rights should reflect the diversity of cultures and yet be based on universal principles such as non- interference in the affairs of others. Advancing the right to development should be accepted as a collective responsibility.

The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action reaffirmed the right to development as a universal right, said the representative of the World Food Programme (WFP). In that context, the access to adequate levels of food was a prerequisite for the exercise of the right to development and the enjoyment of human rights, in general. For food aid to be truly effective, it should be fully integrated into the development plans and priorities of recipient countries. It also should be coordinated with other forms of assistance.

The representative of Austria called on all entities of the United Nations system to adopt a rights-based approach to gender issues. Speaking on behalf of the European Union and associated States, he agreed with the decision to review human rights machinery and to develop recommendations on possible ways to streamline and rationalize it. The European Union also supported the review of the bodies and mechanisms by the Commission on Human Rights.

All United Nations personnel must be trained in human rights, said the representative of Norway. That included sensitization to the human rights aspects of the environment in which they operated, as well as to the human rights implications of their own behaviour. Those requirements should be applied to long-term activities, such as those of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), as well as to humanitarian and peacekeeping activities.

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A representative of Human Rights Watch said the implementation of the human rights monitoring mechanisms should be initiated as soon as possible in crisis situations. The High Commissioner for Human Rights should play the central role in communicating the recommendations to relevant actors and in coordinating the response of the United Nations system. The High Commissioner must have complete access to the other organs of the United Nations system, including the Security Council, to bring human rights issues to light in a timely way.

Statements were also made by the United States, Bangladesh, Japan, Tunisia, Argentina, Romania, Brazil, Russian Federation, Slovenia and Latvia.

Also addressing the Council were the representatives of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the International Labour Organization (ILO), and Amnesty International.

In addition, the representative of Lithuania introduced a draft resolution concerning the distribution of seats in the Executive Board of the WFP (document E/1998/L.17).

The Council will meet again at 10 a.m. on Monday, 20 July, to conclude the general debate of its coordination segment.

Council Work Programme

The Economic and Social Council met this afternoon to continue the coordination segment of its 1998 substantive session. The focus of the segment is on "coordinated follow-up to and implementation of the 1993 Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action".

The Council was scheduled to hear the introduction of a draft resolution on input to the implementation of General Assembly resolution 50/8 of 1995 (document E/1998/L.17). By the draft text, submitted by Lithuania, the Council would request the Assembly, during the first part of its fifty-third session, to review the distribution of seats in the Executive Board of the World Food Programme (WFP), as decided by Assembly resolution 50/8.

Introduction of Draft Resolution

OSKARAS JUSYS (Lithuania), on behalf of the Eastern European States, introduced the draft resolution on input to the implementation of General Assembly resolution 50/8, related to the WFP and a review of its distribution of seats.

Statements

ERNST SUCHARIPA (Austria), speaking also for the European Union, said that in the years since the Vienna Conference, the emphasis of the Organization's human rights work has increasingly shifted from conference rooms to the field. That occurred in response to requests from governments to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights for technical assistance that had increased greatly in complexity. It involved numerous parts of the United Nations systems. Those developments were demand driven and they were in line with a key Council objective to integrate commitments and outcomes of the global conference.

He said he welcomed all coordination activities within the system. He agreed with the decision to review human rights machinery and to develop recommendations on possible ways to streamline and rationalize it. He also supported the review of the bodies and mechanisms by the Commission on Human Rights.

He called attention to two important areas of the Vienna Declaration, the right to development and the full enjoyment of human rights by women. He welcomed system-wide actions for the implementation of the right to development, including the establishing of a working group on the issue by the United Nations Development Group. He also called on all parts of the United Nations system to adopt a rights-based approach to gender issues and to take into account the concluding observations on country reports of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women.

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BETTY KING (United States) said economic rights and the pursuit of happiness were fundamental rights that must be recognized and realized progressively. Their realization remained a joint endeavour between the individual and the State. Each individual must determine what constituted happiness and the means by which they chose to pursue its attainment. Each State maintained a responsibility to foster an environment in which each individual would be applied to realize those goals. Protecting and advancing economic, social and cultural rights required policies and laws that encouraged entrepreneurial risk-taking. That entailed, among other things, generating new jobs, guaranteeing labour rights; promoting gender equality; providing access to education and medical care; and ensuring the rule of law for everyone. Economic, social and cultural rights also had a direct relevance for the process of economic development. They should infuse the Council's approach in discussions on the right to development.

Individual rights were essential to genuine and lasting economic development, she said. The most important relationship in the development process was between governments and their citizens. Where governments fulfil their obligations, the benefits multiplied, stimulating saving, investment and sustainable development in countries with sound economic policies, good governance and adherence to the rule of law. Civil and political rights were at the core of human rights and fundamental freedoms, but they must be complemented by the realization of economic, social and cultural rights. The United Nations system included many organizations dedicated to economic development and technical assistance. Yet, a human rights dimension was often lacking. Those organizations should become even more effective by incorporating rights systematically into their work.

ANWARUL KARIM CHOWDHURY (Bangladesh) said that both awareness-building at all levels of society and the development of independent, transparent and participatory national human rights mechanisms were necessary for effective implementing of the Vienna Declaration. The right to development should be omnipresent and central to any human rights initiatives.

Some issues were essential to take into consideration in developing an integrated and coordinated approach to promoting and protecting human rights, he said. Among those were an increased system-wide coordination to avoid unnecessary duplication; system-wide human rights training; and the taking into account by all subsidiary bodies of the mutually reinforcing nature of democracy, development and respect for all human rights.

ABDALLAH BAALI (Algeria) said no one could challenge the universality of human rights. The recognition of the right to development as a universal right was a major step forward, but implementation had been slow. There should be a working group and there should be an expert to examine the status of that right. It was agreed that human rights and development went hand in hand, but the way to advance the two was under debate. Instead of promoting development, human rights was often made a subject of political action.

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Integrating the human rights aspect into other programmes should not serve as a pretext for political aims.

The right to development was an important step towards effective promotion of human rights, he said. The principle of universality was to be supported, which did not mean there was only one model. Indeed, human rights had to reflect the diversity of cultures and yet be based on universal principles such as non-interference in the affairs of others. There was a lag in the human rights area in the developing world, but progress was occurring and civil society was evolving.

Dialogue about human rights should not become an argument, he said, and advancing the right to development should be accepted as a collective responsibility. It should also be recognized that non-State parties had a right to promote human rights.

TAKESHI KAMITANI (Japan) said his Government welcomed the new structure of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, including the appointment of a Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights. But the service the Office provided to the human rights machinery within the United Nations system could not keep pace with its growing and increasingly complex needs. The Office was currently stretching its limited resources quite thin. Japan appreciated the current review of the human rights machinery being conducted by the Bureau of the Commission on Human Rights in order to achieve streamlining and rationalization. When United Nations bodies were engaged in their respective mandates, they should be aware that all human rights -- including civil, political, economic, social and cultural -- were indivisible.

The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action clearly stated the importance of the equality of women and the human rights of women, he said. It also stated that the equal status of women and women's human rights should be integrated into the mainstream of United Nations system-wide activity. In that context, a significant step forward was taken when the Council last year adopted its Agreed Conclusions on Mainstreaming the Gender Perspective. His Government also appreciated the role played by the Commission on the Status of Women in that area. Concerning the rights of children, he said there had been increasing consideration given to that subject at the major United Nations conferences and within the United Nations system.

ABDERRAZAK AZAIEZ (Tunisia) said the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action had made it possible to elevate the ideal of human rights to the highest level of concern for the international community. The United Nations system was thus able to think about ways and means of improving coordination and concepts encompassing all human rights. States were able to plan activities so as to ensure that citizens enjoyed human rights in the context of sustainable development and harmonious growth. Tunisia was pleased by the interactive cooperation that had been established in United Nations agencies. His Government

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also appreciated the contribution of United Nations entities in the enhancement of capacity in the civilian societies in many countries. Human rights had gained ground and taken root in many areas.

The Vienna Conference, as well as the other international conferences, had stressed the interdependence that existed between the three component parts of development, he said. Vienna had confirmed that the right to development was a universal and unalienable right. That key element was emphasized by the Human Rights Commission, when it recalled that the right to development rested on the principle that the human being was the principal actor in development, and the right to life required that the basics of living be met. Similarly, on 13 July, the President of Tunisia said "the promotion of the Tunisian person" was the supreme ambition of all national policies in the social, economic and cultural sectors. His Government had implemented reforms designed to consolidate democracy and pluralism, including the strengthening of individual and collective rights.

MARIA LORENZO ALCALA, Under-Secretary for Human Rights of Argentina, said that despite continuing genocides in the modern world, the Vienna Declaration had been an important step forward in protecting human rights. It was now recognized that democracy, development and human rights went hand in hand. Her country was paying $3 billion in reparations, a unique development in the region in terms of compensation for victims of totalitarianism. Argentina had complied with its obligations by reporting on the human rights organs it was party to.

The Vienna Declaration had affirmed that humans were not subjects of nations, but a part of the community of human beings, she said. Now that the east-west conflict had ended, it was time to intensively promote the coordinated implementation of the human rights programme. That involved four primary areas: peace and security; economic and social affairs; international cooperation for development; and the area of humanitarian matters. All entities involved in those areas should cooperate.

CARMEN LILIANA BURLACU, Director-General for International Organizations and Programmes of Romania, said important steps had already been taken in redefining and strengthening United Nations machinery and for ensuring a balanced approach of all human rights. Her Government supported the establishment of human rights focal points in all relevant United Nations bodies, at Headquarters and in the field. Further, better coordination was imperative among funds, programmes and specialized agencies addressing human rights at the country level. Romania favoured incorporating the human rights priorities in the strategic programming frameworks in order to achieve an integrated approach to mutual objectives.

Within the Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004), Romania would carry out a vast national programme of action aimed at consolidating respect

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for fundamental freedoms and democratic values, and increasing awareness of international human rights standards. Special attention had been attached to creating a climate of tolerance and non-violence beneficial for the non- discriminatory enjoyment of human rights by all citizens, including ethnic minorities. As gender equality was a prerequisite for democratic development, her Government had drafted a national plan of action on women. That had led to the establishment of a department for promoting women's human rights and the launching of various projects. In addition, Romania had encouraged the mainstreaming of a human rights perspective in the projects it had undertaken in cooperation with the United Nations system.

TOM TYRIHJELL, Assistant Director-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway, said the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action gave the United Nations system a clear mandate for the initiatives to mainstream human rights into the work of the Organization. The Secretary-General's reform proposals had been instrumental in achieving concrete results. Member States and the United Nations had benefited from the work of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Projects to new activities concerning human rights at the field level presented a challenge, as well as an opportunity to learn.

All United Nations personnel must be trained in human rights and must uphold the highest professional standards, he said. That included the need to be sensitized to the particular human rights situation of the environment in which they operated. United Nations personnel must also be aware of the human rights implications of their own activities and behaviour.

Norway welcomed the open debate in the Security Council last month on children in armed conflict, he said. That discussion had provided a clear picture of the gravity of the problem and underlined the relevance of the human rights of children to all entities of the United Nations system.

HENRIQUE VALLE (Brazil) said he supported the mainstreaming of human rights into the work of all United Nations departments, funds, programmes and agencies. Mainstreaming also had to give full consideration to the promotion of the right to development, to a people-centred approach towards development, to the promotion of equal rights and status for women, to the participatory process in decision-making, to involvement in civil society in technical cooperation projects, and to the promotion of universal adherence to international human rights instruments.

The five-year review of the implementation of the Vienna Programme had one major priority, he said. It needed to look at persistent impediments to implementing what was considered the high priority area of international cooperation in the integrated promotion of democracy, development and respect for human rights. Efforts were notable, but the level of resources for technical cooperation was not commensurate with the needs and the growing

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demand for assistance on the part of developing countries everywhere who were undergoing a vigorous process of consolidating democracy.

ALEXEY ROGOV (Russian Federation) said that for consistent and comprehensive implementation of the Vienna Declaration, there had to be a recognition that the recommendations were a result of a global decision, and they should not now be changed. He commended the efforts of the High Commissioner for Human Rights for mainstreaming human rights, especially those of women.

Particularly important for integrated implementation of the Declaration was the need to develop a special mechanism between the central United Nations machinery and those of the regional bodies, he said. Of highest priority for concerted effort were the elimination of extreme poverty and the eradication of racism. United Nations agencies should expand their activities in the area of considering added coordination mechanisms, with an emphasis on strengthening the interaction between the central and the regional United Nations bodies. The practical realization of that improved interaction would be based on an analysis of experience and a study of models.

KERSTIN TRONE, Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said the current human rights framework recognized that all human beings had the same rights. It also states that women must be free to make choices of their own and to make decisions concerning their reproductive and sexual health, free from discrimination, coercion and violence. The UNFPA, together with other United Nations system partners and non-governmental organizations, had underscored the importance of respecting and enforcing the range of civil, political, social, economic and cultural rights that were essential for achieving sustainable development. The Fund had also called attention to the situation of the girl child and the need to eliminate the asymmetry of opportunities between girls and boys. The UNFPA had underscored women's rights to health and to education, free of violence. Laws pertaining to women's inheritance rights and their right to own property must be observed and enforced.

She went on to say that the Fund also had sponsored workshops and various advocacy efforts to eliminate female genital mutilation and other harmful practices. As part of its advocacy campaign, the UNFPA named two special ambassadors to speak out against female genital mutilation, and to advocate for reproductive rights, gender equality and the empowerment of women. As part of capacity-building, the UNFPA, together with other United Nations partners, would organize training programmes for mainstreaming human rights in sectoral programming. It also would support efforts to devise appropriate and sensitive indicators so that countries could track progress being made in promoting a culture of human rights.

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NINA SIBAL, representative of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), said the Director-General of UNESCO signed in 1995 a memorandum of understanding with the High Commissioner for Human Rights. It established the framework for closer cooperation between the two organizations in the field of human rights and, in particular, in the implementation of the Plan of Action of the Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004). In order to encourage human rights and peace, UNESCO established relevant prizes. Those were awarded to individuals and institutions having made an outstanding contribution to education and training in those fields.

An active role in promoting education for human rights was played by the network of UNESCO Chairs on Human Rights, Democracy and Peace, she said. There were now 30 chairs in 27 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America. Those chairs were established to promote an integrated system of research, training and information activities and to facilitate subregional and regional cooperation between researchers and teachers. At UNESCO's initiative, the General Assembly in 1991 proclaimed 3 May as World Press Freedom Day. Throughout the world, that Day served as an occasion to inform the public of violations of the right to freedom of expression, and was a reminder that many journalists braved death or jail to bring people their daily news.

DANILO TÜRK (Slovenia) said there were profound structural causes for inadequate realization of human rights. Many could not be successfully addressed with existing tools, but there were good reasons to believe the United Nations system could perform better. There were numerous suggestions to keep in mind.

It was essential to preserve and strengthen the human rights instruments developed thus far, he said. Also, in situations where peacekeeping or other Security Council-led operations took place, the human rights component should be introduced at the right time through an assertive role of the Council. Another important area was to establish an independent and credible judiciary within States at their request, along with appropriate national institutions.

Finally, the United Nations human rights bodies had to give more attention to the implementation of economic, social and cultural rights, and they had to develop and adopt agreed sets of indicators to measure progress. They also had to find ways of influencing the actual economic and social policies of States. Otherwise, development would become a playground of blind globalization forces that had already been proven to be unable to guarantee a future worthy of humankind. JANIS PRIEDKALNS (Latvia) said international interchange of technical knowledge and experience through international cooperation clearly represented one of the means by which it was possible to promote human rights objectives. Such co-operation had been highly effective in Latvia, and its continuation was of utmost importance for developing effective coordination of human rights polices.

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The cornerstone of the Latvian national programme for protection and promotion of human tights was the Human Rights Office, he said. That had been established since 1992. A law recently passed by Parliament gave the Office the mandate to raise awareness of human rights, inquire into allegations of abuses, investigate issues, and advise on compliance and core programmes. That independent guarantee of human rights for Latvians had come about because of a great coordination between United Nations bodies and governments.

LEE SWEPTSON, Chief of the Equality and Human Rights Coordination Branch of the International Labour Organization (ILO), said the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work was recently adopted. That represented an acknowledgement by all ILO member States that there were certain fundamental principles that must be promoted. The follow-up to the Declaration would commit the ILO to carrying out an annual examination of its technical assistance activities in the light of its principles and standards on human rights. It would also focus those activities on the implementation of the fundamental principles whenever the need appeared. In addition, the follow-up would provide a framework for the ILO to call on other international actors for cooperation whenever a party's needs went beyond the ILO's capacity to provide assistance.

He said the ILO believed in close collaboration with the treaty bodies and operational sectors of the United Nations system in order to maintain a single and coherent system of international human rights law. The ILO met regularly with each of the treaty bodies to provide detailed information on its standards and activities. For example, there was close collaboration between the ILO and the Committee on the Rights of the Child, as well as with UNICEF. That collaboration would become even closer after the expected adoption next summer of the proposed new ILO Convention on the worst forms of child labour. In addition, the ILO had been holding consultations with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the need to ensure that basic workers' rights were taken into account in their operational activities.

JEAN-JACQUES GRAISSE, Assistant Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP), said the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action reaffirmed the right to development as a universal right and an integral part of human rights. In that context, the WFP considered access to adequate levels of food a prerequisite for the exercise of the right to development and the enjoyment of human rights in general. Hunger was a constraint to development and trapped the poor in a vicious inter-generational cycle that perpetuated poverty and delayed the realization of human rights. In providing food aid, the WFP helped to address the root causes of hunger, particularly by building assets and promoting the self-reliance of poor people and their communities. The Programme sought to empower people living in poverty to participate in the decision-making processes that affected them.

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For food aid to be truly effective, he said, it should be fully integrated into the development plans and priorities of recipient countries. It also should be coordinated with other forms of assistance. No single agency or programme had either the resources or capacity to deal with the many dimensions of hunger and poverty. Therefore, the WFP attached great importance into forging partnerships with donors, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations in support of poverty eradication strategies. The poor deserved a chance for development. The first step was to relieve them of their hunger, which would pave the way for their full enjoyment of human rights.

JENNIFER SCHENSE, of Human Rights Watch, said one of the most significant steps the United Nations system should take to guarantee human rights was to ensure implementation of the recommendations of the human rights monitoring mechanisms. They produced prescient recommendations warning of dangerous trends, and they suggested concrete steps for avoiding further violations. Rwanda was a dramatic example of the failure to follow up on such recommendations.

The question of implementation should be taken up as early as possible and should be maintained throughout the process of research, country visits, and publication of the results of the work, she said. The High Commissioner for Human Rights should play the central role in communicating the recommendations to relevant actors and in otherwise coordinating the response of the United Nations system. That could be accomplished only if the High Commissioner and representatives of the special procedures had complete and unimpeded access to the other organs of the United Nations system, including the Security Council, to bring the human rights issues to light in a timely way.

IAIN LEVINE, of Amnesty International, said the process of mainstreaming human rights within all activities of the United Nations was embryonic, but it represented a genuine opportunity to demonstrate the importance of respect for human rights in relation to peace, security and development. For example, in an economic or political crisis, or in post-conflict reconstruction, the human rights impact on international financial institution activities was significant.

The human rights approach could have a major impact on preventing and resolving conflicts and crises, and on recovering from them, he said. The Security Council's reluctance to recognize the crucial importance of human rights when considering country situations was of deep concern. All country reports before the Security Council should include an analysis of the human rights situation.

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