Implementing the rights of the poor
In 1998 the UN created the post of Independent Expert on Extreme Poverty and floated the idea of a Declaration on human rights and extreme poverty. In 2001 the Commission on Human Rights (now the Human Rights Council) decided to issue guiding principles on the implementation of existing human rights norms in the fight against extreme poverty, rather than a new declaration as such.
And so, in August last year, a draft text was adopted of 48 Guiding Principles on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights: The Rights of the Poor. The Guiding Principles are intended for all nations everywhere, since poverty exists in all countries of the world.
It calls for better accountability of governments through target-setting with specific indicators. It calls for periodic reporting by governments, with their progress evaluated by impoverished people themselves. It calls for legal sanctions for failure to alleviate poverty, whether by deliberate action or through neglect. And it calls for human rights education “to promote non-discrimination against persons living in poverty” (Art. 17).
The Guiding Principles also expect NGOs to adhere to human rights and these guidelines for their implementation. It says NGOs are “duty-bound to make their programmes public, disclose their working methods and objectives as well as their funding, and account for their activities” (Art. 45).
The UN Human Rights Council is currently seeking feedback from governments and NGOs on its draft Guiding Principles on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights, with responses due by the end of this month. So read the Principles and make your submission to Geneva now:
Mr Mac Darrow, Coordinator
MDGs and Right to Development Unit
Research and Right to Development Branch
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland
Fax: + 41 22 917 9008
