biodiversity

Human rights and human security

In the 1990s, the world witnessed some of the worst violations of human rights. In country after country, innocent civilians became targets of unprecedented terror, often led by armed groups who demonstrated scant regard for human life and human values. In some cases, the Governments were unable to protect their own civilians; in others, the Governments themselves took part in attacking civilians, especially minority ethnic groups. From Angola and Sierra Leone to Bosnia and Kosovo to East Timor, millions have been killed; over 30 million have been displaced; countless men, women and children have been denied some of the most fundamental human rights.

What should be done when faced with such humanitarian crises?

Secretary-General Kofi Annan says the United Nations – and the international community – cannot accept a situation where people are brutalized behind national boundaries. "A United Nations that will not stand up for human rights is a United Nations that cannot stand up for itself. We know where our mission for human rights begins and ends: with the individual and his or her universal and inalienable rights -- to speak, to act, to grow, to learn and to live according to his or her own conscience," he said.

To address the new humanitarian challenges, in a report to the Security Council submitted in September 1999, the Secretary-General proposed specific recommendations for consideration by the Member States, including:

Ratification and implementation of international instruments: He urged Member States to ratify the major instruments of international humanitarian law, human rights law and refugee law, and to adhere to them.
Accountability for war crimes: When Governments or groups fail to comply with such international humanitarian law, enforcement measures should be considered. He asked the Member States to ratify the Statute of the International Criminal Court.
Minimum age of recruitment in the armed forces: He asked the Member States to support raising the minimum age for recruitment in the armed forces to 18
Intervention in cases of systematic violations of international law: He asked the Member States to consider appropriate enforcement action in the face of massive and ongoing abuses.

Human rights and development

"'the human person is the central subject of the development process and …development policy should therefore make the human being the main participant and beneficiary of development.'"

"Poverty limits human freedoms and deprives a person of dignity," says the 2000 Human Development Report published the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). This statement only re-emphasized what has already been clearly stated by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), the Declaration on the Right to Development (1986) and the Vienna Declaration adopted at the 1993 Human Rights Conference.

To quote the General Assembly Declaration on Development, "the human person is the central subject of the development process and …development policy should therefore make the human being the main participant and beneficiary of development." Yet, at a time of unprecedented economic growth, more than a billion people live in abject poverty; almost 800 million people suffer from malnutrition, 140 million school age children do not go to school; and 900 million adults are illiterate. Of a total world labour force of some 3 billion, 140 million workers are out of work altogether, and a quarter to a third are underemployed.

"With that kind of deprivation comes pain, powerlessness, despair and lack of fundamental freedom – all of which, in turn, perpetuate poverty" (Secretary-General Kofi Annan in his Millennium Report).

"The torture of a single individual raises unmitigated public outrage. Yet the deaths of 3,000 children a day -- mainly from preventable causes -- go almost unnoticed. Why? Because these children are invisible in poverty" (Human Development Report, 2000, UNDP).

"The link between poverty and the enjoyment of human rights is very clear and strong: The poor are denied almost all their human rights – the right to adequate housing, primary health care, education and food – not to mention the normal benefits of citizenship – fair legal treatment and access to justice, participation in the decisions that affect the poor, access to information and technology" (Mary Robinson, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights).
The answer to this daily violation of human rights is creation of a rights-based approach to development. It consists of, in the words of Mrs. Robinson, "integrating the long-established framework of norms, standards and principles of the international human rights system into the plans, policies and process of poverty reduction." Such an approach seeks to address the causes of poverty and proposes solutions by identifying rights holders and duty bearers.

One of the ways the United Nations has tried to respond to this need is by setting specific goals and working towards achieving them. In each of the major world conferences held in the 1990s, the United Nations set such goals and subsequently took stock of progress made. Based on the experience of the past years and through close collaboration with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations has now come up with seven specific goals to be achieved between the years 2000 and 2015. The goals, outlined in a report entitled "2000: For a better world," are as follows:

Reduce the proportion of people living in extreme poverty by half between 1990 and 2015
Enroll all children in primary school by 2015;
Make progress towards gender equality and empowering women by eliminating gender disparities in primary and secondary education by 2005;
Reduce infant and child mortality ratios by two-thirds between 1990 and 2015;
Reduce maternal mortality ratios by three-quarters between 1990 and 2015;
Provide access for all who need reproductive health services by 2015;
Implement national strategies for sustainable development by 2005 so as to reverse the loss of environmental resources by 2015.

In the words of Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the goals are not utopian. They are ambitious, but achievable. "To reach them, we will need to work hard."

This is also the message of his Millennium Report.

Signs of progress

The ratification of the Children's Rights Convention by nearly every country on earth since its adoption by the General Assembly in 1989 has made it the most ratified human rights treaty in history. Marked changes are occurring in its implementation. At least 22 countries have incorporated children’s rights in their constitutions. More than 50 countries have a process of law review to ensure compatibility with the Convention’s provisions. Parliaments in Brazil, South Africa and Sri Lanka have enacted legislation and national budgets to more clearly identify allocations for children. Such harmful traditional practice as genital mutilation is now banned in a number of West African states, including Burkina Faso and Senegal. Corporal punishment of children in schools and in the family is prohibited in Austria, Cyprus and the Nordic countries.

Two new Optional Protocols to the Children's Convention have been adopted. One is on the involvement of children in armed conflict. It raises from 15 to 18 years the age at which participation in armed conflicts will be permitted and establishes a ban on compulsory recruitment below 18 years. The second relates to the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography. It gives special emphasis to the criminalization of serious violations of children's rights - namely sale of children, illegal adoption, child prostitution and pornography.

CEDAW’s new optional protocol allows individuals to claim remedies for violations of Convention rights.

Non-governmental organizations can now submit "shadow reports" – alternative statements to supplement State submissions – to all human rights treaty bodies.

The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda found Jean-Paul Akayesu guilty of the crime of genocide, making him the first person ever found guilty of the crime of genocide by an international tribunal.

Efforts are under way to set up a tribunal to deal with crimes against humanity committed by Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. Secretary-General Kofi Annan has recommended that any such tribunal should have an international character.

Several major multinational corporations have joined with the United Nations in a "Global Compact", agreeing to respect fundamental human rights, labour rights and environmental norms everywhere, including in countries where such rights are not fully upheld.

The seven freedoms

In an important contribution to the rights-based approach to development, the 2000 Human Development Report, prepared by the United Nations Development Programme, lists seven freedoms which all people have the right to enjoy:

Freedom from discrimination - Women, racial and ethnic groups have suffered violent discrimination. While the struggles against deep prejudices have brought many gains in freedom, the war is not yet over for the billions still suffering from discrimination.
Freedom from want - There is enough food, but distribution inequities still account for hunger and malnutrition. National and global economic systems have to honour obligations to those humiliated by want
Freedom for personal development - Fundamental changes are occurring in the communications and information industries, and at near lightening speed. The opportunities afforded for personal development through technological changes are enormous. But a digital divide still exists in the world. Information is different and must be accessible to those who need and want it. We are all impoverished if the poor are denied opportunities to make a living. And it is within our power to extend these opportunities to all.
Freedom from threats to personal security - The frequency of torture in history provides a tragic indicator of the evil that lurks in the hearts of people. The elimination of torture, and the national and international prosecution of those who engage in it, are central to the continuing struggle for the freedom of personal security. And when rape is the issue, institutions and values that deny dignity and protection to women must be accountable.
Freedom for participation - The global gains in democracy are still very recent. Active involvement in civic institutions and unprecedented access to information and knowledge by all will enhance fundamental political freedoms.
Freedom from injustice - Securing this freedom will require institutions that protect people through transparent rules applied equally to all. Social institutions must be based on legitimacy, consent and rule of law.
Freedom for productive work - Much has been achieved in protecting children and improving the working conditions of adults. Many enjoy this freedom but millions toil in inhumane conditions while others feel socially excluded by lack of work. Dignity demands a commitment to including the ostracized and abolishing oppressive working conditions.