UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHT COUNCIL Extreme poverty and human rights 1
Fellow Delegates, It is a pleasure to welcome you to Change The World Model United Nations New York City (16-18 March 2018). Those pages intend to help you researching the topic that will be debated at CWMUN NYC 2018 during Committee Sessions (Human Rights Council). This guide is meant to provide the basis for your investigation and you are asked to do a further research to find as much information necessary on the topic and how they relate to the country you represent. Those information are meant to help you write your Position Paper in which you have to cite all the references. Please note the less information and understanding you acquire on the topic, the less you will be able to influence the Resolution writing process through debates (moderate and un-moderate caucuses), and CWMUN experience itself. CWMUN staff encourages you to make the most of it by studying and researching the topic and your country, not just to win a prize but first to open your mind by exploring the world. Enjoy researching and writing your Position Paper! N.B. As a background guide this document has to keep it simple. For further knowledge please check links below Bibliography and Further Reference. 2
United Nations Human Right Council In order to protect and promote human rights worldwide the United Nations created the Human Right Council which is an intergovernmental body which meets at the UN office in Geneva, Switzerland. HRC s task is to help member states meet their human rights obligations through dialogue, capacity building, and technical assistance. The Council also makes recommendations to the General Assembly for further development of international law in the field of human rights. History of the Human Rights Council 15 March 2006: created by the United Nations General Assembly on 15 March 2006 by resolution 60/251. 19-30 June 2006: Committee s first session (A/61/53(SUPP)) http://www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies/hrc/regularsessions/session1/pages/firstregul arsession.aspx October 2009: at its 12th session, the Council established an open-ended intergovernmental working group on the review of the work and functioning of the Human Rights Council (by resolution 12/1). Please note: the Human Rights Council replaced the former United Nations Commission on Human Rights. 3
Current Membership of The Human Right Council In accordance with paragraph 7 of General Assembly resolution 60/251 the Council shall consist of 47 Member States, which shall be elected directly and individually by secret ballot by the majority of the members of the General Assembly. Membership criteria were established by UNGA Resolution 60/251, which requires members to uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights and to fully cooperate with the Council.. The membership shall be based on equitable geographical distribution, and seats shall be distributed as follows among regional groups: African States (13), Asia-Pacific States (13), Eastern European States (6) Latin American and Caribbean States (8), Group of Western European and other States (7). The members of the Council shall serve for a period of three years and shall not be eligible for immediate re-election after two consecutive terms. On October 16, 2017 Human Rights Council elections were held in NYC and it is necessary to wait until January 2018 for the results. Current Membership of the Human Rights Council, 1 January - 31 December 2017: http://www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies/hrc/pages/membersbygroup.aspx Please check HRC s current members for 2017/2018 as soon as they will be public and uploaded on HRC s official website. 4
TOPIC: Extreme Poverty and Human Rights What human rights have to do with extreme poverty? Everything: there are clear rights to be able to live in dignity and to enjoy decent standards of living, to get access to education, healthcare etc. This is shown with empirical evidence in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Art 25 1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control. Art 26 1) Everyone has the right to education [ ] Universal Declaration of Human Rights proves that it would be a huge mistake to consider human rights on one side and poverty on the other: the biggest single challenge is to convey the sense that poverty itself is a violation of human rights. Poverty is a complex, multifaceted condition, which is only exacerbated and perpetuated by measures that directly or indirectly punish, segregate, control and 5
undermine the autonomy of persons living in poverty. Therefore for those living in poverty many human rights are out of reach. Often States invoke grounds of public safety, health or security in an attempt to justify the restriction of human rights through penalization measures which do nothing to tackle the root causes of poverty and social exclusion but, by contrast, greatly increase the inability of State to comply with their obligations to respect, protect and fulfill human rights. In order to break this vicious circle HRC suggested to States to take positive measures to bring down the legal, economic, social and administrative barriers that persons living in poverty face in gaining access to food, shelter, employment, education and health services so that they can feel part of an inclusive community. Any restriction on the enjoyment of human rights by those living in poverty must comply with several safeguards on a legal level as stated by International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (arts 18, 19, 21 and 22) and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (art. 4) according to which any limitation must complain with numerous safeguards. Furthermore HRC suggests, in accordance with International Covenant on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination, to fight discrimination and penalization of the poorest in order to protect them from the violation of their rights by third parties by promoting measures such as: Educational programs Ethical journalism (i.e. end the negative portrayal of persons living in poverty) Legislative measures that guarantee poor people s rights when they come in contact with both public and private entities. Concerning discrimination HRC underlines that a socio-economic situation such as poverty shall not be a discriminant especially when it comes to torture, or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment as stated in Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. 6
Last but not least HRC recognizes and stress the importance of education when it comes to fight poverty. Actually education as a fundamental right (art. 26 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, art. 28 Convention on the Rights of the Child) plays a huge role in this game: empirical evidence shows a close link between family income and the education of children (General Assembly, 9 August 2010, A/65/259). Social protection programs often increase demand for education, therefore contributing to the realization of the right to education. Empirical evidence shows a close link between family income and the education of children. Several studies indicate a strong positive correlation between a family s vulnerability to economic shocks and a child s early entry into the labor market and reduced school attendance. A family that experiences a severe shock, for example, may have to remove a child from school in order to send him or her to work. Evidence from Latin America suggests that greater family access to risk management instruments, such as unemployment benefits or disability benefits, directly reduces the prevalence of child labor. Past actions taken by UN and International Community In human history it has been shown through empirical evidence that poverty and sickness are part of the same vicious circle. As a matter of facts by the end of 2013 Guinea was the protagonist of a public health crisis which spread through West Africa. UN helped by sending medical and financial aid but took also the opportunity to rebuild economies, support health sector and promoting peace and stability to prevent future crises. The work mostly regarded initiatives to eliminate health risks through early warning systems and decentralize decision making by supporting small business. It is important to remember that safeguard health should be mandatory considering Universal Declaration of Human Rights (art. 25). Regarding rural poverty a huge role has been played by the International Fund for Agricultural Development which provided over $100 million to improve food security and enhance living conditions especially in regions such as Democratic Republic of Congo, Swaziland and Kenya. As well as regarding health the UN decided to fight 7
rural poverty through sustainable development programs on alternative development (Perù, Laos, Thailand, projects held by UNODC). Year by year it has become clear and evident that it is necessary to recognize the full potential of education as a catalyst for development. Keeping in mind that education is a human right (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, art.26), in September 2012 UN launched Global Education first initiative which focuses on three priorities: putting every child in school, improving the quality of learning, and fostering global citizenship. It is a multi-stakeholder advocacy effort and rallying point for partners to make commitments and mobilize resources to support global education efforts. Possible Solutions 1. Summarizing priority actions on poverty eradication include: 2. improving access to sustainable livelihoods, entrepreneurial opportunities and productive resources; 3. providing universal access to basic social services; 4. progressively developing social protection systems to support those who cannot support themselves; 5. empowering people living in poverty and their organizations; 6. addressing the disproportionate impact of poverty on women; 7. intensifying international cooperation for poverty eradication. N. B. (Essential!): for a further knowledge on Possible Solutions this Guide strongly suggests that you read the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development which aims to end poverty in all its forms everywhere : http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=a/69/700&lang=e Questions to consider when writing the Position Paper Which issues raise from the topic? How those issues relate with your country s policy? 8
What aspects are more relevant for your country? What did your country/international community (especially HRC) do regarding the topic? What has been your country s contribution (regarding the topic) on a national level? What can your country suggest in the future in order to definitely address the topic? Which nations would support your solutions? Which arguments could you use to persuade the international community? Committee: History Bibliography and Further Reference: http://www.un.org/news/dh/infocus/hr_council/hr_q_and_a.htm http://www2.ohchr.org/english/press/hrc/kit/qa.pdf http://www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies/hrc/pages/aboutcouncil.aspx http://www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies/hrc/pages/hrcreview.aspx Current Membership of the Human Right Council: http://www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies/hrc/pages/membership.aspx http://www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies/hrc/pages/currentmembers.aspx GENERAL ASSEMBLY, 3 April 2006, A/RES/60/251: https://documents-ddsny.un.org/doc/undoc/gen/n05/502/66/pdf/n0550266.pdf?openelement https://www.unwatch.org/un-watch-report-electing-2018-2020-members-u-n-humanrights-council/ 9
Topic: I. Extreme Poverty and Human Rights http://www.ohchr.org/documents/publications/ohchr_extremepovertyandhumanri ghts_en.pdf http://www.ohchr.org/en/issues/poverty/dimensionofpoverty/pages/index.aspx http://www.ohchr.org/en/issues/poverty/pages/srextremepovertyindex.aspx Former resolutions you may find useful for you Position and Paper and better knowledge of the topic: http://www.ohchr.org/en/issues/poverty/pages/resolutions.aspx Useful videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsfrgp0niia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yot1bqej_ 10