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Access to justice for people living in poverty 2012, para. 96
- Paragraph text
- [States should:]
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- Although a report as brief as this can only skim the historical surface, at least five factors ensured that social protection in general, and the right to social security in particular, were of marginal importance for most of the twentieth century. First, the artificial and in some respects arbitrary division of the concept of human rights into two different categories of rights governed by very different assumptions, condemned economic and social rights to second-class status for much of this period. Second, the often proclaimed interdependence and indivisibility of the two sets of rights resolutely failed to address in practice the fact that individuals living in extreme poverty were unable to realize effectively many of their civil and political rights. Third, the mistaken notion that civil and political rights are largely costless, while economic and social rights are inevitably extremely costly, was used to legitimize the assumption that social security was a quintessentially costly right and thus only really of relevance to rich countries. Fourth, where it was officially accepted, social security was largely conceptualized as a tool for protecting workers in the public sector and in the formal sector more generally. Thus only minimal efforts were made to develop a more inclusive notion that built upon both formal and informal structures and processes to ensure that all persons were covered by some type of security arrangement. Fifth, many of those problems were exacerbated by the impact of the cold war on the human rights framework. A sixth factor was the extent to which individual United Nations agencies claimed different issues as their own and sought to develop forms of exclusive jurisdictional competence. Under that scheme, social security "belonged" to ILO. The rest of the United Nations system thus more or less kept away from the issue, except in the most general terms. That also meant that, some official rhetoric notwithstanding, the United Nations human rights system developed in relative isolation from what should have been the closely related work of a number of the specialized agencies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- The emergence of the Social Protection Floor Initiative at the international level has been well documented. In telegraphic form, most analyses begin with the harsh adjustment policies associated with the "Washington Consensus" of the 1980s, the reaction to those policies by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other actors, the World Summit for Social Development in 1995, the poverty reduction strategies championed by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), starting in the late 1990s, and the focus on poverty in the Millennium Development Goals. Social security then began to re-emerge as a priority concern, thanks in large part to the engagement of ILO. It launched a global campaign on social security in 2003, followed by the World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization in 2004, along with a series of other steps endorsed by the International Labour Conference.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 15
- Paragraph text
- While tracing the history of the evolution of the concept of social protection floors through the lens of international organizations is a common approach in the literature, it must be observed that it is both surprisingly ahistorical and gives insufficient weight to the political economy that facilitated the evolution of support for it. It is ahistorical especially to the extent that it underestimates the gradual and cumulative ways in which national initiatives, especially in developing countries, created the conditions in which pioneering national programmes could emerge. Those programmes often ran in very different directions from the policies being advocated by the international community. Since the late 1990s, a diverse range of countries in the global South have developed innovative programmes for social protection, which look very different from the more traditional approaches developed in the North.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- Important initiatives include Bolsa Familia and Brasil Sem Miséria in Brazil, Oportunidades in Mexico, Asignación Universal por Hijo para protección social in Argentina, a social transfer scheme in Zambia, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in India, the Productive Safety Nets programme in Ethiopia, a universal pension scheme in Namibia and the provision of universal access to basic health services in Thailand. The programme in Brazil has grown from covering 3.6 million families in 2003 to 13.8 million in 2012, while a solidarity-based pension system in Chile went from 560,000 beneficiaries in 2008 to 1.1 million in 2012. In China, the Di bao reforms aim to create social insurance and assistance programmes to protect the entire population against economic insecurity and physical infirmity. Overall, there has, as the World Bank observes, been "an exponential growth in social safety nets, especially cash-based programs".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 23a
- Paragraph text
- [At the international level, definitional issues continue to be controversial, especially in terms of whether social protection floors should be seen as a matter of human rights and whether they should be universal and unconditional. Before examining those dimensions, it is appropriate to take note of the approach reflected in ILO recommendation No. 202. As the culmination of many initiatives, both within and well beyond the ILO context, it has become the principal benchmark against which social protection floors should be designed, implemented and evaluated. The main elements of recommendation No. 202 are as follows:] The recommendation rests on a strong foundation of international human rights law, which is relatively unusual for ILO instruments. In addition to specific references to various provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, it calls upon States to respect "the rights and dignity of people covered by the social security guarantees";
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 23b
- Paragraph text
- [At the international level, definitional issues continue to be controversial, especially in terms of whether social protection floors should be seen as a matter of human rights and whether they should be universal and unconditional. Before examining those dimensions, it is appropriate to take note of the approach reflected in ILO recommendation No. 202. As the culmination of many initiatives, both within and well beyond the ILO context, it has become the principal benchmark against which social protection floors should be designed, implemented and evaluated. The main elements of recommendation No. 202 are as follows:] Social protection floors are nationally defined, in a participatory manner, and reflect national priorities while respecting principles such as non-discrimination, gender equality and social inclusion;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 23c
- Paragraph text
- [At the international level, definitional issues continue to be controversial, especially in terms of whether social protection floors should be seen as a matter of human rights and whether they should be universal and unconditional. Before examining those dimensions, it is appropriate to take note of the approach reflected in ILO recommendation No. 202. As the culmination of many initiatives, both within and well beyond the ILO context, it has become the principal benchmark against which social protection floors should be designed, implemented and evaluated. The main elements of recommendation No. 202 are as follows:] Protection is to be universal, rather than selective and is to be aimed at "preventing or alleviating poverty, vulnerability and social exclusion";
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 23d
- Paragraph text
- [At the international level, definitional issues continue to be controversial, especially in terms of whether social protection floors should be seen as a matter of human rights and whether they should be universal and unconditional. Before examining those dimensions, it is appropriate to take note of the approach reflected in ILO recommendation No. 202. As the culmination of many initiatives, both within and well beyond the ILO context, it has become the principal benchmark against which social protection floors should be designed, implemented and evaluated. The main elements of recommendation No. 202 are as follows:] Social protection floors should include at least basic social security guarantees for health care and also for income security for children, older persons and those unable to work, in particular in cases of sickness, unemployment, maternity, and disability;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 23e
- Paragraph text
- [At the international level, definitional issues continue to be controversial, especially in terms of whether social protection floors should be seen as a matter of human rights and whether they should be universal and unconditional. Before examining those dimensions, it is appropriate to take note of the approach reflected in ILO recommendation No. 202. As the culmination of many initiatives, both within and well beyond the ILO context, it has become the principal benchmark against which social protection floors should be designed, implemented and evaluated. The main elements of recommendation No. 202 are as follows:] The basic guarantees should be established by law;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 23f
- Paragraph text
- [At the international level, definitional issues continue to be controversial, especially in terms of whether social protection floors should be seen as a matter of human rights and whether they should be universal and unconditional. Before examining those dimensions, it is appropriate to take note of the approach reflected in ILO recommendation No. 202. As the culmination of many initiatives, both within and well beyond the ILO context, it has become the principal benchmark against which social protection floors should be designed, implemented and evaluated. The main elements of recommendation No. 202 are as follows:] Implementation should be monitored regularly and periodically evaluated;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 23g
- Paragraph text
- [At the international level, definitional issues continue to be controversial, especially in terms of whether social protection floors should be seen as a matter of human rights and whether they should be universal and unconditional. Before examining those dimensions, it is appropriate to take note of the approach reflected in ILO recommendation No. 202. As the culmination of many initiatives, both within and well beyond the ILO context, it has become the principal benchmark against which social protection floors should be designed, implemented and evaluated. The main elements of recommendation No. 202 are as follows:] While social protection floors should be financed by national resources, international support should be available when needed.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- The health-care guarantees of social protection floors have been greatly reinforced by a separate but closely linked initiative emerging from WHO to promote universal health coverage. That concept has been defined in a way that makes it directly compatible with and complementary to the Social Protection Floor Initiative and was endorsed by the General Assembly in resolution 67/81. In elaborating on this concept, the World Health Assembly has consistently made reference to the right to health, underlined the centrality of universal health care in the post-2015 agenda and emphasized the "the importance of accountability through regular assessment of progress".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 26
- Paragraph text
- The report of the Social Protection Floor Advisory Group was especially critical of the Bank's approach and its critiques are still largely pertinent today. In the report, the Advisory Group noted that: In the social safety net approach, social policies were considered as residual to economic development. The implementation of such measures was driven by the need to provide relief to the poor and vulnerable during structural reform by cushioning the effects of the structural adjustments and facilitating political support to them. These measures were generally temporary, fragmented and targeted to the poor and vulnerable in a needs-based framework.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- In an effort to bridge the gap, the Advisory Group urged the Bank to cooperate with ILO and the United Nations on the Social Protection Floor Initiative. The Bank was initially responsive and its major strategy document in 2012 proclaimed an "emerging global consensus" in this area, noting that its "strategy and engagement" were consistent with the "core principles" of the Initiative. Although that was considered to be a significant development, the strategy itself demonstrated rather little substantive engagement with the Initiative. In 2014, the Bank issued the first in what was described as a series of major reports on social safety nets, thus making clear where its future work would continue to focus. The report appeared simultaneously with the new ILO flagship report on social protection floors and, while situating safety nets within what it calls the broader context of social protection, the word "floor" does not appear even once, let alone "social protection floor".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- While the Bank has participated in the deliberations of the Social Protection Inter-Agency Cooperation Board, recent developments appear to confirm that it is doing so very largely on its own terms, built around risk management and safety nets, and remains reluctant to buy in to the Social Protection Floor Initiative in a meaningful way. Its response to that remark would doubtless be to point to the fact that 870 million of the 1.2 billion people living in extreme poverty, as defined by the Bank, are not covered even by safety nets. Under those circumstances, surely it is only prudent to begin with minimum aspirations? However, the Initiative envisages a gradual ratcheting up of aspirations, rather than the immediate introduction of full-blown social protection floors in low- or medium-income countries.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- It must also be acknowledged that even within the United Nations family, there are significant differences in approach. A recent report on social protection floors by the United Nations Development Group explicitly acknowledged such differences and sought to downplay the consequences. It began by acknowledging that social protection occupies different positions within United Nations organizations' mandates and agendas, resulting in "different working definitions and components" being used. But it went on to note, reassuringly and in terms similar to those used by the World Bank, that United Nations organizations nevertheless "have much in common in terms of the desired objectives, principles, and approaches to social protection".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- The Social Protection Floor Initiative is not merely relevant to human rights; it is firmly rooted within the rights framework. In its report, the Social Protection Floor Advisory Group described the basic concept as being anchored in shared principles of social justice and in the human rights to social security and to an adequate standard of living. In terms of legal foundations, it added that: "The right of individuals to provision by way of social protection is articulated specifically in a number of international instruments, notably the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Cultural and Social Rights." ILO recommendation No. 202 is very specific in "reaffirming that the right to social security is a human right" and in underscoring the relevance of articles 22 and 25 of the Declaration and articles 9, 11, and 12 of the Covenant.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- The fact that none of these instruments refers per se to a "right to social protection" raises the question as to whether it should be considered an existing human right, or a new one. In the past, States have understandably been very sensitive about claims that new rights have emerged without requiring specific endorsement by the international community. In this instance, the standard approach of commentators is best summed up in the formulation that: "Social protection is a human right, enshrined in multiple sources of international law." In other words, no claims are needed for novelty, nor is it necessary to argue that the whole is more than the sum of the parts. The right to social protection is thus no more than a combination of the right to social security and the right to an adequate standard of living. Nevertheless, the packaging of those two rights into a single concept is important, both because it highlights the synergy between them and facilitates the development of a package of measures to achieve their shared objectives.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 36
- Paragraph text
- Another dimension which is of considerable importance, especially in making the case to those who are involved in implementing and monitoring the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, is the extent to which the approach embodied in the Social Protection Floor Initiative mirrors that adopted in relation to the Covenant. Four examples will suffice: first, progressive realization is the standard set in the Covenant and is also the approach adopted by the proponents of the Initiative. As one proponent of the latter has noted "the case for universalism needs to be framed in ways that do not set up false dichotomies or unrealistic expectations."
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- Third, the Initiative, as reflected in ILO recommendation No. 202 closely mirrors the view expressed by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in its general comment No. 3 (1990) on the nature of States parties' obligations that "a minimum core obligation to ensure the satisfaction of, at the very least, minimum essential levels of each of the rights is incumbent upon every State party." While the minimum core concept has been developed primarily at the national level in the context of judicial approaches, the original intention of the Committee was that a minimum core would be set at the national level by the political authorities and its adequacy would subsequently be subjected to political contestation through the exercise of civil and political rights by those affected.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- Just as human rights require recognition by law, so too has the Social Protection Floor Initiative emphasized the importance of entrenching the social protection right in national laws and regulations. That dimension has been well captured by the United Nations Development Group: Obligations and entitlements to social protection benefits should be specified in a precise manner, so as to clearly delineate the rights and duties of residents and contributors. To ensure the predictability and sustainability of social protection provisions, laws and regulations should be designed and enforced to support all social protection schemes and services.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 42
- Paragraph text
- Social security and social protection have long been dismissed as unaffordable aspirations, particularly in low-income countries. One of the major contributions of the Initiative is that it has addressed in extensive detail the ways in which all countries can potentially afford to put such a programme in place. The most recent and extensive treatment of this issue is contained in the ILO World Social Protection Report 2014/15 and it is not proposed to repeat or challenge that analysis here. It must suffice to say that affordability is certainly crucial to the prospects of success of the Initiative and that the lengths to which its proponents have gone to demonstrate that dimension is impressive.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- Proponents of the Initiative have also attached great weight to instrumentalist arguments that suggest a compelling economic pay-off from social protection. The United Nations Development Group, for example, has argued that social protection "is essentially an investment in human capital, which will contribute to greater labour productivity and pro-poor economic growth in the long run" and in the Human Development Report 2014 the authors have noted that "by providing an additional and predictable layer of support, social protection programmes help households avoid selling off assets, taking children out of school or postponing necessary medical care, all detrimental to their long term well-being."
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 51
- Paragraph text
- Second, an indispensable step is to insist on explicit recognition by key actors that there is a human right to social protection. At present, the right to social security and the right to an adequate standard of living, proclaimed so proudly in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and subsequently often reaffirmed in binding treaty obligations, are ignored or even challenged by the policies advocated by many of the key actors involved in addressing the plight of the hundreds of millions of persons living in extreme poverty. Many leading international organizations and financial institutions still avoid recognizing those rights in their policies and programmes.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 52
- Paragraph text
- Third, technocratic solutions, no matter how innovative and data-driven, will not work unless they are genuinely empowering of those whom they purport to help. In that regard, extreme poverty is a classic case study in the centrality of human dignity as a guiding principle of human rights. The poor, we have too often been told by our politicians and others, are usually to blame for their own plight, whether because of laziness, incompetence, mendacity, or whatever. Those unjustified stereotypes provide yet another justification for preferring technocratic approaches through which we measure the poor and work out how we are going to make minimal provision for them, at least in the long term. As Keynes reminded us, in the long term we are all dead. Those living in extreme poverty will be dead even more quickly, so that long-term solutions may be little more than an illusion. Short-term empowerment and respect are what is needed. We need to reassert a common humanity, shared responsibilities and the centrality of human dignity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 53
- Paragraph text
- International civil society groups should mobilize effectively and in coalition with groups in other sectors to advocate and promote the Social Protection Floor Initiative. While the Center for Economic and Social Rights joined with a range of other groups, including Amnesty International, to call for a commitment to social protection floors in the sustainable development goals, the great majority of international human rights groups have said little and done less on the issue. It is essential to acknowledge that extreme poverty, which continues to afflict hundreds of millions of people, is a negation of all human rights. International civil society groups in the human rights field fight valiantly to eliminate torture, to reduce and expose extrajudicial executions, to reduce violence against women, to outlaw discrimination and the oppression of minorities and so on, but if the elimination of extreme poverty is not a central part of the collective human rights vision, it is a highly selective battle that is being fought.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- The role of the World Bank in relation to the Social Protection Floor Initiative is crucial. Based on policies pursued to date, it is the single actor most likely to undermine and frustrate the overall Initiative. Unless there is a change of heart on its part, the development community will continue to be pushed to focus on ill-defined social safety nets aimed at a limited number of the extreme poor and as a matter of bureaucratically defined and designed welfare policy, rather than as a matter of human rights. It is therefore indispensable that the human rights community should shine a spotlight on the policies and practices of the Bank in this area and the Human Rights Council should call upon it to embrace the Initiative in all its dimensions.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- In the realms of human rights and the Initiative, the current draft of the post-2015 agenda is a considerable disappointment. The almost complete omission of substantive references to human rights in the draft is a throwback to the United Nations development decade strategies of the 1960s and 1970s. However, they were drafted at a time when the human rights framework was in its infancy and development was seen largely as a technocratic process. Similarly, the very low standards set in relation to social protection are inconsistent with the high-flown rhetoric of ending poverty in all its forms everywhere. As it stands, the first goal proposed by the Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals might be considered to be in violation of deceptive advertising laws designed to protect consumers.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- It is understandable that some of those who have expended great energy on the post-2015 process should consider that only a token reference to human rights and a weak endorsement of social protection are better than nothing and that they will somehow be able over time to put a positive gloss on determinedly lacklustre goals. This is surely not enough. Civil society groups should make clear that a 1960s approach is no longer acceptable in the twenty-first century. Human rights in general should be recognized as both a central goal of sustainable development and a crucial part of the relevant process and a specific right to social protection, as defined in the Social Protection Floor Initiative and ILO recommendation No. 202, should be recognized.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
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