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The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 14
- Paragraph text
- By the end of its thirteenth session, the Committee and its predecessor, the Sessional Working Group of Governmental Experts, had examined 153 initial reports, 71 second periodic reports and 25 global reports on articles 1 to 15 of the Covenant. This work made it possible to identify many of the problems that may be encountered in implementing the Covenant in a considerable number of States parties representing all the regions of the world and having different political, socio-economic and cultural systems. The reports examined to date have not provided any information in a systematic way on the situation of older persons as regards compliance with the Covenant, apart from information, of varying completeness, on the implementation of article 9 relating to the right to social security.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- Recommendations 19 to 24 of the International Plan of Action on Ageing emphasize that housing for the elderly must be viewed as more than mere shelter and that, in addition to the physical, it has psychological and social significance which should be taken into account. Accordingly, national policies should help elderly persons to continue to live in their own homes as long as possible, through the restoration, development and improvement of homes and their adaptation to the ability of those persons to gain access to and use them (recommendation 19). Recommendation 20 stresses the need for urban rebuilding and development planning and law to pay special attention to the problems of the ageing, assisting in securing their social integration. Recommendation 22 draws attention to the need to take account of the functional capacity of the elderly in order to provide them with a better living environment and facilitate mobility and communication through the provision of adequate means of transport.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 9
- Paragraph text
- The terminology used to describe older persons varies considerably, even in international documents. It includes: "older persons", "the aged", "the elderly", "the third age", "the ageing" and, to denote persons more than 80 years of age, "the fourth age". The Committee has opted for "older persons" (in French, personnes âgées; in Spanish, personas mayores), the term employed in General Assembly resolutions 47/5 and 48/98. According to the practice in the United Nations statistical services, these terms cover persons aged 60 and above. (The statistical service of the European Union, Eurostat, considers "older persons" to mean persons aged 65 or above, since 65 is the most common age of retirement and the trend is towards later retirement still.)
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 10
- Paragraph text
- The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights does not contain any explicit reference to the rights of older persons, although article 9, dealing with "the right of everyone to social security, including social insurance", implicitly recognizes the right to old-age benefits. Nevertheless, in view of the fact that the Covenant's provisions apply fully to all members of society, it is clear that older persons are entitled to enjoy the full range of rights recognized in the Covenant. This approach is also fully reflected in the International Plan of Action on Ageing. Moreover, in so far as respect for the rights of older persons requires special measures to be taken, States parties are required by the Covenant to do so to the maximum of their available resources.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- This is not determinative of the matter, however, since the prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of "other status" could be interpreted as applying to age. The Committee notes that, while it may not yet be possible to conclude that discrimination on the grounds of age is comprehensively prohibited by the Covenant, the range of matters in relation to which such discrimination can be accepted is very limited. Moreover, it must be emphasized that the unacceptableness of discrimination against older persons is underlined in many international policy documents and is confirmed in the legislation of the vast majority of States. In the few areas in which discrimination continues to be tolerated, such as in relation to mandatory retirement ages or access to tertiary education, there is a clear trend towards the elimination of such barriers. The Committee is of the view that States parties should seek to expedite this trend to the greatest extent possible.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- Accordingly, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is of the view that States parties to the Covenant are obligated to pay particular attention to promoting and protecting the economic, social and cultural rights of older persons. The Committee's own role in this regard is rendered all the more important by the fact that, unlike the case of other population groups such as women and children, no comprehensive international convention yet exists in relation to the rights of older persons and no binding supervisory arrangements attach to the various sets of United Nations principles in this area.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 19
- Paragraph text
- In this context, attention may be drawn to Global target No. 1, adopted by the General Assembly in 1992, which calls for the establishment of national support infrastructures to promote policies and programmes on ageing in national and international development plans and programmes. In this regard, the Committee notes that one of the United Nations Principles for Older Persons which Governments were encouraged to incorporate into their national programmes is that older persons should be able to form movements or associations of older persons.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- In accordance with article 3 of the Covenant, by which States parties undertake "to ensure the equal right of men and women to the enjoyment of all economic, social and cultural rights", the Committee considers that States parties should pay particular attention to older women who, because they have spent all or part of their lives caring for their families without engaging in a remunerated activity entitling them to an old-age pension, and who are also not entitled to a widow's pension, are often in critical situations.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 9
- Paragraph text
- This general recommendation on older women and promotion of their rights explores the relationship between the articles of the Convention and ageing. It identifies the multiple forms of discrimination that women face as they age, outlines the content of the obligations to be assumed by States parties with regard to ageing with dignity and older women's rights, and includes policy recommendations aimed at mainstreaming the responses to the concerns of older women into national strategies, development initiatives and positive action so that older women can fully participate in society without discrimination and on an equal basis with men.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 1
- Paragraph text
- The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (hereinafter "the Committee"), concerned about the multiple forms of discrimination experienced by older women and that older women's rights are not systematically addressed in the reports of States parties, decided at its forty-second session, held from 20 October to 7 November 2008, pursuant to article 21 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (hereinafter "the Convention"), to adopt a general recommendation on older women and protection of their human rights.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 2
- Paragraph text
- In its decision 26/III of 5 July 2002, the Committee acknowledged that the Convention "is an important tool for addressing the specific issue of the human rights of older women." General recommendation No. 25 on article 4, paragraph 1, of the Convention (temporary special measures) also recognizes that age is one of the grounds on which women may suffer multiple forms of discrimination. In particular, the Committee recognized the need for statistical data, disaggregated by age and sex, in order to better assess the situation of older women.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 3
- Paragraph text
- The Committee affirms previous commitments to older women's rights enshrined in, inter alia, the Vienna International Plan of Action on Ageing, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the United Nations Principles for Older Persons (General Assembly resolution 46/91, annex), the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development, the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing 2002, Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights general comment No. 6 on the economic, social and cultural rights of older persons (1995), and general comment No. 19 on the right to social security (2008).
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 6
- Paragraph text
- This unprecedented demographic ageing, due to improved living standards and basic health-care systems as well as declines in fertility and rising longevity, can be considered a successful outcome of development efforts and one that is set to continue, making the twenty-first century, the century of ageing. However, such demographic changes have profound human rights implications and increase the urgency of addressing the discrimination experienced by older women in a more comprehensive and systematic manner through the Convention.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 19
- Paragraph text
- Employers often regard older women as non-profitable investments for education and vocational training. Older women also do not have equal opportunities to learn modern information technology, nor the resources to obtain them. Many poor older women, especially those with disabilities and those living in rural areas, are denied the right to education and receive little or no formal or informal education. Illiteracy and innumeracy can severely restrict older women's full participation in public and political life, the economy, and access to a range of services, entitlements and recreational activities.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
The right to social security (Art. 9) 2007, para. 15
- Paragraph text
- States parties should take appropriate measures to establish social security schemes that provide benefits to older persons, starting at a specific age, to be prescribed by national law. The Committee stresses that States parties should establish a retirement age that is appropriate to national circumstances which take account of, inter alia, the nature of the occupation, in particular work in hazardous occupations and the working ability of older persons. States parties should, within the limits of available resources, provide non-contributory old-age benefits, social services and other assistance for all older persons who, when reaching the retirement age prescribed in national legislation, have not completed a qualifying period of contributions or are not otherwise entitled to an old-age insurance-based pension or other social security benefit or assistance, and have no other source of income.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 2007
Paragraph
Right of everyone to take part in cultural life (Art. 15, para. 1(a)) 2009, para. 29
- Paragraph text
- The Committee therefore urges States parties to take account of the recommendations contained in the United Nations Principles for Older Persons, and in particular of principle 7, that older persons should remain integrated in society, participate actively in the formulation and implementation of policies that directly affect their well being and share their knowledge and skills with younger generations; and principle 16, that older persons should have access to the educational, cultural, spiritual and recreational resources of society.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Youth
- Year
- 2009
Paragraph
Women and girls with disabilities 2016, para. 55
- Paragraph text
- The right of women with disabilities to choose their place of residence may be adversely affected by cultural norms and patriarchal family values that limit autonomy and oblige them to live in a particular living arrangement. Thus, multiple discrimination can prevent the full and equal enjoyment of the right to live independently in the community. In the case of older persons with disabilities, age and impairment, separately or jointly, can increase their risk of institutionalization . In addition, it has been widely documented that institutionalization may expose persons with disabilities to violence and abuse, with women with disabilities particularly exposed .
- Body
- Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- Older women may not be eligible to claim family benefits if they are not the parent or legal guardian of children in their care.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- Article 6 of the Covenant requires States parties to take appropriate steps to safeguard the right of everyone to the opportunity to gain a living by work which is freely chosen or accepted. In this regard, the Committee, bearing in mind that older workers who have not reached retirement age often encounter problems in finding and keeping jobs, stresses the need for measures to prevent discrimination on grounds of age in employment and occupation.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- In accordance with article 9 of the Covenant and the provisions concerning implementation of the ILO social security conventions - Convention No. 102 (1952) concerning Social Security (Minimum Standards) and Convention No. 128 (1967) concerning Invalidity, Old-Age and Survivors' Benefits - States parties must take appropriate measures to establish general regimes of compulsory old-age insurance, starting at a particular age, to be prescribed by national law.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 26
- Paragraph text
- Under some statutory and customary laws, women do not have the right to inherit and administer marital property on the death of their spouse. Some legal systems justify this by providing widows with other means of economic security, such as support payments from the deceased's estate. However, in reality, such provisions are seldom enforced, and widows are often left destitute. Some laws particularly discriminate against older widows, and some widows are victims of "property grabbing."
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 8
- Paragraph text
- Older women are not a homogeneous group. They have a great diversity of experience, knowledge, ability and skills, however, their economic and social situation is dependent on a range of demographic, political, environmental, cultural, social, individual and family factors. The contribution of older women in public and private life as leaders in their communities, entrepreneurs, caregivers, advisers, mediators, among other roles, is invaluable.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- While both men and women experience discrimination as they become older, older women experience ageing differently. The impact of gender inequality throughout their lifespan is exacerbated in old age and is often based on deep-rooted cultural and social norms. The discrimination that older women experience is often a result of unfair resource allocation, maltreatment, neglect and limited access to basic services.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 1
- Paragraph text
- The world population is ageing at a steady, quite spectacular rate. The total number of persons aged 60 and above rose from 200 million in 1950 to 400 million in 1982 and is projected to reach 600 million in the year 2001 and 1.2 billion by the year 2025, at which time over 70 per cent of them will be living in what are today's developing countries. The number of people aged 80 and above has grown and continues to grow even more dramatically, rising from 13 million in 1950 to over 50 million today, and is projected to increase to 137 million in 2025. This is the fastest growing population group in the world, projected to increase by a factor of 10 between 1950 and 2025, compared with a factor of six for the group aged 60 and above and a factor of little more than three for the total population.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 3
- Paragraph text
- Most of the States parties to the Covenant, and the industrialized countries in particular, are faced with the task of adapting their social and economic policies to the ageing of their populations, especially as regards social security. In the developing countries, the absence or deficiencies of social security coverage are being aggravated by the emigration of the younger members of the population and the consequent weakening of the traditional role of the family, the main support of older people.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 4
- Paragraph text
- In 1982, the World Assembly on Ageing adopted the International Plan of Action on Ageing. This important document was endorsed by the General Assembly and is a very useful guide, for it details the measures that should be taken by Member States to safeguard the rights of older persons within the context of the rights proclaimed by the International Covenants on Human Rights. It contains 62 recommendations, many of which are of direct relevance to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
The economic, social and cultural rights of older persons 1995, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- With a view to the realization of the right of older persons to the enjoyment of a satisfactory standard of physical and mental health, in accordance with article 12, paragraph 1, of the Covenant, States parties should take account of the content of recommendations 1 to 17 of the International Plan of Action on Ageing, which focus entirely on providing guidelines on health policy to preserve the health of the elderly and take a comprehensive view, ranging from prevention and rehabilitation to the care of the terminally ill.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Year
- 1995
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- Concrete forms of discrimination against older women may differ considerably under various socio-economic circumstances and in various sociocultural environments, depending on the equality of opportunities and choices regarding education, employment, health, family and private life. In many countries, the lack of telecommunication skills, access to adequate housing, social services and the Internet, loneliness and isolation pose problems for older women. Older women living in rural areas or urban slums often suffer a severe lack of basic resources for subsistence, income security, access to health care, information on and enjoyment of their entitlements and rights.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Older women and protection of their human rights 2010, para. 7
- Paragraph text
- The issue of ageing is shared by both developed and developing countries. The proportion of older persons in less developed countries is expected to increase from 8 per cent in 2010 to 20 per cent by 2050, while the proportion of children will decrease from 29 to 20 per cent. The number of older women living in less developed regions will increase by 600 million within the period 2010 to 2050. This demographic shift presents major challenges for developing countries. The ageing of society is a well-established trend and a significant feature in most developed countries.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Women in conflict prevention, conflict and post-conflict situations 2013, para. 51
- Paragraph text
- Women in rural areas are often disproportionately affected by the lack of adequate health and social services and inequitable access to land and natural resources. Similarly, their situation in conflict settings presents particular challenges with regard to their employment and reintegration, given that it is often exacerbated by the breakdown of services, resulting in food insecurity, inadequate shelter, deprivation of property and lack of access to water. Widows, women with disabilities, older women, single women without family support and female-headed households are especially vulnerable to increased economic hardship owing to their disadvantaged situation, and often lack employment and means and opportunities for economic survival.
- Body
- Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Older persons
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph