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Vision for the mandate 2016, para. 15
- Paragraph text
- As an initial step, the mandate holder will outline, in broad strokes, some of the obstacles with which persons with albinism are confronted. The obstacles identified constitute the main areas of concern and priorities of the mandate holder and include human rights violations such as attacks, desecration of graves, trafficking of body parts, displacement, discrimination against persons with albinism, as well as human rights violations based on disabilities, challenges in the right to the highest attainable standard of health and the right to education. The Independent Expert would also like to draw attention to the particularly concerning situation of women and children with albinism.
- Body
- Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision for the mandate 2016, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- In addition, as a protection measure, children have been transported to shelters, including police stations, schools or centres built for other needs, such as for people living with leprosy. Most of these shelters were neither designed nor prepared for an influx of persons with albinism, nor are they equipped to address the special needs of persons with albinism. Reports show that inhabitants with albinism are exposed to early skin cancer risk and various forms of abuse. Furthermore, as pointed out by the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee in its study on the situation of human rights of persons living with albinism, an assessment by the OHCHR field presence of the situation of displaced persons with albinism in Burundi showed the precarious security situation of some of them and the negative impact of the measure on the right to an adequate standard of living.
- Body
- Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision for the mandate 2016, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- Studies often link the prevalence of skin cancer to factors such as the lack of basic understanding of albinism, particularly by persons with albinism and their families. For example, it is not uncommon for parents to put a newborn with albinism out in the sun for hours. Displaced persons with albinism are exposed to a heightened risk of skin cancer as they are mostly outside of their usual environment and have limited means to address their health needs. Also at particular risk of developing skin cancer are persons with albinism who work outdoors, such as farmers or traders. Such outdoor occupations also emphasize the link between the risk of contracting skin cancer and poverty.
- Body
- Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Infants
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- Women face a disproportionate risk of being subjected to humiliating and degrading treatment in health-care facilities, especially during pregnancy, childbirth and the post-partum period. Furthermore, they are especially vulnerable to degrading treatment in situations where they are deprived of liberty, including in migrant detention facilities or mental institutions. They are subjected to humiliating treatment within the health-care system because of their gender identity and sexual orientation, sometimes expressly in the name of morality or religion, as a way of punishing what is considered "immoral" behaviour.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 50
- Paragraph text
- Women migrant workers, especially those in irregular situations, have greater difficulty in accessing almost all forms of health care, including maternal care, emergency care and treatment for chronic diseases and mental health problems, because they are often denied these rights legally and/or they fear arrest and deportation. In some countries, while legal access to health care for migrant women has been expanded, they still do not receive needed medical services because health-care providers often refuse treat them.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in the area of health and safety, with a focus on the instrumentalization of women's bodies 2016, para. 100
- Paragraph text
- Women's access to health services in many countries is not autonomous, affordable and effective, elements which are essential for States to respect, protect and fulfil women's and girls' rights to life, health, privacy, equality and human dignity. A major barrier is lack of affordability as a result of exclusion from insurance for treatments specifically needed by women and girls or exclusion of groups of women such as migrants. Non-affordability severely discriminates against women living in poverty. Barriers also include restrictive legislative requirements, biased and stigmatized provision of services and conscientious objection to providing services.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 26
- Paragraph text
- Of particular concern are a lack of specialist care, including access to gynaecologists and obstetric health-care professionals; discriminatory access to services like harm-reduction programmes; lack of private spaces for medical examinations and confidentiality; poor treatment by prison health staff; failures in diagnosis, medical neglect and denial of medicines, including for chronic and degenerative illnesses; and reportedly higher rates of transmission of diseases such as HIV among female detainees. The absence of gender-specific health care in detention can amount to ill-treatment or, when imposed intentionally and for a prohibited purpose, to torture. States' failure to ensure adequate hygiene and sanitation and to provide appropriate facilities and materials can also amount to ill-treatment or even torture. It is essential to engage in capacity-building and adequate training for detention centre staff and health-care personnel with a view to identifying and addressing women's specific health-care and hygiene needs.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The exercise of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the workplace 2016, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- Without assembly and association rights, workers have little leverage to change the conditions that entrench poverty, fuel inequality and limit democracy. The need to maintain paid work is all-consuming; so many workers toil long hours for low wages in unsafe and unhealthy environments, risking disease, injury and death. They work without basic social protections such as health care, education, pensions or, in the case of trafficked workers, the right to choose or leave employment. The impact of the lack of assembly and association rights is compounded for migrant workers by harsh immigration laws, unscrupulous labour recruitment organizations, militarized labour systems and rights-restricted structures in export processing zones. Migrant domestic and agricultural workers, often excluded from labour law protection both at home and abroad, are doubly exploited and marginalized.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to health and international drug control, compulsory treatment for drug dependence and access to controlled medicines 2010, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- Police crackdowns and other interventions associated with criminalization of drug use and possession also result in displacement of drug users from areas serviced by harm-reduction programmes, decreasing their ability to participate in needle and syringe programmes, opioid substitution therapy (OST) and access to outreach workers. Access to emergency assistance in the instance of an overdose also is impeded, and the incidence of overdose may be increased by disrupting access to regular injecting networks and drug suppliers. Those most affected by displacement often are the most marginalized; for instance, the homeless, who cannot necessarily move indoors to use drugs.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to health and international drug control, compulsory treatment for drug dependence and access to controlled medicines 2010, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- States are obliged to respect the right to health by refraining from denying equal access for all persons, including prisoners or detainees, to preventive, curative and palliative health services. Many States have begun to implement harm-reduction programmes within treatment facilities because prior punitive regimes have resulted in the most rapidly increasing rates of HIV incidence in the world. Nevertheless, needle and syringe programmes currently are available only in places of detention in 10 countries, and OST is available in at least one prison in fewer than 40 countries.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to health and international drug control, compulsory treatment for drug dependence and access to controlled medicines 2010, para. 61
- Paragraph text
- The 2009 Madrid Recommendation notes that there is "overwhelming evidence" that health-protection measures, including harm-reduction measures, are effective in prisons. The Madrid Recommendation states that treatment programmes for people who use drugs, as well as harm-reduction measures, including needle and syringe programmes, are urgently needed in all prison systems. Drug-dependence treatment is also noted to be "highly effective in reducing crime": treatment and care within prison, or as alternatives to imprisonment, reduce rates of relapse, HIV transmission and reincidence in crime. Effective drug-dependence treatment thus protects not only the individual, but society at large, and combats the negative cycle of recidivism that exposes other detainees to risk. As harm-reduction programmes are cost-effective and relatively easy to operate in closed settings, they should be implemented within places of detention as a matter of urgency.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Right to health and criminalization of same-sex conduct and sexual orientation, sex-work and HIV transmission 2010, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- Alongside the right to health, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights protects the right to freely chosen, gainful work (art. 6), which the State must take steps to safeguard. Article 6 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women does not require States to suppress consensual, adult sex work. Rather, it calls for the suppression of "all forms of traffic in women and exploitation of prostitution of women". The term "exploitation of prostitution" has not been defined within the Convention, but is interpreted to refer to exploitation in the context of prostitution. Additionally, the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families applies to a significant number of sex workers who travel between States to engage in sex work.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Right to health and criminalization of same-sex conduct and sexual orientation, sex-work and HIV transmission 2010, para. 45
- Paragraph text
- Sex workers should have the right to legal protection, with regard to various hazards such as violence, general occupational risks and labour exploitation. Judicial decisions have, in some instances, resulted in such protection being directly realized. For instance, a court in The Hague found in favour of a Czech immigrant who had been denied permission to reside in The Netherlands for the purposes of prostitution, concluding that prostitution is considered labour according to domestic law, and that the petitioner was therefore entitled to a permit.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Health
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Report on expert consultation on access to medicines 2011, para. 44
- Paragraph text
- The right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health encompasses access to medical services and the underlying determinants of health, such as water, sanitation, non-discrimination and equality. As access to medicines is an integral and fundamental part of the right to health, Governments and the international community as a whole have a responsibility to provide access to medicines for all. Yet massive inequalities remain in access to medicines around the world, as up to 2 billion people (or one third of the world's population) lack access to essential medicines. Most of them live in low- and middle-income countries, where the needs of persons living in poverty, women, children and undocumented migrants, as well as other marginalized and vulnerable groups who are often discriminated against in terms of access to medicines, are ignored or underestimated.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Poverty
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The realization of the right to health of older persons 2011, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- Internationally recognized human rights standards and principles as contained in core international human rights treaties cover and protect older persons. Despite this tacit protection, it has increasingly been argued that there is a gap in the international human rights system because there is currently no specific universal human rights instrument on the rights of older persons. Specific provisions focusing on older persons, such as those which exist for some other categories of vulnerable persons such as women, children, persons with disabilities, and migrant workers, are also lacking.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Persons on the move
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Occupational health 2012, para. 7
- Paragraph text
- A number of international human rights instruments address the right to occupational health in a variety of contexts. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights provides for the right of everyone to "just and favourable conditions of work" (art. 23). The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women establishes women's "right to protection of health and to safety in working conditions, including the safeguarding of the function of reproduction" (art. 11.1(f)) and requires States to "provide special protection to women during pregnancy in types of work proved to be harmful to them" (art. 11.2 (d)). The International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families obliges States to "take measures not less favourable than those applied to nationals to ensure that working and living conditions of migrant workers and members of their families in a regular situation are in keeping with the standards of fitness, safety, health and principles of human dignity" (art. 70).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Occupational health 2012, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- The right to a healthy workplace environment is an integral component of the right to health. It requires States to improve all aspects of environmental and industrial hygiene, including housing, sanitation, nutrition and access to safe water. For example, there are significant concerns regarding environmental and industrial hygiene in agricultural work. These concerns are exacerbated by fact that many agricultural workers, particularly migrant workers who are involved in agricultural work in large numbers, are socially and economically disadvantaged and often lack adequate resources to protect their own health. The improvement of environmental and industrial hygiene is therefore critical to achieving the full realization of the right to occupational health, especially for agricultural workers. In many instances, the work environment is indistinguishable from the home environment. As a result, many agricultural workers reside in crowded and substandard accommodation with poor sanitation and inadequate access to safe and potable water. Many of them are also exposed to environmental hazards such as pesticides or other pollutants because of the proximity or overlap of their homes to their worksites. These conditions significantly contribute to the increased rates of infectious diseases seen amongst these workers. The right to health requires that States give particular attention to the needs of vulnerable and marginalized groups in the formulation and implementation of occupational health laws and policies. This includes an obligation to monitor and evaluate occupational health risks and diseases affecting vulnerable groups.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Occupational health 2012, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- The right to health also requires States to address the prevention and reduction of the population's exposure to harmful substances, such as pesticides, and to assess their health impacts on workers. This is particularly important with respect to migrant workers because they may have limited access to health facilities, goods and services, and may lack access to the justice system. Where there is a real and confirmed hazard, the obligation to protect the right to occupational health requires States to prohibit production, sale and use of these substances. Where there is a reasonable potential for risk, States have a duty to take appropriate measures to reduce or prevent exposure, taking into consideration both the likelihood that harm will result and the extent of that harm. This includes requiring that pesticide labels are printed in all relevant languages, and agricultural workers are provided with adequate training and information regarding the use of pesticides.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Occupational health 2012, para. 41
- Paragraph text
- Exposure to pesticides has been linked to various acute and chronic toxic illnesses, including a number of cancers. Despite this, in many countries the law does not require pesticide use labels to be printed in languages understood by migrant workers in the jurisdiction. As a result, migrant agricultural workers suffer from high rates of toxic chemical injuries and skin disorders compared to other workers. Moreover, there are strong indications that efforts to regulate the distribution, application and disposure of such pesticides have been ineffective in reducing exposure. Such regulations are deficient in scope and under-enforced in both the developed and the developing world.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Right to health in conflict situations 2013, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- States should give particular attention to persons rendered vulnerable by conflict, such as women, children, older persons, people with disabilities and displaced communities. This requires States to address marginalization arising from social, political and economic exclusion; discrimination against persons belonging to or perceived to belong to a specific community; vulnerability due to ill-health; and conflict strategies that deliberately render certain communities vulnerable. These factors, individually or in combination, may expose certain groups to multiple vulnerabilities and an increased risk of violation of their right to health. Recognizing the diverse vulnerabilities in different communities and empowering them to participate in all decision-making processes that affect their health enable States to fulfil their obligation under the right to health during conflict and also promotes a sustainable recovery from conflict.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Older persons
- Persons on the move
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Right to health in conflict situations 2013, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- The health needs of certain groups are often overlooked in conflict due to limited or suspended services. Older persons are more at risk in conflict due to poor mobility and are less able to travel to health facilities. They may be unable to carry heavy packages of food or containers of water, and often live without family support, which renders them vulnerable to higher levels of malnutrition and disease. Similarly, persons with disabilities, often abandoned by families fleeing conflict, may face greater health and safety risks. Many facilities are unable to provide children with disabilities with the treatment and care suited to their physical developmental needs, hampering their ability to enjoy their right to health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Older persons
- Persons on the move
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Right to health in conflict situations 2013, para. 41
- Paragraph text
- Conflicts often result in displacement of people, within States and across borders. Displaced persons may be deprived of the same rights and underlying determinants as host communities. A large number of displaced persons may be forced to migrate to relief camps that are characterized by dilapidated and overcrowded conditions where basic services are inadequate, contributing to the spread of communicable diseases. Displaced persons may also be forced to migrate to urban slums, which renders them susceptible to vulnerabilities arising not only from a lack of capacity and resources, but also from the unwillingness of the State to address their needs.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Right to health in conflict situations 2013, para. 42
- Paragraph text
- Moreover, displaced persons are particularly vulnerable when their legal status prevents them from accessing health facilities, goods and services and availing themselves of economic opportunities. Many may be forced to work in poor or unsafe working conditions, further exposing them to poor health. Competing demands for access to health care and the underlying determinants of health may lead to rising tensions at the expense of both host and displaced communities. Displaced communities may consequently face discrimination in accessing health facilities, goods and services and underlying determinants.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Right to health in conflict situations 2013, para. 53
- Paragraph text
- As an aspect of international cooperation and assistance, States should respect, protect and fulfil the right to health of people fleeing from conflict situations. The burden of caring for populations displaced by conflict often falls on States that are least equipped to bear it. In this regard, other States should ensure that they provide appropriate international assistance, including aid, to countries facing an influx of persons displaced by conflict and measures to assist in their resettlement. States should also ensure the availability and accessibility of quality health facilities, goods and services and the underlying determinants of health to such persons, whether or not they are nationals of the State. States should also refrain from policies that violate the right to health such as mandatory detention or deportation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Right to health in conflict situations 2013, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- The right to health framework recognizes that international and non governmental organizations have particular importance in relation to disaster relief and humanitarian assistance in times of emergencies, including providing assistance to refugees and internally displaced persons. International and non governmental organizations may also be involved in conflict as monitors, mediators, peacekeeping forces and territorial administrators. Such organizations should ensure that they take due account of the right to health in their decisions and activities, including by adopting rights-based health policies, paying special attention to the needs of vulnerable groups and ensuring participation of affected communities. They should ensure that robust accountability mechanisms exist, particularly in peacekeeping and peace-enforcement situations. These include effective disciplinary systems, clear operational standards, systems for monitoring and data collection, and accessible independent dispute-resolution systems, especially for international organizations that enjoy immunity from domestic jurisdiction.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Migrant worker’s right to health 2013, para. 71
- Paragraph text
- Domestic and sexual violence, lack of redress for rights violations and lower wages than male counterparts reflect gender-based discrimination and aggravate its negative effects in the health-care setting and access to health care faced by migrant workers generally. Furthermore, gendered power imbalances and lack of access to health services, information and redress affects the ability of women, especially sex workers, to negotiate safe sex, which increases their vulnerability to HIV. Sending and receiving States should therefore address the compounded vulnerability of female migrant workers, particularly those with irregular status, in the development and implementation of evidence-based and participatory health policies and strategies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Migrant worker’s right to health 2013, para. 73
- Paragraph text
- Some States deport women migrant workers who are found to be pregnant during compulsory medical testing. The women concerned may also be exposed to greater vulnerability in both sending and receiving States because of the stigma attached to pregnancy outside of marriage in many societies. The practice of forced contraceptive injections have been reported during pre-departure in some sending States. Such practices encroach upon rights to privacy, informed consent, confidentiality, dignity and non-discrimination and act as an impediment to seeking assistance from police or health systems.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Migrant worker’s right to health 2013, para. 74
- Paragraph text
- Higher abortion rates among migrant workers have been linked to low awareness about and socioeconomic barriers to accessing contraception and family planning services. In countries which permit abortion but which prohibit migrant workers from becoming pregnant, the result is unequal access to legal reproductive health services due to apprehension of job loss and deportation, leading to risky treatment delays and unsafe abortions. Where abortion is criminalized, resort to unsafe abortion is also driven by the threat of criminal prosecution.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Migrant worker’s right to health 2013, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- For women who carry a pregnancy to term in receiving States, difficulty accessing obstetric, pre- and post-natal and maternal health-care services and information may result in adverse health outcomes for both the woman and child, including premature birth, low birth weight, congenital malformation and perinatal, infant and maternal mortality. In contrast, it has been found that policies promoting social integration of the migrant community reduce unfavourable pregnancy-related outcomes for migrant women. Extending the 14-weeks maternity leave required under the Maternity Protection Convention or the maternity leave granted to nationals to women migrant workers would assist in making pregnancy-related health care and services accessible and in accordance with the right to health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Migrant worker’s right to health 2013, para. 76a
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur recommends that sending and receiving States take the following steps in order to realize the right to health of migrant workers:] Institute, for regular and irregular migrant workers, evidence-based and gendered national health policies informed by the right to health framework, in particular non-discrimination and equality. Such policies should extend rights and entitlements - including underlying determinants of health - and redress mechanisms in cases of violation to migrant workers;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
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