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Preliminary survey on the root causes of attacks and discrimination against persons with albinism 2016, para. 7
- Paragraph text
- Myths about albinism include the belief that a child with albinism is a curse meted out on the mother or family of the child. It is also sometimes believed that children with albinism are the result of their family's or parent's evildoing and they are therefore considered a punishment to the whole family and community. In most cases, the blame for having a child with albinism is often attributed to the mother because the curse is believed to be matrilineal, transmitted by the mother's side of the family. There are also beliefs that women who give birth to children with albinism are unclean, or even in some cases witches. A similar myth is that the mother of a child with albinism stepped onto something evil, leading to a curse on the whole family.
- Body
- Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Preliminary survey on the root causes of attacks and discrimination against persons with albinism 2016, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- The lack of understanding of the condition is also illustrated by myths that persons with albinism cannot have children who do not have albinism, or that they are sterile. Furthermore, it is often believed that persons with albinism can only be found within one`s proximate race; consequently, the worldwide status of the condition is often not generally known. This narrow understanding of the frequency of albinism feeds into myths which present the condition as a particular problem supernaturally aimed at specific women and families.
- Body
- Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Harmful Practices
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Preliminary survey on the root causes of attacks and discrimination against persons with albinism 2016, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- It is evident that none of these myths are true, yet they demonstrate the lack of understanding of the genetic nature of albinism. This absence of scientific knowledge and the resort to myths to provide explanations concerning albinism lead to discrimination against persons with albinism and their families, mothers in particular. However, this should not lead to the conclusion that public education alone will eradicate these myths. Evidence shows that even where the truth and the scientific basis of albinism are known, they can co-exist with myths. Scientific explanations of the origins of albinism can answer the question "why?". But they fail to answer particular, localized and personal questions such as "why in this particular person?" and "why at this particular time and place?". The inability of science to answer these questions means that many turn to explanations proposed by supernatural beliefs such as witchcraft, and its practitioners, also known as witchdoctors.
- Body
- Independent Expert on the enjoyment of human rights by persons with albinism
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
The right of persons with disabilities to participate in decision-making 2016, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has accelerated the process of establishing organizations of self-advocates with intellectual disabilities, of autistic persons and of other individuals who may need extensive support to express their positions. Organizations of parents and relatives of persons requiring support have often played a role in providing such support and one can find organizations that include parents as well as self-advocates. The role of parents in such organizations should increasingly move towards the provision of support, with self-advocates in full control.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Access to rights-based support for persons with disabilities 2017, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- The provision of specific forms of support is further referred to in articles 9 (accessibility), 12 (equal recognition before the law), 13 (access to justice), 16 (freedom from exploitation, violence and abuse), 19 (living independently and being included in the community), 20 (personal mobility), 21 (freedom of expression and opinion, and access to information), 23 (respect for home and the family), 24 (education), 26 (habilitation and rehabilitation), 27 (work and employment), 28 (adequate standard of living and social protection) and 30 (participation in cultural life, recreation, leisure and sport).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Access to rights-based support for persons with disabilities 2017, para. 67
- Paragraph text
- The sustainability of support services and arrangements represents a major challenge in both developing and developed countries. Whereas in most low-income countries support is funded and provided mainly by families, charities and international non-governmental organizations, many high- and middle-income countries are reducing their direct public investment in support and are turning to non-profit organizations and community networks to take charge of these services. States usually invoke the scarcity of resources and economic difficulties to justify their failure to provide support services and arrangements to persons with disabilities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons with disabilities
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in political and public life with a focus on political transition 2013, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- Many States have entered reservations to articles 2 and 16 of the Convention, on equality in the family, almost all in deference to religious family law, and in so doing perpetuate the structural impediment of inequality in the family to women's full and effective participation in political and public life. The Working Group regards the elimination of discrimination in the family as central to women's capacity to participate in political and public life on equal terms with men and the withdrawal of these reservations as imperative.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in political and public life with a focus on political transition 2013, para. 61
- Paragraph text
- Reform of family laws provides a firm basis to overcome structural and cultural impediments to women's equal and full participation in political and public life. Family laws have been the focus of reform throughout history, as part of whole movements of States and societies towards modernity. In most cases, religious hermeneutic projects, particularly when initiated as part of broader reforms during times of political transition, have been an integral part of making these changes possible, with a prominent role played by women's rights movements, as in the case of Morocco, which achieved significant reform on many fronts in the family code (Moudawana), and by reform-minded religious institutions. The political will for these reforms, in State-sponsored modernization projects and social engineering agendas, has existed in diverse contexts of colonial power, the post-colonial State and communist regimes.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in economic and social life with a focus on economic crisis 2014, para. 90
- Paragraph text
- Unlike women's reproductive function, care functions do not necessarily have to fall on women. All forms of care, including childcare, are amenable to social reconstruction, and indeed in the Nordic countries, which have long pursued a policy of gender equality in the division of work and childcare functions, the distribution of care work comes close to parity. Good practice regarding the allocation of care responsibilities, pioneered in the Nordic countries, encourages men to enter traditionally women's worlds, both in the family and in the workplace, thus allowing women to participate and advance in the labour market.
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Gender
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in cultural and family life, with a focus on the family as a cultural space 2015, para. 73a (iii)
- Paragraph text
- [The Working Group recommends that States:] Establish a national legal framework recognizing gender equality in cultural and family life, in accordance with regional and international standards: (iii) Develop national strategies to eradicate cultural practices that discriminate against women and girls, as well as gender stereotypes, through awareness-raising campaigns, educational and informational programmes and stakeholder mobilization. Engage men, as appropriate, in prevention and protection efforts in respect of gender-based discrimination and violence;
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in cultural and family life, with a focus on the family as a cultural space 2015, para. 73d (i)
- Paragraph text
- [According to general recommendation No. 29 of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the family is a social and legal construct and, in various countries, a religious construct. It also is an economic construct. The Working Group recommends that States:] Take measures to ensure that families allow girls to access education on an equal basis with boys, by raising awareness in the community and providing families with financial incentives to allow girls to finish their studies;
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Families
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Eliminating discrimination against women in cultural and family life, with a focus on the family as a cultural space 2015, para. 73d (iii)
- Paragraph text
- [According to general recommendation No. 29 of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the family is a social and legal construct and, in various countries, a religious construct. It also is an economic construct. The Working Group recommends that States:] Ensure that women, on an equal footing with men, and girls, on an equal footing with boys, have the right to at least half the family property and inheritance in the event of divorce or widowhood. Facilitate the invalidation of any waiver of these rights obtained from a woman as a result of pressure from her family or community;
- Body
- Working Group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and practice
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Families
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Justiciability of the right to education 2013, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- A large number of cases address the rights of minorities and their language rights. The European Court of Human Rights, for instance, has held that the right to education did not guarantee the right to education in a particular language, or for the State to subsidize education of a particular type. However, article 14 read in conjunction with article 2 of Protocol No. 1 was violated because the legislation prevented children from having access to French-language schools in certain areas solely on the basis of their parents’ residence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Families
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Protecting education against commercialization 2015, para. 99
- Paragraph text
- Regulations must ban for-profit education and prohibit fee-based discrimination because it creates and entrenches social and economic inequalities. Prohibitive regulations can ban the registration of private schools as companies, the recruitment of unqualified teachers or those employed in public schools, the closure of schools during an academic year, indulgence in false commercial propaganda to lure insufficiently informed students and parents, the charging of capitation fees and the extraction from students or parents of any undeclared financial contribution over and above the approved fee. Regulations must prohibit school selection on the basis of ability, social or ethnic origin, or any form of psychometric tests.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to education
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Human rights criteria for making contract farming and other business models inclusive of small-scale farmers 2011, para. 19
- Paragraph text
- More generally, contract farming can lead to a loss of control over production, including which crops to produce and how to produce them. Contract farming can thus cause farmers to become essentially wage-earning agricultural labourers on their own land, but without the benefits associated with paid labour, such as minimum wages, sick leave and other legislated benefits. Contracted small farmers are then seen by the buyer as labour market intermediaries. This is particularly clear after plantations are broken up by owners to create small-scale farms, possibly to break the power of unions or divest firms of their responsibilities, with negative effects on former labourers. Seen in this light, contract farming raises a number of questions that concern the right to work and the conditions of employment on family farms. Contract farmers often rely on family labour to fulfil work requirements. While this may be seen as leading to greater employment opportunities, it often simply results in more family members working without pay because that may be the only way to cut costs and to make the contractual arrangement profitable. In such contexts, child labour can become a problem in contract farming arrangements. Article 10 of the International Covenant on Social and Cultural Rights and article 32 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child impose on States the obligation to protect children and young persons from economic and social exploitation and to punish their employment in work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child's education or to be harmful to the child's health or physical, spiritual, moral or social development. States must adopt effective measures to ensure that the prohibition of child labour is fully respected (see E/C.12/GC/18, para. 24). It is also relevant to note that in accordance with article 9 of the Covenant, States must guarantee the right to social security, which must also be accessible to independent producers (see E/C.12/GC/19).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- The fact that women are also considered as the primary caregivers, in both rural and urban settings, adds an extra dimension to their responsibilities within the household. While rural women often shoulder the burden of a heavy workload in addition to their care duties, urban poor woman face different challenges relating to assuring adequate food and nutrition for their family. For a range of economic reasons, poor urban women are increasingly relying on less nutritious processed foods. The Special Rapporteur intends to work with relevant stakeholders to address concerns related to the food issues facing different countries as a result of a dietary transition from traditional diets to processed foods high in fat and sugar, including the concerns addressed by her predecessor (see A/HRC/19/59).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Access to justice and the right to food: the way forward 2015, para. 19
- Paragraph text
- Judicial protection of land as a source of livelihood can be seen in judgments by the Constitutional Court of Colombia. One such significant case involves the community of Las Pavas, whose members occupied unused land in 1997 and began farming activities to feed themselves. Over the years, the community had been repeatedly subjected to various forms of intimidation and harassment, including attacks by paramilitary groups and the destruction of crops and food. A formal eviction order was issued in 2009 at the request of two private companies, who claimed ownership of the land. In 2011, the Colombian Constitutional Court delivered its judgment, finding that the actions leading to the eviction of the families of Las Pavas were unlawful and violated the right to a dignified existence, among other rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Priorities of the new mandate holder 2014, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- Another key area of focus of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences, is child and forced marriage. The Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery obligates Member States to take all "practicable and necessary legislative and other measures to bring about progressively and as soon as possible the complete abolition or abandonment" of, inter alia, any institution or practice which amounts to forced marriage, such as when a woman, without the right to refuse, is promised or given in marriage on payment to her parents, guardians, family or another person or group; when a husband, his family or his clan transfers his wife to another person for value received or for any other reason; or the inheriting by another person of a woman on the death of her husband (see art. 1). Early and forced marriage can, under certain circumstances, constitute servile marriage or result in domestic servitude or other forms of slavery. The previous mandate holder drew links between child marriage and slavery, and pointed out that Member States were obliged to prohibit and eliminate slavery as a non-derogable and fundamental principle of international law. Child marriage is linked to the thematic issues of trafficking for forced labour, commercial sexual exploitation, migration and contemporary forms of slavery, which reinforces the need for cooperation among the respective mandate holders as part of a comprehensive multi-agency and multi-stakeholder effort to eradicate those practices from society, as women and girls in child and forced marriages may experience conditions within the marriage that meet "international legal definitions of slavery and slavery-like practices", including forced labour. Furthermore, "a potentially high proportion of child marriage cases appear to constitute the worst forms of child labour under the 1999 ILO Convention No. 182."
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- Studies suggest that up to 80 per cent of women in prison are mothers. Many female prisoners are single mothers or primary caregivers, and imprisonment can result in considerable hardship for their children. Contact between detained mothers and their children is often difficult due to the remote location of female prisons. Concern about their children is a primary factor leading to the high incidence of mental health problems and self-harm among female detainees. The Bangkok Rules require that parental and child-caring responsibilities be taken into account in the allocation and sentence-planning processes. The best interests of the child, including the need to maintain direct contact with the mother, must be carefully and independently considered by competent professionals and taken into account in all decisions pertaining to detention, including pretrial detention, sentencing and the placement of the child (CRC/C/THA/CO/2).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 29
- Paragraph text
- Girls in the criminal justice system are at particular risk of experiencing torture and ill-treatment. The majority have prior histories of abuse and violence that serve as primary predictors of their entry into the juvenile justice system. Girls' particular physical and mental health needs often go unrecognized and incarceration itself tends to exacerbate trauma, with girls suffering disproportionately from depression and anxiety and exhibiting a higher risk of self-harm or suicide than boys or adults. Many States lack facilities for separating girls from adults or boys, which significantly increases the risks of violence, including sexual violence. The employment of male guards in girls' facilities significantly increases the risk of abuse, while girls held in remote, segregated facilities are isolated and have limited contact with their families.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Families
- Girls
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- Oxfam researchers found that adaptation projects aimed at women created under Burkina Faso's National Action Programme for Adaptation (NAPA) sought to diversity the ways that women can generate income to offset income lost by harvests damaged by climate change. In order to rectify these consequences, individuals and organizations need to be better educated on the different vulnerabilities that men and women face in disasters, and local women's organizations need to be consulted in order to understand region-specific contexts. Moreover, such attempts could have ancillary positive effects, as developing credit systems to aid families during times of famine, strengthening women's organizations that promote adaptation measures, and addressing larger issues could prevent gender inequality.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender perspectives on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment 2016, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- Victims of gender-based violence face significant hurdles in accessing justice and reparations, including absence of or shortcomings in domestic legal frameworks to hold perpetrators accountable, and practical obstacles such as the significant expense involved in accessing courts. Stigma can be a factor associated with gender-based crimes, and victims may fear rejection by families and communities and encounter personnel who are not properly trained to respond to their needs. All victims must be granted access to effective judicial and administrative remedies. This entails the dismantling of discriminatory barriers and the provision of support to victims at all stages of the legal process.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
The right to access information 2013, para. 25
- Paragraph text
- The gravity and the scale of the practice of disappearances by the regimes that were in power in Latin America from the 1960s, and the subsequent struggle of family members and society in general to establish the fate of the victims and to ensure investigation into the facts and punishment of the perpetrators, was initially at the centre of the development of the right to truth. During those regimes, the justice systems of the countries in which such acts occurred were completely ineffective in carrying out investigations into the facts. Moreover, many of the countries concerned adopted amnesty laws that not only ensured impunity for the perpetrators but, in effect, also impeded investigations by the justice systems.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
The right of the child to freedom of expression 2014, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- Nevertheless, children are not adults, and the fact that they have evolving capacities cannot be avoided. This principle, enshrined in article 5 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, simply reflects the need to take children's "childness" into account, as well as the fact that children evolve and exercise their rights differently from adults. The role accorded to parents and others responsible for the child under article 5 of the Convention suggests that, in practice, children's enjoyment of their right to freedom of expression may not be as expansive as that of adult holders of similarly expressed rights under non-child-specific international human rights instruments. The exercise of the right to freedom of expression expands as children mature, whereas the appropriate direction and guidance provided by parents under article 5 diminishes correspondingly.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
The right of the child to freedom of expression 2014, para. 78
- Paragraph text
- More research is needed to clarify the role of the Internet in the exercise of the rights of the child, in particular with regard to how children use the Internet, how they can learn to do so safely and how the Internet can be viewed as a positive rather than a destructive tool by parents, caregivers and States. It is also important that current restrictions on Internet use be looked at carefully and critically in order to uncover potentially negative consequences for children and adults, encourage practical solutions to Internet safety concerns and maximize opportunities for children on the Internet.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Year
- 2014
Paragraph
Criminalisation of sexual and reproductive health 2011, para. 55
- Paragraph text
- The obligation to respect the right to health requires that States abstain from limiting access to contraceptives and other means of maintaining sexual and reproductive health. States should therefore remove criminal laws and other legal restrictions, including parental consent laws and other third party authorizations, to ensure access to family planning and contraceptive goods, services and information. The obligation to protect requires States ensure that neither third parties nor harmful social or traditional practices interfere with access to prenatal and post-natal care and family-planning (see E/C.12/2000/4, para. 35), or curtail access to some or all contraceptive methods. Finally, the obligation to fulfil includes adopting and implementing a national public health strategy, which includes the provision of "a wide range of sexual and reproductive health services, including access to family planning (...) and access to information (see E/CN.4/2004/49, para. 29)".
- 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
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Criminalisation of sexual and reproductive health 2011, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- Criminal laws and other legal restrictions that reduce or deny access to family planning goods and services, or certain modern contraceptive methods, such as emergency contraception, constitute a violation of the right to health. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women calls upon States to ensure access to specific educational information to help to ensure the health and well-being of families, including information and advice on family planning, as well as access to adequate health-care facilities, including information, counselling and services in family planning. In General Comment No. 14, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights calls upon States to take measures to "improve child and maternal health, sexual and reproductive health services, including access to family planning … and access to information, as well as to resources necessary to act on that information" (see E/C.12/2000/4, para. 14).
- 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
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Criminalisation of sexual and reproductive health 2011, para. 49
- Paragraph text
- In chapter II, principle 8, of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development confirms that States should take all appropriate measures to ensure, on a basis of equality of men and women, universal access to health-care services, including those related to reproductive health care, which includes family planning and sexual health. It also stresses the need for participation and notes that family planning programmes are most successful when women are fully involved in the design, provision, management and evaluation of services. It further adds that Governments should remove all unnecessary legal, medical, clinical and regulatory barriers to information and to access to family-planning services and methods. In paragraph 96, the Beijing Platform for Action declares that the human rights of women include their right to have control over and decide freely and responsibly on matters related to their sexuality, including sexual and reproductive health, free of coercion, discrimination and violence.
- 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
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Occupational health 2012, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- Informal employment consists of both self-employment in informal enterprises and wage employment in informal jobs. Self-employment in informal enterprises consists of self-employed persons in small unregistered or unincorporated enterprises, including employers (who hire others), own-account operators (who do not hire others), unpaid contributing family workers and members of unregistered co-operatives. Wage employment in informal jobs consists of wage workers who lack social protection through their work and who are employed by formal or informal firms (and their contractors), by households, or by no fixed employer, including non-standard employees of informal enterprises, non-standard employees of formal enterprises, casual or day labourers, and industrial outworkers (also called homeworkers).
- 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
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Migrant worker’s right to health 2013, para. 57
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur is pleased to observe the adoption by the International Labour Office (ILO) in 2011 of Domestic Workers Convention No. 189 and Recommendation No. 201, which details requirements for protection from harassment and violence, occupational health and safety, written contracts and protection under labour laws. This follows general comment No. 1 (2010) on migrant domestic workers of the Committee on the Protection of the Rights of all Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, which pays particular attention to the vulnerability of migrant domestic workers throughout the different stages of migration. Implementation of these instruments would provide greater protection to migrant domestic workers at all stages of the migration process, thereby creating an enabling environment consistent with the obligation to fulfil 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
- Means of adoption
- N.A.
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
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