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Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 40d
- Paragraph text
- [In order to respect the right to food, States should:] Prioritize development models that do not lead to evictions, disruptive shifts in land rights and increased land concentration. States should carefully consider the development models that they follow, as the mainstream agro-export-led model has major detrimental impacts on the access to land of vulnerable groups, disproportionately favouring the largest producers and landowners. Land investments implying an important shift in land rights should represent the last and least desirable option, acceptable only if no other investment model can achieve a similar contribution to local development and improve the livelihoods within the local communities concerned.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2010
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Impact of climate change on the right to food 2015, para. 82
- Paragraph text
- Climate change poses unique and distinct threats to all aspects of food security, including availability, accessibility, adequacy and sustainability. Moreover, these threats are poised to affect a huge number of people, with 600 million additional people potentially vulnerable to malnutrition by 2080. Manifestations of climate change, such as an increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather, global warming, a rise in sea levels and a decrease in the availability of water, have significant impacts on food security. As a result, crop failures and adverse impacts on livestock, fisheries and aquaculture will have an overall negative effect on people's livelihoods, with climate-induced food price volatility, nutritional deficiencies and diminishing quality of land and soil suitable for agricultural production a daunting reality. The consequences of failing to enact appropriate policies will pose a threat to global peace and security. As we are all living ever more interconnected lives, climate change should not be considered as affecting only those living in remote places.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Guiding Principles on security of tenure for the urban poor 2014, para. 3
- Paragraph text
- Tenure should be secured in situ unless there are exceptional circumstances that justify eviction consistent with international human rights law. Regulations aimed at protecting public health and safety and the environment or at mitigating risk for the population should not be used as an excuse to undermine security of tenure. In situ solutions should be found whenever it is possible to: (a) mitigate and manage risks of disaster and threats to public health and safety; or (b) balance environmental protection and security of tenure; except when inhabitants choose to exercise their right to resettlement.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Child slavery in the artisanal mining and quarrying sector 2011, para. 111
- Paragraph text
- Governments should establish programmes to create awareness in frontier communities about the health risks they face particularly with regard to handling toxic chemicals such as mercury, cyanide and lead. The communities should undergo testing for contamination and those contaminated should be provided with medical care. Local health workers should be clinically trained on how to prevent, diagnose and treat contamination. These programmes should also extend to ensure that workers are made aware of the less visible and long-term negative impact on the environment (soil, water) which threatens food security and biodiversity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Challenges and lessons in combating contemporary forms of slavery 2013, para. 81
- Paragraph text
- Multi-stakeholder initiatives and recent efforts to encourage responsible sourcing to protect workers also have the potential to strengthen the global fight against slavery.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, including its causes and consequences
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Impact of climate change on the right to food 2015, para. 83
- Paragraph text
- The imperative to feed the world in a time of climate change resonates strongly with food policymakers and has resulted in a push for large-scale agricultural models to respond to the future demand for food. However, it is has been proven that more food production does not necessarily result in fewer people suffering from hunger and malnutrition. The world has long produced enough food, sufficient not only to meet the caloric requirements of the existing global population of over 7 billion, but also to meet the needs of a population expected to reach 9 billion in 2050. Hunger and malnutrition are a function of economic and social problems, not production. Moreover, not all of the calories produced go to feed humans: one third are used to feed animals, nearly 5 per cent are used to produce biofuels and as much as one third are wasted all along the food chain.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Impact of climate change on the right to food 2015, para. 85
- Paragraph text
- This approach is wrong and counterproductive and will only serve to exacerbate the problems experienced by the current mode of agriculture. Rather, agriculture and food systems need to be reformed to ensure that they are more responsive to the challenges of climate change and environmental degradation, as evidenced by reduced reliance on fossil fuel-intensive production methods. More importantly, the reform should ensure that the right to adequate food of people is protected through appropriate levels of production as well as equitable access and just distribution.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Impact of climate change on the right to food 2015, para. 88
- Paragraph text
- Finally, because the harm caused by climate change is felt predominantly by people and regions that are minimally responsible in the first place, climate change policies should be designed to minimize, if not overcome, these fundamental injustices. Some of the climate change policies described in the report, justified on the grounds that they help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, undermine human rights. Unequal capabilities and exposure to the dangers make climate change the biggest human rights and justice problem of our time; solving it should be obligatory, not voluntary and aspirational. Whether there will be sufficient political will to implement the recommended shift in agricultural policy is the haunting uncertainty that casts a long shadow over the future of food security and the realization of the right to food. There are two dominant conclusions in the present report, the necessity of encouraging agroecological approaches to food security and the need to integrate the commitment to climate justice and human rights in the climate change regime, which cannot be realized without the support of civil society.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Human rights based approach to recovery from the global economic and financial crises, with a focus on those living in poverty 2011, para. 92
- Paragraph text
- States should only adopt legal and policy measures that are compatible with the sustainability and prosperity of communities in both rural and urban areas. Climate change and environmental degradation will continue to endanger the lives and livelihoods of the poorest and most disadvantaged, many of whom rely on natural resources as a basic means of survival. Activities undertaken by rural populations, such as agriculture, aquaculture, fishery and forestry, are severely exposed to climate change.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Human rights based approach to recovery from the global economic and financial crises, with a focus on those living in poverty 2011, para. 93
- Paragraph text
- States need to focus efforts on a recovery that can prepare for and mitigate the effect of future climatic crises, through, for example, social protection programmes that provide economic security to individuals most likely to be affected by crises. States should also make human rights impact assessments and risk analyses prior to initiating climate change mitigation or adaptation projects in order to avoid adverse effects on the enjoyment of human rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The right to adequate housing in disaster relief efforts 2011, para. 64.2
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur makes the following recommendations:] No harm should be caused by or to others in respecting and protecting the right to adequate housing, including tenure security: Health and safety regulations as well as disaster risk reduction measures, which may call for land use or housing restrictions, must be subject to human rights standards: their impacts on the human rights of individuals and communities must be assessed, and due process rights, and the rights to information and participation, must be upheld in all circumstances.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Centrality of the right to adequate housing for the development and implementation of the New Urban Agenda to be adopted at Habitat III in October 2016 2015, para. 72
- Paragraph text
- On its current path, urbanization is simply unsustainable. The majority of people in cities worldwide suffer gross inequality, many living in deplorable or unaffordable housing conditions, vulnerable to forced evictions and homelessness and constantly fearing for their safety and security. Millions continue to move to cities in search of opportunities, services and a better life. At the same time, a select few continue to accrue astonishing levels of wealth and power, including from land and housing speculation. Change is required. Habitat III represents an essential opportunity to forge a new way forward, one with the right to adequate housing at its core.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Homelessness as a global human rights crisis that demands an urgent global response 2016, para. 91j
- Paragraph text
- [In line with the present conclusions, the Special Rapporteur offers the following recommendations to States:] Any evictions that may result in homelessness, including those intended to render homeless people less visible, such as to promote tourism or facilitate mega events, must be recognized under domestic law as gross violations of human rights and be immediately stopped. Forced evictions must not occur without prior meaningful consultation with affected groups, an exploration of all alternatives, including in situ upgrading, and the implementation of agreed-upon resettlement options for those affected;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2016
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Impact of climate change on the right to food 2015, para. 84
- Paragraph text
- A strong "agropessimism" has emerged, partly as a result of the significant adverse effects of agricultural activities responsible for triggering climate change and degrading natural resources and partly as a result of the difficulty of the task of feeding a growing global population in the face of substantial challenges. As a result, the view has emerged that humankind will not be able to feed itself unless current industrial modes of agriculture are expanded and intensified.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Discussion on "Recognition through Education, Cultural Rights and Data Collection" 2013, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- Education provides a gateway to the full enjoyment of other rights, including rights to freedom of movement and expression, access to justice and remedies when human rights are violated, participation in the cultural, social and economic life and in public affairs. Lack of education has perpetuated the cycle of poverty, racism and segregation, from the time of the infamous transatlantic slave trade to the present date. Conversely, education provides a vital key to sustainable poverty alleviation.
- Body
- Working Group of experts on people of African descent
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Environment
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Development and people of African descent 2015, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- The Working Group concludes that poverty is both a cause and a consequence of discrimination. Development should not be narrowly defined as economic development only, but must also include political, economic, social, cultural and environmental aspects, consistent with the Declaration on the Right to Development. The Working Group "recognizes that … historical injustices have undeniably contributed to the poverty, underdevelopment, marginalization, social exclusion, economic disparities, instability and insecurity that affect many people in different parts of the world, in particular in developing countries" and "recognizes the need to develop programmes for the social and economic development of these societies and the Diaspora, within the framework of a new partnership based on the spirit of solidarity and mutual respect" (Durban Programme of Action, para. 158), in areas such as debt relief, poverty eradication, market access and the promotion of foreign direct investment.
- Body
- Working Group of experts on people of African descent
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The right to adequate housing in disaster relief efforts 2011, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- In the view of the Special Rapporteur, making comprehensive efforts to realize the right to adequate housing in reconstruction efforts is not only an obligation but also an opportunity. While disaster response will not - and should not - replace development efforts, it provides an occasion to redress the inequalities that either exacerbated the natural disaster's impacts or were made visible by it, and to contribute to efforts to progressively realize the right to adequate housing for all, notably by improving tenure security.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Humanitarian
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Post conflict and post disaster reconstruction and the right to adequate housing 2011, para. 61
- Paragraph text
- [In preparing for reconstruction and development, all relevant parties and actors should acknowledge that housing has an inherent social value of vital importance for social stability, alleviation of poverty and development. Any response to the impacts of conflicts or disasters on the right to adequate housing should go beyond a focus on the damage, loss or destruction of shelter and infrastructure and should seek to address, inter alia:] Compromised access to facilities, amenities and livelihood opportunities;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Post conflict and post disaster reconstruction and the right to adequate housing 2011, para. 61
- Paragraph text
- [In preparing for reconstruction and development, all relevant parties and actors should acknowledge that housing has an inherent social value of vital importance for social stability, alleviation of poverty and development. Any response to the impacts of conflicts or disasters on the right to adequate housing should go beyond a focus on the damage, loss or destruction of shelter and infrastructure and should seek to address, inter alia:] The loss of tenure security, particularly by those who had been living under customary or informal tenure systems prior to the disaster or conflict.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Humanitarian
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Post conflict and post disaster reconstruction and the right to adequate housing 2011, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- [Violations of the right to adequate housing can both contribute to and result from armed conflicts and natural disasters. The poorer and marginalized members of society are disproportionately affected. Addressing existing vulnerabilities can play an important role in both preventing and mitigating the impacts of disasters and conflicts. States should therefore:] Recognize and protect a variety of land tenure forms, instead of a predominant or exclusive focus on freehold ownership.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Human rights criteria for making contract farming and other business models inclusive of small-scale farmers 2011, para. 52
- Paragraph text
- Governments should ensure that regulatory oversight keeps pace with the level of the expansion and the complexity of business models, including small-scale farming. Certain key clauses of contracts should be regulated, including those concerning price fixing, quality grading and the conditions under which inputs are provided, and the reservation of a portion of land for the production of food crops for self-consumption. The contracts, once agreed upon by the parties, could be subjected to vetting by authorities to ensure that any abuse is identified and, where appropriate, remedied; in addition, non-judicial dispute resolution mechanisms should be made available. Particular attention should be paid to the seven critical aspects and good practices for contract farming identified in section III above. [...]
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Fisheries and the right to food 2012, para. 63e
- Paragraph text
- [To preserve the long-term sustainability of fishing and the availability of local fish as food, in particular by combating overfishing, all States should:] Reduce the proportion of fish used for fishmeal purposes, including by promoting direct human consumption of some small and nutritious fish, curbing demand for fish proteins from fish higher up the food chain (such as tuna and salmon or farmed carnivorous species such as prawns) by affluent consumers, which leads to overexploitation of marine resources worldwide, and considering imposing restrictions on the proportion of fish that can be used for reduction purposes.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2012
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The protection of sources and whistle-blowers 2015, para. 63
- Paragraph text
- State law should protect any person who discloses information that he or she reasonably believes, at the time of disclosure, to be true and to constitute a threat or harm to a specified public interest, such as a violation of national or international law, abuse of authority, waste, fraud or harm to the environment, public health or public safety. Upon disclosure, authorities should investigate and redress the alleged wrongdoing without any exception based on the presumed motivations or "good faith" of the person who disclosed the information.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the context of natural resource exploitation projects 2015, para. 70
- Paragraph text
- The significance of civil society as a stakeholder in the context of natural resource exploitation is underestimated, misperceived and often denied by both States and businesses. This is symptomatic of a growing disregard for a plurality of views, particularly those which champion non-economic values over economic ones. Such disregard is counterproductive and divisive, and is likely contributing to an erosion of confidence in the world's prevailing economic system. It is thus in the interest of both States and corporations to recognize actions by civil society groups both in support of and against the entire decision-making chain in natural resource governance, as a legitimate exercise by these individuals and groups of their rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Post conflict and post disaster reconstruction and the right to adequate housing 2011, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- [Violations of the right to adequate housing can both contribute to and result from armed conflicts and natural disasters. The poorer and marginalized members of society are disproportionately affected. Addressing existing vulnerabilities can play an important role in both preventing and mitigating the impacts of disasters and conflicts. States should therefore:] Develop and implement land tenure reform policies and programmes that make suitably located, secure, safe and affordable housing accessible to all;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 86f (ii)
- Paragraph text
- [In order to comply with their human rights obligations regarding the right to participation, the Special Rapporteur recommends States undertake the following actions:] Empowerment: Take all appropriate steps to enhance the capacity of people living in poverty to participate in public life, including by: a. Improving the accessibility and quality of education services provided to the poorest sectors of the population. b. Ensuring educational programmes transmit the necessary knowledge, including human rights education, to enable everyone to participate fully and on an equal footing at the local and national levels. c. Launching public education campaigns on issues that affect people living in poverty, such as the environment, human rights, development and budgeting processes.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2013
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Impact of climate change on the right to food 2015, para. 86
- Paragraph text
- It is therefore necessary to recognize the existence of inadequate mitigation and adaptation policies within the climate change regime and to ensure that the right policies are promoted through technical and legal solutions. Food security and adaptation to climate change are mutually supportive; in many situations, strategies to reduce vulnerability to climate change will also increase food security.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
The right to adequate housing in disaster relief efforts 2011, para. 64.2
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur makes the following recommendations:] No harm should be caused by or to others in respecting and protecting the right to adequate housing, including tenure security: Housing, land and property should be protected from further damage or destruction.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Human rights criteria for making contract farming and other business models inclusive of small-scale farmers 2011, para. 52b
- Paragraph text
- [In addition, Government agencies should:] Link their support for contract farming to compliance with certain environmental conditions, such as reduced use of chemical fertilizers or the planting of trees, or to the adoption of a business plan that provides for a gradual shift to more sustainable types of farming.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2011
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 107o
- Paragraph text
- [States should:] Encourage farmers to adopt agroecological practices to enhance biodiversity and naturally suppress pests, and to adopt measures such as crop rotation, soil fertility management and crop selection appropriate for local conditions;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
- Paragraph type
- Conclusion / Recommendation
Paragraph