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Ability of associations to access financial resources as a vital part of the right to freedom of association & Ability to hold peaceful assemblies as an integral component of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly 2013, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- This has also been the case for peaceful protestors advocating economic, social and cultural rights, such as indigenous peoples protesting the exploitation of a coal mine (Bangladesh), local residents denouncing the health impact of nuclear power plants (India), students protesting university reforms (Chile), employees protesting the closure of a mine (Myanmar), activists criticizing the increase in fuel prices (Sri Lanka) or students supporting an ethnic group forcibly displaced by the construction of a dam (Sudan).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- Activists
- Ethnic minorities
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2013
Paragraph
Access and participation of women and girls in education, training and science and technology, including for the promotion of women's equal access to full employment and decent work 2011, para. 22ss
- Paragraph text
- [The Commission urges Governments, at all levels [...] to take the following actions, as appropriate:] [Making science and technology responsive to women's needs]: Respect, preserve and maintain women's traditional knowledge and innovation while recognizing the potential of rural and indigenous women to contribute to the production of science and technology and of new knowledge to improve their lives and those of their families and communities;
- Body
- Commission on the Status of Women
- Document type
- CSW Agreed Conclusions / Declaration
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Environment
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Access to justice and the right to food: the way forward 2015, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- The following examples illustrate the positive role played by regional human rights mechanisms. In the case Centre for Minority Rights Development (Kenya) and Minority Rights Group International on behalf of Endorois Welfare Council v. Kenya, the Endorois, a primarily pastoralist indigenous community, were removed from their lands by the Government of Kenya to establish a wildlife reserve. The African Commission found Kenya to have violated articles 8, 14, 17, 21 and 22 of the African Charter. The Commission noted that, as a consequence of its removal, the community had been "relegated to semi-arid land", which was unsuitable for pastoralism. The ability to graze animals, a key means of subsistence for the community, had become impossible as a result of loss of their land and this threatened the community's survival.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Access to justice and the right to food: the way forward 2015, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- In its case SERAC v. Nigeria, the African Commission held that the treatment by Nigeria of the Ogoni indigenous community violated the right to food implied in the African Charter. In their statement to the African Commission, the NGOs submitting the claim contended that: "the Nigerian government ... destroyed and threatened Ogoni food sources through a variety of means. The government ... participated in irresponsible oil development that poisoned much of the soil and water upon which Ogoni farming and fishing depended. In their raids on villages, Nigerian security forces have destroyed crops and killed farm animals. The security forces have created a state of terror and insecurity that ... made it impossible for many Ogoni villagers to return to their fields and animals. The destruction of farm lands, rivers, crops and animals created malnutrition and starvation among certain Ogoni communities."
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Access to justice and the right to food: the way forward 2015, para. 41
- Paragraph text
- Development-induced displacement is an increasingly widespread phenomenon with devastating impact. An estimated 15 million people each year are forced to relocate and resettle as a result of such interventions. Despite some of the more recent efforts to highlight land dispossession, as yet global institutions have been unable to discourage the practices and processes that undermine land rights, prevent equitable access and establish the context for large and small-scale displacements. The expanding mining sector has contributed to strong economic growth in some countries, with mining and oil concessions dramatically increasing in countries. The industry has however also generated social conflict in many States, particularly in rural areas, with mining activities coming into direct competition with small-scale agriculture. Indigenous peoples are particularly vulnerable as they are often forced to leave their land and sources of livelihood. A lack of engagement and opportunities for participation in decisions that affect their lives has left many communities in situations of dire poverty and without access to adequate food and nutrition.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
Paragraph
Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 1
- Paragraph text
- One billion people are hungry today. For the vast majority - smallholders or agricultural workers, herders, artisanal fisherfolk and members of indigenous communities - access to land is a condition for the achievement of a decent standard of living. The reason why approximately 500 million people depending on small-scale agriculture are hungry is not only that the price they receive for their crops is too low and they are less competitive than larger production units, but also that they cultivate plots that are often very small - which makes the vast majority of them net food buyers - and they are often relegated to soils that are arid, hilly or without irrigation as they compete against larger productive units for access to land and water. Whether because small-scale farming has become non-viable or because they have been expelled from the land in the absence of effective security of tenure, many such farmers become agricultural workers on large-scale plantations, where they are often paid lower than subsistence wages and left without social or legal protection. Artisanal fisherfolk pastoralists and agro-pastoralists now face a similar threat: as land becomes scarcer, they increasingly risk being excluded from the fishing and grazing grounds on which they have been able to rely for generations. And the precarious position of indigenous peoples and forest-dwelling populations may be attributed in particular to the increased pressure on the forests on which they depend for their livelihoods.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 3
- Paragraph text
- For some of the groups that are the most vulnerable today, this means protecting existing access to land, water, grazing or fishing grounds, or forests, all of which may be productive resources essential for a decent livelihood. In such cases, as detailed below, the right to food may complement the protection of the right to property or of indigenous peoples' relationship with their lands, territories, and resources. In other cases, because landlessness is a cause of particular vulnerability, the obligation of the State goes further: it is to strengthen such access or make it possible - for example, through redistributive programmes that may in turn result in restrictions on others' right to property. This obligation of States is especially clear in cases in which the members of such groups have no alternative means of producing food or gaining sufficient income to purchase food that is sufficient, adequate and culturally acceptable.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- Indigenous peoples are increasingly victims of the exploitation of natural resources on their lands, which are often regarded as belonging to the State. The demarcation of their lands and territories is a lengthy process that includes many obstacles. Participation is generally lacking. Yet, International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 169, concerning indigenous and tribal peoples in independent countries, which entered into force in 1991, provides for a number of guarantees related to land. Although the Convention has been insufficiently ratified, that has been compensated for in part through the adoption on 13 September 2007 by the General Assembly, in its resolution 61/295, of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which contributes to the formation of international customary law on this issue. The Declaration provides, in its article 8 (2) (b), that States should prohibit "any action which has the aim or effect of dispossessing [indigenous peoples] of their lands, territories or resources", a requirement that replicates article 18 of ILO Convention No. 169. It also prohibits, in its article 10, any forcible removal of indigenous peoples from their lands or territories, imposing the requirements of free, prior and informed consent, agreement on just and fair compensation and, where possible, the option of return (for relocations).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- In addition, the right of all peoples to freely dispose of their natural wealth and resources - as provided for in article 1 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of 16 December 1966 and in article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of 16 December 1966 - entails the protection of indigenous peoples from certain forms of dispossession from their territories or from the resources on which they depend. Article 5 (d) (v) of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination also protects the right of indigenous communities to their lands. And the right of indigenous peoples to the official recognition and registration of their territories has been affirmed under relevant regional human rights instruments. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights consider that indigenous people's traditional possession of their lands has effects equivalent to those of a State-granted full property title: therefore, where members of indigenous peoples have unwillingly lost possession of their lands after a lawful transfer to innocent third parties, they are entitled to the restitution thereof or to obtain other lands of equal extension and quality. The right of indigenous communities to their lands includes the right to the natural resources contained therein. Property, as protected under article 21 of the American Convention on Human Rights, is considered to constitute a collective right of indigenous people, since land ownership is often centred not on the individual, but rather on the group and its community. Thus, States may have to recognize the customary systems of land tenure that protect communal property rights - for example, by giving the community a right to veto the alienation of its land by one of its constituent members, whether an individual or a clan, village or tribe.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- International human rights law protects the relationship of indigenous communities with their lands, territories and resources by requiring States to demarcate such land, protect it from encroachment and respect the right of the communities concerned to manage it according to their internal modes of organization. Although sometimes those guarantees seem to be honoured more in the breach than in the observance, case law shows that use rights derived from customary tenure can be recognized and protected by the legal system; it also shows that the right to communal property - a right of the community rather than of the individual - is an alternative to individual property rights. On both counts, it can serve as a source of inspiration, in order to enhance the protection of the rights of other users of natural resources.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 26
- Paragraph text
- For these groups, the existence of commons is vital. As noted by the Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor, in some legal cultures, community-based ownership of natural resources such as grazing lands, forests, water, fisheries and surface minerals is a traditional and effective way to grant control and proprietary rights to persons who have little or no other property. Such systems should be both recognized and fully protected against arbitrary seizure. Indeed, under existing international law, the requirements applicable to indigenous peoples may have to be extended to at least certain traditional communities that entertain a similar relationship with their ancestral lands, centred on the community rather than on the individual. That would encourage the management of common-pool resources at the local level by the communities directly concerned, rather than through top-down prescriptions or privatization of the commons. When such arrangements are institutionalized, the decentralized management of common-pool resources, recognizing their function as collective goods, is recognized as highly effective. Those negotiating the modalities of the use of the commons have the best information about its carrying capacity, and thus about uses that are sustainable, and the users have strong incentives to monitor the use of the commons and to report infractions.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 40c
- Paragraph text
- [In order to respect the right to food, States should:] Respect the needs of special groups. States should implement the specific rights of indigenous peoples by demarcating their lands and territories and by providing them with specific protection. States should also protect access to fishing grounds, grazing grounds and water points for fisherfolk, herders and pastoralists, for whom the protection of commons is vital. The recognition of communal rights should extend beyond indigenous communities, at least to certain communities that entertain a similar relationship with the land, centred on the community rather than on the individual;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Access to land and the right to food 2010, para. 43a (ii)
- Paragraph text
- [The Special Rapporteur also makes the following recommendations to the international community:] Establish adequate governance instruments to operationalize the commitments set out in the Final Declaration of the International Conference on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development. The Voluntary Guidelines on Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land and other Natural Resources could make a significant contribution, provided that they: Provide for the systematic and comprehensive interpretation of existing provisions of international human rights and environmental law that protect the rights of land users in all categories, whether indigenous peoples or other rural groups such as peasants, pastoralists and fisherfolk. The international recognition of the rights of these groups is scattered among various instruments and lacks systematic interpretation. The FAO Committee on World Food Security could also play an important role by: a. Establishing a mechanism for follow-up to the Conference commitments; b. Commissioning an independent review by the Committee's High-level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition of best practices in agrarian reform;
- 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
- Ethnic minorities
- Year
- 2010
Paragraph
Acroecology and the right to food 2011, para. 27
- Paragraph text
- The diversity of species on farms managed following agroecological principles, as well as in urban or peri-urban agriculture, is an important asset in this regard. For example, it has been estimated that indigenous fruits contribute on average about 42 per cent of the natural food-basket that rural households rely on in southern Africa. This is not only an important source of vitamins and other micronutrients, but it also may be critical for sustenance during lean seasons. Nutritional diversity, enabled by increased diversity in the field, is of particular importance to children and women.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
- Year
- 2011
Paragraph
Activities of foreign economic and other interests which impede the implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples in Territories under colonial domination (1997), para. 06
- Paragraph text
- Reaffirming further that the natural resources are the heritage of the indigenous populations of the colonial and Non-Self-Governing Territories,
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
Paragraph
Activities of foreign economic and other interests which impede the implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples in Territories under colonial domination (1997), para. 15
- Paragraph text
- 4. Reaffirms its concern about the activities of those foreign economic, financial and other interests which continue to exploit the natural resources that are the heritage of the indigenous populations of the colonial and Non-Self-Governing Territories in the Caribbean, the Pacific and other regions, as well as their human resources, to the detriment of their interests, thus depriving them of their right to control the resources of their Territories and impeding the realization by those peoples of their legitimate aspirations for self-determination and independence;
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
Paragraph
Activities of foreign economic and other interests which impede the implementation of the Declaration on the Granting ofIndependence to Colonial Countries and Peoples in Territories under colonial domination (1996), para. 06
- Paragraph text
- Reaffirming further that the natural resources are the heritage of the indigenous populations of the colonial and Non-Self-Governing Territories,
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
Paragraph
Activities of foreign economic and other interests which impede the implementation of the Declaration on the Granting ofIndependence to Colonial Countries and Peoples in Territories under colonial domination (1996), para. 15
- Paragraph text
- 4. Reaffirms its concern about the activities of those foreign economic, financial and other interests which continue to exploit the natural resources that are the heritage of the indigenous populations of the colonial and Non-Self-Governing Territories in the Caribbean, the Pacific and other regions, as well as their human resources, to the detriment of their interests, thus depriving them of their right to control the resources of their Territories and impeding the realization by those peoples of their legitimate aspirations for self-determination and independence;
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
Paragraph
Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development (Addis Ababa Action Agenda) (2015), para. 009
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 4. Despite these gains, many countries, particularly developing countries, still face considerable challenges, and some have fallen further behind. Inequalities within many countries have increased dramatically. Women, representing half of the world’s population, as well as indigenous peoples and the vulnerable, continue to be excluded from participating fully in the economy. While the Monterrey agenda has not yet been fully implemented, new challenges have arisen and enormous unmet needs remain for the achievement of sustainable development. The 2008 world financial and economic crisis exposed risks and vulnerabilities in the international financial and economic system. Global growth rates are now below pre-crisis levels. Shocks from financial and economic crises, conflict, natural disasters and disease outbreaks spread rapidly in our highly interconnected world. Environmental degradation, climate change and other environmental risks threaten to undermine past successes and future prospects. We need to ensure that our development efforts enhance resilience in the face of these threats.
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
Paragraph
Adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living in the context of disaster settings 2012, para. 6
- Paragraph text
- Concerned that any deterioration in the general housing situation disproportionately affects persons living in conditions of poverty, low-income earners, women, children, persons belonging to minorities and indigenous peoples, migrants, internally displaced persons, tenants, the elderly and persons with disabilities, and increases the need for them to be supported against extreme natural disasters,
- Body
- United Nations Human Rights Council
- Document type
- Resolution
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Humanitarian
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Persons on the move
- Women
- Year
- 2012
Paragraph
Advisory services and technical assistance for Cambodia (2019), para. 17
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 8. Commends the positive cooperation between the Government of Cambodia and the Office of the High Commissioner, particularly for the protection of land rights for indigenous peoples, encourages the enhancement of cooperation between the Government and the Office of the High Commissioner, as specified in the memorandum of understanding between the Government and the field office in Phnom Penh of the Office, and calls upon the Government to implement the recommendations made by the Special Rapporteur, taking into account the national context of Cambodia;
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
Paragraph
Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and related instruments (2013), para. 068
- Paragraph text
- 21. Recalls that in “The future we want”, States committed themselves to observing the need to ensure access to fisheries and the importance of access to markets by subsistence, small-scale and artisanal fisherfolk and women fish workers, as well as indigenous peoples and their communities, particularly in developing countries, especially small island developing States;
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
Paragraph
Agricultural technology for development (2010), para. 06
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- Recognizing the work done by the Commission on Sustainable Development, in particular at its sixteenth and seventeenth sessions, highlighting the thematic focus on agriculture-related issues, and applauding its call to increase investment in training research and development, in particular on sustainable practices and technologies, including agricultural technologies, and to accelerate the transfer and diffusion of such technologies, information, methods and practices in order to reach all users, including farmers, women, youth and indigenous people as well as those in remote rural areas,
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
- Youth
Paragraph
Agriculture development and food security (2013), para. 45
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 23. Emphasizes the need to revitalize the agriculture and rural development sectors, notably in developing countries, in an economically, socially and environmentally sustainable manner, and underlines the importance of taking the necessary actions to better address the needs of rural communities through, inter alia, enhancing access by agricultural producers, in particular small producers, women, indigenous peoples and people living in vulnerable situations, to credit and other financial services, markets, secure land tenure, health care, social services, education, training, knowledge and appropriate and affordable technologies, including for efficient irrigation, reuse of treated wastewater and water harvesting and storage;
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
Paragraph
Agriculture development, food security and nutrition (2014), para. 23
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- Recognizing also the importance of smallholder and family farmers, including women, cooperatives, indigenous peoples and local communities in developing countries, and their knowledge and practices, in the conservation and sustainable use of traditional crops and biodiversity, as well as livestock management, which play a positive role in contributing to the achievement of food security and improved nutrition outcomes, as well as in the implementation of development goals in such fields as employment policy, social integration, regional and rural development, agriculture and environmental protection,
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
Paragraph
Agriculture development, food security and nutrition (2014), para. 42
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 11. Welcomes the activities of the International Year of Quinoa, 2013, which have focused attention on the important role of quinoa, its biodiversity and nutritional value, as a way of promoting the traditional knowledge of the Andean and other indigenous peoples, contributing to the achievement of food security, improved nutrition and poverty eradication, raising awareness of their contribution to social, economic and environmental development and sharing good practices in the implementation of the International Year;
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
Paragraph
Agriculture development, food security and nutrition (2014), para. 58
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 27. Recognizes the role of indigenous peoples and small farmers and their traditional seed supply systems in the conservation of biodiversity and food security;
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
Paragraph
Agriculture development, food security and nutrition (2014), para. 62
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 31. Emphasizes the need to revitalize the agriculture and rural development sectors, notably in developing countries, in an economically, socially and environmentally sustainable manner, and underlines the importance of taking the necessary actions to better address the needs of rural communities through, inter alia, enhancing access by agricultural producers, in particular small producers, women, indigenous peoples and people living in vulnerable situations, to credit and other financial services, markets, secure land tenure, health care, social services, education, training, knowledge and appropriate and affordable technologies, including for efficient irrigation, reuse of treated wastewater and water harvesting and storage;
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
Paragraph
Agriculture development, food security and nutrition (2016), para. 47
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 20. Recognizes the important role of indigenous peoples and small-scale farmers and their traditional knowledge and seed supply systems in the conservation of biodiversity and in aiming to ensure food security and improved nutrition;
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
Paragraph
Agriculture development, food security and nutrition (2017), para. 49
- Original document
- Paragraph text
- 20. Recognizes the important role of indigenous peoples, local communities, small-scale farmers, small-scale fishers and fish workers and their traditional knowledge and seed supply systems, as well the important role of new technologies in the conservation of biodiversity and in aiming to ensure food security and improved nutrition;
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
Paragraph