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Title | Date added | Template | Original document | Paragraph text | Body | Document type | Thematics | Topic(s) | Person(s) affected | Year |
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The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 13 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The emergence of the Social Protection Floor Initiative at the international level has been well documented. In telegraphic form, most analyses begin with the harsh adjustment policies associated with the "Washington Consensus" of the 1980s, the reaction to those policies by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other actors, the World Summit for Social Development in 1995, the poverty reduction strategies championed by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), starting in the late 1990s, and the focus on poverty in the Millennium Development Goals. Social security then began to re-emerge as a priority concern, thanks in large part to the engagement of ILO. It launched a global campaign on social security in 2003, followed by the World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization in 2004, along with a series of other steps endorsed by the International Labour Conference. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
Taxation and human rightss 2014, para. 36 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Taxation is critical to finance development and can be a powerful tool for stimulating poverty reduction. Higher and more stable revenues result in increased sustainable investment in public services, infrastructure and other development needs, and improve competitiveness of economies over the long term. Taxes are not the only source of government revenue, but they are arguably the most important, because they combine three critical functions, addressed below: (a) the generation of revenue for the realization of rights; (b) achieving equality and tackling discrimination; and (c) strengthening governance and accountability. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
The importance of social protection measures in achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 2010, para. 9 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Social insurance and social assistance are the two main segments of social protection. "Social insurance" refers to contributory insurance schemes providing pre-specified support for affiliated members. "Social assistance" encompasses initiatives providing both cash and in kind assistance to those living in poverty. Relevant social protection measures addressing the needs of those living in extreme poverty include cash transfer schemes, public-works programmes, school stipends, social pensions, food vouchers and transfers, and user-fee exemptions for health care, education or subsidized services. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2010 | ||
The importance of social protection measures in achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 2010, para. 18 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Moreover, several kinds of social protection programmes contribute to income generation and enable recipients to accumulate and protect assets, building their resilience in the face of shocks and increasing their chances of escaping extreme poverty. The additional income that social protection provides through various types of cash or in kind transfers and microcredit schemes enables families and individuals to accumulate savings, engage in long-term planning and invest in productive assets. Increasingly, social protection programmes are also designed to enable households to invest in human capital development, thus preventing poverty from being passed on from one generation to the next. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2010 | ||
The importance of social protection measures in achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 2010, para. 14 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Efforts to advance a development agenda based on human rights must address State obligations concerning gender equality and women's empowerment. Since several social protection programmes, such as cash or asset transfer schemes, and public-works schemes, explicitly target women, it is often assumed that gender issues are already addressed. Such targeting, however, does not mean that gender dynamics have been adequately taken into account in the design, implementation and evaluation of such programmes. Owing to existing economic, social and cultural inequalities, women face a number of obstacles that affect their ability to benefit from social protection schemes. States must therefore examine and address the roles that power and gender dynamics play in the implementation, sustainability and impact of social programmes. Otherwise, such programmes may increase the vulnerability and inequality of women, and thus fail to comply with human rights standards. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2010 | ||
Social protection and old age poverty 2010, para. 38 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Several treaties contain specific references to old age. The Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women stipulates "the right to social security, particularly in cases of retirement, unemployment, sickness, invalidity and old age and other incapacity to work" (art. 11). It is also understood that the prohibition of discrimination included in major human rights treaties is understood as non-exhaustive; therefore, even if age is not mentioned specifically as a prohibitive ground for discrimination, it should still be accepted under "other status". The International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families specifically identifies age as a prohibited ground for discrimination. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2010 | ||
Human rights based approach to recovery from the global economic and financial crises, with a focus on those living in poverty 2011, para. 75 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The obligations of non-discrimination and equality oblige States to ensure that employment creation policies benefit all sectors of society equally. Policies that increase the employability (for example, through demand-driven skills development and vocational training) of groups that face specific barriers in their access to employment, such as women, persons with disabilities, young people and indigenous populations, will assist States in fulfilling their human rights obligations. To remove obstacles to employment for women, States should ensure the availability of care services (from the State, the community and the market), the redistribution of paid and unpaid work from a gender perspective and the elimination of all forms of gender discrimination. States are not only obliged to undertake effective legislation to this end, but also to take measures to modify social and cultural patterns of conduct of men and women. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2011 | ||
Human rights based approach to recovery from the global economic and financial crises, with a focus on those living in poverty 2011, para. 80 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In several countries, the crises have demonstrated a clear need to maximize means of harnessing resources specifically for the realization of economic, social and cultural rights. States should identify additional sources of fiscal space to increase resources for social and economic recovery. From an array of options, States should particularly consider widening the tax base, improving the efficiency of tax collection and reprioritizing expenditures. These types of reforms could help States to achieve a more progressive, equitable and sustainable taxation regime while complying with a human rights framework. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2011 | ||
Human rights based approach to recovery from the global economic and financial crises, with a focus on those living in poverty 2011, para. 84 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | A human rights approach stipulates that legal and policy measures to strengthen the accountability and transparency of financial systems should be taken. In order for States to meet their duty to protect, the banking sector should be regulated to obligate banking institutions to serve the interests of society by, for example, ensuring access to credit without discrimination, especially those struggling under increased economic burdens. States should ensure adequate means of redress for those adversely affected by the actions taken by financial sector institutions, and adopt regulations that discourage harmful practices by providing for accountability mechanisms that penalize risky behaviours and prosecute perpetrators. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2011 | ||
Unpaid care work and women's human rights 2013, para. 82 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Improving recognition of unpaid care work also necessitates making the data collected available and accessible, and informing and sensitizing public officials and the general public about the distribution, importance and effects of such work. The data collected should be used to assess the impact of economic and social policies on the intensity and distribution of unpaid care work in the household. It should be used proactively in gender-sensitive policymaking, including budgeting. To this end, it will be necessary to train policymakers and public officials to understand the data, and enhance their capacity to analyse it and use it in policy, programming and budgeting. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2013 | ||
Unpaid care work and women's human rights 2013, para. 109 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In order to position unpaid care work as a major human rights issue, build up evidence in this regard and alleviate women's poverty resulting from unpaid care work across their life cycle, the Special Rapporteur urges national human rights institutions to include the issue of unpaid care work in their research, policy, advocacy and programming work and to apply a human rights and gender equality perspective to this work. In addition, she encourages them to raise the issue with human rights mechanisms and bodies, including the universal periodic review, human rights treaty bodies, and the Commission on the Status of Women, including when country reports are reviewed. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2013 | ||
Taxation and human rightss 2014, para. 70 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Natural resources can be a vital source of revenue that the State can use to comply with its human rights obligations. The financial and social benefits of natural resource exploitation are, however, increasingly bypassing people in producing countries. In most countries, extractive industries generate few jobs directly and have only weak links to local markets. Far from bringing benefits, the exploitation of natural resources has been frequently linked to human rights abuse and encroachment on lands and livelihoods of communities, mass evictions, pollution and environmental degradation, which may result in violations of rights to health, food, housing and water. The right of people to participate in decisions regarding natural resources is often violated, especially where the land, territory and resources of indigenous peoples is concerned. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
The World Bank and human rights 2015, para. 10 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In October 2006, the next General Counsel, Ana Palacio, characterized her predecessor's interpretation as "allowing, but not mandating, action on the part of the Bank in relation to human rights." That is more restrictive than the actual conclusion of Mr. Dañino that there are instances in which the Bank should take human rights into account. Ms. Palacio accepted that the Bank had a role in supporting its members to fulfil their human rights obligations. Her analysis began with an affirmative reference to Mr. Shihata's approach and she added that "human rights would not be the basis for an increase in Bank conditionalities, nor should they be seen as an agenda that could present an obstacle for disbursement or increase the cost of doing business". | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
Taxation and human rightss 2014, para. 54 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In order to realize the potential of taxation to fulfil the above-described functions to the greatest possible extent, there are several actions that States should take. These measures are examined from the human rights perspective below. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
Taxation and human rightss 2014, para. 59 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Tax abuse is thus not a victimless practice; it limits resources that could be spent on reducing poverty and realizing human rights, and perpetuates vast income inequality. While the rich benefit from this practice, the poor feel the negative impact on their standard of living, their unequal political power and the inferior quality of health and education services for themselves and their children. Simulations suggest that, if all the capital flight from Africa over the period 2000-2008 had been invested in Africa, with the same productivity as actual investment, the average rate of poverty reduction would have been 4 to 6 percentage points higher per year. Meanwhile, the recent devastating austerity measures taken in some countries could have been avoided entirely if some of the annual revenue lost from tax evasion had been recovered. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
The World Bank and human rights 2015, para. 52 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Based on the preceding review, the following propositions seem to encapsulate the actual practice of the World Bank: (a) pay lip service to human rights in official settings, as long as there are no consequences; (b) acknowledge the theoretical significance of human rights in studies and analyses of issues in relation to which they are incontestably relevant; (c) ensure that, as a general rule, the Bank does not engage with any aspect of human rights in its actual operations and lending; and (d) be prepared to make exceptions when political imperatives require it, even if that involves a high degree of inconsistency. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
Extreme inequality and human rights 2015, para. 38 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The World Bank has also been active on this front. In its Annual Report 2014 it noted that "rising inequality in many countries is harmful to economic stability and the sustainability of growth, but well-designed policies can reduce inequality without hurting growth". In January 2015, the Bank's Chief Economist suggested that the "deep and pervasive inequality that exists today can only be condemned". He recalled that the annual income of the world's 50 wealthiest people was close to the total income of the poorest 1 billion, a figure that he characterized as "a collective failure". He called for the consideration of "policies and interventions to curb such extreme inequality", which he said must be done "not only out of a sense of justice, but also because, in a world afflicted with such extreme disparities, its poorest residents lose their voice, even when they have the right to vote. Extreme inequality is, ultimately, an assault on democracy." | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
Extreme inequality and human rights 2015, para. 30 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Studies have demonstrated the negative effect of income inequality upon the right to education. A 2014 study published by OECD showed that "increased income disparities depress skills development among individuals with poorer parental education background, both in terms of the quantity of education attained (e.g. years of schooling), and in terms of its quality (i.e. skill proficiency)" and that "higher inequality lowers the opportunities of education (and social mobility) of disadvantaged individuals in the society, an effect that dominates the potentially positive impacts through incentives". Another study showed that the youngest children in Ecuador, irrespective of wealth quintile or education of their parents, performed broadly as well as their comparators, but that, as they got older, only those children in the top half of the wealth distribution and with highly educated parents maintained their performance relative to their comparators. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
Marginality of economic and social rights 2016, para. 42 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Because of the relative inactivity of these other actors, studies of economic and social rights accountability have focused overwhelmingly on the courts and on the extent to which the increasing constitutional recognition noted above has enabled them to play an active role in upholding economic and social rights. It is open to question whether this emphasis accurately reflects the main trends in economic and social rights accountability or whether it is due more to the lawyers' preference for studying courts. It might also be linked to the determination of economic and social rights proponents in the era of post-Cold War constitutional revitalization to respond to the often heard, but highly reductionist, proposition that "if one is to talk meaningfully of rights, one has to discuss what can be enforced through the judicial process". In response, economic and social rights proponents have sought legitimacy by seeking to demonstrate that economic and social rights resemble civil and political rights, at least in this key respect. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2016 | ||
The World Bank and human rights 2015, para. 37 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The goals and policies of the Bank have changed radically since 1944. The Articles of Agreement contain no mention of either of its current proclaimed "twin goals" of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared prosperity. The General Counsels have played a key role in the necessarily dynamic interpretation of the Articles required to reflect and justify that evolution. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
Extreme poverty and human rights on universal basic income 2017, para. 7 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | There is a strong risk that when confronted with the challenge of addressing economic insecurity the human rights system will proceed in zombie mode. It will keep marching straight ahead on the path mapped out long ago, even as the lifeblood drains out of the enterprise. Its supervisory and monitoring organs will address themselves ever more insistently to State actors that have made themselves marginal, and they will continue to demand respect for standards that have long since been overtaken by the grim realities of global supply chains. For the most part, the human rights machinery is cumbersome, lacking in agility, and poorly placed to develop new thinking in such contexts. But it will need to do so if it is to remain relevant. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2017 | ||
The implementation of the right to social protection through the adoption of social protection floors 2014, para. 17 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Although social protection policies in Latin America still vary considerably, a recent study has identified several common policy characteristics within the region. They include: recognition of the importance of reducing inequalities and realizing social, economic and cultural rights; recognition of the role of the State in correcting market asymmetries; the need to increase and maintain social investment in response to economic crises; the adoption of comprehensive poverty reduction policies; and taking account of disparities based on gender, age and ethnicity. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
Social protection and old age poverty 2010, para. 29 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Traditionally, States have privileged the establishment of contributory pension systems with the objective of achieving universal coverage once the formal sector expanded. Today, with a vast number of workers in the informal sector, this approach must be re-examined. Contributory systems have left the majority of the population unprotected when they reach old age. Estimates indicate that less than 20 per cent of older persons are covered by pensions today and only about 25 per cent of the labour force is currently contributing or accruing pension rights. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2010 | ||
Human rights based approach to recovery from the global economic and financial crises, with a focus on those living in poverty 2011, para. 96 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The Independent Expert urges G20 countries to give serious thought to the proposal by France to introduce a financial transaction tax, and welcomes the recent decision to commission an inquiry into the feasibility of implementing such a tax. A global consensus on a financial transaction tax would represent an historic decision to prioritize the most disadvantaged and marginalized and be a valuable means of assisting developing countries to meet obligations to ensure the full realization of all economic, social and cultural rights. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2011 | ||
Extreme inequality and human rights 2015, para. 45e | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | [Subsequent to Mr. Eide's report, the Sub-Commission decided to appoint a Special Rapporteur on the relationship between the enjoyment of human rights, in particular economic, social and cultural rights, and income distribution. José Bengoa was appointed as Special Rapporteur and produced several reports between 1995 and 1998. He reached the following general conclusions (see E/CN.4/Sub.2/1998/8, paras. 4-9):] Income distribution should become an economic and social indicator used by international financial institutions and other international organizations. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2015 | ||
Taxation and human rightss 2014, para. 74 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | In order to take effective and decisive action in these matters, concerted international cooperation is necessary. Without absolving any State of its obligation to raise the maximum available resources domestically to ensure the progressive realization of economic, social and cultural rights, there are limits to national-level actions in the absence of global reforms. Many States are undoubtedly hamstrung in their efforts to enact progressive taxation and combat illicit financial flows that could fight inequality and enhance the realization of economic, social and cultural rights. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2014 | ||
Extreme poverty and human rights on universal basic income 2017, para. 72 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Fourth, the implications for gender equality from growing economic insecurity are almost unremittingly negative. It remains true that “the average woman’s career remains shorter, more disrupted and less remunerative than the average man’s”, and the consequences flow through into social security and related arrangements. Proponents of women’s human rights need to become more involved in debates over social protection and basic income. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2017 | ||
Access to justice for people living in poverty 2012, para. 54 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | The existence of administrative and other fees disproportionately disadvantages women, who often have less financial independence or access to financial resources. Women's access to the judicial system to determine civil claims with respect to divorce, child custody and land inheritance is impeded when excessive fees are imposed. Women living in poverty may also be prevented from filing criminal charges for domestic violence, rape or other forms of gender-based violence because they are unable to afford the fees incurred. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2012 | ||
Penalization of people living in poverty 2011, para. 59 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | Surveillance policies often treat beneficiaries like criminals and make them feel guilty, anxious and ashamed. While some mechanisms of control are necessary, they must comply with the requirements of reasonableness and proportionality. For example, evidence shows that the range of control and surveillance mechanisms employed by States in administering social benefits is clearly disproportionate to the prevalence of social benefit fraud. The overpayment of social benefits is often caused by administrative errors on the part of the State, rather than fraud by the beneficiary. Where beneficiaries are responsible for overpayment, it is far more likely to be due to error than to fraud, and when fraud does occur, is it usually opportunistic, low-level fraud with respect to small, subsistence amounts of money. However, policymakers represent social benefit fraud to be a pervasive problem, channelling considerable resources to combat it. Political rhetoric disproportionately focuses on social benefit fraud over taxation fraud, the cost of which is a far greater burden on the State, and use instances of benefit fraud to influence the public discourse on poverty. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2011 | ||
Access to justice for people living in poverty 2012, para. 13 | Aug 19, 2019 | Paragraph | These principles require that claimants or defendants must be able to exercise their rights and defend their interests effectively and in full procedural equality with other parties. When there is a big disparity in the economic or social status of litigants, as is often the case when those living in poverty seek redress for grievances against more powerful parties, there is a high risk of an unequal trial. For example, this is likely when impoverished workers want to bring a case against their employer for unfair and unjust working conditions or when a woman without personal income or resources brings a case against her partner for domestic violence. Procedural inequality can also arise in litigation against the State. | Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights | Special Procedures' report |
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| 2012 |