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Access to justice and the right to food: the way forward 2015, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- The constitutional jurisprudence of India provides for the justiciability of economic, social and cultural rights based on "the right to life". This constitutional right was central to the case of People's Union for Civil Liberties ("PUCL") v. Union of India. In mid-2001, public food and employment programmes failed to provide food to deprived people in the impoverished and drought-stricken State of Rajasthan. The Supreme Court of India was petitioned by PUCL to compel the Government to respond to the hunger emergency. In response to the submissions, the Supreme Court held that the right to food was enshrined in the Constitution under the right to life provision in article 47, which requires that the State undertake measures to improve the nutritional state of the population. The Court handed down a series of resolutions which commenced in 2001 requiring State governments in India to implement food distribution programmes for the most disadvantaged. The Court's resolution had a considerable impact on the realization of the right to food in India, and provides an example of the influential role played by the judiciary in encouraging a legislative body to develop human rights legislation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- In Central America and the Caribbean, women assume leadership roles in food distribution during emergencies, yet emergency decision-making processes after disasters often exclude women. Women's limited participation restricts their engagement in political decisions that impact their specific needs and vulnerabilities, and relief workers often view women as victims rather than potential agents of change, thus reinforcing gender inequalities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Assessing a decade of progress on the right to food 2013, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- Lastly, there are a range of measures that, in the circumstances of each case, may be identified as measures that are available to the State and that it therefore must take in order to discharge its duties to fulfil the right to food. For instance, recognizing that "illicit capital flight undermines the capacity of States parties to implement the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and to attain the Millennium Development Goals", the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights has called upon States parties to that Charter "to examine their national tax laws and policies towards preventing illicit capital flight in Africa". Similarly, insufficiently progressive levels of taxation or the failure to adopt certain practices that have proved to be effective in comparable contexts may be considered a violation of the duty to fulfil. This would be the case, for example, if a State fails to call upon international assistance in situations of natural disaster or where, for whatever reason, it is unable with its own resources to guarantee the basic freedom from hunger. There is a growing consensus on the appropriate methodologies for concretely identifying when the resources dedicated to the fulfilment of economic and social rights are insufficient. The duty to move "as expeditiously as possible" towards that end is increasingly considered to lend itself to independent monitoring, including by courts.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 4
- Paragraph text
- Women account for 70% of the world's hungry and are disproportionately affected by malnutrition and food insecurity. This ratio is overwhelming in some developing and Least Developed Countries, for example, more than one third of women in several South-Asian countries being underweight. Poor nutrition, lack of healthcare, social protection, limited economic opportunities and general neglect has excluded more women from global society than the number of men killed in 20th century wars, combined.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Right to food and nutrition 2016, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- Nevertheless, fortification initiatives do make an important contribution to efforts to achieve food and nutrition security, provided they form part of a comprehensive strategy that addresses the social, economic and cultural determinants of food systems. Such solutions must always be critically evaluated and narrowly implemented to ensure that they are used only to provide temporary relief and do not replace long-term solutions, such as diversification of agriculture, or interfere with local production systems.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Assessing a decade of progress on the right to food 2013, para. 58j
- Paragraph text
- [In particular, the Special Rapporteur encourages:] States, in order to ensure consistency between domestic policies aimed at the full realization of the right to food and external policies in the areas of trade, investment, development and humanitarian aid, and in accordance with the Guiding Principles on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights, to develop mechanisms that ensure that the right to food is fully taken into account in those policies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 83
- Paragraph text
- The tragedy led to the worldwide development of major reforms, including the above-mentioned Responsible Care initiative. Such initiatives, however, have not succeeded in halting continued disasters related to the manufacture of pesticides worldwide.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Impact of climate change on the right to food 2015, para. 24
- Paragraph text
- Communities can reduce food insecurity risks by complementing their traditional knowledge and practices with information and support from Governments and others, including rapid response systems and capacity-building for disaster preparedness, mitigation and management. Supporting local communities helps to maintain resilience and should be encouraged.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to an adequate diet: the agriculture-food-health nexus 2012, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- Accountability requires that, once commitments are made and targets set, progress is monitored, including progress in the delivery of resources, and a failure to achieve results will lead to redefine the means chosen. It is therefore essential that indicators be built to measure inputs, outcomes, and processes, and that corrective action be taken where the resources committed are not made available or when the results do not meet the expectations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 63
- Paragraph text
- Women remain more vulnerable than men in post-disaster situations, as their household responsibilities increase while access to resources decreases. The daily work involved in providing food, water, and fuel for households after a disaster requires intensive labour, the bulk of which is borne by women. Moreover, marketing interference with breastfeeding initiation and long-term prolongation jeopardizes women's ability to safely feed their infants and young children due to unreliable quality and quantity of safe drinking water, particularly in post-disaster situations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Infants
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Integrating a gender perspective in the right to food 2016, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- One area of concern is disaster management because climate change is likely to impact the number and severity of extreme weather events. Researches show that in societies where men and women should be impacted indiscriminately in disasters women and girls, as a result of gender based inequalities, are up to 14 times more likely to die in the event of a disaster. This is especially true of elderly women, those with disabilities, pregnant and nursing women, and those with small children, who may have lack of, or limited mobility and resources, and therefore remain most at risk in cases of emergency.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
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
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Gender
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Access to justice and the right to food: the way forward 2015, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- If TNC activities are criminally justiciable and reasonable compensation is enforceable, the issue of extraterritoriality may not arise. However, in cases of indirect violations of the right to food, for instance by way of voluntary displacement or not being able to farm because of a lack of access to necessary resources such as water because of privatization, or seeds because of a monopoly by TNCs, human rights adjudication becomes vital. Consequently, such remedies should provide enforceable compensation and restitution. The remedies currently available for individuals whose economic, social and cultural rights are violated are somewhat limited. Considerable improvements in this regard are essential for cases involving violations of the right to food to be protected from violations committed by foreign and national actors.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Movement
- Person(s) affected
- Persons on the move
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
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
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Impact of climate change on the right to food 2015, para. 14
- Paragraph text
- Sharp price increases for all major crops can be expected as a result of climate change accompanied by population growth, changing diets and increasing demand for non-food crops. Although it is difficult to predict food prices because of the many variables, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change expects with medium confidence that global food prices will rise substantially by 2050. The Intergovernmental Panel predicts that low-income agricultural economies that are net food importers could experience significant losses in food access through a "double negative" effect of reduced domestic agricultural production and increased food prices on global markets. Furthermore, sudden shocks in prices and currency values, as well as extreme weather events, can also create obstacles to food distribution, making it difficult to deploy adequate responses to an increasingly frequent number of emergencies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 57
- Paragraph text
- There is a danger that emergency situations resulting from vulnerable livelihood systems (with their multiple underlying causes), such as natural disasters, climate change, violent conflict, occupation and insecurity, could become long-term, chronic crises. Key characteristics of such situations, which are defined by the Committee on World Food Security as "protracted crises" include severe malnutrition, high rates of food insecurity and vulnerable livelihood systems. The Committee is in the process of drafting a framework for action for addressing food insecurity and malnutrition in protracted crises. The Special Rapporteur hopes to contribute to the articulation of the principles for action in the framework and to promote the final document in discussions around the world.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 56
- Paragraph text
- States are bound by treaties and customary human rights law and could be found legally responsible in the event of the deliberate destruction of international humanitarian aid or intentional blockage of access to food. International humanitarian organizations and NGOs also have a responsibility to distinguish humanitarian food aid in times of war from food aid in periods of peace and they should follow the principles of humanity, neutrality and impartiality in this regard. During her tenure, the Special Rapporteur intends to monitor situations of ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis, particularly those where populations are experiencing acute vulnerability with respect to food security as a result of a humanitarian emergency or protracted conflict. Those currently experiencing such crises include the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, South Sudan, the Syrian Arab Republic and Gaza, among others.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 55
- Paragraph text
- International humanitarian law, which, inter alia, is designed to ensure that civilians and prisoners of war have adequate food and water during armed conflicts, also outlines preventive measures by prohibiting the deliberate starvation of civilians as a method of warfare in situations of both international and internal armed conflict. That prohibition is violated not only when access to food is denied, resulting in death, but also when the population goes hungry as a result of deprivation of food sources or supplies. In accordance with international criminal law, violations of such protection constitute war crimes. Deliberate starvation, whether during times of war or peace, may also constitute genocide or a crime against humanity. Implementation is always controversial in those situations, especially if the combat zone is limited to the territory of a single State. It should be noted that the right to food continues to be protected by international human rights law during times of armed conflict.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- The world is currently blighted by a plethora of humanitarian crises and armed conflicts, which are having a devastating impact on the lives of millions of people around the globe. While 19 per cent of the poorest people in the world now live in fragile and conflict-affected places, it is estimated that this will increase to 40 per cent by 2030 if current trends continue. The international community must take greater responsibility for emergency food crises derived from natural or human-made disasters, global economic crises, climate change, or as a result of armed conflict.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Vision of the mandate 2014, para. 7
- Paragraph text
- While there have been significant developments in a number of countries in response to the crisis, concerns about price volatility remain, with the world economy showing little sign of stabilizing. Indeed there has been a worrisome rise in local food prices in recent years. Additional steps must be taken at the global level to reduce the risk of future food crises resulting from rapid price increases. In this regard, the Special Rapporteur will continue to monitor the situation and urges States, both individually and collectively, to fulfil their legal obligation under human rights law to do their part in ensuring sustainable access to food for people.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Assessing a decade of progress on the right to food 2013, para. 18
- Paragraph text
- Second, in situations of natural disaster or conflict, or "whenever an individual or group is unable, for reasons beyond their control, to enjoy the right to adequate food by the means at their disposal, States have the obligation to fulfil (provide) that right directly" (see E/C.12/1999/5, para. 15). This component of the right to food has been invoked successfully before courts in recent years. In Nepal, the Supreme Court issued an interim order in 2008 for the immediate provision of food in a number of districts that food distribution programmes were not reaching, confirming and extending its initial order on 19 May 2010. It acted at the request of the non governmental organization Pro Public, which invoked the provisions of the 2007 interim Constitution of Nepal guaranteeing the fundamental right to food sovereignty and the right to a dignified life, as well as the international obligations of Nepal to fulfil the right to food. In Mexico, relying on the recent amendment to article 4 of the Constitution and the 2009 Food and Nutrition Security Law of the Federal District, one homeless person obtained on 22 March 2012 an injunction from the First District Administrative Judge of the Federal District, directed in particular against the Secretariat for Social Development and the National Coordination Office of the "Desarrollo Humano Oportunidades" programme for a failure of the authorities to comply with their obligation to protect the rights to health, to food and to housing. In May 2013, a juvenile court in Guatemala ordered 10 Government institutions to adopt a set of 26 specific measures to compensate damages caused to five children in two villages of Camotán, who were left malnourished as a result of the State's failure to provide support. The order was based on the 2005 Food and Nutrition Security Law and Guatemala's obligations under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. It included such restitution and compensation measures as food assistance, land distribution, water access, agricultural training and seed provision. Where the situation of individuals or communities is so desperate as to condemn them to hunger unless they are given support, courts routinely have relied on the right to life to impose such obligations to provide.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Fisheries and the right to food 2012, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- Since the 1950s, there has been tremendous growth in fishing capacity worldwide, with the number and power of fishing vessels increasing dramatically. Between 1970 and 1990, global fish harvesting capacity grew eight times faster than the rate of growth in landings. Although this trend may have slowed, technological improvements in fishing (including the use of spotter planes, sonar devices and underwater mapping technology, in addition to new fishing gears and improvements in refrigeration and navigation) mean that fishing capacity is bound to continue to grow. It has been estimated that, because of overcapacity and technology creep, the capacity of the global aggregate fishing fleet is at least double that which is needed to exploit the oceans sustainably. Fishing sector subsidies may be contributing to this problem: each year, fisheries subsidies amount to between $30 billion and $34 billion, with $20 billion used to directly support improved fishing capacity, such as fuel and boatbuilding subsidies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- N.A.
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
22 shown of 22 entities