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Extreme poverty and human rights on universal basic income 2017, para. 3
- Paragraph text
- The fundamental values of the international human rights system are under attack in new and diverse ways in 2017. While competing explanations have been proffered, one that is included in most lists is that there is a rapidly growing sense of economic insecurity afflicting large segments of many societies. There is an increasing feeling of being exposed, vulnerable, overwhelmed and helpless, and of being systematically marginalized, both economically and socially. This situation, which previously seemed to be a fate reserved only for those living in low-income countries or in extreme poverty in high- and middle-income countries, now afflicts not just the unemployed and the underemployed, but also the precariously employed and those likely to be rendered unemployed in the foreseeable future as a result of various developments. Many of these individuals previously enjoyed a modicum of security and respect and felt that they had a stake in the overall system of government. As the new insecurity has ballooned and affected ever-greater numbers, many mainstream political parties have either remained oblivious, or have offered solutions that have only exacerbated the problems, further undermining faith in electoral democracy.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Access to justice for people living in poverty 2012, para. 45
- Paragraph text
- Often, police officers, court staff and other justice sector personnel reflect the discriminatory attitudes of the wider society and are not adequately trained to perform their roles without discrimination or bias against persons living in poverty.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The UN responsibility for the cholera outbreak in Haiti 2016, para. 82
- Paragraph text
- The present report is not the appropriate context in which to spell out in detail what remains to be done to right the wrongs that have occurred. But it is possible to sketch in broad outline the principal steps that are required.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The World Bank and human rights 2015, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- However, the use of a human rights framework and discourse actually makes an enormous difference, which is of course precisely why the Bank is so resistant to using it and so attached to the never-ending search for surrogate language that enables it to get at the same concerns. Human rights provides a context and a detailed and balanced framework; it invokes the specific legal obligations that States have agreed upon in the various human rights treaties; it emphasizes that certain values are non-negotiable; it brings a degree of normative certainty; and it brings into the discussion the carefully negotiated elaborations of the meaning of specific rights that have emerged from decades of reflection, discussion and adjudication. Even more importantly, the language of rights recognizes the dignity and agency of all individuals (regardless of race, gender, social status, age, disability or any other distinguishing factor) and it is intentionally empowering. Whether in the home, the village, school or workplace, or in the political marketplace of ideas, it makes a difference if one is calling for the realization of agreed human rights to equality or to water, rather than merely making a general request or demand, and human rights are inseparable from the notion of accountability. Where rights are ignored or violated, there must be accountability.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- Ultimately, the enjoyment of the right to participation can benefit society as a whole, building trust and solidarity, creating better social cohesion and contributing to more inclusive and pluralistic societies, and bringing new issues and voices into the public arena.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 53
- Paragraph text
- Mechanisms, processes and channels should be adaptable to the local context, taking into account the specific needs of communities or individuals in different social and cultural settings, and also adaptable to changing local, national and international contexts and standards.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 51
- Paragraph text
- In the context of participation, availability means that channels of participation, access to information and accountability mechanisms must be made available in sufficient quantity (and be of sufficient quality) to meet the needs of the community in question.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Unpaid care work and women's human rights 2013, para. 106
- Paragraph text
- In order to uphold their right to participation, tackle gender stereotypes and create an enabling environment for the more equal sharing of unpaid care work, States must take concerted action to meaningfully empower unpaid caregivers.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Access to justice for people living in poverty 2012, para. 96
- Paragraph text
- [States should:] Actively disseminate legal and judicial information, for example about laws, legal decisions and policy decisions, to all without charge and in multiple formats and languages
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Access to justice for people living in poverty 2012, para. 96
- Paragraph text
- [States should:] Take positive measures to raise the capacity of poor and disadvantaged groups to ensure that they have full understanding of their rights and the means through which they can enforce them
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Access to justice for people living in poverty 2012, para. 93
- Paragraph text
- The principle of the indivisibility and interdependence of human rights requires States to address a range of intersecting and mutually reinforcing deprivations and obstacles which prevent access to justice for the poorest.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Access to justice for people living in poverty 2012, para. 79
- Paragraph text
- Legal standing is the gateway for access to justice. To have access to the formal judicial system, it is necessary that the courts extend legal standing without discrimination, ensuring that all receive equal treatment when bringing claims, protesting violations or seeking remedies.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Access to justice for people living in poverty 2012, para. 5
- Paragraph text
- Access to justice is crucial for tackling the root causes of poverty, exclusion and vulnerability, for several reasons. First, owing to their vulnerability, persons living in poverty are more likely to fall victim to criminal or illegal acts, including sexual or economic exploitation, violence, torture and murder. Crime and illegality are also likely to have a great impact on their lives as it is hard for them to obtain redress and as a result they may fall further into poverty. Second, access to justice is important because justice systems can be tools to overcome deprivation, for example, by developing jurisprudence on social and economic rights. Third, when vulnerable persons cannot access justice systems, they are sometimes forced to take justice into their own hands through illegal or violent means, or to accept unjust settlements. Thus, fair and effective justice systems are an important way to tackle impunity and reduce violence and conflict. Fourth, the inability of the poor to pursue justice remedies through existing systems increases their vulnerability to poverty and violations of their rights. In turn, their increased vulnerability and exclusion further hamper their ability to use justice systems. This vicious circle impairs the enjoyment of several human rights.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Human rights based approach to recovery from the global economic and financial crises, with a focus on those living in poverty 2011, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- Even when resources are limited, States are legally bound to respect, protect and fulfil international human rights obligations. For State parties to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, this means, for example, that they must dedicate the maximum amount of resources available to progressively achieve the full realization of all economic, social and cultural rights. The human rights perspective distinguishes between the inability and the simple unwillingness to act. States cannot use the economic damage caused by the crises to justify actions or omissions that amount to violations of basic human rights obligations. While economic, social and cultural rights are often subject to the principle of "progressive realization" depending on the availability of resources in each State, this principle also prescribes particular modes of conduct that are compulsory for all States, regardless of their level of development. These obligations considerably limit the discretion of States with regard to the implementation of economic, social and cultural rights, and require immediate action.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Taxation and human rightss 2014, para. 42
- Paragraph text
- The most straightforward way in which government revenues can facilitate compliance with human rights obligations is by providing resources for public goods, such as education and health services - goods that are critical to realizing human rights and that ultimately benefit the whole of society.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Extreme poverty and human rights on universal basic income 2017, para. 70
- Paragraph text
- Second, the right to work, the right to social security, and above all the right to an adequate standard of living need to be given a prominent place on the human rights community’s agenda. If these rights are marginalized, the overall agenda will become increasingly less relevant to the most pressing and urgent questions of the day.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Marginality of economic and social rights 2016, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- In considering which institutions are most likely to be best placed to promote knowledge and understanding of economic and social rights at the domestic level, two types of actors seem most relevant. The first being the government agencies that are responsible for making and implementing policy in the relevant sectors. Thus, government ministries dealing with education, social protection, health, nutrition and so on might be expected to take the lead in promoting a rights-based understanding. This is not to argue, as is sometimes suggested in the literature on rights-based approaches to development, that everything these ministries do should be guided by and seen through the lens of human rights. Nonetheless, one might expect the ministry of education, for example, to acknowledge that there is a right to education and to spell out what that means in specific policy terms. While it is well beyond the scope of this report to explore how common such an approach is among sectoral ministries in most countries, it can be said by way of generalization that the phenomenon is not common. There are some indications that the health sector might be moving more in that direction under the impetus of the movement for universal health coverage. Similarly, social security is increasingly seen in terms of the right to social security as a result of the Social Protection Floor Initiative.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Education
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Marginality of economic and social rights 2016, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- In addition to highlighting the intrinsic linkages among all rights, the principal significance of this bold assertion was to signal that economic, social and cultural rights are as important as civil and political rights and must be accorded equal attention. And the past quarter of a century has indeed seen a great number of important initiatives, especially in sectoral areas such as the right to housing, the right to food, the right to health and the right to water, and more consistent tribute being rendered to the principle of indivisibility. But acceptance in law and in practice of the idea that economic and social rights are actually human rights, with the set of clear legal consequences that this entails, rather than a set of concerns synonymous with development or social progress, remains marginal. This marginality manifests itself in the work of United Nations human rights bodies, in both the theory and practice of the great majority of States, in the work of many of the most prominent civil society groups focusing on human rights, in the interests and priorities of scholars and commentators and, perhaps most counter-intuitively, even in the work of most international agencies promoting poverty alleviation and social development. As a result, the principal of indivisibility continues to be honoured more in the breach than in the observance.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Extreme inequality and human rights 2015, para. 49
- Paragraph text
- Having taken the principled position that there must be limits to inequality, States should then formally commit themselves to policies explicitly designed to reduce, if not eliminate, extreme inequality. Political recognition of the challenge and the holding of a meaningful and sustained public debate on the most appropriate measures to be taken is the starting point for genuine efforts to reduce extreme inequality.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Extreme inequality and human rights 2015, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- It must be accepted that extreme inequality and respect for the equal rights of all persons are incompatible. Formal recognition of the fact that there are limits of some sort to the degrees of inequality that can be reconciled with notions of equality, dignity and commitments to human rights for everyone would be an important step forward.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Extreme inequality and human rights 2015, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- It is clear therefore that the most impoverished suffer the most extreme effects of inequality for a variety of reasons. In part, this is because their influence and capacity to exercise rights is diminished relatively, even if not absolutely, as others become wealthier and gain greater political and economic power, and in part because they are more vulnerable to the harms associated with social unrest, crime and violence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Extreme inequality and human rights 2015, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- In all modern democracies, laws, regulations and institutions influence, and are influenced by, the distribution of economic and other forms of power. Economic inequalities are not only the result of market forces, but equally of political forces that affect laws, regulations and institutions. A full understanding of economic inequalities therefore requires an examination of the exercise of political power.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The World Bank and human rights 2015, para. 85
- Paragraph text
- The Bank should adopt a policy addressing economic, social and cultural rights as human rights. Its frequent claims to be almost inadvertently doing this already are not persuasive, but there is much that it could do to promote a basic programme in this area, which would add enormous value to what the international community has so far been able to achieve.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2015
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 86e (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:] Accountability: Provide an accessible way for the public to hold public officials accountable for violation of the right to participation, as well as for any abuse during participatory processes.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- To the extent possible, people living in poverty should be able to set the terms of the debate and choose topics for discussion. Facilitators should enable involvement, in particular with regard to the most disadvantaged and excluded, but should not dominate or excessively "manage" the discussion.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 71
- Paragraph text
- From a human rights perspective, participation must be premised on empowerment as the ultimate goal. Thus, participation should not be extractive or instrumental, but instead aimed at building the capacity, social capital, confidence, rights awareness and knowledge of people living in poverty.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 67
- Paragraph text
- At the end of the process, a final assessment of what has been agreed and what has not should be presented, to be discussed and agreed with participants, as well as information on next steps in the decision-making process and those responsible. The confidentiality of the participants must be respected in any final report or summary of the process.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 65
- Paragraph text
- Accountability is a critical feature of a human rights approach to participation. Participation understood as a right implies rights holders and duty bearers who can and must be held to account for failure to respect, protect and fulfil that right. To this end, people need access to procedures and institutions that provide redress and remedy, and mechanisms to ensure that their Government ful?ls the right of access to information and the right to participation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Civil & Political Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- Organizers should hold preparatory meetings well in advance to agree on the parameters, goals, purposes and scope, with the involvement of the potential participants. Acceptable forms of facilitation, chairing and leadership should also be agreed with participants in advance. The level and nature of involvement on offer must be clarified to potential participants, as well as the roles and responsibilities of facilitators, policymakers, participants and other stakeholders.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The right to participation of people living in poverty 2013, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- It is essential that societal and intra-community power relations are openly recognized and clarified at the start of the process, in order to confront the factors that often obstruct debates and prevent issues of inequality from being raised in decision-making arenas. Taking account of different kinds of power relations (visible, hidden and invisible) and the particular needs of marginalized groups, officials and advocates should take steps to ensure that such groups can organize their views, express them frankly and be heard. In order to ensure full substantive equality in enjoyment of the right to participation, where appropriate to enable full and free expression (particularly in very patriarchal or socially stratified communities), separate meetings should be held for excluded or vulnerable groups. For instance, in some communities it may be appropriate to separate participants by age group and sex. However, so as not to further entrench exclusion, the discussions should be brought together in a central plenary at critical moments so each group can share their analysis and actions. Similarly, although power dynamics may necessitate separate meetings and processes for people living in poverty in order to facilitate their full participation and free expression, where appropriate, participatory mechanisms should include opportunities for members of different social groups to interact and share points of view.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2013
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph