PHM-Exch> Food for our worst enemy's thought

[Claudio Schuftan]

Human Rights Reader 221



*IT BEHOOVES ALL OF US TO INSIST ON ASSERTING OUR HUMAN RIGHTS; OTHERWISE,
WE ARE OUR OWN WORST ENEMY.*



Ignoring human rights considerations carries a huge cost; one of them is an
inability to understand our world. (Vicente Navarro)

The human rights situation is not like a photograph in which one can order
and rearrange things so that they look good thus fixing the image for
posterity; the situation is an evolving and dirty process --and one full of
unforeseens. (Isabel Allende)



1. The title of this Reader begs the question: Are most of you readers
development and/or health practitioners and not really human rights
practitioners? If the answer to this is yes, the challenge this poses to you
is to learn how to apply the human rights (HR) framework to your work. (U.
Jonsson)



2. The evidence that HR violations and quality of life are socially
determined should, by now, be undeniable and overwhelming to you. That is
why *in the HR framework, we denounce HR violators by name!* (V. Navarro)



3. A number of weaknesses remain though. For instance, a number of HR rights
are left as ‘conditional’ anytime full measures to fulfill them are
*not*adopted. It is the enactment of matching laws and regulations
that ‘make
* live’ these rights.**

*: ‘Conditional’ cannot, by any means, mean that no aspect of the respective
right has immediate effect; for instance, discrimination and
non-retrogression always have to be adopted immediately and are not subject
to any conditionality.



4. [Note: As applied in rich countries, ‘Affirmative Action’ is a specific
technique (not the only one though) to confront de-facto present and/or past
discrimination. In HR terms, it should be considered a temporary special
measure (since any discrimination is a no-no to begin with)].



5. An additional weakness also needs to be combated.  Civil and political
rights are recognized as fundamental rights in many constitutions.
Conversely, economic, social and cultural rights (ESCR) are much more often
rendered conditional; there is no legal justification to confine ESCR to the
lower status of what has been called ‘directive principles’.** Wording of
the core contents of each ESCR should thus be carefully reviewed in each
country to clarify their contents beyond any doubt so as to be able to
*forcefully
demand they be fulfilled.*

**: Fundamental HR are not the same as ‘directive principles’; the latter
fall short of considering and incorporating international HR obligations as
fundamental; directive principles fail to recognize claim holders and duty
bearers; they just represent (vague, toothless) state policy goals. [We have
previously discussed in this Reader that for claim holders to remain
inactive in-the-spot-that-an-unequal-society-has-assigned-them is a recipe
for perpetuating HR violations: To those that nothing was given, nothing
comes without fighting for it. (Isabel Allende)].



6. Bottom line: If only civil and political rights are considered
fundamental rights, this fails to recognize the interdependence,
indivisibility and equal value of all human rights. ESCR are not second
class status. Period. (M. Kohonen)



7. Going back to what *your* challenge is, in general, you are called to
consider and engage-in four steps for HR action; they address key
inter-related areas, namely:

*i.      Legislative level*: Foster and support the formulation of new and
the review of existing laws so as to ensure compliance with UN covenants.

*ii.      Policy level*: Foster and support the formulation of a National
Plan of Action that puts forth an ‘implementable’ strategy that translates
the provisions of the respective HR covenants into practice. Based on the
priorities identified during the formulation process, one (or more) pilot
project(s) should  be implemented at the community level.

*iii.      Awareness-raising*: Foster and support the promotion of
initiatives that target the media, communities and special groups in order
to promote proactive attitudes towards the implementation of the HR
framework (e.g., provision of training materials and holding HR learning
sessions, provision of information kits, special broadcasts, mobilization of
children through starting-up HR learning at schools…).

*iv.      Stakeholder involvement*: Protect and support the human rights of
the historically marginalized groups through work with their representative
organizations so as to directly empower them and involve them in the
formulation of new policies, laws and the National Plan of Action.



8. An Advisory Board of experts, along with other partners committed to HR,
will support this endeavor providing guidance and technical expertise
throughout the implementation of these activities. Linking civil society
organizations and other partners in the development arena will facilitate
the establishment of a platform-of-national-and-international-actors working
on HR in the country.



9. Actually, you are not only called to consider these four steps for HR
action. As said, the challenge this poses to you is to learn how to
weave-them-into and to apply them in your daily work.



10. [This call-to-action is not new; subsequent Readers just make it, every
time, more compelling for you to act… So, this is not a case where you can
get away with saying: “It is urgent to wait”…]. Positive people always press
on; after all, no rain, no rainbows. (J. Koenig )



Claudio Schuftan, Ho Chi Minh City

cschuftan at phmovement.org

[All Readers can be found in
www.humaninfo.org/aviva<http://www.humaninfo.org/aviva%20%20under%20No.%2069>
under No. 69]
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