UNHCHR Welcomes Enabling Individual Complaints on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
UNITED NATIONS, 11 Feb 2013
Antonio C. S. Rosa, editor – TRANSCEND Media Service
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay on Wednesday [6 Feb 2013] applauded the upcoming entry into force of a key Protocol to an international treaty that will, for the first time, enable individual complaints on economic, social and cultural rights, thereby helping place all human rights on an equal footing.
After crossing the required threshold of state ratifications on Tuesday, the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights will enter into force on 5 May 2013. “The entry into force of the Optional Protocol is a major breakthrough, which will enable victims under the jurisdiction of the States parties to seek justice for violations of their economic, social and cultural rights,” Pillay said.
Uruguay triggered the coming into force of the Optional Protocol when, on 5 February, it became the tenth country to ratify, joining Argentina, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mongolia, Portugal, Slovakia and Spain.
The Optional Protocol was adopted four years ago, on 10 December 2008, by the UN General Assembly. It gives the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights – the body which monitors the International Covenant to which the Protocol is attached – the competence to examine complaints from individuals or groups of individuals who claim a violation of rights protected under the Covenant. It also enables the Committee to conduct inquiries if it receives reliable information indicating grave or systematic violations by a State party of any of the economic, social and cultural rights covered by the Covenant.
This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 11 Feb 2013.
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Unlike civil and political rights, the implementation of social, economic and cultural rights is very difficult. For the government, the principle of the former rights is “Do nothing”, while that of the latter is “Do something (to help people in need)”. The principle of “Do nothing” is less difficult to be implemented. However, the principle of “Do something” is very difficult to be implemented because its implementation relates to the economic and other factors/resources of that country.
What are economic, social and cultural rights, stipulated in the International Covenant? Read http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/cescr.htm
The Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enables individuals or groups of the State Parties to the Protocol to report violations of the social, economic and cultural rights to the international body (i.e. the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/cescr/ ). Therefore, many governments hesitate to make their countries become State Parties to the Protocol. As of 13 February 2013, there are ten State Parties to the Protocol. There are no five permanent members of the UNSC among them, meaning that none of world major powerful countries is State Parties to the Protocol. Meanwhile, as of 13 February 2013, there are 114 countries are State Parties to the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (aka. the First Optional Protocol to ICCPR). Among five permanent members of the UNSC, only France and Russia are State Parties to the First Optional Protocol of ICCPR.
For any government, it is their last wish that they receive the criticism in front of the international community. We can remember that Israel boycotted the UN Human Rights Council on 29 January 2013, for instance. Which government wants to be embarrassed in front of the international public? But, without this complaint system, the International Covenant may become nothing but paper. Without this system, people in abject conditions may continue to suffer in silence permanently.
The path of the Optional Protocol to ICESCR is far much longer than that of other human rights instruments. However, this path is an essential part in realizing “positive peace”. The long journey of the Optional Protocol will begin soon, on 5 May 2013.