2. Human Rights

Background

Over the past three generations, international conventions and declarations have established an increasingly detailed definition of human rights. In the first generation, civil and political rights were recognized; in the second, economic, social and cultural rights; and in the third generation, environmental rights, and the rights of peoples and communities.

Meanwhile, global as well as hemispheric economic integration have proceeded at a quick pace with no consideration for human rights, especially those associated with economic, social, and environmental rights and those of indigenous peoples and communities. In fact, the recent wave of free trade and trade- related agreements, both in the North and in the South, have shown that economic integration has detrimental effects on many sectors of society, jeopardizing human rights as a whole.

The "neo-liberal" approach to free trade and hemispheric economic integration sanctions corporate rights, old and new. There are oblique references to workers' rights, but almost no mention of the social rights of any other sector of the population. Worse, there is no connection established between these types of rights. In the past, the issue of human rights (including gender equity) was incorporated into many regional and international accords. Now these rights are subjected to a barrage of criticism aimed at showing that they are nothing more than an impediment to unhindered trade. This strategy is aimed exclusively at furthering economic growth at the expense of the economic and social welfare of large sectors of the population.

Governments are increasingly adopting a uniform approach, often ignoring past commitments on rights or treating past human rights commitments separate from economic issues. In some extreme cases, they have pushed for collective, social and labour rights to be excluded from constitutional protection. Frequently, free trade negotiations end up affecting amendments to domestic social pacts, making the weakest social partners bear the brunt of concessions made to transnational corporations. These strategies have put human and social rights in jeopardy and have led to the deterioration of protections, as well as the weakening of domestic and international enforcement mechanisms.

In the face of a globalization process that marginalizes broad sectors of the population, three basic points must be considered:

• Democracy is closely linked to human rights. States and authorities can only be considered legitimate if they enforce, promote and guarantee these fundamental rights, broadly defined.
• Without justice, no government is guaranteed the ability to govern.
• Human rights must never be sacrificed to a model of development that threatens human dignity.

The countries of the Americas should build a common human rights agenda to be included in every economic, financial, and trade agreement within the hemisphere, along with mechanisms and institutions to ensure full implementation and enforcement.

Guiding principles

• Governments should reaffirm their responsibility for the implementation and protection of human rights, with special focus on economic, social, and environmental rights and those of peoples and communities.

• All nations which have not already done so should sign and ratify the international human rights instruments listed below.
  1. Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations
     1. International Convention on Civil and Political Rights
     2. International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

  2. International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)

  3. International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination

  4. Declaration on the Right to Development (December 4, 1986)

  5. Core Conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO) including Convention 169 on the rights of Indian communities and peoples; those relating to migrants and their families; and provisions calling for the elimination of discrimination against women.

  6. Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People

  7. American Convention on Human Rights

  8. Additional protocol to the American Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, known as the Protocol of San Salvador, signed but as yet not implemented due to outstanding ratifications by certain countries.

The recognition of existing obligations and the ratification of pending accords are only the first step toward the full implementation of human rights. This will bring into effect the Right to Development as a universal and inalienable right and as an integral part of fundamental human rights as declared by the General Assembly of the UN in 1986.

• Governments should prohibit all forms of discrimination based on gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religion, membership in any social or cultural group, nationality, or political views. They should establish effective domestic and international measures to eradicate "ethnic cleansing" which includes physical extermination or marginalization of and attacks on any social groups that experience discrimination within society, including gays and lesbians, persons with HIV/AIDS, street children, black people, prostitutes, and indigenous communities.

• All trade, economic and financial agreements should include a "democracy clause" guaranteeing complete democracy within institutions of the state with unlimited protection of broadly defined human rights. All treaties must also effectively ensure participation of civil society in their development, adoption and implementation, clearly setting out transparent participation and accountability mechanisms for the various parties.

• The Inter-American System of human rights should be reformed and strengthened in the following ways:

  a) increase effectiveness in the system and of the process for public review of the human rights situation.

  b) strengthen the Commission and the Inter-American Court, as well as preventive provisional measures for the system through the recognition of the jurisdiction of every country in the hemisphere.

  c) establish an independent, international body to protect internal displaced persons. The effective implementation of the right to asylum and or refugee status in states which have not adopted this right, with domestic regulations in accordance with the relevant international instruments.

  d) include in the Inter-American Court's procedures a mechanism for victims or their representatives to participate, and transparency in criteria and procedures.

  e) recognize non-governmental organizations as advisory bodies to the OAS and the adoption of an Inter-American Declaration of Protection for Human Rights Defenders.

  f) The governments of the Americas should support an international system for the protection of human rights, through allocation of sufficient resources to ensure their effective operation.

  g) The process of evaluating the Inter-American Human Rights System should encourage broad discussions with non-governmental organizations, experts and governments, with the joint aim of proposing reforms which benefit the victims of human rights violations, as well as general human rights promotion and defense activities.

• In order to implement these international commitments, all parties should ratify the principles of cooperation and coordination among international, regional and national human rights protection instruments. Mechanisms to ensure the enforcement of such rights should be enacted through inclusion of all human rights in all trade, economic and financial agreements. Moreover, the economic components of these agreements should not take precedence over human rights.

Specific Objectives

• Ensure the promotion, enforcement and enforceability of human rights, defined broadly and inseparably (the right to gender equity, civil and political, economic, social, cultural, environmental rights and those relating to peoples and communities) within national borders and in the international sphere, as part of integration and globalization processes.

• Expand the number of recognized rights universally to all citizens of the Americas.

• Ensure the right to communication, research and access to information and opinions, taking into account groups which currently and historically have less access. Establish the obligation of member states to repeal all official censorship measures.

• Ensure all affected individuals' right to pursue justice, including restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction, and the guarantee that the offending acts will not be repeated, according to basic guiding principles of the rights of victims of human rights violations and the international humanitarian right to reparation (UN document E/CN.4/1997/104). Affected individuals should also have the right to their choice of mechanism to achieve the most timely and effective response.

• Implementation by governments of the observations and recommendations developed by the various agencies of the Universal and Regional Human Rights Protection System.

• Promotion of reforms and programs aimed at achieving autonomy, impartiality and professionalization of judiciary power. Ensure the right of speedy, simple and effective access to the recourse of habeas corpus and court protection in the defense of fundamental rights.

• End the impunity or exemption from punishment in crimes of strong political or economic importance that may deter investigation or prevent impartiality of the justice system.

• Initiate human rights and gender equity awareness training programs for civilian authorities responsible for the armed forces and law enforcement. Incorporate human rights into the curriculum of formal and informal education from pre-kindergarten through higher education.