04.10.05
Events
Concept paper: Poverty, Inequality and Violence: is there a human rights response? International Conference
- Event Date: 04.10.05
- Event Time: 13:25:00
Concept Paper
Poverty, Inequality and Violence:
is there a human rights response?
documents of the international conference
An International Conference to respond to the question,
How can we prevent or reduce violence, including torture, by acting on the root causes found in violations of economic, social and cultural rights?
The International Conference “Poverty, Inequality and Violence, is there a human rights response?” will take place from Tuesday 4 October to Thursday 6 October 2005 at the Geneva International Conference Centre in Geneva, Rue de Varembé 15, CH-1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland. More details are provided below.
The Conference is part of a wider project being carried out by the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT) within the framework of the Geneva International Academic Network (GIAN) and with the financial support of the GIAN, the Dutch Foundation ICCO, the Fondation des droits de l’homme au travail and the Swiss Federal Government (Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation).
The project is aimed at examining the causal connection between inequalities, poverty, violations of economic, social and cultural rights and violence. Violence in the context of the project is understood in its broad sense as state sponsored (torture, summary executions, disappearances, etc.), social and domestic violence. The project’s ultimate objective is to identify specific actions which the various actors can take to reduce violence by acting on its economic, social and cultural root causes.
The Conference will base its work on a study currently being carried out by OMCT as part of the project. More details on this study are provided below.
The context
The fight against torture, summary executions, forced disappearances and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment within the international human rights framework has essentially developed through the denunciation of cases, the establishment of a normative system, as well as through the search for mechanisms - legal or other - that enable adequate protection and reparation of victims to be guaranteed.
These efforts have brought about significant improvements. Today, for instance, torture is defined and prohibited by international instruments with universal scope as well as by specific legislation in a number of countries. Further, national, regional and international institutions endeavour to prevent and punish torture, as well as to compensate the victims.
Shifting emphasis in the fight against torture; the need to look at root causes
Nevertheless, a very large number of individuals are still subjected to torture, ill-treatment, forced disappearances and summary executions. Furthermore, the cases that are being reported and documented are no longer so much the result of imposed ideologies, but rather, increasingly come as the consequence of growing social tensions, which often lead to violent clashes. This paradigm change requires a new look at how we combat torture and other forms of violence.
Deep socio-economic imbalances, poverty and the growing number of excluded who see their absolute and relative income diminishing, depriving them of their basic needs, cause frustration and produce such tensions. Claims for basic economic, social and cultural rights, in turn, are often met with severe repression, as they endanger a system based on privileges, whose beneficiaries do not want to abandon their favoured positions. As a result, the overwhelming majority of those who are being subjected to torture and ill-treatment are, today, persons that come from the poorest strata of society.
Similarly, the violence perpetrated against women and children is significantly influenced by their socio-economic marginalisation. Indeed, violence against children mostly affects socially and economically marginalised minors (often street children or working children). Similarly, violence affecting women is often related to their socio-economic role in societies where they are often considered as second-class individuals. This violence is often not recognised by States as being part of their responsibility.
While the impact of socio-economic factors on the emergence of violence has already been the subject of much research, the question has not been approached from a human rights perspective. In other words, the relationship between the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights and violations of civic and political rights -- such as the right to life and the protection against torture -- still needs to be examined.
The study
The first part of this project consists of a study being carried out by OMCT and which will form the basic working document of the Conference. The study contains an extensive (84 page) academic analysis investigating the correlations between violence and socio-economic inequalities based on information from a total of 63 countries and using survey data from the People’s Security Survey of the ILO’s InFocus Programme on Socio-Economic Security. A further paper deals with the relation of women’s access to resources and domestic violence in South Africa and another examines the relationship between economic recession and violence as they affect developed countries.
The study also includes an in depth analysis of the human rights situation in five countries (Argentina, Egypt, Nepal, South Africa and Uzbekistan) together with case studies examining specific instances in those countries of the relationship between violations of economic, social and cultural rights and violence prepared in collaboration with a national human rights partner in each country.
Further, the study will examine how selected international human rights mechanisms and selected international institutions and development and financial agencies approach the issue.
The Conference
The Conference will provide the occasion for a critical review of the study and its conclusions. It will be an opportunity to agree that failure to respect economic, social and cultural rights and the resulting inequality and poverty can cause or contribute to violence, including torture. The study should also lead to a better understanding of how well national and international authorities, including international human rights bodies and international financial and development institutions understand this relationship and how adequately they react.
Finally, the Conference will be asked to propose ways in which the wide range of actors involved can contribute to the elimination of violence, including torture, by promoting respect for economic, social and cultural rights. Particular attention will be given to how a network of national NGOs, such as the OMCT SOS-Torture Network, can respond to the need to act on the economic, social and cultural root causes of violence.
More information on the Conference and the study may be obtained by contacting the Secretariat of the Conference, at the World Organization Against Torture, 8 rue du Vieux Billard, CH 1211 Geneva, Switzerland and by e-mail at omct@omct.org.
Poverty, Inequality and Violence:
is there a human rights response?
documents of the international conference
An International Conference to respond to the question,
How can we prevent or reduce violence, including torture, by acting on the root causes found in violations of economic, social and cultural rights?
The International Conference “Poverty, Inequality and Violence, is there a human rights response?” will take place from Tuesday 4 October to Thursday 6 October 2005 at the Geneva International Conference Centre in Geneva, Rue de Varembé 15, CH-1211 Geneva 20, Switzerland. More details are provided below.
The Conference is part of a wider project being carried out by the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT) within the framework of the Geneva International Academic Network (GIAN) and with the financial support of the GIAN, the Dutch Foundation ICCO, the Fondation des droits de l’homme au travail and the Swiss Federal Government (Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation).
The project is aimed at examining the causal connection between inequalities, poverty, violations of economic, social and cultural rights and violence. Violence in the context of the project is understood in its broad sense as state sponsored (torture, summary executions, disappearances, etc.), social and domestic violence. The project’s ultimate objective is to identify specific actions which the various actors can take to reduce violence by acting on its economic, social and cultural root causes.
The Conference will base its work on a study currently being carried out by OMCT as part of the project. More details on this study are provided below.
The context
The fight against torture, summary executions, forced disappearances and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment within the international human rights framework has essentially developed through the denunciation of cases, the establishment of a normative system, as well as through the search for mechanisms - legal or other - that enable adequate protection and reparation of victims to be guaranteed.
These efforts have brought about significant improvements. Today, for instance, torture is defined and prohibited by international instruments with universal scope as well as by specific legislation in a number of countries. Further, national, regional and international institutions endeavour to prevent and punish torture, as well as to compensate the victims.
Shifting emphasis in the fight against torture; the need to look at root causes
Nevertheless, a very large number of individuals are still subjected to torture, ill-treatment, forced disappearances and summary executions. Furthermore, the cases that are being reported and documented are no longer so much the result of imposed ideologies, but rather, increasingly come as the consequence of growing social tensions, which often lead to violent clashes. This paradigm change requires a new look at how we combat torture and other forms of violence.
Deep socio-economic imbalances, poverty and the growing number of excluded who see their absolute and relative income diminishing, depriving them of their basic needs, cause frustration and produce such tensions. Claims for basic economic, social and cultural rights, in turn, are often met with severe repression, as they endanger a system based on privileges, whose beneficiaries do not want to abandon their favoured positions. As a result, the overwhelming majority of those who are being subjected to torture and ill-treatment are, today, persons that come from the poorest strata of society.
Similarly, the violence perpetrated against women and children is significantly influenced by their socio-economic marginalisation. Indeed, violence against children mostly affects socially and economically marginalised minors (often street children or working children). Similarly, violence affecting women is often related to their socio-economic role in societies where they are often considered as second-class individuals. This violence is often not recognised by States as being part of their responsibility.
While the impact of socio-economic factors on the emergence of violence has already been the subject of much research, the question has not been approached from a human rights perspective. In other words, the relationship between the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights and violations of civic and political rights -- such as the right to life and the protection against torture -- still needs to be examined.
The study
The first part of this project consists of a study being carried out by OMCT and which will form the basic working document of the Conference. The study contains an extensive (84 page) academic analysis investigating the correlations between violence and socio-economic inequalities based on information from a total of 63 countries and using survey data from the People’s Security Survey of the ILO’s InFocus Programme on Socio-Economic Security. A further paper deals with the relation of women’s access to resources and domestic violence in South Africa and another examines the relationship between economic recession and violence as they affect developed countries.
The study also includes an in depth analysis of the human rights situation in five countries (Argentina, Egypt, Nepal, South Africa and Uzbekistan) together with case studies examining specific instances in those countries of the relationship between violations of economic, social and cultural rights and violence prepared in collaboration with a national human rights partner in each country.
Further, the study will examine how selected international human rights mechanisms and selected international institutions and development and financial agencies approach the issue.
The Conference
The Conference will provide the occasion for a critical review of the study and its conclusions. It will be an opportunity to agree that failure to respect economic, social and cultural rights and the resulting inequality and poverty can cause or contribute to violence, including torture. The study should also lead to a better understanding of how well national and international authorities, including international human rights bodies and international financial and development institutions understand this relationship and how adequately they react.
Finally, the Conference will be asked to propose ways in which the wide range of actors involved can contribute to the elimination of violence, including torture, by promoting respect for economic, social and cultural rights. Particular attention will be given to how a network of national NGOs, such as the OMCT SOS-Torture Network, can respond to the need to act on the economic, social and cultural root causes of violence.
More information on the Conference and the study may be obtained by contacting the Secretariat of the Conference, at the World Organization Against Torture, 8 rue du Vieux Billard, CH 1211 Geneva, Switzerland and by e-mail at omct@omct.org.