ESCR Programme Bulletin on activities, 2008

2008 was the second year of a three-year OMCT project entitled “Preventing torture and other forms of violence by acting on their economic, social and cultural root causes 2007 – 2009” that has five principal areas of activity:

• Working with NGOs to reinforce their capacity for action;
• Bringing about change through action files and other forms of intervention;
• Using the UN Treaty Bodies and other mechanisms to bring about change;
• Working with the European Union;
• Building a framework of understanding through advocacy.

OMCT’s training seminars represent an important dimension of “working with NGOs to reinforce their capacity for action”. In 2008, OMCT held two such seminars: an African Regional Seminar in Maputo, Mozambique (7-11 May) and the second Special Procedures Seminar in Geneva (23–27 June). These were conceived to enable national NGOs to prepare targeted submissions calling for specific action on the economic, social and cultural root causes of violence. This practical approach to seminars has been shown to be a highly effective means of underlining the relevance of addressing the economic, social and cultural root causes of violence among seminar participants and has, moreover, proven to be an important source of material and case studies. The impact of the seminars is confirmed by positive feedback from participants in their responses to questionnaires they are asked to complete at the end of each seminar, and again some six months later with a view to assessing the extent to which the themes addressed have been incorporated in their organisations’ work.

This area of activity also involves enabling NGOs engaged in addressing the root causes of torture to remain in contact with each other and with OMCT, and to continue sharing information, good examples and ideas. Consequently OMCT is developing a network of NGOs with which it has worked for the purpose of facilitating information exchange. OMCT is also extending its outreach to NGOs more directly involved in development issues through an agreement to collaborate with FIAN (FoodFirst International Action Network) and its national affiliates on actions in a number of areas.

Violations of economic, social and cultural rights that lead or risk leading to violence occur in a wide range of circumstances, each requiring appropriate analysis and calling for specific reactions. This is addressed under OMCT’s activities aimed at “bringing about change through action files and other forms of interventions”. In some cases violence is already present or its threat is imminent, requiring OMCT to react rapidly with an urgent intervention aimed at saving lives. Other situations require more in-depth analysis of the various – and often complex - factors leading to violence, including, for example, international trade and investment patterns, national economic policies, political relations, public security strategies and social and cultural dynamics. They also call for identification of those responsible, by act or omission, for this violence and for research into sustainable, long-term remedies. The need for an appropriate tool to address situations such as these gave rise to the OMCT Action File, a six to ten page document that provides a detailed analysis of a given situation and proposes specific remedial action.

The impact of urgent interventions and action files varies from case to case, according to factors such as the responsiveness of the government in question and the degree to which other actors involved, including private companies and corporations, are sensitive to international pressure. The impact of OMCT’s actions is well illustrated by the case of the project for an open-pit coalmine in Phulbari, Bangladesh, discussed in this report. In addition to the concrete results that can be obtained through Action Files and urgent interventions, these tools have an invaluable role as catalysts for reinforcing links between the OMCT secretariat and national partners.

In the context of activities aimed at “using the UN Treaty Bodies and other mechanisms to bring about change”, in 2008, OMCT, together with national partners, submitted alternative reports on Kenya and the Philippines, as well as a pre-sessional list of issues on Brazil to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. They also submitted an alternative report on Kenya to the Committee Against Torture. Both the reports on Kenya, while tailored to the mandate of the respective committees, were explicitly conceived as complementary documents with the purpose of encouraging mutually reinforcing recommendations aimed at the economic, social and cultural root causes of violence. They were prepared following a preparatory mission that involved a series of interactive community forums designed to capture grassroots concerns among marginalised communities (residents of informal settlements, indigenous groups and rural minorities).

OMCT’s strong links with national partners have been crucial in enabling the organisation to bring up-to-date, first hand information directly to Geneva from the field. This, together with the organisation’s capacity to analyse, contextualise and present this information in an effective manner has brought dividends in terms of its ability to support and influence the work of the UN human rights mechanisms. The UN Treaty Bodies have, for example, begun to take up in their dialogues with governments many of the issues relating to the economic, social and cultural root causes of violence presented to them by OMCT. Indeed, in 2008, OMCT’s input can be clearly traced in the concluding observations and recommendations of both the Committee Against Torture and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

OMCT gives particular importance to “working with the European Union” in order to raise awareness within its institutions of the need to fight violence by acting on its economic, social and cultural root causes, and its contributions have been well-received. This enables the voice of the EU to be added to that of human rights and development NGOs in urging effective action against these root causes.

During 2008, OMCT Action Files were transmitted to the Human Rights Sub-committee of the European Parliament, the Parliament’s Rapporteur on human rights violations deriving from China’s investments in Africa, and members of the European Parliament in connection with the preparation of written parliamentary questions. OMCT also submitted a set of amendments for inclusion in the European Parliament’s Annual Report on Human Rights in the World for 2007 and EU Policy in that Matter, in order to support the development of EU policy on human rights and to help EU institutions focus more attention on the links between human rights violations and poverty, inequality and discrimination. Most of OMCT’s suggested amendments were included in the final text as adopted by the Parliament in plenary. In the context of the development of the mandate and work programme of the new European Union Fundamental Rights Agency, OMCT wrote to key Parliamentarians and suggested that the terms of reference of the agency be modified to include identifying the economic, social and cultural factors that may constitute root causes of human rights violations.

The effectiveness of action against the economic, social and cultural root causes of torture and other forms of violence is greatly enhanced when there is a widely held understanding among influential actors of these root causes as well as of the types of action that can be taken to address these links. While progress is clearly being made, much still needs to be done to help ensure that policy makers and institutions are aware of these issues and are ready to take action. Thus OMCT seeks to contribute to “building a framework of understanding” with UN bodies, regional institutions, human rights defenders and, to the extent possible, the general public. In 2008, this has included making statements to the Human Rights Council, disseminating information at the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights and the NGO Pre-Sessional Forums and issuing press releases, notably on the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. OMCT has also participated in relevant international meetings and engaged with the media in Kenya, a country in which it was particularly active in 2008.

OMCT’s expertise in this field is recognised, it is invited to address seminars and other meetings, information is requested by UN Special Rapporteurs and members of the European Parliament and it enjoys the continuing support of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). OMCT was asked to chair the NGO Consultation on the Draft Guiding Principles on Human Rights and Extreme Poverty (December 2008) and present the results to the OHCHR consultation (January 2009) aimed at preparing recommendations for the Human Rights Council.

In implementing this project, OMCT has learned that addressing the economic, social and cultural root causes of violence through the appropriate channels has a real potential to reduce human rights abuses, and that this in turn increases the space for economic, social and cultural development. This has also proven to be an effective means by which to challenge the relativistic argument that respect for the absolute prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment should be subordinated to economic priorities. While the project aims to ensure respect for all human rights, and in particular economic, social and cultural rights in national economic, development and other policies, it does not seek to determine what those policies should be.

OMCT has found that demonstrating that violations of economic, social and cultural rights can lead to torture and other serious forms of violence strengthens the pressure for action not only on States, which do not want to see their economic and social policies explicitly linked to violence, but also, for example, on the corporate sector, banks and development agencies.

OMCT has also learned that the most promising results in terms of impact are achieved by focusing on selected cases or situations and carrying out in-depth analysis. A situation-driven approach such as this allows OMCT to use its understanding of the mandates, working methods and expectations of a wide range of international organisations to tailor the use of its tools for maximum effect.

Importantly, it has become clear in the course of 2008 that in the future realising the full value of the project’s initial investment in research and analysis will require further investment in coordinated and sustained follow-up activities that are almost as resource-intensive as the development of the original complaint.

Feedback from seminar participants, UN committee members and communities visited in the field show that this project is bringing about change and making a tangible contribution to the prevention of torture and other forms of violence by acting on their economic, social and cultural root causes.

Eric Sottas, Secretary General
Anne-Laurence Lacroix, Deputy Secretary General
The Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Team
Michael Miller, Francesca Restifo and Tom McCarthy