UN.org: 6 February 2013 – The United Nations has applauded the upcoming availability of a new human rights instrument which, for the first time, will allow victims to file complaints at the international level about violations of their economic, social and cultural rights, placing those rights on equal footing with all other human rights.
The new complaints mechanism, established by the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, will allow individuals or groups to file a complaint with the UN if their rights – such as inadequate access to food, housing or work – are violated by a Member State that is party to the Protocol.
“The entry into force of the Optional Protocol is a major breakthrough,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said in a press release.
“The Protocol will provide an important platform to expose abuses linked to poverty, discrimination and neglect, which up until now victims have had to endure without any possible recourse at the international level. It will provide a way for individuals, who may otherwise be isolated and powerless, to make the international community aware of their situation,” she added.
The Protocol, adopted during the General Assembly’s December 2008 meeting to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, opened for signature the following year.
Categories: Americas, Awareness, Human Rights, United Nations