A/HRC/24/37
which the criteria and subcriteria were drafted and suggested their reformulation, including
by providing more concrete and practicable details for each subcriterion.
33.
Among the suggestions made, one submission underlined the link between
international solidarity and the right to development and its mutually reinforcing nature,
and proposed reorganizing the criteria and operational subcriteria according to a suggested
list of right to development principles and related articles of the Declaration on the Right to
Development. Another submission expressed the view that the criteria and subcriteria
lacked explicit reference to gender equality, and commented that civil and political rights
were as important for development processes as economic, social and cultural rights, and
they should be better reflected. Other suggestions included paying more attention to the
development rights of indigenous peoples and minorities, adding new criteria on the
recognition of international solidarity as a right, adopting and implementing a
comprehensive and legally binding international instrument on the right to development,
and recognizing the right to peace of persons and peoples, the Chairperson-Rapporteur said
when concluding her presentation on the conference room papers.
34.
During the consideration of the operational subcriteria, several speakers stressed the
need to simultaneously consider the indicators proposed by the High-Level Task Force.
They pointed out that the draft subcriteria identified by the High-Level Task Force were not
operational and that operational elements or indicators would be required, consistent with
development practice and a results-based approach. Raising concerns and objections, a
number of other speakers stated that indicators were outside the mandate of the Working
Group and that they had also been outside the scope of the mandate of the High-Level Task
Force on the implementation of the right to development. They argued that indicators
would only serve the purpose of judging the performance of developing countries, instead
of contributing to the elaboration of a comprehensive and coherent set of standards for the
implementation of the right to development, in accordance with the resolutions of the
Human Rights Council.
35.
The Chairperson-Rapporteur appealed to the members of the Working Group to
refrain from introducing language or elements that relate to indicators, which were not
mandated by the Human Rights Council and on which there was no consensus within the
Working Group, and to pursue its work on the consideration of the draft operational
subcriteria, in accordance with Council resolution 21/32. She drew the attention of the
Working Group to paragraph 14 of the second addendum to the report of the High-Level
Task Force on the implementation of the right to development on its sixth session
(A/HRC/15/WG.2/TF/2/Add.2), which distinguished operational subcriteria from
indicators: “The criteria and sub-criteria should be relatively long-lasting and suitable for
inclusion in a set of guidelines or a legally-binding instrument that development actors may
use over the long term when assessing whether their own responsibilities or those of others
are being met. The indicators, on the other hand, are intended to help in assessing
compliance with the criteria and sub-criteria, and are therefore context-specific and subject
to change over time.”
36.
During consideration of the operational subcriteria, the Islamic Republic of Iran, on
behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, stated that human rights were interlinked and must
be addressed in an integral manner, including all economic, social and cultural rights, some
of which were not reflected in the list of draft criteria and operational subcriteria.
Switzerland called for the use of human rights language such as the right to food, the right
to water and the right to health. Non-discrimination, gender equality, a decent standard of
living and certain aspects of civil and political rights, such as the right to life and freedom
of expression, should be referenced from the very beginning. The Islamic Republic of Iran,
on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, proposed different subcriteria with regard to
compliance with international commitments by various multilateral policy regimes. It also
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