A/HRC/17/37 67. There was broad agreement on the need for more coherence between debt and trade policies at both the national and international level. In addition, participants underlined the need to link international human rights obligations with international financial obligations. Foreign debt, it was emphasized, should be viewed not as an exclusively economic issue but as a human rights issue as well. 68. A number of participants articulated the view that the obligation of international assistance and cooperation as enshrined in the core international human rights treaties and the principle of shared responsibility should be underscored in the guidelines. 69. Participants acknowledged that debt is an important part of the development process. However, they noted that excessive debt undermines the capacity of States to fulfil their human rights obligations. 70. Some participants felt that the guidelines could be enriched by lessons drawn from the multilateral debt relief initiatives, in particular, the HIPC initiative. C. Session II: Core human rights principles and obligations 71. This session highlighted a number of key human rights principles, such as the primacy of human rights and the principle of non-retrogression, according to which Governments must not take measures or adopt policies that had the effect of jeopardizing the enjoyment of human rights. Other important principles considered were the principles of non-discrimination, participation, transparency, accountability and the right to an effective remedy for those whose rights had been violated. 72. In a presentation on human rights and development, participants’ attention was drawn to recent initiatives concerning the World Bank’s cooperation on human rights, such as the October 2006 issue of Development Outreach on human rights and development, the study Human Rights Indicators in Development: An Introduction, and its cooperation with the Human Rights Council, United Nations treaty bodies, the special procedures and the High-Level Task Force on the Right to Development. The presentation also outlined the activities of the World Bank’s Nordic Trust Fund that were relevant to human rights. 73. In his presentation on core human rights principles relevant to debt and economic reform, the Independent Expert focused on the principles of the primacy of human rights, international assistance and cooperation, equality and non-discrimination, participation and inclusion, accountability, and non-retrogression. He also highlighted the shared responsibility of creditors and debtors with regard to preventing and resolving unsustainable debt situations. 74. In the discussions that ensued, participants noted the role of the World Bank in providing guidance to national, bilateral and multilateral institutions on debt relief and project appraisal. In this regard, they suggested that the World Bank should promote the incorporation of human rights in project appraisals with a view to mainstreaming the practice in the future. However, one participant stated that the World Bank did not have a normative role in human rights and it was yet to be convinced that adopting a human rightsbased approach could yield added value in its development assistance. 75. According to one participant, more work was required to establish data-based evidence, indicators and methodology to support the case for a human rights-based approach to foreign debt. 76. Some participants offered the view that the guidelines would be useful if they provided some practical guidance as to how States and other actors could conduct negotiations on issues related to human rights. 14