A/HRC/15/WG.2/TF/2
for mainstreaming the right to development at the domestic level, while anticipating that
much more would need to be done at the international level in line with the Declaration.
15.
Mexico stated that the right to development had to be posited within the overall
context of other human rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights. Each
criterion must be viewed within the global context, and good governance, democracy and
the eradication of poverty are crucial to the realization of the right to development.
Similarly, the Millennium Development Goals are closely linked to human rights and need
to be addressed in the human rights context.
16.
Brazil stressed the importance of the implementation of the right to development and
the need for political will. It was hopeful that the task force would complete its work, which
should address the issue of the elaboration of a convention to raise the right to development
to the level of other human rights.
17.
Bangladesh expected the task force, as an expert body, to provide expert opinions
and not politically correct statements, which should be left to the Working Group as an
intergovernmental body. It called for the finalization of the criteria and operational subcriteria, which it expected to be balanced, realistic and helpful to the realization of the right
to development. These should be transformed into legally-binding norms. International
support and solidarity are essential, as no country can achieve sustainable development by
itself.
18.
Mauritius associated itself with the statements made by Nigeria on behalf of the
African Union and Egypt on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement. It highlighted the
constant widening of the gap between developed and developing countries, especially in
Africa, which had worsened in the context of the food and economic crises, and the
negative impact of climate change. The right to development was a fundamental human
right that went beyond poverty eradication and was a bridge between economic, social and
cultural rights and civil and political rights. There should be a genuine global partnership,
in line with the contents of the Declaration on the Right to Development, in international
cooperation.
19.
Canada expressed its support for the expert approach to the right to development
adopted by the task force, and commended its collaborative approach with regard to other
institutions, which had been very beneficial for the mainstreaming of this right. While
reiterating that it did not support a move towards a legally-binding instrument, it looked
forward to discussing other avenues.
20.
The Indian Movement “Tupaj Amaru” called upon the task force not to turn a blind
eye to the reasons why the Millennium Development Goals were not being achieved, and to
address root causes of such a failure. It highlighted the need for the task force to deal with
such issues as the financial crisis, climate change and the debt crisis in the context of their
impact on indigenous peoples and their human rights.
21.
The representative for the Indigenous Peoples and Nations Coalition, the
International Council for Human Rights and the Indian Council for South America
expressed their support for the principles underlying the right to development and the
elaboration of a binding international legal instrument.
22.
Friedrich Ebert Stiftung noted that the missions undertaken by the task force to the
World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Intellectual Property Organization
(WIPO) underlined the importance of the global dimension of the right to development. It
welcomed the outcome of the expert meeting on the right to development criteria
(A/HRC/15/WG.2/TF/CRP.4), which illustrated the link between the global and national
dimensions and was the basis for the legitimacy of the right to development. It
recommended that a subsequent mandate of the task force should include the elaboration of
GE.10-11443
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