A/HRC/21/19
development and to place development at the centre of all efforts of the international
community. Resistance to the implementation of the right to development could be due to a
misconception of the application of that right at the international level, creating a NorthSouth divide. The responsibility for development fell on the international community. The
effects of the multiple crises could have a unifying rather than dividing effect on both
developed and developing countries. There was a need to cooperate to deliver the right to
development to the entire human family. The right to development allowed the delivery of
other rights, namely economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights, and the reversal of
unjust trends in history. In that regard, the mission of the Working Group was, more than
ever, vital, and any attempt to politicize the issue, or complacency, would undermine its
mandate and threaten the implementation of the right to development. The mandate was to
review, redraft and approve the criteria and operational sub-criteria, bearing in mind the
centrality of the Declaration on the Right to Development, which encompasses both
collective and individual rights, as well as the need to find a proper balance between the
national and international dimensions of the right to development, and to ensure the
implementation of the right to development by international organizations with the ultimate
goal of adopting a legally binding instrument on the right to development.
11.
The European Union reiterated its commitment to achieving sustainable
development and working towards freedom, accountability and good governance. This was
reflected in the European Union policy on global challenges, which recognized that human
rights and development were closely interlinked and key to achieving the Millennium
Development Goals. One of the basic objectives of the European Union was to ensure that
economic growth and development went hand in hand with good governance,
environmental sustainability, and empowerment of women. Reference was made to the
report of the High-level Panel on Global Sustainability, entitled ―Resilient people, resilient
planet: a future worth choosing‖ (A/66/700), which included elements that could guide the
future work on the right to development, such as the Panel’s recognition that sustainable
development was fundamentally a question of people’s opportunities to influence their
future, claim their rights and voice their concerns. Democratic governance and full respect
for human rights were key prerequisites for empowering people to make sustainable
choices. The right to development was based on the indivisibility and interdependence of
all human rights, the multidimensional nature of development strategies and the individual
as the central subject of development. The right to development required the full realization
of all human rights and a mix of policies to create an enabling environment for individuals.
The right-to-development criteria, sub-criteria and indicators should be formulated in a way
that they can be applied to all countries, since the right to development should be enjoyed
by all human beings, without discrimination. The European Union stated its belief that,
given the nature of the right to development as a composite right, the elaboration of a new
international legal standard of a binding nature was not the most appropriate means to
operationalize the right to development.
12.
Egypt, on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, underlined that the international
community was at a critical moment, with multiple crises and people taking to the streets
demanding a reversal of social injustice. The calls were not limited to human rights, but
extended to demands related to development. The right to development was at the
intersection between human rights and development and could serve as a platform to push
forward development goals. There were stereotypes; however, in reality the right to
development did not reflect a North-South divide—it was about individuals and populations
in both developed and developing countries. It was not only about aid but also about the
creation of a national and international enabling environment for development. In this
regard, it was stressed that States had the obligation and duty to cooperate with each other.
It was important to capture the comprehensive nature of the right to development: the
centrality of the right to development emanates from its nature as a bridge between human
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