A/HRC/36/58
Guatemala was of the view that collective rights had been recognized only in the context of
self-determination.
49.
South Africa suggested including in the definition the term “small-holder
production” and a reference to others who also lived in rural areas, such as children who did
not work. ILO suggested inserting a reference to children.
50.
The International Network of Human Rights suggested including in the definition
other workers in rural areas, such as those engaged in agritourism and peasants engaged in
mining. Other civil society organizations suggested including sharecroppers and tenant
farmers, who were very vulnerable to eviction.
51.
Centre Europe—Tiers Monde recalled that article 1 was based on text adopted by
States at FAO. It also resulted from consultations with persons who were directly
concerned and had become vulnerable due to globalization.
52.
Regarding the phrase “alone, or in association with others or as a community”, Mr.
Golay explained that the word “or” provided for different possibilities and specified that
recognition of collective rights for groups other than indigenous peoples featured, among
others, in the 2012 Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of
Land, Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security endorsed by the
Committee on World Food Security.
Paragraph 3
53.
Colombia suggested deleting paragraph 3, arguing that it would discriminate against
minorities, for example people of African descent. Guatemala too suggested deleting the
paragraph. Ecuador indicated that the paragraph could be strengthened through the
inclusion of other groups. The Programme on Women’s Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights suggested adding Dalits to the list.
Paragraph 4
54.
The European Union and Tunisia suggested adding “and as defined by national
legislation”. Switzerland underlined that migrant and seasonal workers needed legal
authorization before taking up work.
55.
Jordan reserved its position on paragraph 4, especially regarding the reference to
“migrant and seasonal workers, regardless of their legal status”.
56.
ILO expressed support for paragraph 4 and referred to the underreporting of the
number of waged rural workers. With IUF concurring, it suggested replacing “hired
workers, and” with “hired workers, including”.
57.
Ecuador, with the Philippines concurring, observed that the intention of the
declaration was to enable aspirations to prevail over local legislation and added that those
without legal status were particularly vulnerable.
2.
Article 2
58.
Guatemala shared some of the reservations expressed by other States. More
generally, it mentioned that there was a conflict between the text, which mentioned the
obligations of States, and its status as a non-binding document.
59.
The Russian Federation noted that article 2 addressed a number of sensitive
questions, such as extraterritorial application, and that it was unable to support the current
version.
60.
The European Union, with Colombia concurring, restated that “people” should be
replaced by “persons” throughout the article. Egypt indicated that “people” should be
maintained where appropriate, for consistency with the title of the draft declaration and the
relevant Human Rights Council resolutions.
6
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents