A/HRC/27/20
the main theme was the human rights of women and girls. The Amman Declaration and
Programme of Action that came out of the conference contain explicit recommendations to
national human rights institutions on the protection and promotion of reproductive rights,
including rights related to maternal health. OHCHR has received information since then
that certain national human rights institutions are working with the technical guidance. In
Mexico, the Human Rights Commission of Mexico City, in its 2013 annual report
concerning maternal health and obstetric violence, refers to the technical guidance, among
other international human rights instruments protecting maternal health and other relevant
human rights. In India, an article on the technical guidance appeared in the Journal of the
National Human Rights Commission in 2013.8
20.
In addition, numerous stakeholders have reported to OHCHR that the technical
guidance has been disseminated at the national level. In Switzerland, for example, the
technical guidance was distributed through the organization Santé Sexuelle Suisse, which is
the main organization in the country working on the promotion of sexual and reproductive
health and respect for sexual rights. The Government of the Republic of Moldova reported
that the technical guidance had been presented to relevant experts in the Ministry of Health,
and that the guidance was the subject of regular discussion among national experts in the
field of reproductive health. In Mexico, 32 women’s institutions at the State level
disseminated the technical guidance to the health sector in their respective States and also
to the municipal women’s institutes. Furthermore, the technical guidance was presented and
circulated at a national-level meeting held by the Committee for Safe Motherhood in
Mexico City in September 2013 to raise awareness about safe pregnancy as a human right
that entails obligations across various sectors. The Burundi office of UNFPA reported that
it had disseminated the technical guidance to a network of journalists, in order to raise
awareness among the media about the applicability of rights-based approaches.
21.
The technical guidance has also informed discussions around the ICPD beyond 2014
review process. In July 2013, an international conference on human rights was held in the
context of the ICPD beyond 2014 review process, in order to identify positive human rights
developments over the past 20 years, remaining gaps and challenges, and emerging issues
and priorities for the future. The issue of accountability, as explained in the technical
guidance, was an important discussion point at the conference. This understanding of
accountability requires attention to all phases of the policy cycle, and to ensuring
transparency and effective participation. The report of the operational review of the
implementation of the programme of action of the ICPD and its follow-up beyond 20149 is
explicitly oriented around the obligation to realize human rights, and it supports the
application of rights-based approaches, including in regard to the question of maternal
mortality and morbidity. In connection with the Human Rights Council’s resolutions on
maternal mortality and morbidity, he explains that the ICPD beyond 2014 review process
affords an opportunity to reflect the expansion and strengthening of a human rights-based
approach to health.
22.
Knowledge about the technical guidance has also been spread more widely, thanks
to its citation in a number of articles and publications.10
8
Jashodhara Dasgupta, “Maternal health: promotion and protection of human rights of women”,
Journal of the National Human Rights Commission, India, vol. 12 (2013).
9
Launched by the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Executive Director of UNFPA on 12
February 2014.
10
See, for example, African Union policy brief, “Using human rights to advance accountability for
women and children’s health”, August 2013. Available from
http://www.who.int/pmnch/media/events/2013/au_policy_brief_human_rights.pdf;
7
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents