Human Rights and Poverty

In this section:

• Using human rights to fight poverty - an overview
• Core human rights concepts
• Reporting Poverty to the United Nations
• Tell your story to the United Nation
• Right to adequate housing is at issue in Inter-American Commission on Human Rights hearings
• Human Rights Links

Using human rights to fight poverty - an overview

1. Seizing the potential of human rights
2. Core human rights concepts
3. Limitations and pitfalls

For many of us, human rights law may seem like a lovely idea, but one that has little relevance to our everyday struggles to feed our kids and ourselves, to secure and/or maintain housing, to get a job, to deal with racist discrimination or to any of the many other injustices we face. However, increasingly, grassroots groups around the world are using international human rights law in a variety of ways. From Indigenous people in Canada, to rape victims in Bosnia, to anti-poverty activists in San Francisco, people are finding that international human rights law has potential far beyond the chambers of the United Nations. More...

Reporting on Poverty to the United Nations

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights states that every person has the right to an adequate standard of living, including the right to be free from hunger, to have a job, be paid fair wages and get an education. Canada is a party to the Covenant which requires countries to turn these rights into realities. Yet poverty in Canada continues.

Governments are required to report every 5 years on how they are implementing the Covenant to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which has been set up by the United Nations to monitor how governments are living up to their international human rights committments. Canada sent in its most recent Fourth Report in October 2004 and will appear before the Committee to answer questions in the Fall of 2006.

NAPO, in cooperation with other Canadian non-governmental organizations, is going to submit an alternative report on poverty in Canada to the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights because we don't think the government report presents a full or accurate picture of the extent of poverty in Canada or the way in which government policies at both the federal and provincial/territorial level violate provisions of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rigths.

NAPO invites your participation in developing an Alternative Report to the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on Canada's implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rigths.

Tell your story to the United Nations