| | Navigate the Atlas:  | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| | | |
| | Access to food: a fundamental need and right | | |  Since its inception, the United Nations has identified access to adequate food as both an individual right and a collective responsibility. The 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaimed that "everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food?". Nearly 20 years later, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) developed these concepts more fully, stressing "the right of everyone to ? adequate food" and specifying "the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger". | | |  So, what is the distinction between the right to be free from hunger and the right to adequate food? The right to freedom from hunger is fundamental. This means that the state has an obligation to ensure, at the very least, that people do not starve. As such, this right is intrinsically linked to the right to life. In addition, however, states should also do everything possible to promote full enjoyment of the right to adequate food for everyone within their territory -- in other words, people should have physical and economic access at all times to food that is sufficient in quantity and quality for a healthy and active life. For food to be considered adequate, it must also be culturally acceptable and it must be produced in a manner that is environmentally and socially sustainable. Finally, its provision should not interfere with the enjoyment of other human rights -- for example, acquiring enough food for an adequate diet should not be so costly as to threaten the satisfaction of other socio-economic rights, or be fulfilled to the detriment of civil and political rights. | | | | |
 | | | | | Food: a fundamental human right
| |
| | Food: a fundamental human rightDespite the fact that the right to food is recognized directly or indirectly by all countries in the world, hunger, whether caused by war, drought, natural disaster or poverty, continues to cause widespread suffering. And poverty, one of the causes of hunger, is also a consequence of it. Hunger dulls intellects and thwarts productivity, keeping entire societies from realizing their potential. For poor families in developing countries, hunger-related illness adds to household costs and increases the burden of care for healthy family members often already struggling for subsistence. When this hardship is multiplied by millions of families worldwide, it creates a devastating ripple effect that imperils global development.At the 1996 World Food Summit, leaders from 185 countries and the European Community reaffirmed, in the Rome Declaration on World Food Security, "the right of everyone to have access to safe and nutritious food, consistent with the right to adequate food and the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger." They further pledged to cut the number of the world's hungry people in half by 2015.Eradicating hunger is not merely a lofty ideal. Ensuring the right to adequate food and the fundamental right to be free from hunger is a matter of international law, specifically enshrined in a number of human rights instruments to which states around the world have committed themselves.What is the right to food?Since its inception, the United Nations has identified access to adequate food as both an individual right and a collective responsibility. The 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights proclaimed that "everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food?". Nearly 20 years later, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) developed these concepts more fully, stressing "the right of everyone to ? adequate food" and specifying "the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger".So, what is the distinction between the right to be free from hunger and the right to adequate food? The right to freedom from hunger is fundamental. This means that the state has an obligation to ensure, at the very least, that people do not starve. As such, this right is intrinsically linked to the right to life. In addition, however, states should also do everything possible to promote full enjoyment of the right to adequate food for everyone within their territory -- in other words, people should have physical and economic access at all times to food that is adequate in quantity and quality for a healthy and active life. For food to be considered adequate, it must also be culturally acceptable and it must be produced in a manner that is environmentally and socially sustainable. Finally, its provision should not interfere with the enjoyment of other human rights -- for example, the acquisition of sufficient food for an adequate diet should not be so costly as to threaten the satisfaction of other socio-economic rights, or be fulfilled to the detriment of civil and political rights.The rights connectionThe civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights proclaimed in the Universal Declaration are considered interdependent, interrelated, indivisible and equally important. To be able to enjoy the right to food fully, people need access to health care and education, respect for their cultural values, the right to own property and the right to organize themselves economically and politically.Without adequate food, people cannot lead healthy, active lives. They are not employable. They cannot care for their children, and their children cannot learn to read and write. The right to food cuts across the entire spectrum of human rights. Its fulfilment is essential to the fight against poverty, and it is at the heart of FAO's mandate to ensure |
| Tina Farmer
|
|
1076 Topics - 5135 Related Knowledge - 2534 Members - 34 Editors |
