World leaders have a once in a generation chance to create a meaningful link between sustainable development and human rights, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said today in a joint statement targeting Environment and Foreign Affairs ministers gathering in Rio.
Heads of state, government officials, and nongovernmental actors will meet on June 20 to 22, 2012, in Rio de Janeiro for the 20 + UN Conference on Sustainable Development.
They are there to take stock of progress towards commitments made at the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development which resulted in the Rio Principles and ‘Agenda 21’, a blueprint for global, national, and local action on a wide range of environmental and development issues.
Few countries have followed the Rio Principles, and progress on environmental issues has been limited.
“World leaders in Rio should ensure that sustainable development is grounded in human rights,” said Jan Egeland, deputy executive director at Human Rights Watch. “It is encouraging that the new draft for the outcome document explicitly refers to human rights, but it doesn’t go far enough to ensure that those rights are protected.”
Economic development initiatives that do not incorporate human rights obligations and principles can deepen marginalization, discrimination, and injustice.
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