International Organizations and Human Rights: Realizing, Resisting or Repackaging the Right to Water?

Abstract International (or intergovernmental) organizations involved in development cooperation have not historically engaged with the international human rights community. However, since the mid-1990s, a rights-based approach to development has been increasingly promoted in an attempt to integrate human rights into the activities of various international organizations. Using the right to water as a case study, this paper examines how international human rights are understood by intergovernmental organizations involved in development cooperation. Based on empirical evidence (including elite interviews), the right to water, international human rights, and international law were generally not seen by practitioners to be relevant to on-the-ground development activities. "Rights" was seen to constitute untouchable technical, legal, and often political language, which the international organizations lacked the mandate in which to engage. Alternatively, or sometimes simultaneously, human rights were seen to be simply a development outcome. Rights-based approaches appeared to have little influence on programming activities with practitioners explaining it was not clear what such an approach meant in practice. Despite the clarification intended by the United Nations (UN) Common Understanding, the term "rights-based approaches" was used loosely and variably, and typically associated with vague procedural principles, such as participation, nondiscrimination, and access to information, that were often explained to come within existing approaches to development. With little association of rights-based approaches with the international human rights framework, particularly the treaty body system, this paper calls for a reinjection of such a framework, particularly increased reference to applicable legal obligations and normative standards, into development cooperation. Anna F. S. Russell is the Louwes Research Fellow at the University of Oxford, where she also teaches a graduate course on International Law and the Freshwater Sector at the Centre for the Environment. She holds a doctorate in law from the University of Oxford and has worked on environment and development projects in North and South America, Southern Africa, and Europe. The author would like to thank Guy B. Goodwin-Gill, as well as the two anonymous reviewers and Richard Hiskes for their comments on earlier drafts of this article. Notes 1. International (or intergovernmental) organizations are composed predominantly of states and are established under international law. They are usually created by treaty but can also be created via other mechanisms such as resolutions by other international organizations. International organizations "must possess organs having a will which is separate from that of its members. In practice this means that an international organization must have a separate legal personality and be able to act on a majority basis" (CitationAkande 2006: 278–279). 2. The author references the writing of former Director of the UN Centre on Human Rights, Theo van Boven (Citationvan Boven 1989), who also noted that the Director General for Development was not supposed to speak about human rights as such matters fell outside their competence (p. 129). 3. It should be noted that the integration of human rights into development in the 1990s was not isolated to within the UN system. For example, various bilateral development agencies (e.g., Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, Danish Development Agency), as well some of the large international development nongovernmental organizations (e.g., CARE International, Oxfam) started to enter further into the rights domain around that time. Similarly, the academic community was starting to look more carefully at the intersection of the two fields (e.g., CitationSen 1999; CitationForsythe 1989; CitationSteiner 1998; CitationSano 2000; CitationUvin 2004). 4. The idea is that by issuing General Comments, the CESCR makes the experience it has gained through the examination of reports available for the benefit of all state parties in order to assist in implementation of the ICESCR. General Comments are meant to suggest improvements in the reporting procedures and to stimulate the activities of states parties, and international organizations concerned, in progressively and effectively achieving the full realization of the rights set out in the Covenant (CitationUNCESCR 1989: para. 1, 3). 5. General Comment No. 15 explains that the elements of the right to water are to be "adequate for human dignity, life and health" (UNESCR 2002: para. 11). While the adequacy of water required to meet the right to water may vary according to different conditions, it is to be of sufficient quantity (or availability), quality, and accessibility, including physical, economical and nondiscriminatory accessibility (CitationUNCESCR 2002 para. 12). 6. In terms of specific legal obligations, General Comment No. 15 explains that state parties are to respect the right to water by refraining from interfering with the enjoyment of it directly or indirectly; to protect the right to water by preventing third parties, such as individuals, groups, or corporations, from also interfering with it; and to fulfill the right to water by adopting the necessary measures aimed at its full realization (CitationUNCESCR 2002: para. 20–29). 7. For example, in 2003, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a short booklet on the right to water (CitationWHO 2003a). The same year WaterAid and Rights in Humanity, in conjunction with the Freshwater Action Network (FAN) launched the www.righttowater.info website. In 2007, the Center on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE), published a manual on the subject (CitationCOHRE 2007). 8. In 2003, UN Water was endorsed as the official interagency mechanism for follow-up on international water-related commitments, specifically World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) water-related decisions and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) concerning water. Its partners also include major non-UN organizations. For further information see www.unwater.org, as well as its corresponding Terms of Reference. 9. The 24 UN programs, funds, and other entities that comprise UN Water and play a significant role in addressing global water concerns are the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Development Program (UNDP), United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), World Bank Group—International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), World Health Organization (WHO), World Meteorological Organization (WMO), United Nations Human Settlements Program (UN-HABITAT), United Nations University (UNU), United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (UNECLAC), United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (UNESCWA), Secretariat of the Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD), Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR). 10. UNCCD, UNCBD, UNFCCC. 11. UNECE, UNESCAP, UNECLAC, UNESCWA. 12. IAEA, ISDR, WMO, UNIDO, UNU. IAEA is concerned with nuclear technologies. WMO is concerned with meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology, and related geophysical sciences. ISDR is concerned with natural hazards and related technological and environmental disasters. UNIDO promotes industrial development and international industrial cooperation. UNU fosters intellectual cooperation amongst scholars, scientists, and practitioners on global problems of concern to the UN and its membership. 13. General Comment No. 15 paragraph 12 states that the human right to water entitles people to a water supply that is continuous for personal and domestic uses. These uses include drinking, personal sanitation, washing of clothes, food preparation, and personal and household hygiene. In regard to the actual quantity of water to be available to each person, General Comment No. 15 references two expert reports: CitationHoward and Bartram (2003) describe water for basic needs as water for consumption (hydration and food preparation) and basic hygiene (p. i); CitationGleick (1996) defines basic water requirements as "drinking water for survival, water for human hygiene, water for sanitation services, and modest household needs for preparing food" (p. 83). These definitions do not include water required to grow food for survival. Therefore while General Comment No. 15 notes the importance of the relationship between the right to water and the right to food, the provision of water for personal and domestic uses does not include water for food production. Accordingly, the FAO and IFAD, both involved in securing food supply, were not included as part of this investigation. Although it hosts the World Water Assessment Program, UNESCO was also excluded as its primary role is to promote peace and security through education, science, culture, and communication. In the UN water sector, it acts mainly as a portal.Finally, UNHCR was excluded because of its specific focus on the refugee context. While General Comment No. 15 paragraph 16 notes that refugees comprise a group that has traditionally faced difficulties in exercising the right to water and that states should take steps to ensure they have access, the agency's work in the water sector is almost exclusively in the specialized and often emergency context of minimal provision in camps. It is not generally involved in the broader standard setting context and outside of this specialized setting. 14. Such subsidiary organs are established by the General Assembly under article 7(2) of the Charter of the United Nations (UN Charter). It states that "[s]uch subsidiary organs as may be found necessary may be established in accordance with the present Charter." 15. Specialized agencies are brought into relationship with the UN by agreement under article 63 of the UN Charter. Article 57 of the UN Charter provides that the specialized agencies "shall be brought into relationship with the United Nations in accordance with the provisions of Article 63." Article 63 then states that the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) may enter into agreements with the specialized agencies and may coordinate their activities. Through ECOSOC, the UN may make recommendations for the coordination of the policies and activities of the specialized agencies as provided for in article 58 of the Charter. (See CitationAkande 2006: 298–300 for further information.) 16. The World Bank Group consists of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). (However, typically when referring to the World Bank, this refers to both the IBRD and the IDA.) 17. The Articles of Agreement provide that only economic considerations are to be relevant to the decisions of the Bank. Human rights were seen to fall into the category of politics, which was not to influence the Bank's lending (Daniño 2005: 513–520, 2006). 18. The General Counsel went on to state that "[i]t is therefore legitimate for the Bank to take human rights into consideration as part of its economic decision-making process. … [T]he Articles of Agreement permit, and in some cases require, the Bank to recognize the human rights dimensions of its development policies and activities since it is now evident that human rights are an instrinsic part of the Bank's mission" (Daniño 2006: 8–9). 19. For example, in 2002, WHO published two booklets entitled The Right to Health and 25 Questions & Answers on Health and Human Rights, followed a year later by one entitled International Migration, Health & Human Rights (CitationWHO 2002a, 2002b, 2003b). The objectives of its health and human rights work are stated to include supporting governments to integrate a human rights based approach in health development, strengthening WHO's capacity to integrate a human rights approach in the organization's work, and advancing the right to heatlh in international law and international development processes (CitationWHO 2004). 20. The joint initiative is the United Nations Housing Rights Program (UNHRP). See www.unhabitat.org/unhrp for further information. 21. In March 1998, UNDP and OHCHR signed a Memorandum of Understanding in this regard. In 1999, the Human Rights Strengthening Program (HURIST) was started, designed to develop sound policies, practices, and programs related to human rights in development. UNDP is focused on three strategic areas of intervention: supporting the strengthening of national human rights systems; promoting the application of a human rights-based approach to development programming; and greater engagement with the international human rights machinery (CitationUNDP 2005, 2007). 22. Many of the documents of the international organizations reviewed contain a standard disclaimer that they do not necessarily reflect or imply the views of the organization. This is recognized as a limitation of the research. However, not infrequently, the documents would be referred to by the staff of the international organizations as sourcebooks, guidebooks, strategies, etc., in which case the disclaimer was less of a concern—particularly in cases where the staff were either unaware of it or themselves dismissed it as standard. For obvious reasons, every document reviewed is not listed as a reference at the end of this article as to do so would make the section excessively and unmanageably long. 23. The majority of the field work for this investigation was carried out between October 2005 and June 2006. (Some follow-up interviews were conducted between April 2007 and July 2007.) Note that in later references interviewees have been classed as either "WaterOfficers#" or "RightsOfficers#." The numbering has been randomly assigned within each organization and is not based on heirarchy or any kind of seniority. 24. In total, 35 people from the relevant international organizations were interviewed. No interviews were possible with UNEP. The complete list of intervieweees is not provided in the references due to reasons of length. It is also acknowledged that since the research for this article was completed some developments in terms of thinking and progression of ideas may have occurred. 25. Although published by the Social Development Department of the World Bank, this paper did not undergo review accorded to official World Bank publications and thus is not considered a formal publication of the Bank. It serves an illustrative purpose. 26. The sanitation target was not originally included in the Millennium Declaration but was added as a result of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (2002) Plan of Implementation (para. 8, 25). 27. Since the empirical work for this research was completed, UNDP has also initiated a project that examines the integration of the right to water into MDG-costing models. 28. For further discussion on the reasons why the MDG and human rights agendas remain disengaged from each other see CitationAlston 2005. 29. UNICEF was initially reluctant to enter into the rights domain. However, the organization eventually responded to external pressure and became involved in the drafting and subsequent promotion of the CRC. Gradually, the organization began to integrate children's rights into its development activities (CitationRios-Kohn 1996). 30. UNICEF's Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Strategy for 2006–2015 specifically references the right to water (CitationUNICEF 2006b: para. 26). 31. See also CitationWorld Bank (2005: 14) recognizing the "strong link between human rights and development" and CitationWolfensohn (2005: 24) stating that the Bank is "deeply committed to trying to clarify the role of rights in development." 32. While the World Bank Legal Vice Presidency has published a book on the right to water, it is a research publication (and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Bank) (CitationSalman and McInerney-Lankford 2004). 33. See, for example, the statement made by a Canadian representative at the UN Commission on Human Rights in 2003 disputing a "'right' to drinking water and sanitation owed between states" (Canada 2003: para. 49). 34. For some further discussion regarding the "rhetorical incorporation of human rights terminology" see CitationUvin 2004 at pages 50–55. 35. For a further discussion on the potential synergy between rights advocates and development economists see CitationSteiner 1998 and CitationSeymour and Pincus 2008. 36. Since the empirical research for this paper was completed, there has been significantly more work on the corollary issue of access to sanitation, particularly since the Year of Sanitation in 2008. As an example, see COHRE, WaterAid, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), and UN-HABITAT 2008. 37. For an article that seeks to provide some conceptual clarity to these principles see CitationDarrow and Tomas 2005. 38. Note that on the website human rights principles are stated to include universality, nondiscrimination, the best interests of the child, the right to survival and development, indivisibility and interdependence of human rights, accountability, and respect for the voice of the child (CitationUNICEF 2006a).

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