Using the brand-new UN Guiding Principles to end the violence of extreme poverty

Photo: ATD Fourth World

On occasion of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, October 17th, the International Movement ATD Fourth World called on public authorities and non-state actors to use the recently approved UN Guiding Principles on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights as a mean “to end the violence of extreme poverty”.

The Guiding Principles, adopted by the UN Human Rights Council on September 27th, are helpful “to take steps to ensure the respect of all human rights for all,” and provides “a tool” and “a reference” that should be used in “all areas of anti-poverty programming and practice,” remarked ATD Fourth World in a statement.

Through the passing by consensus of the Guiding Principles, member states of the Human Rights Council declared that eradicating extreme poverty is not only a moral duty but also a legal obligation under existing international human rights law.

“We tend not to recognise that people living in extreme poverty are the victims of daily acts of violence,” warned ATD Fourth World in its statement. “Current affairs show us that is constantly the case: anti-homeless legislation, criminalising begging, evictions of people who have nowhere else to go. These people are discriminated against due to their situation: that of living in extreme poverty. Their rights are repeatedly violated, their involvement is not sought out in projects that concern them directly. They suffer the worst from armed conflicts, but are dismissed in peace-building processes.”

“This year, the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty calls on society to recognise the violence done to people in poverty. The United Nations has chosen this theme – Ending the Violence of Extreme Poverty: Promoting empowerment and building peace, to remind us that extreme poverty can only be overcome by building on the capacities of all, without exclusion. Only in this way can we hope to build sustainable societies in which the contributions of people in poverty are also taken into account,” added the movement.

“ATD Fourth World believes that the recently adopted UN Guiding Principles on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights are a means to end the violence of extreme poverty. The Guidelines provide a tool for public authorities at all levels, as well as non-state actors, to take steps to ensure the respect  of all human rights for all. ATD Fourth World calls on all concerned to use the Guiding Principles as a reference in all areas of anti-poverty programming and practice,” suggests the statement.

“With its partners from around the world, on this day, ATD Fourth World wants to make known the different ways in which people in extreme poverty and people from other backgrounds come together, in order to overcome the isolation caused by the violence of contempt and chronic poverty,” it says.

The International Movement ATD Fourth World is a non-governmental organization with no religious or political affiliation which engages with individuals and institutions to find solutions to eradicate extreme poverty.

Working in partnership with people in poverty, ATD Fourth World’s human rights-based approach focuses on supporting families and individuals through its grass-roots presence and involvement in disadvantaged communities, in both urban and rural areas, creating public awareness of extreme poverty and influencing policies to address it.

Source
ATD Fourth World: http://bit.ly/Wzosqe