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March
1997, Vol. 1, No 3
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Features:
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- Towards
a Holistic Approach to Human Rights. By Sakiko
Fukuda-Parr.
- Under
the Human Rights Umbrella. By Phillip Alston.
- Thematic
Supplemen on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
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INTRODUCTION
THE MAIN focus of Social
Development Review is on follow-up to the World Summit for Social
Development (WSSD). This issue includes information and opinion
about a number of aspects of follow-up to the Summit, ranging
from developments within particular countries to broader international
activities. The thematic supplement concentrates on the third
of the core issues of the Summit, namely social integration.
At the international
level, one of the most potentially significant events since the
last issue of the Review was the annual meeting of the UN's Commission
for Social Develop ment in New York in March. The Commission made
some progress in revamping its processes but much remains to be
done if it is to play the crucial role in Summit follow-up which
it has been given by the UN General Assembly. The article by Steve
Pursey in this issue summarises some of the Commission's discussions
and also the highlysuccessful NGO Forum which was organized by
the International Council on Social Welfare and the International
Confederation of Free Trade Unions, with support from Friedrich
Ebert Stiftung, on the day before the Commission meeting began.
One of the highest priorities for the
Commission should be to promote and coordinate the holding in
each region of the biennial Ministerial meetings to monitor and
facilitate follow-up. These meetings were proposed in the Summit
agreements themselves (see Commitment 10b of the Declaration and
para 95h of the Programme of Action). So far, only two of these
meetings have been scheduled - Latin America in Sao Paulo in April
1997 and Asia-Pacific in Manila in November 1997. ICSW is organizing
NGO workshops before each of these meetings. It is very important
that Ministerial meetings are also held in other regions, and
that the meetings concentrate on specific implementation of the
Summit agreements; not on rearguing them.
Two other significant developments at
the international level involve action by NGOs to monitor and
lobby for Summit implementation, especially at sub-regional and
national levels. The first is commencement by ICSW of a worldwide
programme of sub-regional workshops for NGOs on Summit follow-up,
beginning with a workshop in Harare in July for NGOs from Anglophone
Africa. The second is publication of the first full issue of Social
Watch, which is an annual compilation of reports by non-governmental
experts on progress with Summit implementation within their own
countries. Social Watch is coordinated by the Third World Institute
in Montevideo, and will be promoted by ICSW at each of its sub-regional
workshops.
The Commission for Social Development
meeting heard progress reports from each of four Inter-Agency
Task Forces established by the UN secretariat to pursue follow-up
to the Copenhagen Summit and other recent UN conferences such
as Beijing and Cairo. The most promising at this stage is the
Task Force on Basic Social Services For All, which has produced
a useful chart of progress in each country towards achievement
of ten major targets in relation to matters such as food, health
and education. The next step should be to establish these targets
as the top priority for monitoring and promoting progress towards
the goal of eradication of poverty which was adopted at the Summit.
Despite these encouraging initiatives,
a great deal remains to be done to develop momentum in Summit
follow-up. This applies especially to the Summit's crucial emphasis
on the development of an enabling economic and political environment,
including at international levels, for achieving sustainable economic
and social development. It is essential that the 1997 meeting
of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), to be held in Geneva
in July, produces vigorous and specific action to make further
progress in this area.
JULIAN DISNEY
President
International Council on Social Welfare
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