Camp : Economic, Social and Cultural Rights advocacy and litigation in Southern Africa

Aug 12, 2010 | Agendas, Events

The ICJ has invited to a 4-day Camp around 35 experts from the SADC regions to exchange experience, identify risks, difficulties and opportunities for a better protection and enjoyment of ESC rights.

Although economic, social and cultural rights continue suffering from prejudices against their legal nature and their ability to be enforced by courts, developments in international and national law in the last two decades have reinforced their status as “real” human rights as well as their equal value and importance.

At the regional level, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights particularly emphasizes the interdependence of human rights. Moreover, the Charter does not differentiate between provisions for the realization of economic, social and cultural rights and those for the realization of civil and political rights.

Such equal treatment provides the possibility to challenge states’ reluctance or failure to protect, promote and fulfill socio- economic rights in the South Africa Development Community (SADC).

However, most challenges to human rights violations in the SADC region have tended to focus on violations of civil and political rights even though economic and social rights are daily concerns of the people. This gap is particularly due to a lack of capacity of the lawyers and human rights activists as well as social justice practitioners who are interested in socio-economic rights advocacy and litigation.

In order to contribute to reduce this gap, the Africa regional office of the International Commission of Jurists has invited to a 4-day ESCR Camp around 35 experts from the SADC regions. Together with international experts on economic, social and cultural rights, the participants will, exchange experience, identify risks, difficulties and opportunities for a better protection and enjoyment of these human rights.

South Africa-ESCR advocacy litigation-agenda-2010 (full text in English, PDF)

South Africa-ESCR advocacy litigation-event-2010 (ful text in English, PDF)