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HUMAN RIGHTS
Human Rights and Sustainable Development
There is an inseparable relationship between sustainable development and human rights. This relationship can be seen in many different ways, yet just as the environment and development are closely bound to each other, they are also bound to human rights. The respect for human rights has been recognized as a prerequisite for development. If people's fundamental human rights are threatened, if people lack the basic human rights of food, health, education, shelter, freedom of expression and the right to political participation, their ability to participate in sustainable development is hindered. This chapter is a collection of youth voices and perspectives on human rights, from the "disappeared" in Latin America to the effects of apartheid on the environment and the people of South Africa.
To address basic social and economic issues, as well as issues related to the environment, public mobilization is needed, yet it is when public mobilization happens that human rights are likely to be violated. Environmental degradation that is a result of irresponsible practices by governments, industry, and transnational corporations fundamentally infringe on the right of all people to a healthy environment, yet when these powers are challenged, there is a risk involved for those who dare to challenge them. In many countries, such as Argentina, there is a history of silencing, a history which prevents popular participation in building a social movement which addresses sustainability and challenges the existing development models. Freedom of expression enables people to challenge unsustainable practices, to demand their rightful place in developing alternatives for sustainability and changing social and economic structures which negatively affect their communities.
Where there are people who are willing to cry out and protect their land, community, environment or their human rights , there are people willing to put their lives at risk. In the case of indigenous people who are protecting their traditional culture and land, they face marginalization, persecution and are even threatened by further genocide, in Guatemala, Malaysia, India, Canada, the United States and other countries. Protecting livlihoods and the environment is a dangerous business: note the killing of rubber tappers in Brazil including their well known leader, Chico Mendes. A person willing to speak out and take action on behalf of humanity and the Earth, anywhere on the planet, regardless of the type of government existing, a person willing to put themselves at risk, from losing employment, facing incarceration, to losing their life.
Because of racism, the rights of communities of people of colour to a healthy environment have been violated. People of colour have been disproportionately affected by environmental degradation. Incinerators, hazardous waste dumps, uranium mining, often take place in communities of people of colour, people who have traditionally lacked the political power to oppose such projects.
Discrimination against social groups jeopardizes their right to shelter, health, food, education and other fundamental human rights. The recognition of the rights of half of humanity, women, as human rights is also the base upon which a sustainable future will be built.
Disabled peoples are often forgotten from the environmental debate, yet, environmentally destructive practices such as war and nuclear testing, are responsible for the disability of many. When looking at human rights and the environment, disabled peoples cannot be omitted from the debate.
Young people, as a group that often lacks political power, are often the ones willing to take risks in order to speak out against injustices and for the protection of rights. In some countries, whole generations, generations which sought social change, were wiped out through repression. Everyday, adults and children die from hunger, and one in three children in the world suffer from malnutrition. This is one of the greatest violation of human rights, where in a world of plenty, people die from hunger, a world were the distribution of resources, rather than scarcity, is the problem.
As this generation of youth continues the struggle for a social and economic development that respects the environment, cultures and peoples, the respect for human rights must be kept also at the center of the debate. Without respect for human rights, the ability of people to move to a sustainable future will be hindered.