29 Right to Peace & International Instruments

Dr. Aneesh V. Pillai

Learning Objectives

• To understand the scope of right to peace in UN Charter
• To understand the scope of right to peace in General Human Rights Instruments
• To examine the scope of right to peace in Asian Human Rights Charter, 1998
• To study about various Specific international instruments which deals with right to peace

1.2 INTRODUCTION

The establishment of peace was one of the underlying driving forces behind the development of international law. Initially international law was not made any direct reference to individual’s right to peace. However, the various initiatives at international level during past few decades reveals that the international law accepts the need and significance of right to peace. At first right to peace was identified as a part of right to life and later it has been accepted as an independent right. The right to peace as a human right has formed part of various international instruments, although none of them was entirely devoted to the elaboration of this right.

1. 2 UN CHARTER AND RIGHT TO PEACE

The idea of a right to peace can first be found in the founding principles of United Nations Charter. In the preamble of the Charter it is stated that: ‘We the peoples of the United Nations determined to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security’. Further Article 1 states that, the Purposes of the United Nations are: To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace. Also to develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, and to take other appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace.

It can be seen that the right to peace is cemented in the founding principles of UN Charter. But the Charter does not contain any provision which directly recognizes right to peace as a human right. However, various provisions in the Charter indirectly recognize the need for ensuring right to peace. Therefore the Charter provides various measures for dealing with the threats to peace. Such measures can be categorized into three broad heads: Peaceful Settlement of Disputes; Non- Military Coercive Methods of Settlement; and Military Measures for establishing peace.

Peaceful Settlement of Disputes: According to Article 33 the parties to any dispute, the continuance of which is likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace and security, shall, first of all, seek a solution by negotiation, enquiry, mediation, conciliation, arbitration, judicial settlement, resort to regional agencies or arrangements, or other peaceful means of their own choice. The Security Council shall, when it deems necessary, call upon the parties to settle their dispute by such means.

Non- Military Coercive Methods: It includes measures such as severance of diplomatic relations, retortion, reprisal, embargo, boycott, and pacific blockade. According to Article 41, the Security Council may decide what measures not involving the use of armed force are to be employed to give effect to its decisions, and it may call upon the Members of the United Nations to apply such measures. These may include complete or partial interruption of economic relations and of rail, sea, air, postal, telegraphic, radio, and other means of communication, and the severance of diplomatic relations. Further under article 42 it states that, should the Security Council consider that measures provided for in Article 41 would be inadequate or have proved to be inadequate, it may take such action by air, sea, or land forces as may be necessary to maintain or restore international peace and security. Such action may include demonstrations, blockade, and other operations by air, sea, or land forces of Members of the United Nations. These methods are considered as the most powerful measures for establishing peace by solving the conflicts and disputes.

1. 3 GENERAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTRUMENTS AND RIGHT TO PEACE

In addition to the UN Charter, human rights treaties and other instruments also emphasis the significant relationship between peace and human rights. The UDHR states that, recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world. Similarly, both the ICCPR and the ICESCR as well as the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment state that in accordance with the principles proclaimed in the Charter of the UN recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world.

The Istanbul Declaration adopted during the 21st International Conference of the Red Cross in 1969 proclaimed the right to lasting peace as a human right.The significant relationship between peace and human rights can be found in certain widely ratified human rights treaties. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination reaffirms that the discrimination between human beings…is an obstacle to friendly and peaceful relations among nations and is capable of disturbing peace and security among people and the harmony of persons living side by side even within one and same state.

At the regional level the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, 1981 states that ‘all peoples shall have the right to national and international peace and security. The principles of solidarity and friendly relations implicitly affirmed by the Charter of the United Nations and reaffirmed by that of the Organization of African Unity shall govern relations between States’3. The Charter of the Organization of American States provides that the purpose of the organization is to achieve an order of peace and justice through the strengthening of peace and security on the continent, the promotion of democracy, cooperative action and economic, social and cultural development.

1. 4 ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS CHARTER, 1998

Asian Human Rights Charter is a people’s charter. It is a part of an attempt to create in Asia a popular culture on human rights. Thousands of people from various Asian countries participated in the debates during the three-year period of discussion on this document. In addition, more than 200 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) directly took part in the drafting process, and many other NGOs and people’s organizations (POs) have endorsed the document.

The Asian Charter says that ‘all persons have the right to live in peace so that they can fully develop all their capacities, physical, intellectual, moral and spiritual, without being the target of any kind of violence. The peoples of Asia have suffered great hardships and tragedies due to wars and civil conflicts which have caused many deaths, mutilation of bodies, external or internal displacement of persons, break up of families, and in general the denial of any prospects of a civilized or peaceful existence. Both the state and civil society have in many countries become heavily militarized in which all scores are settled by force and citizens have no protection against the intimidation and terror of state or private armies’.

It is the duty of the state to maintain law and order should be conducted under strict restraint on the use of force in accordance with standards established by the international community, including humanitarian law. Every individual and group is entitled to protection against all forms of state violence, including violence perpetrated by its police and military forces. The right to live in peace requires that political, economic or social activities of the state, the corporate sector and the civil society should respect the security of all peoples, especially of vulnerable groups. People must be ensured security in relation to the natural environment they live in, the political, economic and social conditions which permit them to satisfy their needs and aspirations without recourse to oppression, exploitation, violence, and without detracting from all that is of value in their society.

1. 5 SPECIFIC INSTRUMENTS

Declaration on the Right of Peoples to Peace, 1984

This declaration was approved by General Assembly resolution 39/11 of 12 November 1984. It states that ‘Recognizing that the maintenance of a peaceful life for peoples is the sacred duty of each State, solemnly proclaims that the peoples of our planet have a sacred right to peace. It declares that the preservation of the right of peoples to peace and the promotion of its implementation constitute a fundamental obligation of each State. The Declaration emphasizes that ensuring the exercise of the right of peoples to peace demands that the policies of States be directed towards the elimination of the threat of war, particularly nuclear war, the renunciation of the use of force in international relations and the settlement of international disputes by peaceful means on the basis of the Charter of the United Nations. It also appeals to all States and international organizations to do their utmost to assist in implementing the right of peoples to peace through the adoption of appropriate measures at both the national and the international level’.

Oslo Draft Declaration, 1997

The Oslo Draft Declaration on the Human Right to Peace in its preamble refers to the Charter of the United Nations, the Constitution of UNESCO and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It notes that ‘peace, a common good of all humanity, is a universal and fundamental value to which all individuals and all peoples, and in particular the youth of the world, aspire’. The recognition of a human right to peace can give peace its full human dimension. The Draft Declaration proclaims that ‘Every human being has the right to peace, which is inherent in the dignity of the human person’. It stresses that war, armed conflicts, violence and insecurity are intrinsically incompatible with the human right to peace. It underlines that peace is not only a human right but also a duty.

The Article 1 of the Declaration states that, ‘Every human being has the right to peace, which is inherent in the dignity of the human person. War and all other armed conflicts, violence in all its forms and whatever its origin, and insecurity also, are intrinsically incompatible with the human right to peace. The human right to peace must be guaranteed, respected and implemented without any discrimination in either internal or international contexts by all states and other members of the international community’. It is the duty of every human being, all states and other members of the international community and all peoples have the duty to contribute to the maintenance and construction of peace, and to the prevention of armed conflicts and of violence in all its forms. It is incumbent upon them notably to favour disarmament and to oppose by all legitimate means acts of aggression and systematic, massive and flagrant violations of human rights which constitute a threat to peace. As inequalities, exclusion and poverty can result in the disruption of peace both at international level and internally, it is the duty of states to promote and encourage social justice both on their own territory and at the international level, in particular through an appropriate policy aimed at sustainable human development.

The Declaration also ‘calls upon all individuals, all states, all international organizations, governmental and non-governmental, and, in a general way, all social actors, to promote and to implement the human right to peace. It urges all states, bearing in mind the requirements of international solidarity, to take, with a view to the implementation of the human right to peace, all appropriate measures of a constitutional, legislative and administrative nature at the economic, social and cultural levels, and in the fields of education, science and communication.

Luarca Declaration on the Human Right to Peace, 2006

This Declaration was adopted by Spanish Society for International Human Rights Law (SSIHRL) on 30 October 2006, which was drafted by a Committee of independent experts. It was the culmination of a process of extensive consultations within the Spanish civil society, with the support of the Catalonian Agency for Cooperation to Development8. The Preamble of the Declaration states that, ‘in accordance with the Preamble to the Charter of the United Nations and the purposes and principles established therein, peace is a universal value, the raison d’être of the Organization and a prerequisite and consequence of the enjoyment of human rights by everyone. It further provides recognizing the positive concept of peace which goes beyond the strict absence of armed conflict and is linked to the economic, social and cultural development of peoples as a condition for satisfying the basic needs of human beings, to the elimination of all kinds of violence and to the effective respect for all human rights’. It also states that, ‘the promotion of a culture of peace, the world-wide redistribution of resources and the achievement of social justice must contribute to the establishment of a new international economic order which will facilitate the fulfillment of the proposals of this Declaration, by eliminating the inequality, exclusion and poverty which generate structural violence incompatible with peace on the national and international levels’.

The Part I of the Declaration explains various elements of the human right to peace section. The Article 1 identifies individuals, groups and peoples have the inalienable right to a just, sustainable and lasting peace. It discusses the following rights: Right to education on peace and human rights; Right to human security; Right to live in safe and healthy environment; Right to disobedience and conscientious objection; Right to resist and oppose barbarity; Right to refugee status; Right to emigrate, to settle peaceably and to participate; Exercise of the freedom of thought, conscience and religion; Right to an effective remedy; Right to disarmament; Right to development; Right to a sustainable natural environment; Vulnerable groups; Requirements of peace and truthful information. It also states that ‘the effective and practical realization of the human right to peace necessarily involves duties and obligations for States, international organizations, civil society, peoples, men and women, corporations and other elements of society and, in general, the whole international community.

Part II of the Declaration explains about the measures of Implementation of the Declaration. It provides for the establishment of a Working Group on the Human Right to Peace consisting of 10 members. The members of the Working Group will be nationals from the Member States of the United Nations who will carry out their duties with complete independence and in their personal capacity. The main function of the Working Group is to promote the observance and implementation of this Declaration.

The Santiago Declaration on the Human Right to Peace, 2010

On December 9 and 10, 2010, the International Congress on the Human Right to Peace took place in Santiago de Compostella (Spain), which concluded with the adoption of The Santiago Declaration on the Human Right to Peace. The congress was organized by the Spanish Society for International Human Rights Law in collaboration with Forum 2010 on Peace Education, the World Council of Churches and the Institute for Peace Studies (Alexandria, Egypt) and under the co-sponsorship of more than a dozen civil society organizations and institutions.

The preamble of the Santiago Declaration on the Human Right to Peace performs three functions. First, it refers quite extensively to historical underpinnings pertaining to United Nations documents that are relevant to the right to peace. Second, it seeks to establish a legal basis by references to the UN Charter, international treaties and general principles of international law. Third, it provides guidance as to basic components of the human right to peace, such as the need for its codification and progressive development, the nature and implications of peace, the responsibilities of all relevant actors, the linkages with other collective and individual human rights, and the role of education and a culture of peace. The various rights identified in this Declaration are: Rights holders and duty holders (Article 1), Right to education on and for peace and all other human rights (Article 2), Right to human security and to live in a safe and healthy environment (Article 3), Right to development and to a sustainable environment (Article 4), Right to disobedience and to conscientious objection (Article 5), Right to resist and oppose oppression (Article 6), Right to disarmament (Article 7), Right to freedom of thought, opinion, expression, conscience and religion (Article 8), Right to refugee status (Article 9), Right to emigrate and to participate (Article 10), Rights of all victims (Article 11), and Groups in situations of vulnerability (Article 12). In Section B, the Obligations for the realization of the human right to peace are listed in eight paragraphs (Article 13).

For the effective implementation, the Declaration provides for establishment of a Working Group on the Human Right to Peace. It will be composed of ten members who will have the duties set forth in the Declaration. The Working Group will be composed of experts from the Member States of the United Nations who will carry out their duties with complete independence and in a personal capacity. The main function of the Working Group is to promote the observance and implementation of this Declaration.The above international instruments provide a foundation for the right to peace at international level. However, since they are declarations and civil society initiatives, it is left to the states to obey and promote.

Summary

In this module we looked into the right to peace in the UN Charter, various provisions of the right to peace, the Asian human rights charter, the declaration of the right of people to peace, Oslo Draft Declaration, 1997, Luarca Declaration on the Human Right to Peace, 2006 and The Santiago Declaration on the Human Right to Peace, 2010.

Reference

• David Keane & Yvonne Mc Dermot, The Challenge of Human Rights: Past, Present and Future, Edward Elgar Publications, UK, 2012.
• David S. Weissbrodt & Connie de la Vega, International Human Rights Law: An Introduction, University of Pennsylvania Press, USA, 2010.