Ensuring respect for the rights and needs of vulnerable persons
Statement delivered by Juan Manuel Suarez del Toro Rivero, to the 58th Session of the Commission on Human Rights, Geneva
3 April 2002



Mr Chairman,

First and foremost, I should like to offer you the entire cooperation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies within the scope of its mandate. I feel greatly honoured to take the floor on behalf of the Institution I represent and to express its commitment to work very closely with you.

It is also a particular honour for me to address the Commission on Human Rights at its 58th Session, which is being held at a difficult but pivotal point in history, one characterized by the apparent contradiction between the quest for better conditions for the exercise of human rights and the need to guarantee people's safety.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies does not wish to enter into a debate on the definition of the current situation. It simply wishes to appeal for that debate to take place on the basis of respect for the international legal framework and for fundamental rights.

The International Federation aspires to determine how we can help the victims of all forms of violence and disaster. Its mission, and that of its 178 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, is to provide assistance and to ensure respect for the rights and needs of vulnerable persons.

The participants at the 1999 International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, which included all the governments party to the 1949 Geneva Conventions, made a unanimous pledge to mobilize the power of humanity to protect vulnerable persons and adopted a concrete plan of action embodied in our Strategy 2010. Fulfilment of that plan of action has taken on even greater urgency than in 1999, if that is possible, and I wish to focus on the relationship between it and the promotion of human rights.

The International Federation has a broad concept of human rights that influences all its operations, from humanitarian assistance in the event of disaster to human development programmes and work with vulnerable populations that society has passed by. We are advocates of the indivisibility of human rights and therefore welcome the progress the international community has made in that field.

On the other hand, we cannot overlook the fact that the full enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights, the object of our concern, is often conditioned by the situation of underdevelopment in many regions of the world. The international community must redouble its efforts to promote development and must place the fight against extreme poverty at the top of the international agenda. Many National Societies have asked us to include an item entitled "Poverty and vulnerability" on the agenda of the next International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. The recent summit in Monterrey should be but the first of many steps.

Mr Chairman

The International Federation is the umbrella organization for 178 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, all of which share a number of principles and values and each of which is grounded in the culture of its country, mobilizing volunteers to help the vulnerable in their communities. The National Societies' legal status enables them to maintain a permanent relationship with their respective government, with which they enter into agreements for assistance for the most vulnerable sectors of the population. United within the International Federation as an international organization, they have a dual, local and global capacity.

It is precisely because of our capacity to establish links between all sectors of society and at all levels, that in November 2001 we pledged to work so that the International Federation would be perceived and accepted by everyone as an irreplaceable point of reference in humanitarian debates and practices, contributing to the promotion and application of fundamental human rights.

In this context, one of our priorities is to foster more active cooperation with other international organizations in the fields of activity relating to the Commission on Human Rights, such as policy formulation, services, capacity-building at national and local levels, and improved cooperation with international organizations to promote and protect the rights of the most vulnerable.

I want to insist that, in these difficult times, it is important to speak from a position that encourages us to reflect, that introduces new elements of analysis in discussions, and that prompts fresh debate in the search for solutions. We are concerned that everyone should respect the Fundamental Principles of humanity, impartiality, independence and neutrality, whose specific objective is to promote human dignity and thereby the rights of the person.

The promotion of the Fundamental Principles of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is strengthened via the direct dialogue that the International Federation and its National Societies maintain with the international community and with governments. Respect for those Principles is the guarantee that everyone can enjoy the human rights to which they are entitled.

I would like to illustrate my words with some specific examples, and relate them to the crisis faced by the communities involved in humanitarian operations and human rights.

Pursuant to the plan of action unanimously adopted by the last International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent, the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement has been drawing up plans for dialogue and international, national and local action to promote tolerance, non-violence in the community and respect for cultural diversity.

Allow me to give you a few examples of issues on which the International Federation is working that are relevant to the agenda of the Commission on Human Rights:

• The International Federation is playing a leading role in the global initiative for local action to promote tolerance, combat discrimination and achieve respect for cultural diversity. It has begun by endeavouring to extend the initiative by implementing it at local and national level through National Society activities.
  
  
• Their dedication to health issues such as primary health care, water, food safety and preventable disease on the whole notwithstanding, the International Federation and its member National Societies are striving to fight discrimination in the face of the HIV/AIDS scourge. How often have we insisted on the importance of efficiently tackling the stigma suffered so frequently and regrettably by those who live with HIV/AIDS? We have established some valuable partnerships in this area, in particular with UNAIDS and the network of persons who live with HIV and AIDS, but much remains to be done. This will be one of the main points of the International Federation's presentation to the HIV/AIDS conference to be held in Barcelona in July of this year.
  
  
• The National Societies and the International Federation also act at the global and national level to protect the rights and needs of refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants. The cycle of population movements raises concern about the treatment migrants receive before, during and after migration. This was the main point of the International Federation's statement to the Regional Ministerial Conference on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime, which was held in Bali in February 2002. No matter what the cause, vulnerability calls for a sympathetic response. That is our basic stance.
  
  In the same manner, I must refer to the vulnerability of the victims of disasters, the traditional focus of Red Cross and Red Crescent activity. All too often, disaster response is assessed in terms that do not take sufficient account of the victims themselves and their human needs.
  
  These needs lie at the heart of National Society concerns. Our aim is to develop their capacity to help resolve human problems before, during and after disaster strikes. That is, the humanitarian continuum. That is our focus as we work to build capacity and reduce vulnerability.
  
  As many delegates know, the International Federation is presently working on a project that consists of compiling and analysing information on the status of international disaster response law. One of the goals of the project is to pinpoint the law's shortcomings and other gaps that have negative repercussions on the needs and priorities of the most vulnerable. We will keep in close contact with all governments as the project progresses and will take account of all its dimensions in our papers.
  
  
• In addition to its present work on a code of conduct on development cooperation, the International Federation also participated in the SPHERE project, which contains a Humanitarian Charter in respect of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, international humanitarian law and refugee law, the key to understanding the relationship of our Movement's work with the modern concept of human rights.
  
  
• Another vital task is the dissemination of international humanitarian law by the National Societies.
  
  
• I must also mention in passing the International Federation's work on the major issue of access to basic drugs, an item on the Commission's agenda.