Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (General)

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India: Imminent threats of forcible evictions and violence in Odisha

On January 25, 2013, ESCR-Net sent an urgent appeal to the Government of India, the POSCO corporation and the Government of Korea to express serious converns about plans by the Indian authorities to proceed with the forced eviction in Jagatsinghpur District, Odisha to facilitate the construction of the POSCO steel plant, as well as imminent threats against human rights defenders in the area who have mobilized to protect their lands.

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Social Movement Working Group Strengthens Alliances and Advances New Collaborations

ESCR-Net's Social Movement Working Group brings together social movements to forge new alliances, promote mutual learning and advance collaborative work

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Oct. 16th, 2012: Social movements claim the right to food and food sovereignty

The 16th of October is World Food Day, celebrated around the world as a means to promote effective approaches to ending hunger. However, with nearly one billion of people suffering from hunger, World Food Day also marks another year of serious violations of the right to food.

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Social movements claim the right to food and food sovereignty

The 16th of October is World Food Day, celebrated around the world as a means to promote effective approaches to ending hunger. However, with nearly one billion of people suffering from hunger, World Food Day also marks another year of serious violations of the right to food. The right to food is a fundamental human right, recognized in Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 11 of the and General Comment 12 of the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights. 

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Report: OP-ICESCR Ratification - Building a Regional Strategy in Africa

View the final report from the session on OP-ICESCR ratification organized as a part of the Social Rights Litigation Workshop held in South Africa on 12-14 March 2012.

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ADPF 186 (Arguição de Descumprimento de Preceito Fundamental n. 186)

The Brazilian Federal Supreme Court unanimously decided to uphold the constitutionality of racial quotas in University admission processes, in order to create a diverse academic environment, to overcome a history of racial discrimination in Brazil, and to promote the principle of de facto equality as applied to racial discrimination in education.  In addition, the Court addressed issues of proportionality and reasonability as criteria to assess the constitutionality of policies aimed at achieving racial equality.

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Langaville Informal Settlement Case

In September 2011, the residents of Langaville Informal Settlement (comprised of more than one thousand and five hundred households and four thousand and six hundred residents) represented by the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI), requested an order directing the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality to provide sufficient access to water and basic sanitation recognized in the Constitution of South Africa, through the Water Services Act, Regulation 3 of the Regulations Relating to Compulsory National Standards and Measures to Conserve Water (GN R509 in GG 22355 of 8 June

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R. (Adam and Limbuela) v. Secretary of State for the Home Department

The claimants in this joined action were asylum-seekers who had sought asylum after their initial entry to the UK. The defendant, Secretary of State for the Home Department, refused support under Section 55 of the Nationality, Immigration, and Asylum Act 2002 ("the Act") with regard to accommodation. Section 55 allowed refusal of support to asylum seekers who failed to make their claim as soon as reasonably practicable.

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Constitutional Petition No. 2 of 2011 (Garissa)

This High Court case was brought with the support of Hakijamii, a human rights organization based in Nairobi that has been a member of ESCR-Net since 2005; and stemmed from the request of more than 1,000 individuals, evicted from their homes located in six communities commonly known as the Medina Location of Garissa municipality.

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Africa Regional Social Rights Litigation Workshop: 12-14 March 2012, Johannesburg South Africa

ESCR-Net together with SERI, the NGO Coalition for the OP-ICESCR and the Norwegian Centre on Human Rights convened a three-day workshop in Johannesburg, South Africa.

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