Brazil :: NGOs demand ratification of OP-ICESCR
Protocol permits victims of violations to submit complaints directly to the UN
Brazilian social movements and organizations asked President Dilma Rousseff on Monday, May 9, to sign the OP-ICESCR (Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights). The Optional Protocol is treaty that allows victims of human rights violations to submit complaints and petitions directly to the CESCR (Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of the UN), which is responsible for monitoring compliance with the ICESCR that was ratified by Brazil in 1992.
Currently, the Committee can only make recommendations based on the reports it receives periodically from the country and the contributions submitted by civil society organizations. If Brazil signs the protocol, the UN experts would be able to investigate abuses reported by any person.
In a letter sent to President Rousseff, Conectas, IDDH (Institute for Development and Human Rights), CBDHPE (Brazilian Human Rights and Foreign Policy Committee) and another seven organizations argue that the Protocol can “strengthen the possibilities of guarantees for Brazilian citizens from threats against victories in the social field”. They also claim that “although it is considered by many countries to be a reference in the effort to progress on fundamental rights, the mechanism has still not been ratified by Brazil”.
In the year celebrating five years since the OP-ICESCR entered into force, the organizations said it was “a major indignity that the country has not yet ratified the document, particularly considering its rhetoric, both domestically and internationally, on the protection of rights”.
- Click here to read the letter sent by the organizations.
