Introduction
Food has become a major human right issue today. Food is a necessity to every person since no person can live without it. The increase in, famine, hunger, malnutrition and other food related problems in the world have motivated more commitment to food. Access to adequate and quality food has been an important issue in world politics. In history, people would hold protest against kings or other leaders in fight for food. Similar protests are still being witnesses in the world today. The latest world food crisis led to demonstration, protest and even food related violence in many countries. These occurrences and the importance of food to human existence add weight to right to food. Right to food has been addressed in various humans right document. Since the adoption of The Universal Declaration, right to access to adequate food has been included in various human right and legal documents. Some countries have included clauses on right to food in their constitutions. Even the countries that do not have explicit clauses of right to food, signing to international documents that recognize right to food as a fundamental right show their commitment to right to food.
Overview
Food is essential necessity to every human being (“Food security is a basic right” par 1). For a person to live, food is required. Adequate and quality food is required for people to live normal and healthy lives. Access to adequate and quality food is not possible to every person (United States. Dept. of Agriculture 32). The world has witnessed increase in people suffering from famine, hunger and malnutrition. Effect of famine to children has been even more severe. Although the fundamental responsibility to food falls on an individual person, the collective responsibility to food cannot be ignored.
Historical and political background of right to food gives evidence to the importance of food as a fundamental right. The history of the right to food has even longer history than the politics malnutrition. The historical background of right to food shows the growth of access to food as a fundamental right. Access to food as a right expands the responsibility to food from an individual to state or community of states. With many centuries of struggle for democracy and social rights, obligations for providing food have been made as enforceable in some countries. To provide food have been a moral obligation of rulers. From history, rulers were expected to provide access to food to their subjects. Failure to provide access to food was viewed as failure in leadership. Moral obligation to provide food is different from right to food in a way. While moral obligation is not enforceable, food as a right is an enforceable obligation (Schulz & Kracht 113). In the past people under threat of famine or hunger would hold protests against rulers to force them to meet their moral obligation of providing food. Right to food, as a human right provides channels for forcing the state to meet its obligations. The essence of right to food is to provide legal and procedural means for ensuring that authorities provide access to food. The plea for right to food have been there for more than two hundred years but the idea is yet to be adopted by all countries.
Overview of current state of right to food
World data on food related issues provide surprising information. It is estimated that more than Eight hundred million people in the world do not have adequate food. The effect of inadequate food and famine is even more severe in children. It is estimated that about forty thousand children die each day to hunger related cases. Most of the victims of famine and famine related problem constitute more of the poor. The high number of people suffering from food related problem continues to grow despite of high food per capita ratio in some countries and the world in general (Craven 215). While some people have excess food, others in other part of the world suffer from adverse lack of the same. Access to food is closely related to other social economic elements of life. For, example lack of source of income leads to poverty and hunger.
Food problems in the world can be viewed in two perspectives. On one perspective, food is not available to the people leading to famine. On the other perspective, food is available but some people cannot access it (Eide par 5). Earlier campaign on access to food has focused on making food available. To conform to right to food, many countries emphasized on improving food production through reforms and technology. This approach however is not always effective when the poor are not involved in the production. With technology and mechanization of agriculture, food production is made for commercial purpose while the poor fail to access food despite of high food production (“Right to food: A fundamental human right” par 7). In this case, the overall yield per hectare cannot be used to evaluate access to food. Right to food also involves other variable such as quantity, nutrition quality and culture. As a fundamental necessity, access to food will remain an important human right issue.
Global trend on human rights
The notion of human rights is very important in all countries. Most countries constitutions contains a chapter on bill or rights that state the rights provided to the people. United nation has played an important part to the growth in human right in the world. Universal Declaration on human right provides the most important foundation to growth in human rights. United Nations General Assemble proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 as a guideline to universal human right (Orend 25). The United Nations was formed after the world had experience very severe human right issues during the Second World War. The vision for Universal Human Rights was developed during the war after basic human rights of most people was overlooked in the war. The post war vision was a world with freedom to speech, faith, freedom from fear and freedom from want. The vision implied global cooperation to fight against global problems, common responsibility to security and wealth. The global unity was to replace unilateral assertion that had led to war but promote multilateral cooperation for common good (Gross 33). The growth in the vision for unity for common good was first manifested through declaration between United Kingdom and United States in 1941. In 1942, United Nation incorporated the vision in its United Nations Declaration. This global cooperation inspired the drafting on United Nations Charter in 1445 and Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.
Formation of United Nations showed the determination with which member state had in cooperation, global peace and common good. By being a member, a state commits itself to maintain peaceful relation and to respect and be friendly to other member countries. The member country also promised to do anything possible for universal peace (Gross 33). Member states also promised to cooperate with other nations in order to solve international humanitarian, cultural, economic or social problems. Above this, the member state must be committed to uphold human rights of their citizen and other people with disregard to race, political affiliation, religion, sex or language.
The vision for global cooperation was stamped by adoption of Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The declaration implied that global peace and cooperation was not possible without respect of fundamental human rights. Global social, cultural, humanitarian and economic solution could not be possible without respect to basic human rights. The Universal Declaration of human Rights elaborates the range of human rights that should be available to every human being (Eide & Alfredson 17). Various steps have been taken toward global cooperation. Although there are various successes to human rights, some of the rights stated in the declaration are yet to be achieved in all countries.
Right to Food
Right to food is seen as a fundamental right to human being. Since the inception of human right through the declaration of universal human right, right to food has taken a central point in other human right documents that came after the Declaration of Human Rights. Internationally recognized human rights documents that recognize the right to food includes international Bill of Human Right, the Covenants on Human Rights, and social, economic and cultural rights. These international documents on human rights are adopted through the General Assemble of Human Rights. Governments that ratify these documents imply that they agree to uphold the contents of the documents. Although the right are recognized in various countries, this does not imply that there are respected in practice but give a bright hope to future practice of the rights.
One example of global recognition of right to food as a fundamental right is the recognition of food security as a state responsibility. Food and Agriculture Organization council passed a guideline to food security in 2004. The guideline recognizes the right to food by focusing on food security (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 37).
The trend in world leaders to recognize the need for guaranteed food security is an indication that right to food in a fundamental right (Gonsalves & Human Right Law Network 59). The ambitions United Nations’ Millennium Goals show the commitment of global leader to a better world though provision of human rights. One of the millennium goals is to reduce the number of people suffering from hunger by half. The World Summit held in 1996 also recognized the need to address access to food in all parts of the world (Feyter 125). Despite of the commitment made globe leaders to reduce hunger in the world, the number on people suffering hunger have increased rather than reduce. This trend in an indication that measures that are more objective should be taken guarantee right to food other than just make mutual commitments.
Hindrance to right to food
Although most world leaders agree that access to food is a fundamental right, there is laxity in fulfilling the right (Williams 171). Reducing hunger in the world seems not to be a priority in core decision maker. The right to food is set aside for other aims that are thought to be of priority by the leaders (Skoet & Stamoulis 78). For example, reform on land policies to allow land to majority poor would improve food security in a bigger way. However, most world leaders cannot agree to such a reform with preference to income from commercialized agriculture (Christensen 123). Priority on commerce has led to competition between nonfood commercial crops and food crops.
Right to Food in international Human Right Documents
Right to food has been addressed in various international documents. After the Universal Declaration on Human Rights was adopted, human rights advocates paid more attention to political rights, which seemed to be urgent due to the Second World War However, as most political rights in the declaration are already in place, there in more increased attention to social and economic rights. Right to access to food is part of social and economic right provided by the declaration (Austin & Tomasevski 67). Article 25(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Right states the importance of food as a human right. “…Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food, clothing. Housing and medical care and necessary social services…” (“The Universal Declaration on Human Rights” art 25(1)). This article makes it clear that access to food is an essential component to social economic rights.
The International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights elaborates the social economic rights provided in the Universal Declaration on Human Rights. Article 11(1) of this documents offer ever individual the right to adequate food. The article also emphasize of the need for other humanitarian commodities such as clothing and a standard living (“International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights” art 11). This article emphasizes on the need for every member state to commit itself to upholding right to standard life, where access to food is recognized as one of the components to standard life.
The objective of human rights is to uphold human dignity other than just meet their psychological needs. This human dignity is manifested more in ability of every person to provide for his or herself other than being provided for (Tomasevski 89). The response to problems of malnutrition in the world is highly based on compassion (Kent 21). International response to food problems range from small feeding programs to large-scale response, through international bodies such as World Food Program, United Nations Children’s Fund, World Bank and other nongovernmental organizations.
The right to food is closely related the right to life. Since a person cannot live without access to food, clauses that provide for right to life also imply right to food. Article six of International Convention on Civil and Political Rights, adopted in 1976, provide for the right to life. “..Every human being has the inherent right to life…” (“International Convention on Civil and Political Rights” art 6).The term inherent in this article shows that the right to life is absolute and not be denied. Article 1(2) of the same document protects human being from interference on their means of getting food. “In no case may a people be deprived of its own means of subsistence.” (“International Convention on Civil and Political Rights” art 1(2). International Convention on Economic, Social and cultural Rights and Convention on the Right of the Child provide clauses on right to food that are binding to all member states. Article 24 of Convention on the Right of the Child compels member states to provide essential things to a child including water and adequate food (“Convention on the Right of the Child” art 24).
Right to Food in countries constitution
Various countries have included the right to food in their constitutions. Brazil, Congo, Ukraine, Paraguay, Peru, Pakistan and India are some of the countries that have included the right to food in their constitutions (“The right to food in national constitutions” par 2-9). Uganda, South Africa, Nicaragua and Ukraine recognize explicitly the right to adequate food to everyone. Although the implementation of clauses on right to food may not be successful, inclusion of right to food in the constitutions is a big step toward overall right to food to everyone.
Right to food in United States and Canada
Right to food is not explicitly stated in both United State and Canada’s constitutions. Despite of this the right to food could be implied through precedence or implied in other clauses in the constitutions.
The right to food in not explicitly stated the United States Bill of Right. However, the bill of right provides for the rights that could be related to the right to food. Right to food is considered as a social economic right such as right to land, good environment, just wages or personal security (Cohen & Messer 152). Despite of this, this right is also implied in the civil and political rights. Observation from countries that do not respect civil and political right show that citizen of such countries suffers from dire social economic problems (Russell & Chapman 83). The right to speech and freedom of assembly, guaranteed in the US’s Bill of Rights create a good opportunity for achieving of the social economic rights. Right to assembly and free press create the needed environment to demand for social economic provisions. In addition to the Bill of Rights, the US government in a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International and Convection on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights. US also passed the Convention on the Right of the Child, a binding treaty, although it did not ratify it. Despite of the earlier commitment to right to food, United States is reluctant to inclusion of right to food in UN charter. In 2002’s World Food Summit, United States was the only country that was opposed to right to food.
Even though right to food is not incorporated in Canada’s constitution, Canada has dedicated itself to a variety of global conventions that tackle right to food (Riches par 4). In the recent past, Canada has also committed itself to various international declarations that address the right to food. The country supports FAO’s Declaration of Food Security in 1996, World Declaration on Nutrition in 1992 and Declaration on Social Development.
Conclusion
Right to food is an important human right issue today. Advocates for right to food use the phrase “Food first” to show the importance of availability to food above other priorities. Food is a necessity that none can live without; hence, it should be given a priority. Article 25(1) of Universal Declaration on Human Right defines right to adequate food as a fundamental right. International Convention on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, and Convention on Right to Child are some of international conventions that have addressed the right to food. Various international declarations on right to food show the trend towards global right to food. Some countries such as India, Brazil, Paraguay and South African already have clauses on right to food in their constitutions.
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