WUNRN
Website of the UN Special Rapporteur
on the Right to Safe Drinking Water & Sanitation: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/WaterAndSanitation/SRWater/Pages/SRWaterIndex.aspx
REPORT OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON
THE HUMAN RIGHT TO SAFE DRINKING WATER & SANITATION TO THE UN 2013
IMPORTANCE OF SUSTAINABILITY OF SAFE
DRINKING WATER & SANITATION FOR
THE PRESENT & FUTURE, EVEN IN
TIMES OF RISKS FROM ECONOMIC & FINANCIAL CRISES
Direct Link to Full 22-Page Report:
F. A pattern of neglect of the most
vulnerable and marginalized
50. What emerges from the above is a pattern
of neglect of the needs of the most vulnerable and marginalized groups in
society across planning, institutional responsibilities and resource
allocation. Disadvantaged groups can often be identified along ethnic,
geographic, and socioeconomic divides (see, for example, A/HRC/18/33/Add.4,
para. 79). Indigenous peoples, Dalits and Roma are among such groups facing
discrimination with whom the Special Rapporteur has met during the course of
her mandate.60 Moreover, there are vast gender inequalities – in many
poor communities, the task of collecting water overwhelmingly falls to women
and girls (see, for example, A/HRC/15/31/Add.3 and Corr.1, para. 22). Persons
with disabilities are also disproportionately represented among those lacking
access to water and sanitation (A/HRC/15/55, para. 21). Neglect can occur for a
variety of reasons: groups and individuals may experience stigmatization, they
may live in remote areas making serving them costly, or politicians may be
indifferent to their needs.
51. Such inequality tends to become even more
aggravated during crises. With a decrease in budget and personal incomes,
people are confronted with the need to prioritize among different human rights.
Furthermore, in times of crisis there will be an even greater temptation for
States and service providers to focus on those who are relatively easy to reach,
and no efforts will be made to reach the most marginalized people living, for
instance, in remote rural areas.
Conclusions & Recommendations -
Excerpt:
85. The Special Rapporteur considers sustainability to be a
fundamental human rights principle essential for realizing the human rights to
water and sanitation. She understands sustainability as the direct counterpart
to retrogression; it requires that services be available and accessible to
everyone on an almost permanent basis, without discrimination, while ensuring
beneficial change through quality services and sustained behavior change. Water
and sanitation must be available for present and future generations, and the
provision of services today should not compromise the future ability to realize
these human rights. Understanding sustainability from a human rights
perspective greatly contributes to achieving lasting solutions to water and
sanitation challenges for present and future generations.