Table Of ContentA Brave New Series
global issues
in a changing world
This new series of short, accessible think-pieces deals with
leading global issues of relevance to humanity today. Intended
for the enquiring reader and social activists in the North and
the South, as well as students, the books explain what is at
stake and question conventional ideas and policies. Drawn
from many different parts of the world, the series’ authors
pay particular attention to the needs and interests of ordinary
people, whether living in the rich industrial or the developing
countries. They all share a common objective: to help stimulate
new thinking and social action in the opening years of the
new century.
Global Issues in a Changing World is a joint initiative by Zed
Books in collaboration with a number of partner publishers
and non-governmental organizations around the world. By
working together, we intend to maximize the relevance and
availability of the books published in the series.
Participating NGOs
Both ENDS, Amsterdam
Catholic Institute for International Relations, London
Corner House, Sturminster Newton
Council on International and Public Affairs, New York
Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation, Uppsala
Development GAP, Washington DC
Focus on the Global South, Bangkok
IBON: Manila
Inter Pares, Ottawa
Public Interest Research Centre, Delhi
Third World Network, Penang
Third World Network–Africa, Accra
World Development Movement, London
About this series
Communities in the South are facing great difficulties in cop-
ing with global trends. I hope this brave new series will throw
much-needed light on the issues ahead and help us choose
the right options.
Martin Khor, Director, Third World Network, Penang
There is no more important campaign than our struggle to
bring the global economy under democratic control. But the
issues are fearsomely complex. This Global Issues series is
a valuable resource for the committed campaigner and the
educated citizen.
Barry Coates, Director, Oxfam New Zealand
Zed Books has long provided an inspiring list about the issues
that touch and change people’s lives. The Global Issues series
is another dimension of Zed’s fine record, allowing access to
a range of subjects and authors that, to my knowledge, very
few publishers have tried. I strongly recommend these new,
powerful titles and this exciting series.
John Pilger, author
We are all part of a generation that actually has the means to
eliminate extreme poverty worldwide. Our task is to harness
the forces of globalization for the benefit of working people,
their families and their communities – that is our collective
duty. The Global Issues series makes a powerful contribution
to the global campaign for justice, sustainable and equitable
development, and peaceful progress.
Glenys Kinnock MEP
About this book
This experienced writer on human rights explores the relation-
ship between economic globalization and human rights. Koen
De Feyter, who has chaired Amnesty International’s Working
Group on economic, social and cultural rights, shows the many
ways in which rampant market economics in today’s world
leads to violations of human rights. He questions how far the
present-day international human rights system – focusing as it
does on legal conventions and enforcement by state machinery
– really provides effective protection against the adverse effects
of globalization.
He makes positive and innovative suggestions for improving
the human rights system – including:
• Rethinking the state’s obligations in a context where it may
no longer be directly responsible for providing a service
that is essential to the realization of a particular right;
• Creating human rights responsibilities for other actors
than the state – notably big companies and international
financial institutions like the World Bank.
• Developing human rights obligations on the part of states
beyond their own national territories.
This accessible and thought-provoking book explains
globalization to human rights activists as well as the relevance
of a human rights approach in combating the downsides of
globalization. In doing so, it shows both human rights activists
and participants in the anti-globalization and development
movements that there is a large, but hitherto untapped, overlap
in their agendas, and real potential for a strategic alliance
between them in joint campaigns around issues they share.
About the author
Koen De Feyter has taught and researched on human
rights and development issues for twenty years. He
has done fieldwork for both non-governmental and
governmental actors. He has observed trials in Northern
Ireland and elections in Burundi. He was part of a com-
mission of inquiry into massive killings in a refugee
camp in Rwanda, and worked with a Philippine human
rights organization on forced evictions, and in Brazil
on agrarian reform. He has contributed to the work
of Amnesty International in a number of capacities,
including as chair of an advisory committee to its inter-
national board on the development of the human rights
movement in the South, and as chair of its working
group on economic, social and cultural rights
In 2004–2005, he coordinated the European Master
in Human Rights and Democratization programme
in Venice. His permanent affiliation is both with the
Institute of Development Policy and Management, Uni-
versity of Antwerp and at the Centre for Human Rights,
University of Maastricht.
His publications include the books Privatisation
and Human Rights (2005) (co-edited with Felipe Gomez)
and World Development Law (2001) (both published in
Antwerp by Intersentia), and various articles on human
rights and development law.
koen de feyter
Human rights
Social justice in the age of
the market
University Press
dhaka
White Lotus
bangkok
Fernwood Publishing
nova scotia
Books for Change
bangalore
SIRD
kuala lumpur
David Philip
cape town
Zed Books
london | new york
Human rights: Social justice in the age of the market was first published in 2005, by:
in Bangladesh: The University Press Ltd, Red Crescent Building, 114 Motijheel C/A,
PO Box 2611, Dhaka 1000
in Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam: White Lotus Co. Ltd, GPO Box
1141, Bangkok 10501, Thailand
in Canada: Fernwood, 8422 St Margaret’s Bay Road (Hwy 3), Site 2a, Box 5, Black
Point, Nova Scotia BOJ 1BO
in India: Books for Change, 139 Richmond Road, Bangalore 560 025
in Malaysia: Strategic Information Research Department (SIRD), No. 11/4e, Petaling
Jaya, 46200 Selangor
in Southern Africa: David Philip Publishers (Pty Ltd), 99 Garfield Road, Claremont
7700, South Africa
in the rest of the world: Zed Books Ltd, 7 Cynthia Street, London n1 9jf, uk and
Room 400, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, ny 10010, usa
www.zedbooks.co.uk
Copyright © Koen De Feyter, 2005
The right of Koen De Feyter to be identified as the author of this work has been
asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.
Cover designed by Andrew Corbett
Set in Arnhem and Futura Bold by Ewan Smith, London
Printed and bound in the EU by Cox and Wyman, Reading
Distributed in the usa exclusively by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of St Martin’s
Press, llc, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, ny 10010.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
us cip data are available from the Library of Congress
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Feyter, K. de (Koen)
Human rights : social justice in the age of the market / Koen de Feyter.
(Global issues series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 1-55266-167-9
1. Civil rights. 2. Human rights. 3. Globalization.
I. Title. II. Series: Global issues (Halifax, N.S.)
jc571.f485 2005a 323 c2005-901463-6
All rights reserved
isbn 1 55266 167 9 (Canada)
isbn 81 8291 015 3 (India)
isbn 983 2535 62 x (Malaysia)
isbn 1 84277 486 7 hb (rest of the world)
isbn 1 84277 487 5 pb
Contents
Boxes and figure | ix Acknowledgements | xi
1 Introduction 1
2 Essentials 7
Dimensions of globalization | 7 States, markets etc. | 11
Increasing the relevance of human rights | 19
The market-friendly approach to human rights | 28
3 Obstacles 31
Lack of compliance | 32 Selective use and interpreta-
tion | 42 Tied by treaty | 47 Limited by law | 60
4 After 9/11 66
The direct impact on human rights of the 11 September
attacks and their aftermath | 67 Human rights and
democracy as justification for the war against Iraq | 73
Postponing global social justice? | 82
5 Geneva 90
The contribution of the UN human rights system | 91
Three initiatives of interest | 110 Does Geneva
matter? | 121
6 Avenues of hope 135
Peoples’ tribunals | 136 Introducing the Social and
Economic Rights Action Centre, Nigeria | 143 Lagos
vii
slum dwellers, Doba residents and the World Bank
Inspection Panel | 147 Ogoni and Awas Tingni | 155
Wiwa v. Shell | 166
7 The added value of human rights 174
Intellectual property and pharmaceuticals | 177
Microcredit | 188 Privatization and GATS | 196
Agrarian reform | 209
8 Conclusion 218
References | 224
Index | 232
viii
Boxes and figure
Boxes
2.1 ‘US Babies Get Global Brand Names’ 10
2.2 UNDP: Required Shifts in Human Rights Thinking 20
3.1 On the Judgment of the South African Constitutional
Court in the Case of the Government of the Republic of
South Africa and Others v. Irene Grootboom and Others,
case no. CCT 11/00 (4 October 2000) 38
3.2 1987 Philippine Constitution: Article XIII on the Estab-
lish-ment of the Commission on Human Rights (in part) 40
3.3 Supreme Court of India, Consumer Education and Research
Centre v. Union of India, Judgment of 27 January 1995,
pars 26, 33 (in part) 50
3.4 Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Vélasquez-
Rodrigues v. Honduras (no. 7920), Judgment of 29 July
1988, pars 172–7 (in part) 52
3.5 FIAN, Bread for the World, Church Development Service
(2001), Parallel Report on Germany: the Right to Adequate
Food, pars 51–2 56
4.1 Joint Statement of Special Rapporteurs, UN doc. E/CN.
4/2004/4 (5 August 2003), Annex 1, on Terrorism and
Human Rights 70
4.2 Excerpts from the Proclamation of Baghdad, issued to
the inhabitants of Baghdad on 19 March 1917 by Lieut.
General Sir Stanley Maude 74
4.3 Excerpts from a speech at Sedgefield justifying military
action in Iraq, delivered on 5 March 2004 by UK Prime
Minister Tony Blair 78
4.4 Official Development Assistance (ODA) as defined by the
Development Assistance Committee of the Organization
for Economic Cooperation and Development 85
5.1 Human rights in the United Nations system 92
ix
