Beyond State Sovereignty: The Human Right to Water (original) (raw)
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European Journal of International Law, 2014
Water has been a challenging issue over the centuries. From questions of national boundaries and navigation, quite common in the past, to the development of a human right to water, this essential element for human life has always spurred debate among international lawyers, economists, political scientists, geographers, and anthropologists. The reason may be found in the scarcity of water, a phenomenon which affects both developed and developing countries. Much has been written on the topic, but the three books under review significantly contribute to a critical analysis of some pertinent legal issues related to water. 1 The title of each monograph reflects 1 It is impossible to mention all the outstanding works that have been written on water and on watercourses. As far as the human right to water is concerned see, inter alia:
THE POSITION OF THE INDIVIDUAL IN MODERN LEGAL SYSTEMS, 2019
Human rights debates have attempted to establish water as an independent right to ensure maximum benefits and enforcement mechanisms for individuals. Although the approval of a large number of soft-law instruments attesting the importance of the right of access to water, it is not clearly established whether it has reached the status of a freestanding right under general international law. Indeed, the absence of an explicit reference to the right to water is a common feature of both universal human rights treaties and regional conventions, such as the European and the American Conventions on Human Rights and the African Charter. This study explores the legal framework for treating the right to water as an effective fundamental right by exploring the relevant conventions and international jurisprudence. It broaches the issue by looking at two different bodies of international law, namely International water law and International human rights law.
Protection of the Human Right to Water Under International Law:The Need for a New Legal Framework
The human right to water entitles everyone to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic uses. An adequate amount of safe water is necessary to prevent death from dehydration, to reduce the risk of water-related disease and to provide for consumption, cooking, personal and domestic hygienic requirements. Indeed, the right to water clearly falls within the category of guarantees essential for securing an adequate standard of living, particularly since it is one of the most fundamental conditions for survival. Thus, the human right to life doesn't have any sense without the right to water and other vital human rights that are a precondition for human life. Consequently, the enjoyment of the human right to water is a prerequisite for the enjoyment of other basic human rights such as the right to the highest attainable standard of health and the rights to adequate housing and adequate food etc. Nevertheless, today in this era of quasi irreversible clime changes as well as very extensive increase use of natural fresh water resources, their quantity and quality is significantly decreased. From this perspective, the future of the entire mankind depends mostly in the preservation of world natural water resources. However their preservation requires from mankind a new world approach that would include inter alia the following steps: the adoption of a new international treaty on world environmental protection, the establishment of the World Water Authority under UN that would deal with issues such as the protection, management and use of international waters, ICJ shall be empowered with biding jurisdiction to exanimate interstate disputes over international watercourses, a new international treaty on Artic shall be adapted at least to address environmental concerns, and finally International Humanitarian Law shall address other environmental protection issues raised by enormous development of weapons destruction power including avoidance of loopholes that allow derogations from these treaties obligations. Certainly, any failure to do so, will undoubtedly lead mankind to future massive wars that shall be mostly fought for water rather than for oil.
An introduction to the human right to water: Law, politics, and beyond
WIREs Water, 2020
In spite of its official recognition by the United Nations in 2010, the human right to water remains a contested notion as illustrated by three main debates: (a) the definition of its scope, content, and indicators to monitor its implementation; (b) the conceptual appropriateness and effectiveness of the human rights approach in countering water services privatization; (c) the call for decolonizing or decentering the western, liberal, individualistic, and anthropocentric approach of the human right to water. The article introduces the main themes and insights within these debates and concludes by pointing at potential future research at their intersection, in relation to (a) other species' rights, (b) culture and religion, and (c) technology and infrastructure. This article is categorized under: Human Water > Rights to Water Water and Life > Conservation, Management, and Awareness Human Water > Water Governance K E Y W O R D S human right to water, infrastructure, privatization, rights of nature, water culture
The United Nations Concept of Water as a Human Right: A New Paradigm for Old Problems?
2005
Water history reveals millennia-old struggles over the ownership of water, the pollution and depletion of water sources, and conflicting water uses. What is new is the scale of these problems, particularly access to water for the poorest of the poor. This paper discusses the various conceptual responses to the water problématique, including the commodity, public and social approaches. The human rights aspects of the latter are analysed in some detail in light of the recent General Comment on the Right to Water by a United Nations body. The paper argues that countries have international legal obligations, to respect, protect and fulfil this right without discrimination, that carry clear implications for policy and practice. While the report does not argue that this human right requires the complete decommodification of water or that it provides a 'magic bullet' solution, it seeks to show the benefits of a human rights approach and provides some suggestions for implementing the right at the local, national and international levels.
The right to water as a fundamental right
World Journal of Environmental Research
Water is a Human Right of first necessity. We verified that water resources have been used at a rate higher than their replacement capacity, causing problems of water scarcity. This study aims to draw attention of the world community to the need to implement measures to a real social responsibility and cooperative. A review of the literature and an analysis of the various international legal instruments on water resources will be carried out to highlight the absence of social and cooperative responsibility and the need to create sanctions. It is observed that states and international organisations have failed to develop measures to curb their misuse and to overcome the shortage of water in some regions. We believe that the current situation can only be improved through the implementation of policies in terms of social responsibility and cooperative and the companies or the organisations in general. Keywords: Environment, management, water, water shortage.
Global Journal of Politics and Law Research, 2017
Water is an issue that has a deep impact on human lives and livelihood. Promoting human rights would provide better protection of individuals within water law. Although international human rights law sets basic minimum standards for water use, allocation, conservation, and dispute resolution, there is very little research on how human rights law can form the basis of the rights and responsibilities of states concerning transboundary watercourses. States may have obligations to cooperate in order to uphold their human rights obligations. This area has many disputes about how to use water, which will significantly affect the lives of citizens. There is very little research on how these two areas of law can function together to be mutually supportive. In this paper, briefly, we are trying to find how International human rights law and international water law can be made coherent and mutually supportive regarding human rights to water and explain Transboundary Water Cooperation between states to fulfill the right to water.