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LAOS: TRP RAISES CONCERNS ON SEVERAL RELOCATION POLICIES OF VIENTIANE AND THEIR IMPACT ON WOMEN
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On 17 January 2005, the UN Representative of the Transnational Radical Party addressed the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women at its 32nd session, at the United Nations Headquarters, New York..
In its statement, the TRP drew the attention of the Committee to a couple of initiatives that should become of concern for the Committee as well as other UN agencies concerning the so-called “Poverty Eradication Program”, which set a serious of ambitious goals to be met by 2020, but on activities to eradicate poppy in Laos by the end of 2005.
“One of the principal decisions taken by the Laotian Government” said Mr. Perduca “has been the one to move large parts of the population form the high plateaus down to the plains; a policy that has in particular impacted the indigenous communities of the Hmong, Khmu, Akha and Lu peoples among others.
The TRP believes that programs of so-called poverty eradication that are being promoted with substantial assistance coming from international donors should not be considered an end in themselves, and should be carried out in full respect and promotion of the provisions contained in the major human rights instruments such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women”.
“The same type of monitoring” stated Perduca “and/or coordination, should happen in the framework of eradication programs of illicit narcotics. The TRP has expressed many times, and in various fora of the United Nations the need for UN bodies active in the field of narcotics control to carry out their programs in a close inter-agency cooperation and in full respect of internationally recognized and codified human rights. All projects, the TRP believes, should be also carried out under a strict supervision of the ways in which the money is spent on the ground and the accountability of the partners selected.”
Displacing large groups of people has always had an impact not only on the groups that are been moved, but also on those that are forced to share their land with the newcomers who are rarely welcomed as peers. The displacement not only may create frictions among the various communities, that often speak different languages and have different indigenous traditions, but has also had a tragic impact on the environment, which for many of those indigenous groups represents an integral part of their daily life and that is certainly the only environment where women can work.
TRP Representative also stated that “according to some UNDP officials, who work in the region, there have been instances in which not enough arable land for the cultivation rice was made available to the new groups, and also where the displaced people have suffered a variety of new illnesses typical of plains, namely fevers or intestinal diseases etc. Being oftentimes the weakest link in the social chain, women of all ages have systematically suffered more than men from these inconveniences”.
“Equality of rights for women is a basic principle of the United Nations”, said Perduca “the Preamble to the Charter of the UN sets as a basic goal 'to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women'. Article 1 of the Charter also proclaims that one of the purposes of the UN is to achieve international cooperation in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all people 'without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion.'"
“The TRP believes” concluded Perduca “that given the peculiar general political situation of the People's Democratic Republic of Laos, the Committee should engage the Government at all possible levels urging it to invite a delegation of experts in development as well as gender-related issues to assess in loco some of the concerns that several non-governmental organizations have been expressing on the country for the last several years. International NGOs should also be included in such a delegation.
The TRP and the Lao Movement on Human Rights will compile additional information in view of the presentation of the Laotian authorities before the Committee on Wednesday 19 January 2005.
In its statement, the TRP drew the attention of the Committee to a couple of initiatives that should become of concern for the Committee as well as other UN agencies concerning the so-called “Poverty Eradication Program”, which set a serious of ambitious goals to be met by 2020, but on activities to eradicate poppy in Laos by the end of 2005.
“One of the principal decisions taken by the Laotian Government” said Mr. Perduca “has been the one to move large parts of the population form the high plateaus down to the plains; a policy that has in particular impacted the indigenous communities of the Hmong, Khmu, Akha and Lu peoples among others.
The TRP believes that programs of so-called poverty eradication that are being promoted with substantial assistance coming from international donors should not be considered an end in themselves, and should be carried out in full respect and promotion of the provisions contained in the major human rights instruments such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women”.
“The same type of monitoring” stated Perduca “and/or coordination, should happen in the framework of eradication programs of illicit narcotics. The TRP has expressed many times, and in various fora of the United Nations the need for UN bodies active in the field of narcotics control to carry out their programs in a close inter-agency cooperation and in full respect of internationally recognized and codified human rights. All projects, the TRP believes, should be also carried out under a strict supervision of the ways in which the money is spent on the ground and the accountability of the partners selected.”
Displacing large groups of people has always had an impact not only on the groups that are been moved, but also on those that are forced to share their land with the newcomers who are rarely welcomed as peers. The displacement not only may create frictions among the various communities, that often speak different languages and have different indigenous traditions, but has also had a tragic impact on the environment, which for many of those indigenous groups represents an integral part of their daily life and that is certainly the only environment where women can work.
TRP Representative also stated that “according to some UNDP officials, who work in the region, there have been instances in which not enough arable land for the cultivation rice was made available to the new groups, and also where the displaced people have suffered a variety of new illnesses typical of plains, namely fevers or intestinal diseases etc. Being oftentimes the weakest link in the social chain, women of all ages have systematically suffered more than men from these inconveniences”.
“Equality of rights for women is a basic principle of the United Nations”, said Perduca “the Preamble to the Charter of the UN sets as a basic goal 'to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women'. Article 1 of the Charter also proclaims that one of the purposes of the UN is to achieve international cooperation in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all people 'without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion.'"
“The TRP believes” concluded Perduca “that given the peculiar general political situation of the People's Democratic Republic of Laos, the Committee should engage the Government at all possible levels urging it to invite a delegation of experts in development as well as gender-related issues to assess in loco some of the concerns that several non-governmental organizations have been expressing on the country for the last several years. International NGOs should also be included in such a delegation.
The TRP and the Lao Movement on Human Rights will compile additional information in view of the presentation of the Laotian authorities before the Committee on Wednesday 19 January 2005.
