|
The right to food, and its variations, is a human right protecting the right for people to feed themselves in dignity, implying that sufficient food is available, that people have the means to access it, and that it adequately meets the individual's dietary needs. The right to food protects the right of all human beings to be free from hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.〔: “What is the right to food?”〕 The right to food does not imply that governments have an obligation to hand out free food to everyone who wants it, or a right to be fed. However, if people are deprived of access to food for reasons beyond their control, for example, because they are in detention, in times of war or after natural disasters, the right requires the government to provide food directly.〔: "Right to Food."〕 The right is derived from the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights〔 which has 160 state parties as of May 2012.〔 States that sign the covenant agree to take steps to the maximum of their available resources to achieve progressively the full realization of the right to adequate food, both nationally and internationally.〔: article 2(1), 11(1) and 23.; : "What is the right to food?"〕 In a total of 106 countries the right to food is applicable either via constitutional arrangements of various forms or via direct applicability in law of various international treaties in which the right to food is protected.〔: 32.〕 At the 1996 World Food Summit, governments reaffirmed the right to food and committed themselves to half the number of hungry and malnourished from 840 to 420 million by 2015. However, the number has increased over the past years, reaching an infamous record in 2009 of more than 1 billion undernourished people worldwide.〔: "What is the right to food?"〕 Furthermore, the number who suffer from hidden hunger - micronutrient deficiences that may cause stunted bodily and intellectual growth in children - amounts to over 2 billion people worldwide.〔: 12.〕 Whilst under international law states are obliged to respect, protect and fulfill the right to food, the practical difficulties in achieving this human right are demonstrated by prevalent food insecurity across the world, and ongoing litigation in countries such as India.〔Westcott, Catherine and Nadia Khoury and CMS Cameron McKenna,''The Right to Food'', (Advocates for International Development, October 2011)http://a4id.org/sites/default/files/user/Right%20to%20Food%20Legal%20Guide.pdf.〕 In the continents with the biggest food-related problems - Africa, Asia and Latin-America - not only is there shortage of food and lack of infrastructure but also maldistribution and inadequate access to food.〔: iii.〕 == Definition == The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recognizes the "right to an adequate standard of living, including adequate food", as well as the "fundamental right to be free from hunger". The relationship between the two concepts is not straightforward. For example, "freedom from hunger" (which General Comment 12 designates as more pressing and immediate〔.〕) could be measured by the number of people suffering from malnutrition and at the extreme, dying of starvation. The "right to adequate food" is a much higher standard, including not only absence of malnutrition, but to the full range of qualities associated with food, including safety, variety and dignity, in short all those elements needed to enable an active and healthy life. Inspired by the above definition, the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food in 2002 defined it as follows:
This definition entails all normative elements explained in detail in the General Comment 12 of the ICESCR, which states:
;What the right to food is not? According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the right to food does not imply that governments have an obligation to hand out free food to everyone who wants it. This is a common misconception.
抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「right to food」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|