From Justiciability to Justice: Realizing the Human Right to Food

JSDLP Online, Volume 11:1 (2015)

38 Pages Posted: 18 Sep 2015

See all articles by Nandini Ramanujam

Nandini Ramanujam

Rule of Law and Economic Development Research Group; McGill University

Nicholas Caivano

McGill University, Faculty of Law; Amnesty International; Rule of Law and Economic Development Research Group

Semahagn Abebe

Human Rights Institute, University of Connecticut

Date Written: 2015

Abstract

The international human rights regime has recognized the right to food since its inception, yet chronic hunger remains one of the most flagrant human rights violations of our time. Food security — the ability to access adequate, nutritious food — continues to elude almost one billion people. In 2008, the economic downturn, coupled with environmental events affecting crop yields, caused global food prices to skyrocket. The resulting food crisis created an even greater urgency to resolve the issue of global food insecurity. This article explores the state’s role in facilitating the realization of food security in two contexts: India and Ethiopia. We analyze the normative content of the right to food in international law and examine the promise and realization of food security in each country. The article sets out key principles for a justice-based framework to food security, an approach based on the state’s obligation to ensure the progressive realization of the right to food and reform corrupt or dysfunctional institutions that perpetuate systemic inequality. The approach emphasizes the primacy of four interconnected strategies: (i) strengthening institutions; (ii) improving access to justice; (iii) empowering rights holders; and (iv) supporting food sovereignty.

Keywords: human rights, international law, development, food security, rule of law

Suggested Citation

Ramanujam, Nandini and Caivano, Nicholas and Caivano, Nicholas and Abebe, Semahagn, From Justiciability to Justice: Realizing the Human Right to Food (2015). JSDLP Online, Volume 11:1 (2015), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2661100

Nandini Ramanujam

Rule of Law and Economic Development Research Group ( email )

3644 Peel Street
Montreal, Quebec H3A 1W9
Canada

McGill University ( email )

1001 Sherbrooke St. W
Montreal, Quebec H3A 1G5
Canada

Nicholas Caivano (Contact Author)

Amnesty International

1 Easton Street
London, WC1X 0DW
United Kingdom

McGill University, Faculty of Law

Old Chancellor Day Hall
3644 Peel Street
Montreal, Quebec H3A 1W9
Canada

Rule of Law and Economic Development Research Group

New Chancellor Day Hall
3644 Peel Street
Montreal, Quebec H3A 1W9
Canada

Semahagn Abebe

Human Rights Institute, University of Connecticut ( email )

Storrs, CT 06269-1063
United States

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