International Guideposts for Socio-Economic Human Rights in Essential Public Services Provision
Hesselman, Hallo de Wolf, Toebes (eds) Socio-Economic Human Rights in Essential Public Services Provision, 299-327, Routlegde, Abingdon 2017
University of Groningen Faculty of Law Research Paper No. 31/2020
Posted: 16 May 2020 Last revised: 23 Jun 2021
Date Written: April 20, 2020
Abstract
This chapter fleshes out the relevant international human rights law standards for EPSP. It draws in particular from the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), but compares the development of human rights norms on EPSP across different socio-economic rights and provisions. The ICESCR legally protects many important EPSP-related rights, such as the right to an adequate standard of living, including food, water, housing and energy, the right to health or the right to education.
In particular, this chapter gathers up the treads of a human rights-based framework for the regulation of EPSP based on the following guideposts:
- the AAAQ framework and 'universal service obligations'
- minimum core obligations and progressive realization of EPSP
- non-discrimination and vulnerable group (persons) inclusion
- participation and accountability
- mid-term/long-term planning and budgetting for EPSP
- private actor standards
The chapter also offers some further ideas on future research in this area, especially as to the value of inter-disciplinary or multi-method approaches to questions about EPSP and ESR, and the benefits of research at the intersections of human rights law and practice, and human rights law and other disciplines.
Keywords: Socio-Economic Human Rights, International Law, ICESCR, Participation, Accountability, Core Obligations, AAAQ, Progressive Realization, Resources, Universal Service Obligations, Human Rights Law
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