His Excellency Dr. Guy Scott (MP) Vice President of the Republic of Independence Avenue P.o. Box 50773 Zambia Fax: +260211254163 /+260 211 250824 / +26011254460

E-Mail: [email protected]

Re: Your Comments On Zambians Demand For The Right To Adequate Food

Heidelberg, July 11, 2014

His Excellency,

FIAN International is an international human rights organization working for the worldwide implementation of the human right to adequate food. FIAN has consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC). FIAN also has observer status with the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. The International Secretariat of FIAN is based in Heidelberg, Germany and Geneva, Switzerland.

In my role as Secretary General of FIAN, I am writing to you to express the deep concern of the Organization with regard to your comments on Zambians demand for the right to food. The comments were made on 3rd June 2014 in Livingstone when you addressed a (PF) party meeting at the Civic Centre, and you said that “government is strongly opposed to enacting ideological fantasies from the draft constitution such as the right to food because they are unrealistic and inapplicable".1

The right to adequate food is a human right recognized under international law, which protects the right of all human beings to feed themselves in dignity, either by producing their food or by purchasing it. As authoritatively defined in article 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights2

1 Zambian Watchdog, Demands for right to food unrealistic - Scott, https://www.zambianwatchdog.com/demands-for-right-to-food-unrealistic-scott/, accessed on 23 June 2014

2 United Nations Human Rights, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural rights, http://www.ohchr.org/EN/ProfessionalInterest/Pages/CESCR.aspx, accessed on 23 June 2014

and in the General Comment No. 12, “The right to adequate food is realized when every man, woman and child, alone or in community with others, has physical and economic access at all times to adequate food or means for its procurement.”3

The right to adequate food, a part of the right to an adequate standard of living, was first articulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, which recognizes the right of everyone “to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food.”4 Moreover, it has been recognized in different international human rights treaties such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child (Arts. 24 and 27) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (Arts.12 and 14).5 At the continental level the right to food is recognized by the African Charter on Human and Peoples' rights as interpreted by the African Commission on Human and people's rights in the case of SERAC v. Federal Republic of Nigeria.6 In addition, the right to food is recognized by the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (art. 15)7

Ensuring adequate, accessible and affordable food for all is not a question of charity but rather a legal entitlement held by all, which imposes duties on the state to act in certain ways, to refrain from acting in others and to provide remedies when violations occur. In this regard through the ratification and recognition of human rights instruments mentioned above the state of Zambia has a human rights obligation to respect, protect and fulfill the right to food. The obligation to respect requires that States not engage in activities that impair the ability of populations to access food. The corresponding obligation to protect requires that States ensure that third parties do not impair the ability of people to grow or purchase food. The obligation to fulfill requires that States adopt all necessary legal, policy, judicial and other measures in order to ensure that people can feed themselves. For those who are unable to feed themselves (for example due to disabilities or catastrophes) states have to provide food, but with the view of ensuring that people recover their food autonomy when this is possible.

The UN Committee on Economic, social and Cultural rights has also stressed the importance of adopting national policies and strategies for the right to food as well as framework laws, monitoring mechanisms and remedy procedures.8

3 United Nations Human Rights, General Comment No. 12, http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=E%2fC.12%2f1999%2f5 &Lang=en, consulted on 23 June 2014

4 United Nations Human Rights, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, G.A. Res. 217 A (III), http://www.ohchr.org/en/udhr/pages/introduction.aspx, accessed on 23 June 2013

5 United Nations Human Rights, Treaty - based bodies, http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/Pages/HumanRightsBodies.aspx, accessed on 23 June 2013

6 African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, SERAC case, http://www.achpr.org/files/sessions/30th/comunications/155.96/achpr30_155_96_eng.pdf, accessed on 23 June 2014

7 African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (art 15), http://www.achpr.org/instruments/women-protocol/, accessed on 23 June 2014

8 See General Comment No. 12 Supra note 3 at §21-35

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In 2004, the 187 Member States (including Zambia) of the General Council of the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), adopted the Voluntary Guidelines to Support the Progressive Realization of the Right to Adequate Food in the Context of National Food Security, which provide guidance on adopting framework laws and integrating the right to food into economic development policies, the regulation of markets and resources such as labor, water and land, and programs that support vulnerable groups. The Guidelines also offer direction with respect to developing monitoring systems and indicators to track progress in reducing food insecurity.9 Moreover many countries around the globe including African countries (Nigeria, Senegal , Uganda, Mali, etc...) have included the right to food in their constitution and/or other national regulations.10

His Excellency, the State of Zambia cannot progressively achieve the realization of the right to food without the proper recognition of it in the national legislation (national constitution for instance) to guarantee its full implementation and ensure the accountability in case of its violation. This recognition of the right to food would lead to the improvement of governance of natural resources such as a land, water, fisheries, forests, etc, towards the overarching goal of achieving food security for all, and would allow government officers to have a clear mandate in giving priority to the right to food when it is conflicting with other legal regulations and would facilitate the work of judges in adjudicating cases related to right to food violations.11

His Excellency please accept my request to inform me about the steps the government of Zambia will take to ensure the enactment of the right to food in the national constitution and other national legislation and policies.

Sincerely,

Flavio Valente Secretary General FIAN International

cc: His Excellency President of the Republic of Zambia Minister of Agriculture

9 FAO, Right to food guidelines, ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/009/y7937e/y7937e00.pdf, accessed on 23 June 2014

10 Amnesty International, The right to adequate food, http://hrbaportal.org/wp- content/files/right_to_adequate_food_light_Haki_Zetu.pdf, accessed on 23 June 2014

11 FAO, Guidelines on the responsible Governance of tenure, http://www.fao.org/docrep/016/i2801e/i2801e.pdf, accessed on 23 June 2014

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