first elements of the parallel report by french …...instead of social negotiation or dialogue with...
TRANSCRIPT
Centre de Recherche et d’Information pour le Développement, CRID
FIRST ELEMENTS OF THE PARALLEL REPORT
BY FRENCH SOLIDARITY ORGANISATIONS
ON OBLIGATIONS OF THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT
REGARDING ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS (ESCRs)
Presented byCRID (Center for Research and Information on Development)
FIDH (International Federation for Human Rights)LDH (Human Rights League – France)
April 2007
Introduction
I. France's obligations under the International Covenant on ESCRs at the Domestic Level
11. The development of social norms and "social dialogue" 12. Labor law and job insecurity 13. Poverty, social exclusion, and social inequalities14. Employment and social welfare15. Housing16. Penalizing poverty17. Penalizing social movements18. Increasing insecurity for migrants
II – France’s obligations resulting from the ICESCR at the International Level
21. International obligations 22. France's cooperation policy 23. France's role in international institutions (IMF, World Bank)24. France's role in the European Union's foreign policy25. Monitoring French companies operating abroad
Contact: [email protected]
FIRST ELEMENTS OF THE PARALLEL REPORT
BY FRENCH SOLIDARITY ORGANIZATIONS
ON OBLIGATIONS OF THE FRENCH Government
REGARDING ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS (ESCRs)
Introduction
French solidarity organisations have begun the preparation of a report by civil society, in response to the official report the French Government will present in 2008 for the third time in Geneva, to the UN Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (CESCR).
Our goal is to prepare a report by civil society, linking rights to social movements, which is based on a critical analysis of the official report that defines our own point of view. In order to achieve this, we have the “Final Observations on the Report,” written by the Government of France to the Committee on November 30, 2001. The 2008 report submitted to the Committee will be a response to this document. We have also obtained an initial draft of the French Government’s official report.
The present document prepared by French solidarity organisations reveals the shortcomings of the official report by the French Government. It will also provide civil society’s point of view on the status of economic, social and cultural rights (ESCRs) in France. The aim of the report itself is to raise public awareness and respect for economic, social and cultural rights.
During the presession of the CESCR, the French Government’s draft report as well as the notes submitted by civil society will be examined. This is due to take place from May 21 to May 25, 2007. The official session is planned to take place in November 2007.
Due to this timetable, we decided to submit a preliminary note to the Committee which was prepared collectively by the following: the international solidarity associations grouped within the Center for Research and Information on Development (CRID), human rights organizations represented by the Human Rights League (LDH), and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).
Based on the list of issues adopted by the Committee, we will launch a wide mobilization process to discuss and draft the full report of French civil society on ESCRs in France. We will include partners from other countries in this process, particularly on questions of immigration and emigration, as well as on France's responsibilities regarding ESCRs. In a second phase, after the Committee examines France's report, we will disseminate its concluding observations and recommendations, and mobilize civil society to follow up on these recommendations.
The report is divided into two parts. The first part presents our point of view on certain aspects of the status of ESCRs in France. In this section, we would like to emphasize our position as well as those of the French Government. The second part is our analyzes France's obligations at the international level.
French solidarity organisations consider that the French Government is a long way from ensuring the respect for economic, social and cultural rights. We ask that the Committee remind France of its national and international obligations in this regard.
I. France's obligations under the International Covenant on ESCRs at the Domestic Level
11. The development of social norms and "social dialogue"
Infringements on "best practices" in the area of social dialogue have increased in recent years. Examples include: conditions for developing pension and health insurance reforms (there was no genuine dialogue between various partners); the establishment of the NewHire Contract (CNE: Contrat Nouvelle Embauche) through various ordiances; and the attempt to force the outcome of an undergoing legislative procedure for the FirstHire Contract through a special Governmental procedure (CPE: Contrat Première Embauche). Instead of social negotiation or dialogue with social partners, the Government legislated emergency procedures. This brought hundreds of thousands of employees out into the streets, it angered the most moderate organizations, and generated a unity among unions who were against the CPE unprecedented for several decades.
Social dialogue also suffers from the practice. Since 1966, the presumption of representativity of union organizations, has led to a serious gap between "formal" social democracy and real union practices within corporations. The question of union representativity beyond Governmental speeches still has not been seriously dealt with.
Finally, public social order has been seriously jeopardized by the possibility of reaching in pejus derogatory agreements (that are less favorable to employees than the legal minimum threshold). The January 17, 2003 law on working hours authorized agreements that are less favorable regarding overtime hours, and the May 4, 2004 law allegedly intended to "reform social dialogue" challenging the "favor principle".
12. Labor law and job insecurity
Job insecurity has considerably increased in the reality of contractual relations in the workplace. Though the longterm contract (CDI: Contrat à durée indéterminée) remains the dominant form of employment, the majority of new hires now take the form of insecure contracts, and 75% of job creations are shortterm contracts (CDD: Contrat à durée déterminée).
Instead of fighting this trend, the Government has encouraged it, particularly with the establishment of the CNE and the attempt to establish the CPE.
A "volunteer civil service" established in 2006 allows the recruitment of "volunteers" over periods that can last up to two years, outside the framework of labor laws, with a "compensation" that is closer to the minimum welfare payment (RMI: Revenu Minimum d'Insertion) than to the minimum wage (SMIC: Salaire Minimal Intersectoriel de Croissance). Are we headeding for an unspoken parallel labor market?
Finally, although France has one of the OECD's highest productivity rates, Government decisions on the distribution of work, in retirement reform and in the "loosening" of the law on the reduction of working hours, encourage those who have jobs to work more, rather than increasing the distribution of employment. Once again, policies are the opposite of an approach based on solidarity.
13. Poverty, social exclusion, and social inequalities
Social inequalities have considerably sharpened during this period: gaps between salaries have widened, the number of the working poor has soared (9% of wage earners live below the povertyline, and a third of the homeless are poor workers).
Resulting inequalities, particularly relating to access to health care rights, have also reached alarming levels. Over one million children in France live below the poverty threshold. Obesity affects only 0.7% of the children of whitecollar managers, whereas the level of obesity among the children of unskilled workers has now reached 7.4%. Eleven per cent of the adult population admitted not seeking medical attention for financial reasons on at least one occasion (according to the 2005 IRDES survey). Nine per cent of the population has no access to complementary health care coverage.
Furthermore, it should be noted that official French criteria for the calculation of the poverty threshold falls short of European standards (official figures only take into account 50% of the median income, not 60%). As a result, the French social minimum for standard living is actually below the poverty line as defined by the European Union.
In January 2004, there was a launch of a “Return to Work” benefits program (RMA) for recipients of minimum welfare (RMI). It was accompanied by speeches denouncing the "dependent" status of minimum welfare recipients who were deemed to be "unemployable," lazy and often unwilling to return to work. However, 72% of minimum welfare recipients declared having health problems, which, in two thirds of cases, prevent them from finding jobs. Subsequently this not only reveals a problem of stigmitization, but it is highly questionable that the RMA benefit program includes absolutely no formal obligation to provide training.
At the same time, since 2002, fiscal policy has continued to reduce taxes on the richest taxpayers, notably through the reduction of income tax in Government revenues.
Finally, territorial segregation has been reinforced by the decentralization of social action, without an equalization mechanism to take into account the economic wealth of specific territories, or the wide variations in the size of populations.
14. Employment and social welfare
France still has one of the highest rates of unemployment in the OECD, notably among young adults and seniors.
The statistics proudly announced by the Chirac Administration which implied there was a reduction in the number of job seekers, does not reflect the reality of unemployment which has in no way diminished. The figures have been manipulated using a variety of tactics, including the deregistering of the longterm and elderly unemployed, and the reclassification of the unemployed into other categories. Electioneering in the presentation of statistics has been used to disguise the ineffectiveness of a policy increasingly favorable to corporations (through exemptions on the payment of payroll taxes), and the constant reduction in the number of the unemployed receiving benefits rather than in the number of the victims of unemployment.
In the field of social welfare, a major feature of the period under scrutiny was a reform of the pension system, which is solely financed by wage earners. Despite official denials, the reform is developing a system of capitalization based not on solidarity (and in particular on intergenerational solidarity), but on increased inequality. The period was also marked by a reform of the health
insurance system, which is detrimental to social solidarity, and it favors a nonegalitarian method of individual social responsibility.
15. Housing
Over 3 million people in France are poorly housed or homeless, in part due to the rise in the cost of housing and of rents. At the same time, over 5 million people are forced to contend with pauperization, unstable job situations, and discriminatory measures, such as those affecting nomadic communities (Roma).
A growing number of these people are becoming homeless (approximately 100,000). Some of the homeless are increasingly "visible" in public spaces. Some, for a longer time, have been present in a less visible way near beltways and highway junctions, and they have transformed these areas into shantytowns. Others have been obliged to live out of their cars. A portion of these people are forced to live in unsanitary housing which is rented or subleased at extortionate prices, with uncertain ownership status. Some are housed in socalled "residential homes," where constant overcrowding results in unsanitary conditions that occasionally lead to tradegies such as fires, or it can provide a pretext for eviction without relocation. In a large number of cases, brutal measures have become a feature of real estate speculation undertaken by clearly identifiable individuals or corporations.
Longterm accommodation in hotel rooms is often the only option. Sometimes this is provided for families awaiting relocation (an expensive drain on public resources that does not provide a decent level of housing), and sometimes this is the only available choice for families who have to bear the significant cost of such accommodation without assistance, and continually run the risk of being made homeless. Others are obliged to make inappropriate use of emergency accommodation, or in some cases caravans. These are often forcibly removed from private property and destroyed in a most brutal manner.
Many local townships have failed to comply with the Besson Law, which calls for a sufficient number of halting sites for nomadic communities. This has resulted in more conflicts, as members of nomadic communities are forced to occupy public and private areas that are not designed as halting sites. The situation of the Roma people in particular has become untenable, as they are increasingly pressurized to give up their nomadic lifestyle due to the fact they are often housed in unsanitary accommodations, usually under threat of eviction. Consequently, Roma are obliged to move from one township to another, or simply forced to leave the country.
In recent years, not only have public policies failed to provide a credible solution to the problem of growing inequality and the violation of basic rights, but they have contributed to a general deterioration of the situation. The State has failed to react to violations of the law on "solidarity and urban renewal," which has not been been applied in a large number of municipalities (for the most part managed by politicians from the parties in the current parliamentary majority). At the same time, there have been a number of attempts to directly challenge this law.
Worse still, policies designed to promote home ownership have forced the worstoff populations to move to the outskirts of urban areas, where they have become financially dependent, due not only to loans to purchase property, but also on private transport (given that public transport is often unavailable). For certain local authorities, "urban renewal" initiatives have simply served as a pretext to expel populations they deem to be undesirable from their localities.
Though a new law (March 5, 2007) claims to recognize an "enforceable right to housing," it does not truly give the means to access this right. The right to housing has been poorly defined with respect to political responsibilities (the State guarantees the right to housing, and local authorities
operate at the relevant levels) and with respect to procedures of appeal (appeals are made to a departmental commission, administrative courts are called upon). There is a clear gap between Governmental discourse and its implementation.
16. Penalizing/ Criminalizing poverty
Since 2002, 11 public safety laws have been voted in France. The latest one, on delinquency prevention, gives mayors quasilegal powers. All these laws have generalized keeping police records on individuals, increased the powers of the police and considerably decreased the powers of the judiciary. Individual liberties are seriously threatened by substantial nfringements on the presumption of innocence, the freedom of movement, and the privacy of the home, all made possible by these recent laws.
The September 9, 2002 law on "Judiciary Orientations," the March 18, 2003 law on "Internal Safety," and the March 5, 2007 law on the “Prevention of Delinquency,” created specific infractions for the most disadvantaged categories of the population. These include "passive soliciting" by prostitutes, stationing by nomadic people on township grounds, loitering by young people in the entrances of public buildings, begging with a dog. All of these acts have become misdemeanors that can be punished by jail sentences of 2 to 6 months or heavy fines.
The accumulation of these socalled "safety" laws have increasingly stigmatized populations seen as dangerous a priori. In 2006, a large supermarket tried to take advantage of these laws by denying entry to minors unaccompanied by an adult. A political discourse in central Governmental spheres identified a large subset of the young population as a source of delinquency, either implicitly or explicitly identifiable by location of residence, origins, or physical appearance. This discourse labelled this subset as a threat to safety, and a group at risk of violence. Later the handling of urban violence in the fall of 2005, further reinforced this discriminatory orientation by allowing a “state of emergency,” to dominate the need to respond to an obvious "social emergency". Discriminatory action was particularly notable when on March 31, 2006, a law curiously named, "Equality of Opportunity," was voted. This law included several highly "targeted" measures.
In parallel, the criminal justice system became a "punishment factory." Cthe system was termed a "penal chain;" immediately sentencing sessions were doubled, and more and more jail sentences were handed out. The large majority of the prisoners sentenced for minor misdemeanors are poor, since 80% of prisoners have incomes much lower than the minimum wage (SMIC).
At the same time that young people in the projects, undocumented aliens, nomads and beggars suffered from the severity of the judicial system, numerous cases of economic and financial delinquency were dismissed after judicial procedings lasted from 5 to 10 years. Many of these cases never even reach the courts, since the number of cases handled by judges is constantly dropping and amounts to less than 8%.
It is strange to constantly hear about violence by minors when it is never mentioned that this violence is first and foremost directed against minors themselves (12,000 suicides per year in France) and that the victims of violence by minors are simply other minors.
The proliferation of police files reflects this inequality in the treatment of delinquency. According to a 2006 report by the national observatory of delinquency, France now has 33 different police databases (police and gendarmerie). Examples are the national genetic database (FNAEG) created by a November 2001 law, and the constantly growing sexual delinquent database created in 2004. These databases contain records for all the people arrested for common law infractions (500,000 arrests are made per year), with the exception of financial delinquency such as
corruption.
A further threshold seems to have been crossed by the creation of a student database (March 5, 2005 law to prevent delinquency). This database will make it possible to record all the children registered in preschool and in elementary school in France, and to record the family's origins and the language spoken in the home. Safety thus becomes the essential goal of the state educational system and social services, overlapping into police and judicial activities. Policies on the eviction of foreigners implemented in the last 5 years linked to this will to have a record of all schoolchildren, particularly those with a foreign background.
17. Penalizing/ Criminalizing social movements
The obsessional reaffirmation by various European political leaders of a right to safety has corresponded with an increase in economic insecurity for numerous employees. Mass unemployment and the disintegration of jobs at a time when traditional state social sectors are deregulated (i.e., health, social assistance, public housing, ...). This right to safety was repeatedly enforced by Governments, based on the illusion of a rise in delinquency and violence in public places while the social state foundered and was transformed into a penal state.
Violence is handled very unequally by the judiciary. Traffic accidents (6,000 deaths per year) and workplace accidents (800 deaths per year in the construction industry alone) are tolerated, while minor delinquency in public places (such as cell phone thefts or acts against the police) are disproportionately punished.
Victims of the "economic horror," the poorest wage earners, the jobless, and their children, have all become the victims of the excessive penalization of minor misdemeanors or of simple incivilities. Penal measures rose significantly while the number of registered infractions (crimes, misdemeanors, and fines) has stayed roughly the same in France over the last 10 years (about 500,000). In the early 1990s, 35% of infractions were tried. The rest were dismissed due to their minor nature. Currently, a penal response occurs for nearly 80% of infractions, and even 90% for minors. This wild increase in repression by French courts affects only a part of the populationthe poorest one.
Furthermore, judicial proceedings have become ever more systematic, with ever heavier sentencing, clearly out of proportion with the seriousness of the offenses, against leaders of unions and associations, and even against members of such organizations. Cases included social conflicts in corporations, destruction of geneticallymodified organisms (GMOs), or assistance to families of undocumented aliens or their children. A new category of targets for repression appeared. In civil society circles, these new targets are commonly called "solidarity delinquents".
Since the number of infractions leading to the filing of DNA samples has increased, the genetic imprint of any person charged with damaging property or violence in a group (infractions that demonstrators are often charged with) is registered in the national genetic database (FNAEG). The records remain in the database for 20 to 40 years, and the procedure for removing a record from the database is extremely complex and inefficient. Many individuals who are registered in the genetic database are neither sentenced nor even tried.
This is why certain activists from unions or social movements (antiadvertising, antiGMO, defenders of the rights of foreigners, ...) have refused the DNA sampling. However, according to the law, such refusals are punishable by a oneyear prison sentence. Courts have systematically condemned individuals refusing to let their DNA be recorded, even if the sentences have been symbolic. Since 2003, 500,000 DNA imprints have been registered in the central police database.
Finally, these public safety policies are a concern, not only because of the threats they generate for individual liberties, but also because their effectiveness is questionable. The zerotolerance policy of imprisoning tens of thousands of victims of the economic crisis is not effective in reducing delinquency, since 80% of imprisoned individuals commit further offenses. Violence against individuals has increased by 14% since 2005.
18. Increasing insecurity for migrants
The precariousness of residence conditions for foreigners has constantly and massively increased. The normal deliverance of residence permits has been terminated in most cases (due to the November 26, 2003 and July 24, 2006 laws). Highly subjective interpretation conditions have been placed for giving this residence permit (November 26, 2003 law). The normal attribution of a residence permit after 10 years of residence in France has been ended (November 26, 2003 law). Suspicion over marriages between a French citizen and a foreigner has increased (November 26, 2003 and July 24, 2006 laws). A "dubious paternity" misdemeanor has been established (July 24, 2006 law). Allowing family members to immigrate has been made considerably harder, particularly due to income requirements (welfare payments were excluded by the July 24, 2006 law) and to housing requirements. Obtaining a work permit from a residence permit has become more difficult (July 24, 2006 law).
As for undocumented aliens, not only are they now subjected to being tracked down, sometimes as far as the operating rooms of clinics, following the decree of February 21, 2006, but their most elementary social rights have been seriously jeopardized. This is particularly the case due to the drastic restriction in state medical aid (which led to the condemnation of the French state by the Council of Europe with respect to the European Social Charter) and to their increasingly limited access to social aid (except in emergency situations). A growing number of townships deny undocumented aliens access to leisure centers, sports activities, or even school cafeterias.
Access by foreigners to housing continues to be a similar cause for concern. Inadequate housing, refusal to relocate, restrictions to the "right to housing," are commonplace for foreigners. Furthermore, there has been no significant progress in their access to socalled "closed" jobs, whether in the parastate sector or in the private sector.
Finally, France continues to refuse to sign the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
II – France’s international obligations resulting from the ICESCR
21. International obligations
Article 2 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) states: "Each State Party to the present Covenant undertakes to take steps, individually and through international assistance and cooperation, especially economic and technical, to the maximum of its available resources, with a view to achieving progressively the full realization of the rights recognized in the present Covenant by all appropriate means, including particularly the adoption of legislative measures."
For States party to the Covenant, Article 2 therefore contains, not just national obligations, but also international ones. States have international obligations whether they act individually or within the context of international organizations.
General Comment 3 on State party's obligations (paragraph 14), explains the nature of these obligations: "international cooperation for development and thus for the realization of economic, social and cultural rights is an obligation of all States. It is particularly incumbent upon those States which are in a position to assist others in this regard."
International obligations of states can be grouped into three levels of obligations:obligation to respect rights: refrain from performing actions that prevent, directly or indirectly, the exercise of rights in other countries.obligation to protect rights: ensure that all of the actors within their jurisdiction, including corporations, respect human rights.obligation to implement rights: through international cooperation, assist less developed countries in implementing economic, social and cultural rights.
22. France's cooperation policy
In 2001, in its final observations and recommendations, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights called on France to increase its official development aid so that it would reach the UNspecified goal of 0.7% of the GDP. In its report to the Committee, the French Government claimed to have "made very clear commitments aiming to reach the goal of devoting 0.7% of GNP to public development aid, which will be reached in 2012 with an intermediate step of 0.5% in 2007."
France did indeed raise the share of its global budget devoted to public development aid: in 2006, it amounted to 8.3 billion euros, 0.47% of GDP. But in a study published in April 2007, the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) criticized the artificial nature of the increases in French official development assistance (ODA). The study showed 40% of the increases were due to unjustified accounting measures. Questionable items listed as development assistance included debt cancellations and spending related to the administration of asylum requests and support for foreign students.
More importantly, France's African policies are in strong contradiction with its obligations. Since African states became independent, France has politically, militarily and economically supported most of the dictatorial regimes that emerged within the Frenchspeaking area of Africa, where economic and social rights are far from being realized.
France's policies did nothing to support the emergence of legitimate powers and the rule of law in its former colonies. This made improvements in economic, social and cultural rights more difficult to
achieve in these countries. France's doctrine of "stability" favored regimes that secured its access to raw materials and helped it keep its rank as an influential world power. As a result, France helped prevent these countries from obtaining the means to improve ESCRs.
These policies were pursued in spite of the democratic demands of African civil societies. Since the 1990s, these civil societies have been more and more massively involved in projects of democratic transition, of peaceful power transfers, and of strengthening of the peaceprojects that are favorable to development policies. French foreign policies even favored "authoritarian restorations," diminishing aspirations initiated in national conferences, encouraged a return to previous political situations, and allowed heads of state already in place to continue to monopolize power to the detriment of the people's political and civil rights as well as their economic, social and cultural rights. France continues to supply weapons and security equipment to regimes that use them for repressive purposes, and does so without control of the French Parliament.
However, this doctrine of stability is only halfendorsed by French diplomacy. Commitments to support democracy include aid suspension clauses in case of human rights violations, multilateral commitments of the ACPCE partnership signed in Cotonou on June 23, 2000, and the Bamako declaration signed on November 3, 2000 by all the delegations of Frenchspeaking states. But these commitments have not had any real effects. This was the conclusion of the 2001 report, "Human rights in the Frenchspeaking World," written for the National Assembly's foreign affairs commission by Mrs. Yvette Roudy.
In early 2007, at the Nairobi World Social Forum and at the Paris FrenchAfrican Summit, dozens of French and African organisations strongly criticized France's unchanged policies in Africa, calling them archaic and dangerous. They advocated making the policies "responsible and transparent" and demanded that the policies serve democracy and the respect of human rights.
23. France's role in international institutions (IMF, World Bank)
France has a permanent seat on the board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. Within this framework, France has never varied from its commitment to intervention strategies developed by Bretton Woods Institutions. It has done so despite the now wellknown disastrous impact of the policies of International Financial Institutions (IFI) in the name of principles of structural adjustment.
In its 2001 recommendations for France, the Committee for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights encouraged the State as member of international financial institutions, particularly the IMF and the World Bank, to do all it could to ensure that the policies and decisions of these organizations conform to the obligations of states party to the Covenant, particularly the obligations of articles 21, 22, and 23 on assistance and cooperation.
In its report to the Committee, France said it gives "the promotion of human rights a special place in all of its international policies." France claims the change in the policies of the World Bank and the IMF is due in no small part "to the influence of a country that was among the first to draw attention to the consequences of structural adjustment plans on access by vulnerable populations to rights, particularly economic, social and cultural rights" (page 20 of France's report).
It is true that there have been important changes in recent years. Highly criticized structural adjustment plans have been replaced by "Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSP)" for each country. Nevertheless, French NGOs remain concerned by the conditions imposed on developing countries for the attribution of aid or loans to fight poverty. These conditions continue to weigh on the implementation of economic and social rights.
Though international financial institutions claim to have lightened the number and the importance of economic policy conditions linked to their interventions in developing countries, all studies of the reality on these interventions show that the IMF and the World Bank continue to strongly intervene in state policies. This interventionism can be seen, for example, in the procedures for obtaining a reduction in debt as planned by the HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) Initiative and the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI). Conditions applying to governance (public service reforms, public markets law reforms, ...), economic policies (low inflation, budget surpluses, ...) and structure (privatization of state or parastate corporations, sale of state shares in such corporations, ...) continue to be imposed on countries that benefit from debt cancellations.
The World Bank recently developed grading indicators called the Country Policy and Institutional Assessments (CPIAs), which determine the quantity and nature of the financing obtained by these states. Using these indicators, IFIs promote the same principles: liberalization of business, privatization of public and parapublic corporations, tax regulations that favor foreign investments, etc. CPIAs let the World Bank reward Governments for implementing neoliberal policies and for developing an institutional environment that favors the development of the private sector.
NGOs involved in solidarity networks have observed that:−The effects of these conditionalities on the poorest populations are very negative. They include a drop in the coverage and the quality of network services, a raise in the cost of accessing basic services, the absence of the necessary budgetary space to develop social policies, etc.−These conditionalities are not discussed by any of the democratic institutions with a mandate by populations to defend their interests. They infringe upon the sovereignty of democratically elected powers of these states, since the people, and often the Governments themselves, deny the measures are wellfounded or effective.
France has failed to clearly express concern over the social effects that could result from any of these policies. To the contrary, France continues to support (as in the 2006 Report by the Government to parliament concerning the actions of France within IFIs) a strong presence of the World Bank and the IMF in the poorest countries, and the continuation of programs like PRGF (Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility).
Regarding the environment, strategies developed by IFIs leave far too little space for the respect of the right of populations and future generations to live in a natural, stable, and healthy environment. From this point of view, France has neither questioned these policies nor has it promoted renewable energy or the right to water and water treatment. To the contrary, it supports any strategy likely to open new markets for its services industry multinational corporations
Concerning the monitoring of the Nam Theun 2 Hydropower project in Laos, France claims to have "particularly insisted on the need to rigorously monitor the construction and the operation of the dam." Nevertheless, difficulties that surfaced over the course of the construction project have been poorly taken into account by the World Bank, and local populations may suffer as a result.1 The credibility of the French Government and of the World Bank depends on their ability to respect their commitments.
Access to drinkable water is a fundamental human right. The management of the supply of drinking water is the subject of intense debates, particularly regarding the relevance of management by private multinationals in countries where community models already exist. Though the World
1 See the analysis by International Rivers Network, partner of Les Amis de la Terre: http://www.irn.org/programs/mekong/namtheun.html
Bank's discourse has evolved in recent years, its practices haven't really evolved. The overwhelming majority of the projects it finances include a provision to privatize water management. This is the case in Ghana, where a large local coalition is denouncing the pressure exerted by the World Bank on the Government. The World Bank needs to immediately end these kinds of conditionalities and systematically devote part of its financing in the water sector to reinforcing local capacities of communities and civil society.2 France must in turn renounce strategies that promote the liberalization of water distribution and favor French corporations.
In the energy sector, the World Bank increasingly recognizes the dramatic impact of climate change on economic and social rights of populations. But its "energy portfolio" finances fossil energies at a 90% rate, while only 10% of the financing goes to renewable energy sources. The World Bank's own Extractive Industries Review concluded the bank should stop financing oil and coal due to their impact on climate. Conversely, renewable energy sources have the potential to supply rural populations outside energy networks in a way that guarantees their supply of energy to meet their fundamental needs. However, France openly supports the World Bank's policies in this area, in clear contradiction with environmental emergencies and their impact on living condition of populations.
24. France's role in the European Union's foreign policy
As a member of the European Union, France participates in the EU's foreign policy.
French NGOs would like to particularly draw the attention of the Committee to the trade policies of the EU towards developing countries. Partly as a result of the interruption of negotiations within the World Trade Organization (WTO) in July, 2006, the European Union has multiplied trade and free trade agreements with other countries, particularly developing countries. The NGOs are concerned that these agreements, once they are enacted, will run counter to the realization of economic, social and cultural rights in these countries.
Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) are a case in point. These free trade agreements are currently being negotiated between the European Union and 77 countries in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific (ACP). They are expected to go into effect on January 1, 2008. We consider that the possible impacts of these agreements could be negative for the populations of the ACP countries, and, in particular, may limit some of their rights. France, like other member states of the European Union, has an obligation to "respect rights": this means it must refrain from performing actions that prevent, directly or indirectly, the exercise of rights in other countries. We consider that, if the EPAs are signed in their present form, rights to food, work, health, water, and education will be seriously threatened.
The question of the right to food is crucial. The argument is often made that imported products lead to lower consumer prices and therefore better access to food for the poor. Though this may be true in certain cases, one must keep in mind that in the countries under discussion (developing countries, leastadvanced countries), 60% to 80% of the population works in the agricultural sector. Free trade agreements leading to direct competition between producers of the North and of the South will have direct consequences on jobs and income for these rural populations. Without outlets to sell their products, their income will plummet and their access to food will diminish. Furthermore, these agreements encourage local producers in developing countries to replace farming for local consumption with the production of goods for export markets, which can have dramatic consequences if world market prices drop. We therefore consider that respecting the right to food requires defending the principle of food sovereignty, which allows countries or regions to
2 See http://www.amisdelaterre.org/Banquemondialeetbanquesde,415.html
protect their markets. This principle should be respected by France and EU member states in their EPA negotiations.
Access to services for the populations of ACP countries are also at risk. The Governments of these countries need to be able to regulate the services sector so as to serve the public interest and promote development. Opening the market to foreign providers, in a regulated or unregulated manner, can threaten access to public services for populations. This is the case for the health and education sectors and their related rights, as well as the right to water.
Similarly, in the EPA negotiations, the EU and its member states hope to arrive at an agreement on investments. Though foreign investment can under certain conditions, favor economic development, there is a high risk that special rights granted to foreign investors could allow them to ignore national laws. This is most often the case for privatization of public services, particularly in the water sector.
In negotiations by the European Union with ASEAN, India, Central America, Andean countries and South Korea, the total liberalization of the water sector has also been mentioned. This could threaten the right to water.
In the area of labor laws, our organizations are also concerned. First, though it is often said that free trade and investments create jobs, it turns out that, in agricultural sectors, which employ a large number of the work force of developing countries, many agricultural workers have lost their jobs. In addition, the jobs that are created are often secondrate jobs, in deplorable conditions, where workers' rights are often not respected. Including ILO (International labor Organization) clauses in national laws is not generally required by free trade agreements, and foreign investors don't have any constraining obligations. France and its European partners must consider these aspects in their APE negotiations and other free trade agreements.
25. Monitoring French companies operating abroad
The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has three levels of obligations: the obligation to respect, to protect, and to implement rights. The obligation to protect rights means France must control nonstate actors, including corporations, so that these groups are not guilty of, or accomplices to human rights violations in countries outside of France.
−Through its policies and the instruments it uses to support exports by corporations, particularly the guarantees of the French Agency for Export Credits (COFACE), France does not display the transparency required to evaluate the conformity of accepted projects with national commitments to human rights. Proven failings have been demonstrated in the area of environmental rights.3
−France must reinforce laws requiring corporations to provide information relating to the impact of their activities on human rights. The 2001 law on New Economic Regulations (NRE) gave France a lead on the international scene to begin to compel multinationals to take into account their social and environmental impacts. Article 116 of this law stipulates that all corporations listed on the French Stock Exchange must account for the social and environmental impact of their activities in their annual report. However, the limitations of the NRE law are numerous: though the majority of very large companies respect the letter of the law after five years, this is not the case of the 700 listed companies, all of which are, in theory, required to comply with this obligation. The high number of corporations that do not satisfy their legal obligations is partly a result of the absence of sanctions. Social and environmental information published by corporations needs to be given the
3 http://www.amisdelaterre.org/Cofaceenvironnementet.html
same legal status as financial information. Finally, the scope of application of the law needs to be extended. Limiting the law to listed corporations is not justified. The activities of other types of corporations also have significant social and environmental consequences. This framework needs to be extended to the main economic actors, whatever their legal status: unlisted private corporations with a large number of employees, unlisted subsidiaries of foreign corporations with activities in France, and also state corporations.
−France must reinforce the national legal framework relating to human rights obligations for corporations operating abroad. France should reinforce its legal framework so that victims of human rights violations committed by French corporations or with their complicity can have access to French courts.