Voice for UN Convention on the Poor

A movement - For the Declaration of the UN Charter on the rights of the poor people

Every UN declaration of human rights instrument expresses general principles for all human beings. Despite that, it called and declared a number of conventions on ICESCR, UDHR, ISPR, MDG, SDG, PRSP, and CEDAW. In practice, the benefit has been ripped by the powerful people of all those declarations and conventions, and protocols by the UN. So, a special declaration for the rights of poor people is needed, so that they can exercise their rights and claim to the state. For this, the UN should form a special commission under the umbrella of the UN, which will examine the necessity of this separate declaration or charter for the poor people’s rights. They should also search for the process of developing such a charter.

1. A separate commission for research and analyzing the root causes of pauperization/ reproduction of poverty. International correlation for this should be explored. The role of the richest countries and powerful states who are dominating the less-powered or disempowered states also should be researched. Then it should identify the major international policies and power relations among the countries which are making the disempowered states and their people even poorer.
2. Each state should research the root causes of pauperization regarding its own state. Then each country reflects back to the UN commission explaining the causes and how to address those.

The purpose of this declaration or charter should not be limited to the declaration, and not be to increase funding for the poor state and their people. This should not be a charity game. This should be executed in Rights Based Approach for the upliftment of the poor to an upper level.
Most importantly, the core role of the UN and the states under its umbrella should not be limited even to upliftment by the grace of their donation. The major role should be to address the root cause of pauperization so that people who are poor can uplift themselves to their desired situation including financial solvency/emancipation.
There should be international and national policies for supporting poor people (women and men) with user-friendly structural, technical, Financial, and sociopolitical infrastructure so that they can fight against their situation and get rid of poverty. The mechanism is also to be developed and executed by the UN and its member states so that the system makes ‘poor people’ a thing of the past. The system is to be developed in each state so that new poor does not reappear in that state.
In conclusion, a systematic approach should be developed to fight the vicious cycle of pauperization or making people poor.
The head of state of Bangladesh can be urged to raise this issue in the international forum. The present or future head of state should be under pressure to raise this issue in the UN. In order to make act accordingly, civil society, political personnel, prominent international figures, and people pressure should be created from all corners of the country. This is a step-by-step action to be implemented.
This is not a 100-meter race; rather, it’s a marathon. It will take a long time. But one day it will bring the desired fruits.
Serajuddahar Khan
Dhaka, Bangladesh
sdaharkhan@gmail.com