Intervention by the Permanent Representative of the Argentine Republic, Amb. Martín García Moritán

June 20 

75th pavilion of the Exhibition of Achievements of National Economy, Moscow

 

It is an honour to have been invited to deliver these remarks at the Third Forum of Regional Social Innovations in my capacity as Chair of the Open-ended Working Group on Ageing of the UN General Assembly.

I wanted to start by thanking the Government of the city of Moscow and the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation for organizing this event, which will represent another opportunity to engage in a substantive and meaningful debate about the situation of the human rights of older persons and the best way to improve it.

By the year 2050, older persons will be the highest growing age group globally, and any strategy must include them as active subjects and agents of change. To achieve that, there must be guarantees of promotion, protection, and the enjoyment of all their human rights. Therefore, this is a reality which imposes us the crucial challenge of rethinking and redefining the way we see, conceive and address ageing.

I would like to take this opportunity to share with you an update on the work of the Open-ended Working Group on Ageing, whose main mandate is to strengthen the protection of the human rights of older persons by considering the existing international framework of the human rights of older persons and identifying possible gaps and how best to address them, including by considering, as appropriate, the feasibility of further instruments and measures.

The UN General Assembly decided to create, in 2010, its Open-ended Working Group on Ageing, open to the participation of all UN Member States, UN agencies, intergovernmental organizations, civil society, national human rights institutions, academia, the private sector, and other relevant actors, with the clear purpose of enhancing the promotion and protection of the human rights of older persons.

During the first 7 annual sessions, the Working Group discussed the existing international legal framework on the situation of older persons, namely the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing of 2002 and the existing human rights treaty body mechanisms. There is a clear division among Member States with regards to this issue: while some States believe that the existing legal framework is complete and appropriate, and identify that any gaps of shortcomings in the protection of the human rights of older persons are due to lack of political will to fully implement the existing instruments, a second group is convinced that the existing international legal framework is incomplete and lacks coherence, specificity, and a binding nature. Therefore, they propose the establishment of an international legally binding instrument for the protection of the human rights of older persons.

Since no consensus was able to be reached during the first 7 sessions, at its VII session the Group decided to shift the focus of its debates to specific areas that affect the human rights of older persons, and where further protection may be needed.

Now I would like to share with you the main outcomes of the OEWGA´s Tenth Session that took place last April at UN headquarters so that you can have an update of the latest conclusions that were reached on that occasion.

This year the participation of Member States has significantly increased, which shows greater interest in the work of this Group. During the general debate, delegations emphasized that population ageing can no longer be ignored, especially taking into account that the proportion of older persons is growing at a faster rate than the general population.

In this respect, several delegations made reference to the importance of strengthening the further implementation of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing in order to achieve its goals and to seize this instrument as a channel for the inclusion of older persons in an age-inclusive implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals.

In addition, some delegations stressed that it is of utmost importance to have an international legally binding instrument that can clearly establish the obligations of Member States when it comes to the protection of the Human Rights of older persons. In that sense, the regional conventions, such as the Inter-American Convention on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons and the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Older Persons were identified as useful precedents, especially bearing in mind the decisions that are taken by regional courts of human rights, which interpret the international obligations.

Finally, a large number of delegations highlighted and shared national practices as well as strategies related to social protection and education aimed at guaranteeing better services and access to basic human rights of older persons.

Following the general debate, the OEWG held two interactive discussions on the focus areas of the ninth session, namely "Education, training, life-long learning and capacity building" and "Social protection and social security (including social protection floors)".

Additionally, for the second time the OEWG focused its discussions on concrete areas where the enjoyment of the human rights of older persons may be affected and require further protection. The goal of this interactive segment was to provide a follow up on the very fruitful and substantive discussions held during the ninth session on “Autonomy and Independence” and “Long-term and Palliative Care”, and to continue building on them from a normative point of view, in order to exchange views, best practices and concrete elements.

During the discussion on normative inputs there was an active participation of Member States, NGOs and NHRIs. Some participants highlighted the urgent need of drafting an international, legally binding instrument to guarantee the rights of older persons, including their autonomy and independence and their right to long-term and palliative care, and to challenge systemic discrimination and barriers faced by older people. In that sense, participants made reference to the need of considering two regional instruments, the Inter-American Convention on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons and the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights relating to the rights of Older Persons, when drafting a potential international binding instrument.

In relation to the right of autonomy and independence, participants pointed out the need to recognize that older persons are not a homogeneous group and it is necessary to take into account the importance of intersectional discrimination in the enjoyment of the rights to autonomy and independence.

Regarding the selection of the focus areas for the Eleventh Session of the OEWG, to be held in April 2020, following informal consultations with Member and Observer States conducted at Bureau level during the inter-sessional period, the OEWG selected the areas of "Access to Justice” and “the Right of Work and Access to the Labour Market”.

Finally, during the last session, in my capacity as Chair, I suggested to the members of the Group to consider the possibility of having concrete outcomes out of each session, in order to capitalize our deliberations and reflect our agreements with regards to each particular area that might affect the enjoyment of the human rights of older persons. Such a concrete outcome could take many forms, such as agreed conclusions or a decision of the Group, and it should be intergovernmentally negotiated and reflective of the common points identified in any of the two focus areas analyzed from a normative perspective. It is not our goal to have an extensive document that addresses controversial elements, but to have a concise document that crystallizes the fruitful debates that take place in the Working Group.

While a few delegations expressed their reservations about a negotiated outcome document, a majority encouraged the drafting of an outcome document that reflects the result of the discussions held during the sessions.

In conclusion, population ageing is a global issue that needs to be addressed from a human rights based approach. Only through the full exercise of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights, older persons will participate actively in society. That is why a universal, specific and legally binding instrument will provide sufficient standards to ensure the full enjoyment of our rights during old age.

In our Working Group we are proud to have been recognized as the most prominent international forum specifically devoted to the rights of older persons. It is undeniable that older persons can make a significant contribution to the social, economic and sustainable development of their societies, if an enabling environment and adequate guarantees are in place. In that sense, it is imperative to fully empower older persons to allow them to effectively make that contribution, becoming not only recipients of special care and social protection, but also specific rights holders and active, autonomous and independent agents and beneficiaries of change.

Thank you.