Idealism A realistic exercise

1
Idealism? A realistic exercise

• the role of civil society in the making of
  international law

Nicoletta Dentico Médecins Sans Frontières Access
to Essential Medicines Campaign New York, 4th
December 2003
2
About the Essential Health RD Treaty?Two
enlightening precedents

• The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control
  (FCTC) Geneva , May 2003
• The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use,
  Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of
  Anti-personnel Mines and on their Destruction
• Ottawa, December 1997

3
Why? We are talking about two

• successful stories, out of entirely innovative
  ideas
• new approach on landmines setting up a
  group of pro-ban countries to drive the process
  towards a convention out of the classical UN
  framework (i.e. alternative to the 1980
  Conventional Weapons Convention)
• new process on public health the idea of a
  Convention that utilises international law to
  further public health was unheard of. Today, the
  FCTC is the worlds first multilateral convention
  specifically focussing on a public health issue
• ongoing global mobilisations, despite the
  achieved results
• FCTC still at some distance from adulthood
  77 signatories, 5 state parties, it needs 40
  ratifications to get enforced.
• The Mine Ban Treaty, now at the eve of its
  first Review Conference (Nairobi, nov.2004), was
  the fastest entry into force of any major treaty
  in history, with currently 141 member states and
  9 signatories

4
Global issues demanding global solutions

• tobacco
• 4.9 million tobacco related deaths
• per year (13,500 deaths per day)
• Half of children exposed to tobacco
• smoke at home
• 47.5 of men smoke worldwide
• Use of tobacco produces a global
• net loss of USD 200 billion yearly
• 10 million tobacco deaths forecast by 2020

• landmines
• Over 100 million landmines scattered in
• 82 countries worldwide
• 22,000 victims every year one every 20
• minutes 85 civilians
• Landmines continue to kill decades after
• they have been placed on the ground
• the plastic ones cannot be detected
• 53 countries producing the weapon, used
• conventionally by Nato and Warsaw Pact

5
Long term investment It takes time to produce
change..and its not always fun!

• Tobacco Convention
• First idea seeded in 1993
• NGOs embrace it resolution at the
• 9th World Conference on Tobacco
• or Health in 1994
• May 1995 WHA Resolution begins the
• WHO process
• Meetings, papers, discussions at EB and
• WHA, until July 1998 Bruntland makes
• Tobacco a cabinet and pushes the FCTC
• Process
• Oct. 99 WG and IGNB started
• Oct. 2000 public hearings (500 subm)

• Landmines Treaty
• 1992 6 NGOs issue a Joint Call to Ban
• Antipersonnel Lanmdines
• 1995 the CCW Review Conference fails and is
• reconvened in 1996
• 1996 Towards the Ottawa Treaty (Sweden, Canada,
  Austria, Norway and Southafrica)
• 1996- 1997 hard negotiations with several
• prep- meetings in Brussels, Norway, Ottawa
• 18 Sept. 1997 adoption of the Treaty text
• 3 Dec. 1997 The MBT open to signature
• 1 March 1999 MBT enters into force

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Strenghts and Weaknesses

• Landmines movement
• focus on a single weapon
• a highly emotional contact
• easy to catch message
• the weapon not militarily vital
• not significant economically
• the employment motive not relevant
• virtually uniform opposition from governments
• Widespread deployment of mines
• Landmines as accepted as bullets
• 125 nations with landmines stockpiles
• Landmines used in 88 countries
• Cheap, low-tech, reliable substitute forManpower
• Focus for RD for richer nations

• Tobacco coalition
• Clear focus on tobacco control
• Strenght of the argument lt impact of
• tobacco use easy to grasp message
• the WHOs first exercise of its mandate to
  negotiate the FCTC
• Weak support from Member States
• Strong opposition and grossly undue
  interference - from tobacco industry and tobacco
  growers worldwide
• Prediction of sudden and massive job losses the
  economic factor
• Perception of threats to national sovereignty
• The banalisation of the cigarette product

7
Can civil society make the difference?

• It is possible for NGOs to put an issue even
  one with international security implications on
  the agenda, provoke urgent action by governments
  and others, serve as the ongoing driving force
  behind change.
• Civil society often holds the expertise, the real
  picture (contact with reality and the people),
  and the appeal towards potential constituencies
• Civil society can gain strong credibility it has
  no vested interest
• It can attract and drain the competences to craft
  solid proposals
• Ready for a long term commitment (10 years?)

8
A new reality out of a utopian dream?

• In this one bowl, there is rice
• from a thousand households
• (Ryokan, 1758 -1831)
• Rapid success internationally can be
  achieved through common and coordinated action by
  NGOs, like-minded governments, other key actors
  like UN agencies, academia, consumer groups, the
  media, etc.
• Well thought concerted action can produce
  unpredictable change, sometimes conversions and
  even defections (landmine producers becoming
  ICBLs best informants)

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Some lessons learnt..

• The rationale needs to be developed from
  different angles technical-juridical, economic,
  humanitarian, ethical, moral, financial.
• The bottom up approach is key top down does not
  work.
• A solidly conveyed issue can trigger off action
  mobilize local groups even in countries where
  theres no organised civil society (Mozambique
  92 Kabul 97)
• It is possible to work outside the traditional
  diplomatic fora, practices and methods, and
  create constructive and transparent styles of
  diplomacy.
• Once a diplomatic critical mass has been
  developed, even non like-minded countries come
  around.and occasionally take their steps.
• The story is definitely not over once you have
  the Convention/Treaty achievements to be
  monitored (cfr. The Landmine Monitor Report, the
  Tobacco Free Initiative)
• NGOs are crucial in the implementation stage and
  in making sure that parties to a convention abide
  by their formal commitments (exposing them when
  they do not)

10
More lessons

• The story is definitely not over once you have
  the Convention/Treaty achievements to be
  monitored (cfr. The Landmine Monitor Report, the
  Tobacco Free Initiative)
• NGOs are crucial in the implementation stage and
  in making sure that parties to a convention abide
  by their formal commitments (exposing them, when
  they do not)

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And finally..

• The process, creatively built along the way, is
  just as important as the achieved outcome
• The FCTC has broadened the perspective of
  tobacco to an issue that requires ongoing
  commitment from all government departments, not
  just ministries of health Similarly the
  Convention expanded responsibility for tobacco
  issue from WHO to other UN agencies, some of
  which had hitherto been minimally involved with
  tobacco
• the FCTC has had a major impact on NGOs. Prior
  to 1993, there were only a handful of NGOs
  devoted solely to tobacco issues, and most of
  them functioned independently of one another. The
  FCTC changed this isolation
  (Judith Mackay, TFI, WHO)

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Working towards an Essential Health RD Treaty,
we need to remember

• Definitions (treaty language) are often the most
  controversial part of the negotiation
• Partnership pays, both tactically and
  strategically
• Build a core group of liked-minded countries
• NGOs need to be inside, too
• Non traditional diplomacy can work. Pro-ban
  governments decided to pursue a fast track
  approach, outside of traditional negotiating fora
  
• Say NO to consensus
• Promote regional diversity and solidarity without
  the blocs logic of traditional diplomatic
  alignments

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Conclusion.

• The Norwegian Nobel Committe chose to recognise
  the work of ICBL in 1997 noting that the campaign
  had been able to
• express and mediate a broad range of popular
  commitment in an unprecedented way. With the
  governments of several small and medium-sized
  countries taking the issue up.this work has
  grown into a convincing example of an effective
  policy for peaceAs a model for similar processes
  in the future, it could prove of decisive
  importance
• The deal is about overcoming the cheap cynicism
  of the utopian dream
• Its about making this world a better place to
  live in. For all!