Sanitation, human rights, and disaster management

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to link debates around the international law on human rights and disaster management with the evolving debate around the human right to sanitation, in order to explore the extent to which states are obliged to account for sanitation in their disaster management efforts. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on analysis of existing laws and policy relating to human rights, sanitation and disaster management. It further draws upon relevant academic literature. Findings The paper concludes that, while limitations exist, states have legal obligations to provide sanitation to persons affected by a disaster. It is further argued that a human rights-based approach to sanitation, if respected, can assist in strengthening disaster management efforts, while focusing on the persons who need it the most. Research limitations/implications The analysis in this paper focuses on the obligations of states for people on their territory. Due to space limitations, it does not examine the complex issues relating to enforcement mechanisms available to disaster victims. Originality/value This is the first scholarly work directly linking the debates around international human rights law and disaster management, with human rights obligations in relation to sanitation. The clarification of obligation in relation to sanitation can assist in advocacy and planning, as well as in ensuring accountability and responsibility for human rights breaches in the disaster context

The right to water in a transboundary context: emergence of seminal trends

Water is becoming increasingly scarce. Unequal geographic distribution of freshwater resources puts populations in certain regions at risk. Legal development has been responding to this human vulnerability. The human right to water is receiving increasing recognition. Along with growing recognition of the right to water comes the identification of clear legal contours of State obligations with respect to water availability, access and supply, as well as with respect to protection of these individual water rights. Questions remain however as to whether there exist obligations between States to overcome the international imbalance in water distribution. Recent instruments of transboundary water law have introduced new levels of protection of vital human water needs. But are “water-rich” States under any legal obligation to provide the resource to “water-poor” States? This paper explores the question from the perspective of international water law as well as with respect to human rights law