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{
    "id": 603039,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/603039/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 236,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Wako",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 366,
        "legal_name": "Amos Sitswila Wako",
        "slug": "amos-wako"
    },
    "content": "Thank you, Madam Speaker, for giving me this opportunity to speak on this very important debate. We all know that in the history of human rights, the economic and social rights are called “the second generation of rights.” The first generation of rights being the civil and political rights. When this second generation of human rights came, the thinking at that time was that you cannot sue a violation of economic and social rights, the way that you can sue a violation of civil and political rights. When it came to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the belief that you cannot take somebody to court on violation of economic and social rights was still there. Therefore, that Covenant talked about the progressive realisation of economic and social rights. That covenant also put in place a mechanism for the evaluation on whether any State is progressively realising those rights by optimally using its resources to ensure that we have economic and social development. A committee was formed under that Covenant just to monitor the situation on how progressive realisations are being done. Each member State of that Covenant is called to Geneva to say what they have done on this and that right and so on. Of course, our own Constitution became even more progressive on that issue because now under Clause 16, any person aggrieved by the implementation under this Act can proceed and file a case in court. This Bill now gives the opportunity for individuals to go to court. However, it will be foolhardy for an individual to say: “Because I do not have shelter now, I am filing a case against the Government to be given one because this is my right or I do not have food tonight, therefore, I am filing a case against the Government to give me food and so on.” That is why this Bill becomes very important. I want to bring that point home. It is now putting in place measurable steps, that before an individual can even go to court, he or she can say: “I am going to court because this Bill and its implementation, the strategic plans under it have not been followed by the State."
}