International Human Rights and Governing Land Grabbing: A View from Global Civil Society

Abstract

The current international responses to the global land grab are insufficient in the sense that they address some aspects of the problem but leave outside their scope important situations of human rights violations and abuses. To address this governance gap, this essay argues for the promotion and application of the right to land as a human right. Globalization in general and the global land grab in particular make it necessary to pay particular attention to the international and transnational dimension of the human right to land. Extraterritorial human rights obligations (ETOs) may turn out to be the missing link for human rights to acquire the conceptual robustness for upholding legal primacy over all other legal regimes such as trade and finance in times of deepening globalization.

Governing the Global Land Grab

“…In developing a negotiation strategy, the NGO community asked itself, ‘What would be a more expansive concept around which to build global governance that addresses … the current wave of land grabbing? We argue that making the right to land operational as a human right is the way forward‘ (Kunnemann and Suarez, , p. 129). The rationale for this proposal was grounded on the ‘normative and legal basis that exists around … human rights’ which advocates believed could be applied to non‐formalized land tenure, given that this framework had already been applied to particular cases, for example, the rights of indigenous peoples to the lands they had customarily used (Kunnemann and Suarez, , p. 130).…”

“…We argue that making the right to land operational as a human right is the way forward‘ (Kunnemann and Suarez, , p. 129). The rationale for this proposal was grounded on the ‘normative and legal basis that exists around … human rights’ which advocates believed could be applied to non‐formalized land tenure, given that this framework had already been applied to particular cases, for example, the rights of indigenous peoples to the lands they had customarily used (Kunnemann and Suarez, , p. 130). But these advocates also recognized that ‘[r]elying on … human rights to get at the land issue is a risky strategy’ (Kunnemann and Suarez, , 130).…”

“…Advocacy groups viewed the transformation of land acquisition into an issue of human rights as an effective way of (re)framing the land problem, giving those with the least voice in the global economy potentially more leverage than they might otherwise possess over policy outcomes that affected their welfare (Kunnemann and Suarez, ). In particular, social advocates were convinced that many governments and multinational firms would not wish to be accused of violating the human rights of customary users or being accused of land grabbing.…”

The Global Politics of Water Grabbing

“…This has for instance led to the inclusion of access to land as part of 'the right to feed oneself'. 73 Although there is as yet no distinct human right to land, the pressure to establish such a right remains. 74 There is a globally recognised right to water but it remains conceptually ambiguous and so far has had limited value in being a countervailing force against grabbing processes.…”

PRF - The right to food: Many developments, more challenges

“…So has the alliance with other local and national movements and organizations working towards food justice (Holt-Gimenez, 2011), agroecology (Holt-Giménez, 2010), climate justice (Bullard & Müller, 2012), critical consumption (Pleyers, 2011), and transition (Sage, 2014). The idea of a human right to land and territory (Künnemann & Monsalve Suárez, 2013) could emerge as a galvanizing and alliance-creating frame in the years to come. This is possible if institutional developments-such as the recognition of a new human right to land (De Schutter, 2010) in international law-works hand in hand with social mobilizations around "land sovereignty" (Borras & Franco, 2012).…”