Rights-based Development: Linking Rights and Participation - Challenges in Thinking and Action

Post‐sustainable development

“…After all grassroots groups are not exactly rare in SD, including within Western contexts (Newman, 2007), and most development practitioners would see participation as a human right and not just as a means of 'delivering better development' (Miller and VeneKlasen, 2005a). Indeed Sellamna (1999) makes a case that PRA/PLA are attempts to realise the post-development ethos.…”

“…There are a number of reasons for this (Miller et al, 2005a(Miller et al, , 2005b, but perhaps the Post-Sustainable Development 12 foremost is that many developing countries emerged from a non-democratic colonial past during the late 1950s and 1960s. Truman was highly critical of colonialism and the US was a major force in encouraging disengagement of its European friends from their Empires.…”

Challenging the Asymmetries of Power: A Review of the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) Contribution

“…In the same volume, Just Associates 3 argue that rights can be packaged as another technical fix that doesn't challenge structural inequalities and sources of power (Miller, VeneKlasen and Clark 2005).…”

Citizen participation and accountability for sustainable development

“…Meaningful processes of accountability must therefore be grounded in an environment that enables collective identity and a sense of belonging to a community through relationships of solidarity. As argued by Miller et al (2005a), it is critical that citizens have the space to develop a sense of themselves as subjects of rights, and to build their capacity to engage with the political process that shapes the extent to which rights are realised in people's lives. Collective action therefore faces important challenges and opportunities when driving change in a space of political power and legal rights.…”

“…For transgender persons in India the provision of laws for sexual minorities is seen as an important mechanism for government to help end discrimination. The scope of recognised rights and the degree to which people can claim and exercise those rights shifts in response to changing power dynamics; what is critical is that where these rights are accepted, they are made real in people's lives (Miller et al 2005a). Community organisations and movements are also finding opportunities to demand accountability by claiming rights as legal entitlements and access to justice for marginalised groups.…”