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The right to water and sanitation is not explicitly recognized in the Brazilian Constitution of 1988, although it could be argued that it is recognized implicitly through the rights to life, health, housing and food.18 The Special Rapporteur calls for an explicit inclusion of the right to water and sanitation in the Constitution. (...) Among the measures to be taken by the State, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recommends the adoption of “… appropriate tariff policies, such as water supply free of charge or at a lower cost.”40 The Special Rapporteur highlights the urgent need to establish national criteria regarding the suspension or interruption of water supply, which should be linked to the definition of a fair social tariff. (...) To overcome those problems, it is essential that the Federal Government holistically addresses the situation of lack of access to water and sanitation in “irregular” favelas. As stated above, criteria for physical and financial accessibility of water and sewerage services need to be established, and all providers should be required to supply the informal and irregular settlements. 1.

Those who wish to celebrate marriages within their communities with immediate legal effect under the Danish marriage law (which is a secular law) need the status of a “recognized” or “acknowledged” religious community. Until 1970, such an act of “recognition” was given by royal decree; since 1970 it is the Ministry for Ecclesiastical Affairs that grants “acknowledgment”, the effects of which come close to those of the previous recognition procedure. (...) Cases of denial of acknowledgement have been rare; one example is the Church of Scientology, whose applications were turned down in 1971 and 1984; another application by Scientology was withdrawn by the applicant organization itself in 2000. The criteria for granting acknowledgment are currently in a process of evaluation and reform led by a special commission. (...) For limitations to be justifiable, a much more refined set of criteria must be met to ensure that limitations always remain exceptions to the rule that human beings should exercise their rights to freedom, including in the area of religion or belief.

The Special Rapporteur emphasizes the need to establish and apply objective criteria for the selection and promotion of judges8 in order to place the focus on candidates’ abilities and integrity and on merit. (...) A system for the entire judiciary in which the appointment, promotion and removal of judges are based on objective criteria should be established. Open competitive selection mechanisms should be used throughout the country so that the best possible professional can be selected for each position on the basis of objective, transparent criteria that incorporate a gender perspective. 25. (...) Under the proposed reform, which would amend 11 articles of the Constitution, the human rights standards set forth in international treaties would be expressly recognized in article 1.18 If passed, this reform would contribute to the effective protection of human rights, to the implementation of recommendations and judgements issued by international human rights organizations and to the development of the Supreme Court’s jurisprudence in the area of human rights.

The principle of making a legal distinction between recognized and non-recognized religions was criticized by a number of people who spoke to the Special Rapporteur. (...) Some minorities from both recognized and non-recognized religions complained about being described in the media in erroneous and slanderous terms. (...) The Special Rapporteur notes that this distinction between two kinds of religious or faith-based communities means that the financial contributions made to recognized religions are not available to non-recognized religions, that non-recognized religions, unlike recognized religions, are not entitled to build places of worship and that non-recognized religions cannot provide religious instruction in State schools in the same way as

No one shall be held in servitude or be required to perform forced or compulsory labour; 1.6.2.4 Torture No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; 1.6.2.5 Fair Trial (a) Anyone who is arrested shall be informed, at the time of arrest, of the reasons for hisher arrest and shall be promptly informed of any charges against h i d e r ; (b) In the determination of any criminal charges against h i d e r , or of hisher rights and obligations in a suit at law, everyone shall be entitled to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established by law; (c) Everyone charged with a criminal offence shall have the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law; (d) No one shall be held guilty of any criminal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a criminal offence under national or international law at the time when it was committed; (e) In the determination of any criminal charge against himher, everyone shall be entitled, in full equality, to be tried without undue delay, to be tried in hisher presence and to defend himselfherself in person or through legal assistance of hisher own choosing and to have legal assistance assigned to h i d e r in any case where the interests of justice so require. 1.6.2.6 Privacy No one shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with hisher privacy, family, home or correspondence; 1.6.2.7 Freedom of Thought, Conscience and Religion Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience 1.6.2.8 Freedom of Expression Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; 1.6.2.9 Freedom of Assembly and Association The right of peaceful assembly shall be recognized. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of association with others, including the right to form and join trade unions for the protection of hisher interests; 1.6.2.10 Family and Marriage (a) The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State; The right of men and women of marriageable age to marry and to found a family shall be recognized, according to their respective family laws.

In that regard, it was noted that many States seemed to have conflated the obligation to provide assistance to trafficked persons with the need to issue residence permits, which appeared to have contributed to the introduction of increasingly restrictive criteria both for identification and the provision of assistance. (...) Sustainability was ensured as beneficiaries gradually took over the running of the business, and stigma reportedly faded gradually as the women were recognized as income-earning members of the community. (...) A key element in obtaining the buy-in of trade unions on this issue was that they recognized its potential to benefit their members through the maintenance of high labour standards.

According to Government estimates, the poverty rate has declined from 58.1 per cent in 1993 to 14.5 per cent in 2008.1 The country has recently been recognized as having achieved “middle-income” status. 7. (...) The right to social security (protection) is not explicitly recognized in the Constitution. However, several provisions under Chapter V provide a legal foundation for social protection and other important social policies.6 10. (...) Budgetary support to ethnic minority poverty reduction initiatives must be enhanced and creative strategies developed to ensure adequate targeting to the specific situation of ethnic minorities, as recognized by the Government in recent evaluations.22 In this regard, it is also crucial that the Government improves data collection and develops disaggregated data for all ethnic minority groups to ensure that poverty reduction policies distinguish between the various ethnic groups and their members.

On that occasion, he acknowledged supportive statements made by the Minister of the Interior and the Attorney General, who recognized the active and positive role played by human rights defenders in society. 5. (...) Even though the freedom of association is also constitutionally recognized, a diverse range of active non-governmental organizations sometimes face violence, including threats and killings. (...) Their activities should be recognized as a part of broader human rights work. The national brigades for the search for disappeared persons and the broader movement of families of the disappeared have helped to prevent many disappearances. 72.

To that end, it establishes certain criteria for the protection of landholdings that contain settlements. These criteria include “rehabilitating,‫ managing‫ and‫ conserving‫ land‫ …‫ the‫ fundamental‫ basis‫ of‫ productive‫ sustainability”‫ (para.‫ 25‫ (a))‫and‫ “encouraging‫ the‫development‫of‫ diversified‫production‫ systems‫ for‫ family‫with,‫use‫ the‫aim‫of‫achieving‫ food‫security‫ for‫ the‫ family”‫ (para.‫25‫ (b)). 34. (...) Now, however, it is recognized that different forms of malnutrition coexist in most countries.38 73.

In his 2008 report to the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/8/5), and following extensive research and consultation, the Special Representative set out six criteria or principles (para. 92) that should underpin any non-judicial grievance mechanism: legitimacy, accessibility, predictability, equitability, rights-compatibility and transparency. (...) Given its applicability to other forms of non-judicial grievance mechanism, it is reflected in the revised version of the principles (or effectiveness criteria) included in the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. (...) But other factors – including other effectiveness criteria discussed in this report, not least, transparency, dialogue and engagement – may be equally, or more, important.