Editor       :     Arjun Sengupta, Archna Negi, Moushumi Basu

Publisher  :     Sage Publications India Pvt. Ltd.

Year          :     2005

Pages       :      368

 The right to development (RTD) remains one  of the most debated and contentious concepts in the discourses of ‘human rights’ as well as ‘development’. The emergence of the notion of such a right was linked with the demand articulated by the developing countries, in the 1970s, for a New International Economic Order (NIEO) in which their development needs would also be incorporated. This demand faced intense opposition from some developed countries and subsequently slipped off imperceptibly from the international agenda.

        With the adoption of the UN Declaration on the Right to Development in 1986 and the recognition of RTD as a human right in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action in 1993, the essential elements of debate over NIEO re-emerged in a different form, now packaged as the RTD debate, which returned to the mainstream of international discussion as the claim of the developing countries on a process of equitable development carried out with obligations of cooperation on the international community.

        The comeback RTD in the international arena as a composite right, integrating within its ambit the distinct categories of human rights – civil and political rights on the one hand and economic, social and cultural rights on the other – signifies  a growing recognition of the linkage between rights and development.

        Although there is no consensus over an exact definition of RTD as a concept, certain important ingredients of  its content can be determined from the reports of the then Independent Expert on the Right to Development (IERD)  that were submitted to the UN Commission on Human Rights between 1999 and 2003. This volume contains reflections on and responses to the notion of RTD, as enunciated in these reports.

        The chapters in this volume are broadly arranged in three sections on the basis of their focus. Section One is aimed at introducing the concept of RTD in its theoretical framework and historical aspects. It contains four chapters - one on the theoretical framework that links human rights with development, of which RTD is an integral part, one detailing the normative content of and implementation issues relating to RTD; one focusing on specific theoretical aspects of the human rights and RTD approaches; and one focusing on the historical evolution of the concept of RTD.

        Section Two contains empirical studies that throw light on various aspects of the RTD concept. The first chapter is a case study of the development process in Sri Lanka viewed from and RTD perspective. The second chapter is a study of poverty in India and brings out some interesting observations from an RTD viewpoint. The third views development in Kerala through the lens of one particular component of the RTD framework -participation.

        The last chapter in this section examines the relationship of the existing international economic regimes and RTD. Section Three is devoted exclusively to two studies on the linkages of rights with the ‘social choice’ framework.

                An important contribution that enhances our understanding of RTD and provides the basis for further discussion and research on the subject, this volume will be of considerable interest to researches in the fields of development studies, human rights, law and social policy. q      

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