Public Health

On July 9th 2013, the relationship between the status and rights of women, and the pervasive health issues were discussed on the panel titled "Access to Health: A Better Life for Woman and Girls." Panelists discussed efforts to improve access to health services, clean water and sanitation, as well as commodities in the supply chain to integrate services of health, education and nutrition. 

One of the intended uses of the WJP Rule of Law Index is as an action planning tool for global civil society. The Rule of Law Index truly comes alive when citizens are given the opportunity to analyze information and shape implementation with their own aspirations and situational context.

The health of a population provides another lens through which to examine value placed on human life by a government. All indices of health correlate positively with measures of justice. For example, members of Rule of Law abiding societies must be guaranteed "equal treatment and absence of discrimination" (Subfactor 4.1) and, Subfactor 4.2, "the right to life". Such individuals should be expected to have free access to health care and preventive health measures and enjoy long life, as a result. 

To mark World Health Day, IDLO Head of Social Development David Patterson issues a call to action.

NEW YORK, April 7, 2013—On World Health Day, we are reminded of the complexities of the health environments in which we live and work, and the health-related choices we make every day.  Asked who is responsible for our health, your answer will likely depend on how you regard human behavior and the ways in which external influences and factors can shape it. Each context is unique, and the ability of individuals to make healthful choices is unevenly, unequally distributed around the world. 

One example of how society has come to view gender and disability is demonstrated by the iconographic historical symbol of justice, the blindfolded Lady Justice.

On 10th December 1948 the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This was followed up in 1950 when the Assembly passed resolution 423 (V) that invited all Member States and interested organisations to adopt 10thDecember as Human Rights Day.

Economic growth is a recent historical phenomenon. In 1776 when Adam Smith published “An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations” 75% of humanity lived on less than a dollar a day and the average per capita income was about US$ $550 – an income level that was stagnant for 2,000 years.

SoFEA stands for Social and Financial Empowerment of Adolescents. The word means ‘Wisdom’ in Persian. The project symbolizes its namesake by enhancing knowledge level of vulnerable adolescent girls in rural Bangladesh on issues that are crucial for them to understand, not just as adolescents, but as individuals partaking in a complex society.

I would like to explore a new rule of law with you. A funny one. One that could confront you in the future (but you won’t know that until that future is there).

PILnet has been working to build public interest law in China for almost ten years. It’s been a fascinating period of our history, one that has taught us much about the virtues of patience and unhurried determination. As we’ve learned, things can move slowly in China, and public interest work in China can move very slowly indeed.

Event Title: 2011 Global Report on Refugee Trends  Location: National Press Club Date: 20 June 2012 Organization: UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) Speakers: Khaled Hosseini, Author, UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador 

“I am here to fight for a generation that is free of AIDS,” U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told thousands of participants at the International AIDS Conference on 23 July in Washington, D.C., reaffirming the U.S. commitment to combat AIDS. Although attendees welcomed her comments, calling it a “moral obligation” for the U.S. to continue supporting AIDS programs—Global Fund against AIDS, TB, and Malaria, PAPFAR—civil society leaders expressed concern over the devastating impact of cuts in funding, and lack of meaningful engagement with civil society on critical decisions.