Statement by International Development Law Organization (IDLO), delivered by Henk-Jan Brinkman, Permanent Observer of IDLO to the United Nations in New York
Excellencies,
I would like to thank the Permanent Representatives of Ireland and Qatar for convening this consultation and the opportunity to take the floor on behalf of IDLO, the International Development Law Organization.
IDLO appreciates the open and inclusive consultative approach that Ambassadors Al- Thani and Mythen have taken in developing the zero-draft.
We welcome specific references to equal access to justice; effective rule of law and good governance; the UN Charter, international law and human rights; the empowerment of the most vulnerable; the commitment to accelerated action to remove legal and other barriers to gender equality; and the importance of strengthening the analysis of the interlinkages across the SDGs and targets, particularly on their synergies.
These are not just desirable outcomes in themselves, but are foundational elements for achieving the 2030 Agenda, without which there can be no sustainable development.
IDLO would put forward three further points for consideration to strengthen the Political Declaration. Firstly, and as a means in which to bolster acceleration, IDLO strongly recommends emphasis on the catalyzing effect of SDG16. Many of the states in this room have already acknowledged the centrality of SDG16 to the 2030 Agenda. Indeed, this was a sentiment echoed on 2 May in a meeting convened by the President of ECOSOC on “Unleashing the Transformative Power of SDG16.” The Political Declaration should, therefore, stress the transformative nature of SDG16 on the other SDGs.
Secondly, a people-centred approach should not only guide disaster risk-reduction, but rather, the 2030 Agenda in its entirety, particularly when it comes to strengthening institutions in general and justice mechanisms in particular. The policies, strategies, systems and processes designed to implement the SDGs should reflect and adequately respond to people’s needs.
Thirdly, the zero-draft should encourage Member States to make specific and measurable commitments at the global, regional and national level to accelerate SDG implementation, as the Secretary-General has requested. Improving access to justice, especially for women; fighting corruption and illicit financial flows; abolishing discriminatory laws; and strengthening the justice sector, is essential for restoring trust in institutions and achieving the 2030 Agenda. Thank you.