The escalation of global challenges, including political violence, transnational crime, corruption, environmental crises, forced migration, health emergencies, disinformation and inequality, is worsened by the high level of polarization and fragmentation among regional groups within the United Nations, thus weakening the multilateral system. The current crisis calls for strengthening universal principles, including peace and international solidarity.
International solidarity is a principle that recalls the responsibility of States, international organizations, corporations and civil society to strengthen the enjoyment of human rights and peace by everyone through transnational networks of communication. It underscores the recognition by States that they must pay heed to their obligation to uphold “negative peace”—the absence of violence—by using their best efforts to ensure the pacific settlement of international disputes on behalf of their citizens as well as citizens of other countries. International solidarity also addresses “positive peace”—the guarantee of equality, non-discrimination, the elimination of structural violence, and cooperation—by promoting responsive policies that aim to emancipate vulnerable groups from marginalization, exclusion and oppression due to structural discrimination and violence. This includes women, children, indigenous peoples, minorities, persons with disabilities, migrants, refugees, human rights defenders and environmental activists.
As the United Nations Independent Expert on international solidarity, I have met many civil society groups who engage in human rights-based international solidarity initiatives but remain invisible due to the dominance of narratives of violence within the media. In an effort to make them more visible, I created the . We have identified categories linked to specific human rights and encourage civil society groups, academics, lawyers, students and others to upload pictures and descriptions of their activities to pursue networking. We hope to include examples of South-South solidarity as well as peace initiatives. The visualization of international solidarity actions conducted in the pursuit of human rights and peace is important in providing a more optimistic perspective for youth seeking direction to engage with a sense of purpose and connection.
In celebration of International Human Solidarity Day (20 December 2024) there is a need for everyone to reflect on how to implement the call of to show “reason and conscience… and act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood”.
The is grounded in the freedoms of expression and association, as well as the rights to equality and non-discrimination. It is designed to promote the inclusion of all in the enjoyment of human rights, in response to the phenomenon of the closing of civic spaces around the world, as set forth in Article 8 (3) of the Revised Draft Declaration: “In accordance with the right to freedom of expression, States have the duty to take steps within their respective capacities to facilitate the protection of actual and virtual spaces of communication, including access to the Internet and infrastructure, in order to enable individuals and peoples to share solidarity ideas.” International solidarity does not recognize nativistic, nationalistic, or xenophobic unitary solidarity groups that are defined by exclusionary attitudes towards others.
The Revised Draft Declaration on Human Rights and International Solidarity articulates a framework for preventive solidarity actions to promote intergenerational interests, including disarmament, environmental protection, sustainable agriculture and fishing, the transition to renewable energy and other measures relating to sustainable development. Moreover, it serves as a foundation to support reactive solidarity in the form of accountability for atrocity crimes, due diligence response to violence against women, cooperation in anti-corruption efforts to return assets to victims, restoration of cultural heritage through the protection of artists and their work, and provision of access to justice for refugees, as well the penalization of hate speech promoting societal violence and discrimination.
All States, international organizations, non-State actors and individuals have the duty to respect, protect and fulfill the right to international solidarity. The Revised Draft Declaration envisions the Universal Periodic Review as the implementing mechanism for international solidarity—States can share best practices and inspire each other. The principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” is recognized, hence each State can pursue the form of international solidarity that best matches their preferences and capabilities; for example, one State may provide South-South technology transfer, while another provides asylum to refugees from another region.
Moreover, the Revised Draft Declaration calls for the creation of transparent, accessible mechanisms for communication and response to solidarity demands presented by civil society, labor unions, indigenous peoples and other groups. Quite often, civil society groups consider corporations to be black boxes that are inaccessible for dialogue; there is a need to establish mechanisms that enable groups to discuss environmental, labor, security or other concerns, with corporate actors pursuing investment initiatives that impact local communities.
At the United Nations level, I call upon States to implement international solidarity by actively creating bridges between regional groups and to eliminate ideological attitudes that contradict the interlinkage and indivisibility of all human rights, in order to reinvigorate the multilateral system. International solidarity is a means to amplify all human rights—civil and political rights, as well as economic, social and cultural rights. It is notable that the Summit of the Future outcome documents invoke solidarity ten times; they provide a groundwork for future collaborative approaches to end the epoch of violence and restore peace. The principle of solidarity is also contained within national constitutions as well as regional instruments, including the and the .
On a final note, I wish to point out that my current status as the United Nations Independent Expert on human rights and international solidarity is the consequence of a long chain of solidarity practices and policies by States responding to historic events. My great-grandfather was able to leave Alsace-Lorraine when Prussia occupied the territory in 1870, during the Franco-Prussian War, because Argentina was actively recruiting Europeans to emigrate and help populate that nation. My grandparents were able to leave Poland during the Second World War because Buenos Aires kept the port open to Jewish people fleeing the war. My parents fled military dictatorship in Argentina, and were welcomed in the United States as doctors due to the war in Vietnam. Finally, I was allowed to enter Norway and pursue a doctorate in law in the country, where I am currently a professor at the University of Oslo. I wonder whether such solidarity policies are possible today, yet I retain hope that States will recognize the benefit of embracing international solidarity as a universal, integral characteristic of the history of humanity.
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