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| Non-Discrimination |
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"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty." (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Paris 1948, art. 1 and 2)
"All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination." (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Paris 1948, art. 7) |
 The right to equality and the principle of non-discrimination are among the most fundamental elements of international human rights law. The right to equality guarantees, first and foremost, that all persons are equal before the law, which means that the law shall be formulated in general terms applicable to every human being and enforced in an equal manner. Secondly, all persons are entitled to equal protection of the law against arbitrary and discriminatory treatment by private actors. In this regard, the law shall prohibit any discrimination and guarantee to all persons equal and effective protection against discrimination on the grounds of race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, disability and health status, including HIV/AIDS, age, sexual orientation or other status.
Not every distinction constitutes discrimination since it might be based on reasonable and objective criteria. A law or policy that was originally considered reasonable might become discriminatory over time because of changing social values within a given society. As societies became better informed and more gender- and ethnicity-sensitive, they also tend to become more poverty-sensitive. Whereas poverty might have been regarded in earlier times as a kind of "natural phenomenon“, it is looked upon today as a social phenomenon aggravated by discrimination, which in turn requires corresponding anti-discrimination or even affirmative action by Governments. Addressing poverty as a human rights violation provides the necessary tools to identify those aspects of poverty have their roots in discriminatory practices and develop appropriate strategies to address them.
As discrimination may cause poverty, poverty also causes discrimination. In addition to their race, colour, gender or social origin, the poor are also subject to discriminatory attitudes by governmental authorities and private actors because they are poor. The twin principles of equality and non-discrimination require States to take special measures to prohibit discrimination against the poor and to provide them with equal and effective protection against discrimination.
 | Regional Implementation
This right is addressed by our projects in the following regions:- Africa - 2 projects
- Arab States - 1 project
- Asia and the Pacific - 3 projects
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Empowering marginalized adolescent girls in Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan to become agents of social transformation |
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Promoting of culturally appropriate policy responses to exploitative migration of women and children |
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Strengthening the most deprived communities in Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger |
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A comprehensive skill training and capacity building program to improve the socio-economic opportunities for marginalized youth in four Arab countries |
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Integrated approaches using formal and non-formal education as catalysts for poverty reduction among young girls in Cambodia, Indonesia and Nepal |
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Fighting urban poverty among young and female migrants in China and Mongolia through training, support and action |
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