Date: 14 January 2015
Time: 09:00-17:00
Place: Colegio de Abogados de Zaragoza (Zaragoza Bar Association), Don Jaime I 18. 50001 Zaragoza
Conveners: Zaragoza Bar Association, the United Nations Office to Support the International Decade for Action “Water for Life”, Professor Antonio Embid of the Universidad de Zaragoza, the Human Rights Office of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, ONGAWA Engineering for Human Development, and Canal Foundation

The UN General Assembly Resolution 64/292, July 28, 2010, that recognized this human right, with the Resolution 68/157, December 18, 2013, approved by consensus, and the successive resolutions adopted in the Human Rights Council have given birth to an ample and fruitful process of legislative development and constitutional modification throughout countries of Latin America. This legislative process has been accompanied in some cases by adaptation of administrative practices and of management of water and sanitation services to guarantee the access and comply with the new obligations that derive from the existence of this right. The action of judges and prosecutors has proved to be fundamental to implement this in some cases, such that one could speak of the "judicialization of the application of the right", especially in what has been referred as contamination aspects that limit the access to "safe water".

>> Side event. The fulfilment of the human right to water and sanitation

1. Analyse the extent to which the right is actionable and how it is advancing in this sense;
2. Analyse what ways of non-legal fulfilment are most relevant and what is the role of the OSCs and other players;
3. What connection exists and how can both ways complement themselves.

The format of the event includes diverse spaces for debate, which helps prevent a division between speakers and the public; instead the protagonists will be all those present, who will be able to actively participate during the whole event. The participants in the parallel event are the experts who will speak, as well as all the other experts and entities interested in the human right to water and sanitation including judges, prosecutors, law professionals from Latin America, professors of international public law, administrative law, penal law, lawyers, water service company representatives, non-governmental organizations of human rights and water for development, associations of consumers, users, public defence, and public administration representatives.

This side event will take place in Spanish, no interpretation will be provided.