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Statements/ Declarations

Declarations

During it's existence, SCORP has produced several declarations. The complete list is as follows:

The SCORP statement

The SCORP statement clarifies the grounds and reasons why this Standing Committee exists.

Click here to see the SCORP statement

Uganda Declaration of 1997

We, the delegates of the First International Training Workshop of the International Federation of Medical Students' Associations (IFMSA), the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) and the Federation of African Medical Students' Associations (FAMSA) on Human Rights and Medicine affirm that Human Rights are:

universal, interdependent and indivisible;
a collective responsibility.

Because human rights violations affect the health of the people, we call upon all medical students to:

Article I Advocate for the inclusion of human rights education in the medical curriculum, with the emphasis on the prevention of human rights violations,

Article II Co-operate with efforts to monitor, document and report human rights violations and to create a network for the same,

Article III Organise fora and training workshops to equip students on human rights education and advocacy,

Article IV Condemn all acts of torture and genocide, especially the involvement of health professionals in the commission of such atrocities, and Article V Urge governments to:

a. promote and protect human rights

b. provide appropriate measures for the identification and protection of all vulnerable groups, including refugees,

c. recognise, respect and give access to independent bodies which play an active and critical role in the enforcement of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law.

Adopted with a collective spirit for a just and peaceful world this 31st day of August 1997 in Kampala, Uganda

The Right to Health Declaration

We, the participants of the first IFMSA training workshop on Human Rights and Medicine organised by IFMSA, IPPNW and FAMSA

Bearing in mind the principles and purposes of United Nations Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as well as the relevant international instruments relating to human rights including everyone's rights to enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health,

Recalling the states obligations under the above-mentioned instruments to create conditions to ensure the full realisation of all Human Rights including "Health Rights" taking into consideration that some at their present stage of development can devote only limited efforts to this end,

Mindful of the role of the health professionals and the responsibilities they have accepted under the Hippocratic oath,

Concerned about the fact that confronted with economic constraints, health professionals are compelled to channel their expertise elsewhere other than their country of origin for better working and living conditions. And also that the absence of the health professionals leads to a decline in health service delivery and quality.

We declare that, States should recognise everybody's right to Health Care and work towards improving and sustaining health conditions and wellbeing of their population by

Improving the health care system by
a. Creating a conductive economic working environment for health professionals motivation in view of preventing a brain drain.
b. Providing up to date and adequate training
c. Encouraging doctor involvement in formulation, monitoring and evaluation of the national plan for action for Health Care.
Improving and ensuring that there are adequate physical facilities and supplies in health institutions.
Ensuring the enjoyment of everyone's right to social security and social insurance.
Improving community health programmes, that is, support programmes and initiatives of students in community health programmes and ensure adequate staffing of such programmes.

We, medical students, shall commit ourselves to reminding the national authorities of their responsibilities as referred to in this declaration and shall participate to the best of our abilities in its realisation.

Adopted in Kampala, Uganda, this 31st day of AUGUST 1997

Health Through Peace Declaration

We, as medical students, acknowledge that the Declaration of Geneva obliges that we pledge to dedicate our lives to humanity. The World Health Organisation defines health "as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." It follows that health care must not only target physical and psychological manifestations of disease, but must also encompass the environmental, political and social situations with which they are intertwined.

Specifically, we must recognise that violent conflicts, human rights abuses and global militarisation have had and continue to have detrimental health effects on human populations and must be addressed by future doctors. Realising that current medical school curricula inadequately incorporates these issues,

We declare that,

Medical schools should provide both theoretical training and research opportunities on the health consequences of conflict, especially the themes of human rights violations, nuclear disarmament and war situations.
Medical schools should provide clinical training in order to appropriately equip physicians with the skills to address both interpersonal and global conflict on three levels of prevention:
i. primary prevention: research and interventions that addresses the root causes of conflicts
ii. secondary prevention: the impartial mediation of emerging and existing conflicts.
iii. tertiary prevention: the healing of personal and societal consequences of conflicts.

We, as future physicians, share the responsibility for our education. We therefore call upon medical schools to integrate the stated articles into our curricula

This declaration was unanimously adopted by the participants of The Health through Peace Training in The Hague on the 11th of May, 1999

The Manila Declaration of 1999

We, the participants to the First Asia-Pacific Training on Medicine and Human Rights strongly believe that Human Rights are essential to the attainment of Health for All. We firmly believe that Health and Human Rights are interdependent and indivisible.

We affirm that the promotion and protection of Health and Human Rights is the duty and responsibility of all peoples regardless of age, sexuality, resources, capability, faith, belief, race or color.

In this spirit, we call on all students of health, law and other disciplines to:

Article I: Advocate for the inclusion of Human Rights education in the health, legal and other professional curriculum by utilizing the appropriate fora, with adequate student representation and participation in the drafting of the same.
Article II: Cooperate with efforts to monitor, document, report and prevent Human Rights violations and to establish a

network of the same.
Article III: Organize fora to discuss and gain consensus on the issue of universality of Human Rights and the application of existing human rights standards while taking into account the cultural differences among students in the Asia-Pacific Region.
Article IV: Organize similar workshops and seminars to equip students with the skills to promote Human Rights education

and advocacy
Article V: Encourage student exposure, integration and advocacy among the marginalized and vulnerable sectors in society
Article VI: Condemn all acts and forms of torture, especially the involvement of health and legal professionals in the conduct of such inhuman and degrading activities.
Article VII: Condemn the manufacture, stockpiling and sale of landmines, the use of which indiscriminately denies its victims of the basic right to life
Article VIII: Affirm that children' rights are human rights, and in effect condemn all forms of child abuse and exploitation
Article IX: Advocate and promote the fundamental belief that the right to health knows no discrimination, and that health and legal professionals be considered neutral in times of conflict and war, especially in the performance of their duty.
Article X: Acknowledge the sovereignty of East Timor and its people's right to self-determination.
Article XI: Denounce armed conflict as an instrument of international policy
Article XII: Affirm the right of Indigenous peoples to self-determination and development
Article XIII: Support the call for protection and granting of equal rights to Migrant Workers
Article XIV: Advocate for the rights of workers to a healthy and safe workplace and their entitlement to just compensation
Article XV: Affirm the individual's right to access and free choice in availing of Reproductive Health information and services
Article XVI: Uphold the right of refugees to protection and support.
Article XVII: Urge governments and other parties to:
a. Promote, protect and uphold human rights

b. Provide for appropriate measures in the identification, protection,

rehabilitation and reintegration of vulnerable groups

c. Recognze, respect and allow access of independent bodies which play an active and critical role in the application of Human Rights and International Law

d. Recognize the need to provide for all individuals equal and immediate access to appropriate health care and legal assistance

e. Recognize that Human Rights should be respected regardless of age, sexuality, resources, capability, faith, belief, race or color.

Done this 29th day of October 1999 in Manila, Philippines

The Students' Credo for Human Rights

To see when other won't

To listen when people refuse to

And to speak for those who can't

To feel when other have lost all feeling

To stand in memory of those who have fought and fallen

And what they have fought for.

To stand with those who are fighting still

And for those who cannot stand for themselves.

To serve when called,

To heal when needed,

To understand before judge

Beyond sexuality, resources and capability

Beyond race, color, faith or belief

To treat people as we would treat ourselves

And to fight for their rights as we would do our own.

Because inequality is an illusion

And each person a reflection of ourselves.

To respect the right to life

To preserve human dignity

To promote and protect everyone's right and potential for development

In upholding Human Rights

We affirm our humanity,

With one voice, one mind, and one heart,

We make and keep this vow

Penned by John Philip Pestano

Unanimously affirmed by the participants to the 1st Asia-Pacific Training on Medicine and Human Rights, Manila Philippines, October 1999

Extraordinary Resolution on Mozambique

We, as delegates of medical students associations from 64 countries all over the world, have gathered together on the occasion of the Exchange Officers Meeting and the Extra-ordinary General Assembly in Kuopio, Finland from March 3rd - 8th, 2000.

The conference has coincided with floods in Mozambique, which have ravished the country and have affected over a million people, as homes have been obliterated and hundreds of thousands of acres of agricultural land and crops have been destroyed. A further cyclone is expected to hit the country in the next few days, which can only exacerbate an already desperate situation.

We note:

The severe impact that the flooding is certain to have on public health, as water-borne diseases begin to spread in an impoverished country where the health infrastructure has either been destroyed by the floods or was inadequate prior to the disaster;
The fact that Mozambique is still paying $ 1.4 million per week to its creditors which will only be reduced to $ 1.2 million a week when it is due to receive debt relief in April 2000;
According to Oxfam, the budget for primary healthcare in Mozambique is $385,000 per week;
The World Medical Association Resolution in October 1998, which stated that debt and structural adjustment in developing countries around the world has reduced spending on health, and which called on the creditors to absolve the debts of the world's poorest countries;
The appeal by the Mozambique government for substantial aid and total cancellation of Mozambique's $8.3 billion debt;
The work of the international Jubilee 2000 movement which calls for the cancellation of the unplayable debt of the world's poorest countries by the year 2000.

We express our deep concern about the severe impact that the floods will have on the health of the population in both the short-term and as Mozambique tries to rebuild its economy and social structures.

We publicly call for:

A generous financial response by the international community that will address the scale of the disaster and enable Mozambique to overcome the immediate and long-term effects of the floods; The immediate and total cancellation for Mozambique's external debt of $ 8.3 billion so that the resources set aside for debt payments can be used instead for the people of Mozambique; A renewed commitment by the world's richest countries to address the critical under-investment in health in many developing countries, including deeper debt cancellation and fairer trade relations.

Delegates to the IFMSA Exchange Officers' Meeting and Extraordinary General Assembly in Kuopio, Finland on this 4th day of March 2000

SCORP Statement

Refugees are of a special concern to medical students because:

There are problems and needs of refugees from a health perspective
Violence and conflict is the main reason for refugees

SCORP is involved in refugee problems because:

Working in relief projects, students provide medical assistance, health education and rehabilitation in chronic situations
Taking part in projects, with their enthusiasm, students bring friendship and hope into the local community which helps to rebuild self esteem of the refugees
Medical students can raise national and global awareness and sensitisation on the threat to health of violent conflicts via articles, seminars, workshops and summer schools
We want to educate and empower medical students, to see root causes of conflict through self experience, and build a future generation of informed and concerned health personnel

Displaced people

The root causes of displacement are violence, conflict and natural catastrophes
As medical students we seek to advocate for their prevention and to promote peace and tolerance
SCORP organises medical students participating in relief projects in displaced
areas
Assistance can be through health care, health training and rehabilitation,
reinforcing hope, self esteem, enthusiasm and friendship. NGO's often have
too little time to impact
Displaced people are neglected by the media and unprotected by international
conventions
Through personal experience, workshops, lectures and seminars and other
awareness raising activities, students can sensitise communities to the situation of the displaced

Human Rights issues concern medical students because:

Violations of the Human Rights have a negative effect on physical and mental
health
Medical workers are often the ones to first witness/ detect Human Rights Violations
Medical professionals are sometimes forced to take part in Human Rights violations
Medical institutions and workers are often targets in situations where Human
Rights are violated

SCORP should be involved in Human Rights promotion because:

The Standing committee deals with special groups, such as refugees and
displaced people who are particularly exposed to Human Rights violations
SCORP is actively working towards creating peace. A way of accomplishing this is to prevent Human Rights violations
Since Human Rights is a very broad issue it should have links with all the
standing committees

Conflict prevention:

Medical students as future doctors have to recognise and understand the
existence of minority groups (refugees, different cultural, ethnical or religious
background, different sexual focus) and then their special needs concerning
health care
Due to discrimination, lack of communication and isolation there is a big
potential for conflicts in a society, that medical students as future doctors
should recognise and act upon

This can be done by:

Offering training on ethical codes for medical students and doctors
Raising awareness in a society
Facilitate proper communication between minority groups and society

As doctors are regarded by society as trusted, neutral persons, they are in a position to detect conflicts in an early stage. Medical students should be aware of their role in this
Medical students as future doctors have to advocate the elimination or limitation of weapon production and trade, and have to recognise and treat the physical, psychological and social consequences of weapons
In order to prevent conflicts on an interstate level medical students should raise awareness of the health consequences of those conflicts

These statements were put together by the SCORP working committee during the IFMSA GA in Hurghada, Egypt in August 1998.