Rio Declaration On Environment and Development: An Assessment

The right to development is a principle which the South regarded as
among the most basic principles for the Declaration. The developed
countries fought very hard against the inclusion of the right to
development until the absolute end in the PrepCom IV negotiations.
The South remained firm and this led to one of the most intellectually
stimulating discussions on development during the negotiations.
The G77 and China had proposed the following:
“The inalienable right of States and people to development must be
fulfilled in order to meet the environmental needs of present and
future generations. Equity within the present generation shall take
into account environmental damage caused in the past, as well as
the developmental and environmental needs of present and future
generations.”
Russia was supportive of the first sentence, but wanted to delete the
second. All the Northern industrialised countries asked for a deletion
of the entire principle. Various alternatives were put on the table,
covering a wide range of concerns contained in the G77 proposal but
without acknowledgement of the right to development.
The Netherlands, speaking on behalf of the EU, said that development
cannot be unlimited and that the complex relationship between
development and the capacity of the earth was important. A right
to development would thus be unacceptable. The EU then proposed
the following: “Human beings are entitled to the benefits of full
sustainable development.”
In response, the G77 spokesman said that no government can deny
that it has commitments to both the international community and
its own people. If one talks about limits to growth and looks at how
much is being consumed in the US, and how through television
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