UN enshrines water access as a human right
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The United Nations General Assembly has declared that access to clean water and sanitation is a fundamental human right.
But more than 40 countries failed to support the resolution that led to the declaration, including Australia.
Some of those who abstained were concerned that the resolution did not clearly define the scope of this new human right and the obligations it entailed.
Many states also worried that the vote would undercut an ongoing process to build consensus on the issue currently underway at a different forum in Geneva.
But others saw the resolution as a way to give impetus to the Human Rights Council process in Geneva and there was no shortage of statistics used to bolster the argument for urgent action.
Nearly 1 billion people lack clean drinking water and 2.6 billion do not have basic sanitation.
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