ISLAMABAD, Dec 18: A Unesco official has declared poverty a human rights violation and urged the government and the civil society organizations working for human rights to make the issue a focal point of their agenda.

“There is a difference between a human right issue and a human right violation and Unesco considers poverty a serious human rights violation”, Pierre Sane ADG/SHS, Unesco, Paris, said this at a discussion on “Poverty and human rights — the Pakistan case”, arranged by the Parliamentary Commission on Human Rights (PCHR) at the National Assembly committee room here on Wednesday

Mr Sane said in the post-cold war era, human rights promotion has gained worldwide significance and urged the human rights organizations to make the issue of poverty a central point in their agendas and take it as a human rights violation.

He lauded the PCHR for providing an effective forum for its work in the field of human rights so far and said that a lot more is needed to be done.

Prof Khwaja Masud said that the real cause of poverty in Pakistan is the regional conflict due to which both Pakistan and India spend hefty amount on defence.