As the famous John Lennon song goes, “Imagine all the people living life in peace”. But what if we were to take that idea and apply it to something more concrete? Imagine a world where peace is not just a distant ideal, but a reality in which every person has access to health, education, security, food and basic services. A world where social welfare truly transforms our quality of life.

To realize this vision, it is crucial that countries have robust institutions and sufficient resources, much of which come from taxes. These resources ensure that all citizens receive the rights and services they deserve in a fair and transparent manner. In addition, it is essential that countries collaborate with each other, sharing policies, information and knowledge. Only in this way will we be able to build a fair global tax system, where both individuals and companies contribute according to their economic capacity, ensuring the adequate financing of essential rights and services for all of society.

A key aspect of achieving this goal is to adopt a human rights approach to how countries collect resources through their tax systems. This implies creating fairer taxes, where those who have more contribute more, which we know as progressivity, and where there are no differences in the application of taxes for those with similar economic characteristics, which we call equity. In addition, these resources should help to correct social inequalities. Although these concepts are not new, they have often been ignored by many governments around the world.

Another important step is to strengthen international tax cooperation. Today, several countries are promoting initiatives to integrate a human rights perspective into tax policy (tax and expenditure), involving not only policy makers, but also the general public. These initiatives are a major step towards the creation of regional and global alliances for international tax cooperation.

This collaboration will make it possible to combat tax competition between countries, ensuring that all apply similar tax rates and preventing some from charging less or even nothing at all, as is the case with tax havens. It will also facilitate the implementation of measures to address climate change caused by the economic activities of individuals and companies. In addition, it will help reduce reliance on consumption taxes, which often disproportionately affect the poorest people.

We can move closer to an ideal world if countries and their governments commit to mobilizing available resources based on principles of equity, progressiveness and cooperation. Only in this way can we ensure that people fully enjoy their economic, social, cultural and environmental rights.

For this reason, in this edition of the Newsletter, we will first explore the global challenges related to taxation, highlighting the most common problems and challenges for integrating human rights into tax policies worldwide. Then, we will focus on two important international tax cooperation initiatives in which Dejusticia has been actively involved.