It can, but the process is not nearly as straightforward. Let me explain why, and how we might proceed. The difficulty with invoking economic and social rights is that the duty to respect them is far more qualified than the duty to respect civil and political rights. Governments are expected to uphold civil and political rights immediately. By contrast, the economic and social rights treaty allows its rights to be fulfilled gradually, over time.
Governments can deflect criticism by blaming others.
There is no easy way to move beyond this finger-pointing. Or, governments can simply assert that their current contributions, stingy as they might be, are all they owe to meet the AIDS challenge. Again, there are no clear benchmarks by which to rebut these claims.