A/HRC/20/25/Add.1 housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right to non-discrimination in this context, to assess the draft laws and their subsequent implementation. D. Social security and social protection 69. The Government of Timor-Leste has shown a clear commitment to investing in social protection programmes. However, the size and adequacy of the individual social protection programmes vary significantly; the veterans’ payment (Pensions for Combatants and Martyrs of the Struggle for National Liberation) is the most generous programme and represents 69 per cent of the total social protection budget, while the conditional cash transfer programme targeted primarily at female-headed households (Bolsa da Mãe) receives only 2 per cent of the total budget and distributes the smallest benefits. 70. The Special Rapporteur commends the Government for its efforts to expand and implement social protection programmes, and notes the importance of a strong legal and institutional framework in ensuring that the programmes will outlast the political cycle and not be manipulated for political purposes. Nonetheless, she has some concerns about the lack of assessment of the human rights impact of some components of the programmes. 71. From a human rights perspective, universal social protection schemes are the best way for States to meet their human rights obligations to ensure that there is no discrimination in the selection of beneficiaries. In this regard, the Special Rapporteur commends the Government for the universal approach it has taken with respect to the pension for older persons and the disability pension.80 However, she is concerned about the high incidence of exclusion errors in the delivery of social protection. According to a 2011 survey, for example, 86 per cent of persons with disabilities do not receive the disability pension.81 Social protection programmes should prioritize reaching the poorest of the poor, before moving to progressively wider coverage; in Timor-Leste only half of the transfers go to the poorest segment of society and about 25 per cent of transfers go to the richest households.82 72. In most of the programmes, eligible households are invited to receive benefits by the Chefe do Suco (village chief). This targeting method raises serious human rights concerns that must be addressed by the Ministry of Social Solidarity. While community leaders may have better knowledge about who is experiencing poverty in their community, this mode of targeting has the potential to reinforce power structures, patron-client relations and local gender norms, creating tensions and further stigmatizing some groups in the community. Including community leaders in the targeting process also creates opportunities for bribery and the abuse of power. Considering that women are less able to influence decision-making processes, they run the risk of being excluded. 73. The Special Rapporteur calls on the Government to ensure that social programmes avoid perpetuating asymmetries of power in the communities and actively seek to enable the most disadvantaged and excluded members of the community to benefit from the programme. Special attention must be given to ensuring that all aspects of the programme are gender sensitive. Doing so requires the active participation of women, and policymakers 80 81 82 Decree-Law 19/2008. ―Social assistance for a changing Timor-Leste: selected findings from the first Timor-Leste Social Protection Survey 2011‖, presentation by the World Bank at the conference entitled ―10 Years on: The Contribution of Social Programmes to the Construction of the Social State in Timor-Leste‖, Dili, 16 February 2012. Ibid. 19