THE Human Rights Day and Human Rights Week Presidential Proclamation of this year read:
Six and a half decades ago, delegates from around the world convened to adopt the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, rejecting the notion that individual aspirations should be subject to the whims of tyrants and empires, and affirming every person’s right to liberty, equality and justice under the law.
On Human Rights Day and during Human Rights Week, we resolve not only to celebrate these ideals, but also to advance them.
Humanity thrives because of our differences; the exchange of ideas among vibrant cultures is a source of innovation, beauty and vitality.
Yet across the globe, our common and inalienable rights bind us as one.
All women and men across borders and regardless of race, creed, sexual orientation, gender identity or income level share the freedoms of expression, religion, assembly and association.
We all have the right to take part in government, directly or through freely elected representatives. And as societies, we have the right to choose our own destiny.
But in many parts of the world, people are still persecuted for their beliefs, imprisoned for their ideals and punished for their convictions.
A growing number of countries are passing laws designed to stifle civil society including organisations that promote universal human rights, support good governance, and bolster economic development.
Securing freedoms that are threatened or denied, amplify the courageous voices that sound the call for change, and reaffirm our unwavering support for the principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Interestingly enough in the midst of all this self praising and pontificating, a broad umbrella group of American human rights and civil rights groups have filed a joint submission to the United Nations, calling for the United States and the Obama administration to hold itself to the same international standards of human rights compliance as it does other nations.
In one of the statements made by a member of this umbrella group, Meena Jagannath of the Community Justice Project highlighted that “The government wants to say ‘compared to Somalia, we’re great’.
“But at the end of the day, even the US cannot comply with its obligations under human rights treatise.”
Earlier this year the United Nations called on federal officials to demonstrate compliance by examining the discriminatory impact of policies like stop and frisk, a practice implemented by the New York Police Department mainly to black men.
In a way I think our brothers and sisters here in America’s civil society organisations have taken a lead after realising that their government prioritises the political part of Human Rights and neglects the social part.
A strong social base is what is needed for minorities in America to force their way into being treated as equals.
America, which seems to have the monopoly on all things good, democratic and right still engages in social injustice by condoning racial profiling, not fighting gun violence, looking the other way when young black children are gunned down in the streets by white trigger happy cops and stop and frisk policies.
Surprisingly, the traditional Human Rights groups seem not to pay much attention to America when it comes to compiling their annual Human Rights Country reports.
In fact I have noted that it has become a trend for these groups to start off their reports on America with a line that reads “Recognising the positive steps that the US has made towards the achievement of human rights ….”
I mean, really; America with its gross violation of Human Rights, failure to protect human rights defenders within its borders (it actually persecutes them) and failure to take effective measures to address violations of human rights, has done a lot to further the human rights cause.
Interestingly enough the same measure used to denounce ‘tyrants’ like Russian and Chinese Governments as human rights violators is never used on America.
America is the only country running a long term detention camp, where it is holding persons, prisoner without due process of the law, not only that these persons are subjected to all forms of inhuman practices and torture.
All this because they are suspected of being ‘terrorists’ or having links to terrorist groups like Al Qaeda.
Lest we forget, this Al Qaeda which Americans have been told is public enemy number one, strangely enough is America’s ally in trying to topple the Assad Government in Syria.
America really loves human rights defenders and whistle blowers, as long as they are not from within her establishment.
Millions of dollars are spent each year capacitating groups and individuals across the globe to expose their Governments wrong doings and violations. When it becomes America’s turn to face the music things go differently.
Chelsea Manning, the US army private who provided the infamous trove of US diplomatic cables and combat videos to Wikileaks would be classified a human rights defender had she been Russian or Chinese.
Unfortunately her trove exposed the indiscriminate killing of civilians and torture by the American forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.
And so she has been sentenced to 35 years in prison.
Coming to the new toy that America has been brandishing across the globe, the drone, how does one justify targeted killings using missiles which independent sources have confirmed are never 100 percent and have instead killed innocent civilians, including women and children.
The drone programme violates international law and has created fear and chaos in Pakistan and Yemen where a majority of strikes have taken place.
With news that America is going to be adding more bases in Africa in the coming year, it goes without saying that conflict on the continent is going to also increase.
In conclusion I leave you with some international treaties that America has refused to sign or ratify. One then wonders just how America gets to be heralded as having made major contributions to the advancement of Human rights and international peace and security.
The convention on the rights of the child, entered into force in 1990, signed by America in 1995, but not ratified along with Somalia and South Sudan, granted South Sudan has only been a country less than two years.
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, signed by America in 1980 and entered into force in 1981, America never ratified along with Palau, Iran, Sudan, South Sudan and Tonga.
Mine Ban Treaty, entered into force in 1999, never signed by America.
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, entered into force in 2008, signed by America in 2009
Convention on Cluster Munitions entered into force on 2010 never signed by America
Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture entered into force in 2006 never signed by America.
International Convention for the Protection of all persons from enforced disappearance, entered into force in 2010, America has never signed.