Globalising human rights, a timely need - Samarasinghe

Excerpts from the message delivered by Disaster Management and Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe marking World Human Rights Day.

Every year all over the world, on this day - 10 December, people celebrate Human Rights Day. This day marks the adoption of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR) by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1948.

The UDHR represents the common values of humanity and provides a benchmark for the rights and duties of all people - the principles of human rights that we all strive towards.

Testament

It is testament to the centuries of struggle, agony and sacrifice people have endured to reach the point where we are today in terms of our commitment to protect human rights. The UDHR was drafted when global conscience was awakened following the horrors of the two World Wars. It is as relevant in the present day as it was in 1948.

The discourse on globalisation has concentrated on the negative aspects of economic globalisation. There is, however, in my opinion a positive side to globalisation that we must consider; that is the globalisation of human rights. The basic premise of the UDHR is that we all have fundamental rights, no matter who we are or where we live. As its preamble states "recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world."

The common values of humanity from the foundation of our democracy and the commitment, and indeed obligation, of all civilised nations to never repeat the mistakes of the past. I believe that respect for, and promotion of, human rights is the glue that can bind our society as one. The principles I wish to advocate are equality, dignity, respect, non-discrimination and multiculturalism. Adherence to these human rights principles is key to achieving sustainable peace.

Human rights are not a luxury we acquire when development and security goals are fully achieved. Rather, the protection and promotion of human rights is precondition for human security and development. In the past, people spoke of "generations" of rights, often prioritizing one group of rights over another. This debate is now obsolete and it is accepted that all rights are interdependent whether they are civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights or the right to development. The creation of the Ministry of Disaster Management and Human Rights is a clear demonstration of the commitment of the government of Sri Lanka to ensure that all these rights are protected and further promoted in a democratic framework.

As both, man-made and natural disasters impact on human lives, and it is during such times of disaster that people are most vulnerable to human rights abuses, a government Ministry mandated to address disaster through the lens of human rights represents true progression in terms of human rights protection. Such an integrated strategy expands the perceived parameters of human rights and moves beyond the simple categorisation of rights.

I believe that the protection and promotion of human rights will lead to an environment that can foster peace. Any peace process must pay serious attention to the establishment of a strong system of human rights protection - this is crucial if we want a future based on justice and reconciliation and not on retaliation and mistrust.

We are living in difficult times, but it is during such times that we must ensure - more than ever, that human rights are protected. Failure to do so would result in the destruction of the democratic foundations on which our nation is based - the very values that our adversaries wish to destroy.

It is against this backdrop that I have personally overseen the process of setting up of a Commission of Inquiry to investigate, inquire into, and report to the President on alleged serious violations of human rights. The Commission, which was appointed on 3 November 2006, will inquire into 15 incidents of alleged serious violations of human rights, including the assassination of former Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar, the killing of 17 aid workers of Action contre la Faim, the disappearance of Reverend Jim Brown and the death of 51 persons in Sencholai.

The Commission has been mandated for one year to report and recommend to the President the facts and circumstances relevant to each of the 15 incidents, with the primary objective of enabling indictments against the perpetrators and to recommend measures to be taken to prevent such incidents occurring in the future.

The work of the Commission of Inquiry will be observed by an International Independent Group Eminent Persons (IIGEP) which is soon to be appointed by the President.

This hybrid model, which, as far as I am aware is the first of its kind, has been designed to ensure impartiality and transparency and guarantee that all investigations are conducted following international standards.

A number of governments have agreed to nominate experts to act as observers. Additionally, several names have been proposed by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Inter-Parliamentary Union for the government to select. These observers will serve in the IIGEP in their individual capacity. The Government has also directly contacted three persons of international stature to join the IIGEP.

The Terms of Reference for the IIGEP were finalized after several rounds of discussions with human rights organisations, civil society leaders, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, representatives of the countries that have agreed to nominate experts, including the European Union. Justice P. N. Bhagwati, a long-time member of the UN Human Rights Committee has accepted the invitation of the government to serve as chair of the IIGEP.

New Bill of Rights

Another initiative that my Ministry is involved in, together with the Ministry of Constitutional Affairs and National Integration, is the drafting of a new Constitutional Bill of Rights. This is in accordance with the pledge made by the President in the Mahinda Chinthana. If our Constitution represents the foundation of our democracy, then the Fundamental Rights Chapter represents the pillar that holds our very democracy in place. We need a new Bill of Rights: one that includes the protection of economic, social and cultural rights, and addresses issues such as group and environmental rights, and the enforcement of rights. We also need to redraft some of the provisions on the rights currently protected.

Ensure rights

As of April 2006, around 200,000 people are displaced in the north and east. The worst affected areas are Batticaloa, Killinochchi, Jaffna and Mullaitivu. These people's suffering represents the human cost of conflict.

To date, the Ministry has been complementing the efforts of the government by coordinating assistance from international and local humanitarian agencies, including the UN and ICRC. The government of Sri Lanka is fully committed to providing humanitarian assistance and protection to people living in all areas of the north and east.