"All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights" , Universal Declaration of Human Rights established on December 10th 1948.
The theme for this year’s human Rights Day, December 10th 2010 is "Human rights defenders who act to end discrimination".
Since the establishing of United Nations, 61 years ago, there have been dramatic advances in crafting and implementing a system of universal human rights, which are under international law, applicable to each and every one of us: old and young, male and female, rich and poor, whoever we are and wherever we are from.
Today, many are the names that we identify with, who changed human rights history. Those that struggle to abolish slavery, such as Toussaint L’Ouverture and One Tete Lokay; those who engineered major advances in women’s rights, such as Huda Shaarawi and Simone de Beauvoir. Equally important are those who tackled the injustice of colonialism such as Mahatma Gandhi, and those, like Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Rigoberta Menchu, who campaigned to end institutionalized racism and discrimination against minorities and indigenous peoples. Not to underrate Mother Theresa who advocated for the poor and helpless.
But these inspirational men and women could not have done what they did without the help of many others whose names we don’t know. We owe the progress we have made to the enormous efforts of hundreds of thousands of unsung heroes, known collectively as human rights defenders. Human rights defenders come from all walks of life, ranging from princesses and politicians, to professionals such as journalists, teachers and doctors, to people with little or no formal education. There are no special qualifications. All it takes is commitment and courage. Many of us can also be human rights defenders. Because of how much we owe to others for the rights many of us now take for granted, we all should be human rights defenders. At the very least, we should do our utmost to support those who do defend human rights. Every year, thousands of human rights defenders are harassed, abused, unjustly jailed and murdered. That is why Human Rights Day 2010 is dedicated to Human Rights Defenders and their courageous battle to stop discrimination of all sorts. We need to stand up for their rights as much as they stand up for ours. The work of human rights defenders is as vital today as it has ever been, because hundreds or even millions of individuals still suffer directly or indirectly from some form of discrimination every day, as well as minorities who suffer similar disparities.
Migrants, in many parts of the world in their attempt to seek a better economic future in another country, find themselves to be trapped in poverty to a much greater degree than other sectors of the population. Similarly, many people with disabilities are living below the poverty line. Women on the other hand, still face rampant discrimination in some societies, and more subtle versions in others. One of the most alarming of many depressing statistics on this issue reveals that 70 percent of the 70-100 million children who are not attending school are girls. The more than 200 million migrants worldwide, and especially the irregular and undocumented migrants among them , face racism, xenophobia and other chronic forms of discrimination, in both developed and developing countries.
The above are some of the daunting challenges that still face today’s and tomorrow’s human rights defenders who tirelessly work on many of the issues singled out above not excluding for example sexual orientation and the rights of stateless people, the elderly and those living with HIV.
As a country, Sint Martin is also faced with the responsibility of promoting human rights issues as we are mindful that we are now being held directly accountable for our actions where it pertains to living up to the many treaties, ratified by the former Netherlands Antilles. Community Development, Family & Humanitarian Affairs together with relevant NGO’s will play a crucial role in this process, by not only pointing out flaws and benefits in current and future policies pertaining to humanitarian issues, but will also undertake awareness actions that can benefit the most vulnerable persons in our society.
Department of Community Development, Family & Humanitarian Affairs