Human Rights, Its
Triumph, Its Misconception, and
Misapplication Abey Zewde. abeyze@yahoo.com The cherished goal of humanity Those who say human rights respect is the cherished goal of humankind are unequivocally correct. They are indisputably
correct because, hitherto, people's history
is entirely filled with their activities for their rights to affirm their human
essence i.e. to be free. Humans want to be free from lack
of shelter and food to survive as other beings. So, they struggle against natural forces that
deprive them the rights to survive. They build an embankment against distractive floods; they make shelter against
the severe cold and extreme heat and so on.
However,
as the saying goes, humankind cannot live by bread alone, for they manifest a
spiritual, a conscious, and a purposeful existence in a more complex and
intricate manner than other animals. For example, Look at their eating habit, humans mostly
doesn’t eat food raw like other animals. They either have to dip it in sauce,
spice it up, cook it and even decorate it to the delight of their eyes and
their appetite. They do this corresponding to their purposeful innate nature of
goodness, beauty and creative refinement of the test of existence. Many religious sayings validate this value
of humans; God created a human being in his image attesting that God gave humans a God like
a refinement of the taste of life. Even
one known atheist philosopher has concluded that humans as the complex
structure of matter and defined humans as innately good and further stated they
need to develop their senses continually
through all rounded education, action,
and information to consciously act in a purposeful
manner so as to reach their full human potential or essence. In short, humans are human becoming and human becoming is an
infinite phenomenon. It is infinite because their innovation in the struggle for their rights to survive and full fill their spiritual need is
not like the creation of a complex web of
a spider or the magnificent work of ants and bees always the same and
repetitive and at a standstill. Human’s
engagement in constructing new things is not only splendid but also an ever ending creativity and discovery of new
phenomenon Hence, they struggle against all estrangement and obstacles
that forbid them their rights to achieve their spiritual humanistic nature.
Gonging further, they strive to make
technological advancement minimize the
time spent in procuring food and shelter and engage mostly in their human
becoming side so that they can enjoy the
rights to a higher realm of life. They
continuously dream of utopia, such as creating a classless society where the
state withers away, and each contributes according to his ability and taking
according to his need. Where exploitation human by human disappears and utopian
existence achieved as Karl Marx said. There are others who believe what Oscar
Wilde said “for a map of the world that does not include Utopia is not worth
even glancing at which Humanity is always landing. . .Moreover, when Humanity
lands there, it looks out, and seeing a
better country, sets sail. Progress is the realization of utopia.” [i] Therefore, it is no wonder that the people of the world have
struggled for the respect for human rights. Humanity has been expressing it, in different terms in a different era, in a different culture and from
different ideological and religious, philosophical stand from time in memorial.
For example,
if you refer to different global religion Buddhism, Christianity, Koran and
others commandment, in essence, are
similar. They all say don't kill, don't steal, don't lie, and don’t take
another's wife or husband, etc. when they
say this commandment they implicitly mean respect the rights to live, stability and property of all
individuals. As the same time humans through
these laws, commandments, explanations, struggle, etc. try relentlessly to
bring back humans to their essence of goodness or Godly quality. At a time when
some humans deviate from their true nature and follow the path towards
dehumanization and degeneration for various reasons which leads them to commit
human rights abuse. In the same manner, People, when facing oppressive system,
or group or dominant individuals or
government forces which deny them their rights, they protest in mass, write
revolutionary theories as a guide to
action, to make revolutions and use other means of struggle too. The outcome of people's relentless struggle
for their rights has brought the industrial revolution, the slogan liberty,
equality, and fraternity; the anti-colonial struggle of colonized people struggle
for self-determination. The American people fight against racism and class, and
gender oppression, the socialist revolutions, the theory of the developmental
state in Ethiopia which aspires to build a peaceful democratic prospering
nation also attest the people struggle. Many others movement and achievement like
those mentioned above prove humans’ purposeful engagement for progress. To develop
their refinement of taste, to love and
to sympathize, to be fair, to exalt their faith leading to the achievement of
the ultimate quality of goodness, i.e. to be free to the fullest degree so they
can reach their full human potential. People can only achieve
their dream
their cherished goal through a continuous creative venture and struggle.
Only then all individuals attain their unique potential to enjoy the higher realm of life (the upper realm of spirituality) and the pursuit of
happiness and be what they can be and what they can attain as humans. The
Triumph Cherished Goal of Humanity Because of this continuous struggle, progressive political
theories, commandments, explanation and other endeavors, from all sector of
humankind; today the most prized goal of humanity the respect for human rights
has become the agenda of the global community. As many in the world recognize, there is
nowhere in the world where you cannot hear the importance of human rights
respect. From the huts of Africa to the
slum of Europe and America, to the mansion of White House of America, to the
Kremlin of Russia; to the great hall of China and
every corner of international organization and global civil society the call
for human rights respect is reverberating loudly. The people of the world unequivocally want a democratic platform where human rights respect exercised and the realization of human
potentiality to its maximum possible spread to all humanity. In our time, human
rights respect incorporates the rights of women, the rights of individuals, the
rights of children, the rights of indigenous people, the rights of nations and
nationalities to self-determination, the
rights to life, the rights to pursuit happiness, and the rights to shelter and food,
etc. It is enriched, incorporating the practical knowledge of humankind in its
concept. This enriched concept has become the agenda of the global community as
written in the UN Charter. This is the
greatest triumph our time. It
is waiting to be even more perfect plucking the fruit of freedom from the next experience of human continuous democratic
progress and struggle. It is no wonder that the
banner of democracy and human rights respect is waving high globally in our
time. Indeed, it is no more a call in isolation before the advent of
globalization but today it is every individual’s task to make it come true that
all estrangements and obstacles are defeated, so
the preservation of life, liberty, and
the pursuit of happiness for all are
possible. Hence, in my opinion, every deed, exploit, achievement, relation, laws, religious
commandments, moral standard, refinement of the taste,
kindness, etc. arises from humankind innate more developed Godly essence. Because of these qualities of people, we do not find laws
that justify killing for pure killing
sake. When terror is committed and dehumanized hegemonic Neo-Liberal, Neo-Cons, terrorist
and other wage wars and crime, they do it
in the name of democracy and human rights respect such as the rights of
religion and rights of ethnic groups and
so on. [ii] Hegemonic power wages their wars and crimes assisted by their
intellectual army of the few so-called
advocate of human rights respect such as Amnesty International and Human Rights
Watch of Neo-liberals camp. These dangerous, so called Human Right Advocate mis-conceptualize and misapply Human rights observance
in a very intricate manner not to be caught in their machination when they give
“moral legitimacy” to war policy. Misconception of Human Rights Respects for Sinister Goal.
To
mention few of the misconception; the so-called advocate of human rights respect
like Amnesty International, Human Rights
Watch of the neo-liberals type follow the distorted understanding of Human Rights.
Such as pitting individual right
against collective rights as if
respecting collective rights is denying individual rights. They even go as far as referring group rights
with an apartheid system of South Africa
as group rights of whites instead recognizing it as human rights abuse allowed
by the an apartheid system.”[iii] In
my opinion, pitting group rights against individual rights is the most cripple
analysis of Human Rights. The Neo-liberals formulated it for sinister hidden agenda. Action or deeds that infringe on others
rights can never be rights it is abuse.
Therefore, apartheid
has allowed the white system to mistreatment
of blacks in South Africa. This squarely is an
abuse of Human Rights of blacks should not be considered rights. They, also, misconstrue the famous saying always mentioned
when the respect of human rights discourse begins.This phrase is “An individual
has inalienable rights just because he/she is human.” The neo-liberals distort as if this phrase
affirms individual should be given primacy than collective, and even they go as
far as claiming the group has no right as Ayn Rand their champion intellectual
said. However, “
it does not take a rocket scientist” to realize the individual is put on
par with group human in this sentence. Explaining
it further, an individual has human rights just because he also belongs to a larger
group humans, not an animal group, besides his/her ethnicity, nationality, and
gender. Plus,
Neo-liberals though accept the universality of individual rights in words they rob its universality in
practice. The Neoliberals
claim that they are the only true champion of individual rights while all ideas that differ from their system of social arrangement are the
worshiper of group rights. “In Western discourse, individual rights are
often associated with political and economic freedom, whereas group
rights are associated with social control”[iv] This chokes the universality of the individual rights respect and making it sound individual rights is a particular property of theirs to be
exported and imposed on others. Practical example Misconception of Human Rights pitting
group right against individual rights I
have been following the political discourse in Ethiopian. Neo-liberal lining
groups many times criticized EPRDF on the question of the respect of the
Individual rights. They claim the rights
of Nations and Nationalities for self-determination
recognized by EPRDF the ruling party neglects rights of the individual but only
encompass and makes group rights supreme. Isn't
knowing the right of nation/nationalities in Ethiopia to determine their hard-won
democratic rights of the nation/nationalities of Ethiopia to determine their
destiny is the respect of their democratic rights as individuals and as the
same time the members of a particular nationality?[v]
Isn’t practically implementing the nation/ nationalities to
administrate their region, develop their culture and language and choose their
leaders the right of nationalities of Ethiopia and its individual member. Is it
not participating in the making of the history of a new and democratic,
developing and a just Ethiopia; where their rights as individuals and as a
member of particular nationality respected?[vi] If all ethnic
and national oppression are effectively combated
in Ethiopia, then, not only individual rights but
of the right of all persons belonging to particular national group and
that of all Ethiopian is respected.
Isn’t beyond usual thinking to
separate and counter impose rights of the individuals from and on their race,
class, nationality, country, occupation, and gender and so on unless it is for
sinister hidden agenda? [vii] Misapplication of human right respect The so-called human rights advocate obtain false, distorted,
exaggerated, unverifiable, unprovable sensational, a dramatic, startling,
fabricated horrifying killing pictures of ethnic groups and others. They get the information from to days “
champion of human rights” but
yesterday's criminals and human rights abusers at the time when they were in
power in different countries. They
spread this false information through the controlling
media of the hegemonic power. They do that to exploit and to twist unsuspecting mind. Thereby, trapping human sensitivity and yearning for justice and
goodness to their perverted path. Neo-liberals or Neo-cons do all these devoid
of any moral for dehumanized purpose to assist the control the world wealth by hegemonic
power The false human rights abuse allegation is one of the
greatest weapons of crime; I have witnessed in my lifetime. For, it contributes significantly to exacerbate non-antagonistic
brotherly contradictions to antagonistic ethnic and religious contradictions
that lead to a social strife, genocidal war and destabilization of society. I
have witnessed and continuously seeing
this in the Middle East and in many weak
nations, who aspire to be democratic peaceful and prospers in their way. The bombardment of these false allegations produced every
day, every month every year by an intellectual
army of neo-liberal, neo-cons, the so-called
advocate of human right is mightier than the machete used as a weapon for
genocide. It contributes to give their
master hegemonic power a justification to use their enormous might in the military, economic, science, and technological
power to unleash the never humanly experienced destructive,
genocidal war and suffering on those who do not
accept their dictatorial demand. A practical example of
misapplication human rights. After the
Ethiopian people under the leadership of EPRDF
has defeated the fascist Military Junta Called Derg, who ruled Ethiopia for
seventeen years of terror. Today, there is no slaughter of the youth, the old, women, children and the people in
general. The Ethiopian people, instead are building their country. They are
fighting poverty. The economy is one the fastest growing in the
world.Ethiopia's Nation and Nationalities have achieved the democratic right
for self-determination and self-administration and developing their language
and culture. Hundreds of universities, schools are popping up in all regions
one or two universities in the entire country is the bygone days. Children,
young women, and men are going school. In every aspect, Ethiopia is becoming
the land of progress and beacon of democratic aspiration. The march against
poverty is advancing with speed and gusto. Unfortunately, the riffraff and terrorist from Derg residing abroad, their
lackeys are given leeway by neo-liberals media and supported by so-called human
rights organization to spread hate among Nationalities or ethnic group of
Ethiopians and painting Ethiopia a false picture of repression. Their
propaganda is comparable In my opinion even more heinous than the Rwandan journalists who were jailed for life
and sentenced to 35 years for fanning the flames of a 1994 genocide that killed
an estimated 800,000 people. These groups promote their propaganda mainly trough ESAT
and OMNI TV media from Washington
DC, Minnesota, and Amsterdam. There hate
propaganda primarily targeting Tigrayans and the Tigrayan leadership TPLF, in the ruling party of EPRDF, As
if, TPLF dictates the Ethiopian politics while the truth is the EPRDF the
ruling party is composed of different
national groups in Ethiopia. They
concentrate on Tigrayan leadership to create division
in the ruling party and Ethiopia lose its
democratically elected leader. The other being that TPLF/EPRDF has played the major role in defeating, the barbarian Derg with its riffraff’s and in building a new peaceful
democratic development aspiring Ethiopia.
Also, this riffraff is using a false picture of dead bodies,
for example, the corpse from Nepal or other places as if it is from Ethiopia to
exploit human kindness. They are a merchant of corps. . They are are scanning
Ethiopia for the slightest contradiction to promote strife and create genocidal
conditions.They are savvy in using rumors to spread hate against the leaders
and particular national group. The intellectual army of hegemonic power the so-called human rights advocate
such as Human Rights Watch and medias like BBC, VOA, Aljazeera promote and give
them leeway to the internet and other neo-liberal means to this group. Why
the Misconception and Misapplication of Human Rights by Neo-Liberals In my opinion, the primary reason is,
Neo-liberals do not have a democratic vision, idea or plan or system to offer the
world community to form a better world
where human rights will be respected
fully. They are not interested in building
institutions and organizations, where human rights compliance is handled successfully through dialog, negotiation, and consultation. They are alien to the construction a world of a win-win global relation where the people
of the world benefit. They believe they are exceptional beings and persistently
use every means and power politics to preserve their dominant position against other international actors. They want
the old unchanging world, where they, the
few the stronger hegemonic powers trample exploit the poor, the oppressed people, countries and nationalities and where
their careerist ambition, fame, and money seeking
Neo- liberal intellectual army of hegemonic power benefit. So, the only way to
preserve their status they distort the
concept of human right observance and misapply and weaponized it for their
sinister political agenda The Neo-liberal
method of using human rights respect as raw material to promote their agenda
·
They use the method of a torrent of accusation of sensational
human rights abuse through hard to prove allegations, fabrications,
exaggeration, gruesome picture of dead bodies gathered from their criminal axis
from social media and other means. ·
The
so-called advocate of rights human respect like Human Rights Watch
and Amnesty International knows human rights is the most central and sensitive part of human essence that touches every
aspect of human existence. So they disseminate their
distorted accusation through their powerful media like BBC, VOA, and ALgazera and other so-called
independent media day in day out. They do this to
trap human kindness, fear, love, prejudices, weakness, and ignorance of the
world community and their innocent members whom they
collect funds from in their anti-democratic, and anti-human rights respect
political purposes in the name of fighting human rights abuse. ·
They
use a torrent of accusation to ignore and
misinform the world and hide the progressive countries effort to build social,
political economic system for an everlasting respect of human rights. ·
They
raise human right issues arbitrarily without prioritization (Even a child is
taught to prioritize things to tackle problems) live alone such an important
issue in human life. This is done to confuse
primary cause of the problem of human rights abuse in the world today.
This helps them to manipulate the symptoms of human right abuse to their
interest and not deal with the real issue and make a true march to human rights respect miss its target. For them, the pain, the suffering, the weakness,
ignorance, the fear, in weak countries is compost where they manipulate to exacerbate the difference to change it
to strife in pretexts of human rights. This is where neo-liberal the
intellectual army of hegemonic power blossom in their career and money grabbing skim and fame. ·
They
blame everybody for human rights abuse so everyone find justification to blame
his enemy while they get recognition as human rights advocate by all (slick). ·
They
sometimes report their master; the global power selected abuse of
human right with par with what they claim human rights abuse in the weak nation to
look fair in their report knowing that nobody
can use their story except their powerful
hegemonic power against democratic forces.(slick) ·
They
use human right accusations guided by a principle the best defense is the best offense
to hide their own and their masters’ crime against humanity. They mainly
“report human rights abuse” of progressive nations to hegemonic power of the world
the number one culprit of human rights abuse legitimizing its cruel punishment. ·
Last
but not least neo-liberals often stress
“the respect of individual rights” to save their parrots, the so-called “independent media journalist’’ individuals and agents
and others when caught in terror, and destabilizing action and disobey
the rule of law in weak nations. That why
CPJ another neoliberal group in this endeavor assist them in crying foul in the
name “prisoner of consciousness” and political
prisoners as if standing for freedom of
information. I think the world community must stand against these forces and stop them and change the advocacy human right respect to promoting the human rights respect globally in the correct way and consultation |