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Human Rights in Global Perspective—II

New Momentum Creates Hone for the Future

by Dr. Nurul Momen
OVER the years the UN, Specialized Agencies and some NGOs, notably the Amnesty International. no doubt took some thoughtful measures for the advancement and safeguarding of human rights but their effects had been painfully slow. In the beginning of 1970s gross violations of human rights continued to occur on a wide scale, particularly in situations of armed conflict and civil strife and in societies characterized by sharp economic and social disparities. As a leading authority on decolonization. Ruper Emerson pointed out: Human rights and fundamental freedom on which the Third World nations based their demands for liberation were being violated In their own life.
However, the mood of disappointment and resignation that had hung over the international human rights movement lifted in the 1970s and gave way to renewed determination and momentum. The reasons for* the change in mood were several. With the fall of autocratic governments prospects for human rights improved in Spain, Portugal
and Greece, while India, the world's most populous democracy, voted out two years of repression. In 1975 at the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe the Western states succeeded in exacting from the Soviet Union human rights commitment in exchange for political ratification of the status quo in Eastern Europe and increased East-West trade. Only after a few years, despite some unsolved human rights problems of its own, the United States, under President Jimmy Carter, revived American's interest in its heritage of freedom. The US now posed to review economic and military assistance in the light of the human rights practices of the recipient governments. It was also during the same decade in the United Nations the Third World countries called for New International Economic and Information Order and for linking disarmament with development giving thereby a new dimension to the international human rights- movement. Further impetus was given to the movement by the UN General Assembly's resolution proclaiming the period 1976-
1985 as "the United Nations Decade for Women. Equality Development and Peace" and the Unesco’s resolution calling for dissemination of know! edge about human rights at all levels of education. To the surprise of many, the two international covenants stated earlier now came into effect and the Human Rights Committee began to work. The decade also saw in many countries a phenomenal growth of NGOs which were specifically meant for giving legal and other aids to victims of violations of human rights.
However, the new momentum could not make much impact as there were some inner contradictions in it. The Western countries, particularly the United States, were vocal about human rights but they were not ready to concede to the demand for a New International Economic Order to redress the existing injustices by a thorough restructur-■ing of the global economy. Again, as American humanitarian goals clashed with its Own strategic interests in different areas Washington actually sup-
ported some military and au thoritarian regimes rather than movements for democracy.
Thus, notwithstanding the efforts of the United Nations and NGOs. promotion or pro tcction of human rights was not achieved to any appreciable extent in 198Os. Among other things, foreign Interventions in Afghanistan and Cambodia, ethnic wars in Sri Lanka, Ethiopia and elsewhere and Arab-Israeli clashes also affected the situation during the period.
1990s and Beyond
A new.era of human rights and political freedom seemed to be dawning as the world en tcred 1990s. Democracy swept across Eastern Europe and the erstwhile Soviet Union The Berlin Wall came down and Germany was reunified. ■Namibia finally achieved independence and the policy of apartheid began to crumble. While ine-party systems were on the retreat in Africa, reasonably fair elections were held in several Asian countries including Bangladesh and
Nepal. No doubt the surge of hope was brutally dashed when Iraq invaded Kuwait. But the world by then was already a new world — a world free from East-West divide.
As the dissolution of the Soviet Union was announced, the humanity become further free from Cold War tensions. It was therefore expected that global issues like human rights and environment would now get more and more prominence In the wdrid agenda, although at the time of writing this article events in Somalia. Bosnia and India arc causing considerable concern. In fact, the Security Council Is now seized with the problems of human rights and a world conference on the issue is lo be held in 1993.
Now it is the responsibility of all nations and the international community to devise ways and means to advance the cause of human rights in the interest of progress of nations and human civilization as a whole. In this connection, the old question of domestic jurisdiction as well as some new ones concerning strategies and priorities may come up for consideration. It is Imperative
to arrive at a consensus on these vital points. To the pre sent writer, prevention versus cure, which has always been a prominent motto in the world of medicine, has the same va Hdlty in the area of human ri#»ts. In fact, the recognition that human rights violations are more effectively tackled by coming to grips with the root causes of the violations rather than merely dealing with the symptoms has been an important notion in the the UN human rights programmes. It is. however, especially important that UN takes the difficult but crucial step of making Its investigations of human rights violations evenhanded and comprehensive. For this purpose, an Initiative taken by Costa Rica in 1965 to establish a UN High Commissioner for Human Rights deserves reconsideration.
Since human rights are vto-lated only within a nation much can be done to promote the cause also at the national and regional levels. It Is impor tanl to note that lack of poliU cal commitment. not of financial resources, 1s often the real cause of human neglect.
concluded