Looking ahead to the inauguration of a new president of the United States, I began mental about what sort of world we might want to create, and the initiatives we must undertake in order to see that vision become reality.
From my perspective it seemed logical that ensuring basic human ownership for every person on the planet needs to happen first. But the topic of human ownership is quite broad in its nature, and I wondered if everyone's definition of human ownership was the same. While the conference has gone on for thousands of years, my explore brought me to a fairly recent definition - one that was agreed to by world leaders after World War Ii and shortly after the birth of the United Nations.
South Kyrgyzstan
United Nations Sixty-Three Years Hence
Founded in 1945 with just 51 primary members, the United Nations has grown to contain 192 members and has involved itself in a long list of international situations while that time. Peacekeeping troops have operated in many countries, witnessing countless acts of violence and dealing with extremes of poverty, communal injustice and hunger. Though providing a certain work on in these arenas of conflict, the Un has met with mixed success in their charter to maintain peace.
Looking ahead to the inauguration of a new president of the United States, I began mental about what sort of world we might want to create, and the initiatives we must undertake in order to see that vision become reality.
From my perspective it seemed logical that ensuring basic human ownership for every person on the planet needs to happen first. But the topic of human ownership is quite broad in its nature, and I wondered if everyone's definition of human ownership was the same. While the conference has gone on for thousands of years, my explore brought me to a fairly recent definition - one that was agreed to by world leaders after World War Ii and shortly after the birth of the United Nations.
United Nations Sixty-Three Years Hence
Founded in 1945 with just 51 primary members, the United Nations has grown to contain 192 members and has involved itself in a long list of international situations while that time. Peacekeeping troops have operated in many countries, witnessing countless acts of violence and dealing with extremes of poverty, communal injustice and hunger. Though providing a certain work on in these arenas of conflict, the Un has met with mixed success in their charter to maintain peace.
Angola Bosnia and Herzegovina Cambodia Democratic Republic of Congo Croatia El Salvador Guatemala Haiti Iran Iraq Kuwait Lebanon Rwanda Somalia
Much has changed since 1945. Millions have died in countless conflicts, 80 nations once under colonial rule have gained their independence and joined the Un, while other countries have been birthed and borders redrawn. The demise of the Ussr greatly altered that region's landscape.
Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Estonia Georgia Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Latvia Lithuania Moldova Russia Tajikistan Turkmenistan Ukraine Uzbekistan
The Foundation of Human Rights
It's difficult to fathom the wars, conflicts, invasions, genocides, torture, abuse and neglect which have ravaged our global society after reading The Universal proclamation of Human Rights. Adopted by the United Nations when the club was just 3 years old, this important document set the stage for how governments and their citizens were 'supposed' to treat each other. Unfortunately the objectives contained within have repeatedly been ignored by world leaders of industrialized and developing nations alike. It would seem that those who are tasked with upholding the 30 articles simply pick and pick what they wish to consequent and under what circumstances.
While commentary can categorically be written on each of the articles, I've chosen a opt few to reflect upon in light of events that are ongoing or have occurred in the recent past. Those living in the Western world are, for the most part, shielded from the pain and suffering that exists for the millions whose ownership have been denied. The closest we get to experiencing their plight is watching a few minutes of television coverage. But the real photograph is not a pretty one, and despite the efforts of both government and non-government agencies, there doesn't appear to be any relief in sight.
Article #1 States: "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with intuit and conscience and should act towards one someone else in a spirit of brotherhood."
Any reveal of the violence which continues to be wagged in discrete parts of the world would note the fact that our capability to act 'in a spirit of brotherhood' has been seriously compromised. And all too often governments only give lip service to the crisis, contribution communal condemnations and a dose of back-room diplomacy. Current events in the Democratic Republic of Congo attest to that, with the death toll now approaching 6 million.
Article #3 States: "Everyone has the right to life, freedom and safety of person."
The most troubling aspect of war, even when the activity is commonly deemed to be justified, relates to the innocent habitancy who are the unwilling victims such conflict. We are often told 'that's the price of freedom', or the deaths are categorized as 'unintended consequences' or the more coarse 'collateral damage', as though creating a more sanitized label makes it any less tragic. Over 100,000 civilians have died in Iraq since the invasion began, and though it is difficult to accurately collate the supplementary connected deaths from disease, starvation and other causes, it is likely that an equal whole have died in this manner.
Article #5 States: "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading medicine or punishment."
Simple in concept, yet we witnessed the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, and acts of torture and abuse within the walls of the Abu Ghraib prison in 2003 shocked the world. But most incidents of torture go unreported, as they are committed under a veil of secrecy. extraordinary Rendition is one such custom engaged in by the United States government while the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and it represents a flagrant violation of internationally agreed upon human rights.
Article #9 States: "No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile."
Yet this is such a coarse question in many countries, from Russia to China to Pakistan. The most renowned example at present involves the Guantanamo Bay detention camp and the imprisonment of detainees without charges being filed. The location was chosen due to the fact that it is exterior of Us legal jurisdiction, and the prisoners were classified as 'enemy combatants' to deny them the ownership in case,granted to Pows under the Geneva convention. This legal no man's land has become a human ownership black hole.
Article #10 States: "Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and communal hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the measurement of his ownership and obligations and of any criminal charge against him."
Once again, the list of countries that violate this basic right is very long, and by its very nature, illegal imprisonment normally involves a denial of the right to a fair hearing. Saddam Hussein used the very same Abu Ghraib prison to house thousands of political prisoners. Denied entrance to an impartial tribunal, many were executed without so much as a permissible trail.
Article #19 States: "Everyone has the right to free time of plan and expression; this right includes free time to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and reveal data and ideas straight through any media and regardless of frontiers."
Suppression of free speech occurs in most of the developing world to one extent or another, but is also widely practiced in industrialized countries. China, Russia and Pakistan once again make that list, while Robert Mugabe's blatant campaign of violence and intimidation was used to commit choosing fraud in Zimbabwe. Blog censorship has also become a major problem, as many countries struggle with their citizen's new found capability to reveal exterior the primary channels of television, radio and newspaper - channels that could be categorically controlled in the past.
Article #28 States: "Everyone is entitled to a communal and international order in which the ownership and freedoms set forth in this proclamation can be full realized."
The United Nations was intended to be the body which ensures the existence of this communal and international order, yet that goal has remained elusive for these 63 years. When major violations of basic human ownership are committed by the members of the United Nations safety Council, it is unwise to assume that the Un will be the club to pursue violations of this article.
The Role of the United States
It is not realistic to assume the United States will solve this dilemma alone, nor should it assume sole responsibility, as this issue of human ownership includes every person and will need all governments and organizations to participate. But America has an occasion to play a special role, not only because it has the world's largest economic and organizational skill set, but because of its capability to rally keep for causes and play a leadership role that will maximize the efforts undertaken.
Come January 20, 2009, this must be a priority of the new supervision - to once again claim the moral high ground with respect to upholding and promoting the articles as set forth in the Universal proclamation of Human Rights, and to be the leader that the world needs at such a precarious time in its history. There is much work to be done in order to remedy our past missteps, but that needs to happen before meaningful expand can be made, and the world can't wait much longer.
How do we accomplish this difficult goal of providing Universal Human Rights?
Much has changed since 1945. Millions have died in countless conflicts, 80 nations once under colonial rule have gained their independence and joined the Un, while other countries have been birthed and borders redrawn. The demise of the Ussr greatly altered that region's landscape.
Armenia Azerbaijan Belarus Estonia Georgia Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Latvia Lithuania Moldova Russia Tajikistan Turkmenistan Ukraine Uzbekistan
The Foundation of Human Rights
It's difficult to fathom the wars, conflicts, invasions, genocides, torture, abuse and neglect which have ravaged our global society after reading The Universal proclamation of Human Rights. Adopted by the United Nations when the club was just 3 years old, this important document set the stage for how governments and their citizens were 'supposed' to treat each other. Unfortunately the objectives contained within have repeatedly been ignored by world leaders of industrialized and developing nations alike. It would seem that those who are tasked with upholding the 30 articles simply pick and pick what they wish to consequent and under what circumstances.
While commentary can categorically be written on each of the articles, I've chosen a opt few to reflect upon in light of events that are ongoing or have occurred in the recent past. Those living in the Western world are, for the most part, shielded from the pain and suffering that exists for the millions whose ownership have been denied. The closest we get to experiencing their plight is watching a few minutes of television coverage. But the real photograph is not a pretty one, and despite the efforts of both government and non-government agencies, there doesn't appear to be any relief in sight.
Article #1 States: "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with intuit and conscience and should act towards one someone else in a spirit of brotherhood."
Any reveal of the violence which continues to be wagged in discrete parts of the world would note the fact that our capability to act 'in a spirit of brotherhood' has been seriously compromised. And all too often governments only give lip service to the crisis, contribution communal condemnations and a dose of back-room diplomacy. Current events in the Democratic Republic of Congo attest to that, with the death toll now approaching 6 million.
Article #3 States: "Everyone has the right to life, freedom and safety of person."
The most troubling aspect of war, even when the activity is commonly deemed to be justified, relates to the innocent habitancy who are the unwilling victims such conflict. We are often told 'that's the price of freedom', or the deaths are categorized as 'unintended consequences' or the more coarse 'collateral damage', as though creating a more sanitized label makes it any less tragic. Over 100,000 civilians have died in Iraq since the invasion began, and though it is difficult to accurately collate the supplementary connected deaths from disease, starvation and other causes, it is likely that an equal whole have died in this manner.
Article #5 States: "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading medicine or punishment."
Simple in concept, yet we witnessed the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, and acts of torture and abuse within the walls of the Abu Ghraib prison in 2003 shocked the world. But most incidents of torture go unreported, as they are committed under a veil of secrecy. extraordinary Rendition is one such custom engaged in by the United States government while the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and it represents a flagrant violation of internationally agreed upon human rights.
Article #9 States: "No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile."
Yet this is such a coarse question in many countries, from Russia to China to Pakistan. The most renowned example at present involves the Guantanamo Bay detention camp and the imprisonment of detainees without charges being filed. The location was chosen due to the fact that it is exterior of Us legal jurisdiction, and the prisoners were classified as 'enemy combatants' to deny them the ownership in case,granted to Pows under the Geneva convention. This legal no man's land has become a human ownership black hole.
Article #10 States: "Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and communal hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the measurement of his ownership and obligations and of any criminal charge against him."
Once again, the list of countries that violate this basic right is very long, and by its very nature, illegal imprisonment normally involves a denial of the right to a fair hearing. Saddam Hussein used the very same Abu Ghraib prison to house thousands of political prisoners. Denied entrance to an impartial tribunal, many were executed without so much as a permissible trail.
Article #19 States: "Everyone has the right to free time of plan and expression; this right includes free time to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and reveal data and ideas straight through any media and regardless of frontiers."
Suppression of free speech occurs in most of the developing world to one extent or another, but is also widely practiced in industrialized countries. China, Russia and Pakistan once again make that list, while Robert Mugabe's blatant campaign of violence and intimidation was used to commit choosing fraud in Zimbabwe. Blog censorship has also become a major problem, as many countries struggle with their citizen's new found capability to reveal exterior the primary channels of television, radio and newspaper - channels that could be categorically controlled in the past.
Article #28 States: "Everyone is entitled to a communal and international order in which the ownership and freedoms set forth in this proclamation can be full realized."
The United Nations was intended to be the body which ensures the existence of this communal and international order, yet that goal has remained elusive for these 63 years. When major violations of basic human ownership are committed by the members of the United Nations safety Council, it is unwise to assume that the Un will be the club to pursue violations of this article.
The Role of the United States
It is not realistic to assume the United States will solve this dilemma alone, nor should it assume sole responsibility, as this issue of human ownership includes every person and will need all governments and organizations to participate. But America has an occasion to play a special role, not only because it has the world's largest economic and organizational skill set, but because of its capability to rally keep for causes and play a leadership role that will maximize the efforts undertaken.
Come January 20, 2009, this must be a priority of the new supervision - to once again claim the moral high ground with respect to upholding and promoting the articles as set forth in the Universal proclamation of Human Rights, and to be the leader that the world needs at such a precarious time in its history. There is much work to be done in order to remedy our past missteps, but that needs to happen before meaningful expand can be made, and the world can't wait much longer.
How do we accomplish this difficult goal of providing Universal Human Rights?
Universal announcement of Human proprietarySee Also : todays world news headlines
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