By Dzulkifli Abdul Razak
Sunday, December 10, was Human Rights Day worldwide to commemorate the day when the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UNDHR) in 1948.
It is regarded as a milestone that proclaims the inalienable rights that every human being is entitled to, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, or other status.
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the UNDHR, and the theme for this year’s celebration is “Freedom, Equality and Justice for All.” For the first time, setting out the fundamental human rights to be universally protected by all, it is regarded as key to a just, equitable and sustainable future.
Similarly, a crucial platform to address the existing gaps among the various communities worldwide, since time immemorial, until the present day and from further deteriorating!
What with the climate crisis and economic disparities now threatening the most vulnerable among us like never before.
Some even predicted that a collapse will happen before the first century of the new millennium is out.
The Anthropocene is cited as one of the palpable evidences since 1950 when the geological findings needed were detected of late.
This is made even more daunting considering how wars, massacres as well genocidal intents were exploited to crush the human existential well being.
To quote the UN Secretary-General, “the Universal Declaration is a roadmap, helping to end wars, heal divisions and promote lives of peace and dignity for all.
“But the world is losing its way. Conflicts are raging. Poverty and hunger are increasing. Inequalities are deepening. The climate crisis is a human rights crisis that is hitting the most vulnerable hardest.”
On this front, none is more evident than the Israel-Gaza asymmetrical onslaught on the citizens of the occupied latter. More than two months into the tragedy more than 1.9 million Gazans have been forcibly displaced and over 17,000 killed with women and children taking the highest toll in many counts as innocent bystanders.
This has caused the UN Secretary-General to cite Article 99 of the United Nations Charter that empowers the Secretary-General to bring to the attention of the Security Council any matter which in his opinion may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security.
Though rarely called upon, he recently invoked it to urgently respond to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza as the ultimate tool to halt the genocide.
Instead, to immediately implement a comprehensive ceasefire, after several attempts by various parties had failed.
The historic voting on a resolution put forward by the United Arab Emirates and backed by over 90 Member States took place two days before the auspicious Human Rights Day.
Unfortunately, once again it was unsuccessful, being vetoed by the world’s most noted human rights supposed champion and critic! Indeed, the world has lost its way as alluded to by the UN Secretary-General, stating that Gaza is “facing a severe risk of collapse of the humanitarian system.”
Why so is really hard to comprehend without going back more than seven decades, ironically beginning in 1948, under the British Mandate.
The contradictions are too blatant and brazen! Even by the standards displayed by the supposed worst among the Security Council members in terms of their so-called human rights record.
Still they voted for a ceasefire on humanitarian grounds!
In fact, except for another who abstained, the majority (of 13 votes) obtained for an immediate ceasefire were rendered futile, given the guilty conscience that overwhelmed the select ‘guilty’ party.
The Gaza onslaught has re-opened an old wound, figuratively helped by countries that were directly involved in creating the state of “occupied Palestine” precisely in 1948, on May 15.
Thus, the killing of “six million Jews” still weighs enormously making any form of pro-Palestinian protests and criticism on biased state of affairs towards occupied Palestine intolerable in violation of the basic human rights for the freedom of speak and act.
Such freedom has suddenly “dissipated” from legitimate public spaces, including campuses, where human rights activists and the conventional media fall silent.
Otherwise, they are forced to apologise if not resign, and label “antisemitic” in a blanket sort of way.
Summarily, “[a]uthoritarianism is on the rise.
“Civic space is shrinking and the media is under attack from all sides,” as highlighted by the UN Secretary-General, thanks to the strong guilt-feeling of a few that remains intractable.
For so long that remains, the killing of the Palestinians will race up to six figures, if not more, with the ardent support of the guilty-parties. Period.
It is therefore, timely to reframe the argument by shifting to the actual root-cause, namely, to insist on the inherently guilty parties taking full accountability over their historical crimes against humanity ever since globally! – BACALAHMALAYSIA.MY
- The writer is Rector, International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)
