Yes, humans have rights
And by affording them reverence, our human rights are undoubtedly transformational
THIS week, I was on the panel with Dhaya Pillay, a South African High Court judge; Johan Froneman, a retired Judge of South Africa and the Constitutional Court; and Karin van Marle, discussing the above posers.
Special thanks to the Department of Public Law and the Free State Centre for Human Rights for bringing it to light and inviting me to be a part of this.
Beyond the discussion, it is important to continue to educate the masses. We can only correct misconceptions by continuing to discuss them as long as we can, till the change in mentality and mindset circulates.
Human rights and transformation have one thing in common with Africa or any other group of people, anywhere in the world, regardless of factors like race, gender, age, colour, religion – humanity. Africans are humans, and it has been established that humans have rights, many of which are considered inalienable.
This is especially the case as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) promulgated in 1948 that all human beings are free and equal, irrespective of their colour, creed, or religion. Thus, human rights are vital to Africa, just like it is to the rest of the world.
To begin with, it is worthy of note that only three of the 54 now-existing African countries entered the UDHR charter signed in 1948. Others joined upon attainment of independence. According to the UDHR: “Human right is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world. Disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind.”
The UDHR's first article reads thus: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.”
The following article completely eliminates prejudice, discrimination of any kind, including gender, race, sex, ethnicity, religion, country, culture, age, colour, profession, etc.
Human rights instruments are transformational because anything that protects one human from the vices of another also preserves peace and justice in society.
The absence of a guarantee of rights means an individual could hit the streets of Washington DC with a Magnum 99 or a Beretta, shoot everyone and return to his or her own base, a free person. It means survival will only be that of who is more evil and has the means to stay alive — the rule of force. After all, where there is no law, there is no sin. And where there is no sin, punishment does not exist. The described situation only regularises chaos, disorder and anarchy. It sustains a system maintained by the survival of the fittest.
Moreover, human rights are not new to Africa and cannot be said to be a Western concept, let alone a colonial imposition. In pre-colonial Africa, many of these modern rights were exercised, even though not pronounced, spelt out, or documented.
The one significant difference between then and now is that then, there were those (royal family, for instance) who were regarded above the law, but now the law is believed to be above everyone else. Thus, no one, not even monarchs/presidents, can wilfully take life as they deem fit.
While arbitrarily taking of life, properties, etc, was not uncommon even then, they were often regarded as acts of tyranny. Similarly, despite the pronouncement of human rights in the present day, there are still acts of tyranny from leaders, similar or worse to the pre-colonial period.
Human rights are crucial to resolving social conflicts.
The big advantage and strength of the human rights paradigm lie in the values espoused by its norms, which are, by nature, transformative. These values, inherent in human rights, are used by legal practitioners, human rights advocates, and dispute resolution practitioners to resolve conflicts, thereby bringing the transformational effects of the law, justice, and order to society. This is particularly the case when the state actors desire complete resolution to conflict. The desire is crucial to the transformation of a lawless society from one that disregards law and order to one where peace reigns supreme, which is something lacking in many African countries, especially Nigeria.
Indeed, reverence for human rights is undoubtedly transformational.
The pursuit of Africa’s transformation from the path of injustice and utter disregard for the rights of its citizens, which it seeks to protect, perfectly aligns with the issue of decolonisation. They embrace the concept of freedom, justice, self-determination, fairness, humanity, and so on. In fact, they are intertwined.
The pursuit of decolonisation hinges on freedom from foreign powers, while the protection and preservation of Africans’ rights hinge on freedom from both international and local abusers such as security operatives, the government, and the powerful.
Strict adherence, preservations, and protection of the dictates of human rights will result in an enabling environment that allows for peace and promotes a nation-building process amid peacebuilding.
The violation of human rights, of people based on their religion, ethnicity, gender, age, and so on, ensures that violence thrives. And where there is violence, there can be no development.