Universal Declaration of Human Rights: 60 years on
Many of the Asia-Pacific states that adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, including India and Burma (Myanmar), had recently achieved independence from colonial rule. For them, a global commitment to a world where all are “free and equal in dignity and rights” held special significance.
“Freedom from fear and want” were equally powerful aspirations for the citizens of the many Asia-Pacific nations that joined the UN thereafter, from Laos to Indonesia, Cambodia to Fiji.
On the face of it, “freedom from want” appeared to find some vindication in Asia’s subsequent, explosive emergence as a powerful economic force. Despite disparities between individual economies in the region, on the whole, Asia has seen its wealth increase faster than any other region in the world since 1960. Asia is home to the two most populous countries in the world – China with 1.3 billion people and India with 1.1 billion. These two states’ economies are also among the fastest-growing globally. Not all citizens have benefited, however. The growth has been accompanied by a widening gap between rich and poor, exacerbating entrenched patterns of discrimination.
The challenge to match unbridled economic expansion with an increase in economic, social and cultural rights for the region’s poor remains unmet.
Ongoing conflicts and the growing violence perpetrated by armed groups have continued to generate grave abuses across the region, undermining the security of millions. In addition to refugee populations denied a durable solution, hundreds of thousands remain internally displaced by conflict. Meanwhile in many countries security forces have enjoyed impunity for decades for human rights violations, including extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, torture and other ill-treatment perpetrated in the name of “national security”. Political instability and the reassertion of military authority – often via the imposition of states of emergency – have undermined institutions crucial for the protection of human rights, or stalled their reform, in several countries.
In this anniversary year of the UDHR, the prospect of an effective remedy for victims of human rights violations in many countries remains illusory.
Even where legal systems are well established, and fundamental rights enshrined in constitutions, protection and enforcement are often undermined for political expediency. Asia-Pacific countries that have ratified the core UN human rights treaties, have been reluctant to adopt optional protocols providing international mechanisms for individual complaints. National human rights institutions have now been established in 13 countries, but their independence and efficacy in many countries has been sorely challenged in recent years.
Asia remains the only region in the world that does not have an overarching human rights instrument. However, in a major development in November 2007, the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) 10 member countries – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam – marked ASEAN’s 40th anniversary by signing their first formal charter which included a commitment to establish a human rights body for the sub-region. The Pacific Islands Forum began examining similar mechanisms within initiatives to promote Pacific integration and co-operation.
2007 also saw the finalizing of the new UN human rights body, the Human Rights Council, of which Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, South Korea and Sri Lanka are current members. Each member state has committed to respecting human rights, co-operating with UN human rights mechanisms, creating and maintaining strong national human rights frameworks and ratifying and upholding international standards. Time will tell whether new Council mechanisms, notably the Universal Periodic Review, will facilitate robust international scrutiny and response when members fail to honour such commitments, and make a real difference to the day-to-day lives of the people of the Asia-Pacific region.
Despite disparities between individual economies in the region, on the whole, Asia has seen its wealth increase faster than any other region in the world since 1960
2007 under review
Economic growth, globalization and poverty
The defining feature of 2007 in the Asia-Pacific region was runaway economic growth. While statistically convincing, rampant growth remained suspect in human rights terms. Figures across the region showed a growing gap between rich and poor. Uneven processes of wealth generation continued to disproportionately favour the educated, skilled and urban.
China’s economy expanded by 11.4%, the highest growth rate since 1994. But growth was accompanied by social tensions and increasing impoverishment among some rural populations, and environmental degradation. Vocal protests by farmers did little to prevent forced evictions by the authorities to make way for developments, including those supporting the 2008 Beijing Olympics. In India, the economic boom was accompanied by further marginalization of the 300 million already poor and vulnerable people. Business interests, in many cases multinational, outweighed the needs of the poor as the exploitation of natural resources left tens of thousands homeless with no hope of return or reparations. In Cambodia, thousands were forcibly evicted from their homes following rapacious land grabs by the authorities.
Migration, internal and across borders, was a key contributor to the buoyancy of the region’s economy. Yet in country after country, it was seen as an unwanted and unsightly development. In particular, irregular migrants (those without documented legal permission to remain in a host country) were subjected to discriminatory treatment, violence and abuse.
In Malaysia, more than 20,000 migrants were detained by Rela, the People’s Volunteer Corps, a body used by the government to tackle the “problem” of “illegal” immigration. Rela routinely raided places where migrant workers, refugees and asylum-seekers lived. In many cases, people were severely beaten and arbitrarily detained. Some were sent to immigration detention camps from which they risked being forcibly returned to countries where they might be tortured or otherwise ill-treated.
Not only did migrants live under the constant threat of detention from the authorities, but they were also subjected to physical and mental abuse by their employers, and were frequently denied equal access to benefits and protections guaranteed to local workers.
In 2007, there were some 500,000 migrants living in South Korea, about half of whom were irregular migrant workers. Many faced severe restrictions on job mobility and had little or no redress against discriminatory treatment or other abuses in the workplace.
Figures across the region showed a growing gap between rich and poor. Uneven processes of wealth generation continued to disproportionately favour the educated, skilled and urban
Ten migrants detained pending deportation were killed and 17 others were injured during a fire at the Yeosu detention facility in South Korea in February. The relatives of those killed in the fire were given compensation. The other detainees were promptly deported back to the countries of origin, many without any compensation or recourse to unpaid wages.
Armed conflict and political repression
The region remained one of the frontlines in the US-led global “war on terror”, which continued to influence domestic and regional armed conflicts, rivalries, and power struggles. Protracted fighting between government forces and armed groups in Afghanistan and Pakistan continued to cause high levels of civilian casualties and a deterioration in the enjoyment of basic human rights. These conflicts are having significant geo-political influence as international forces and the NATO alliance support the Afghan state, and the US-led international coalition continues to pressure Pakistan to address the “war on terror” agenda more rigorously.
In Afghanistan, the ongoing conflict between insurgent groups and the internationally backed Afghan government intensified. At least 6,500 people lost their lives in the violence – civilians accounted for up to two thirds of that number. All parties to the conflict committed human rights abuses. Armed groups, including the Taleban, deliberately targeted civilians, killing those perceived to be sympathetic to the Afghan government or international forces. At the same time, international forces killed hundreds of civilians in offensive operations and aerial bombardments. Afghan national security forces were also involved in the deaths of large numbers of civilians.
Keen to present itself as an ally in the “war on terror”, an already fragile Pakistan was plunged into political chaos in November when General Pervez Musharraf declared a state of emergency and suspended Pakistan’s Constitution. His actions followed challenges by the Supreme Court to his presidential candidacy while being the Army Chief of Staff. Around 50 judges were removed from the higher judiciary. The subsequent crackdown led to severe curbs on freedom of expression and movement, with the arbitrary detention of thousands of lawyers, journalists and human rights activists. Elections were set for January 2008 and former Prime Ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif returned from exile at the end of the year to put themselves forward as candidates. From the beginning, the process was marred by violence, culminating in the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in December.
Increasing violence, insecurity and political repression, including restrictions on freedom of expression, were widespread elsewhere in the region. Human rights defenders and others attempting to peacefully safeguard their rights were vulnerable to a wide range of abuses. Abductions and enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions, torture and other ill-treatment plagued the region and, in many cases, were carried out with impunity.
In August, large-scale protests began in Myanmar against the government’s economic and political policies. At least 31 people, and likely more than 100, were killed in the subsequent crackdown by the authorities, and a similar number were thought to be the victims of enforced disappearance. Although the initial response from the international community was robust, by the end of the year, it had waned. Political prisoners continued to be arrested and sentenced at year end, despite government assurances to the UN and their claims of a return to "normalcy".
Enforced disappearances, unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests and torture continued to be a feature of the ongoing and escalating conflict between Sri Lankan government forces and the armed opposition group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Armed attacks on civilians were perpetrated by both sides. The LTTE engaged in indiscriminate attacks on civilians. Enforced disappearances appeared to remain part of the government’s counter-insurgency strategy and were often reportedly carried out by security forces or by armed groups acting with their complicity. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were displaced from their homelands, particularly in the north, as conflict continued. As hostilities intensified the space for dissent was increasingly restricted, and journalists, particularly those associated with the Tamil media, were attacked, abducted and killed. Despite compelling evidence, the authorities failed to effectively investigate or prosecute those responsible for unlawful killings.
In Bangladesh, a prolonged state of emergency severely restricted the space for freedom of expression and assembly, and due process of law. Hundreds of thousands of people were reportedly arrested as emergency regulations granted sweeping powers of arrest to law enforcement agencies. Human rights defenders and journalists were threatened, intimidated, and implicated in fabricated cases. Law enforcement agencies were implicated in the deaths of more than 100 people in custody, but no one was held to account for the deaths.
Zakia Zaki, who ran the private Peace Radio, was killed by gunmen in her home in the central province of Parwan, Afghanistan, on 5 June. The Journalists Independent Union of Afghanistan registered 53 cases of violence against journalists in 2007 by the Afghan government and Taleban insurgents. In six of the cases a journalist was killed.
Death penalty
Against a global backdrop of growing repudiation, the death penalty remained widespread in the region. In Afghanistan, 15 people were shot, the first executions to take place in three years. Between 70 and 110 people remained on death row. Pakistan continued to extend the scope of the death penalty, bringing more offences within its ambit, and in 2007 more than 100 people were executed.
Secrecy around the death penalty is still a major concern in many countries in the Asia-Pacific region. Death penalty statistics in China continued to be regarded as a state secret, and despite the welcome decision of the Supreme People’s Court to reinstate their final review of all cases, the death penalty continued to be used extensively. At least 470 people were executed during 2007 – although the true figure could be much higher.
The death penalty continues to be widely used in the region not just for murder, but for non-violent crimes such as drug-related offences, corruption and other economic crimes. In North Korea, those executed, by hanging or firing-squad, included political prisoners and people charged with economic crimes.
The Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network (ADPAN) expressed concern that more people in the region were sentenced to death for drug offences than for any other crime. In February, a group of Indonesian lawyers representing five people who had been sentenced to death for drug-related offences, tried to appeal the convictions by arguing that the Indonesian narcotics law contravened the “right to life” enshrined in the Indonesian Constitution. The appeal was rejected in October. In Viet Nam, at least 83 people were sentenced to death for drug trafficking offences.
Secrecy around the death penalty is still a major concern in many countries in the Asia-Pacific region. Statistics in China, for example, continue to be regarded as a state secret
Violence against women
Gender-based violence, including sexual violence, remained an everyday threat for women and girls, as alleged perpetrators, including policemen and others in powerful positions, escaped justice. In many countries, women reporting rape faced serious obstacles. In Papua New Guinea, violence against women was seen as a key reason for the HIV/AIDS epidemic, which, in turn, fuelled further abuses against women.
Domestic violence and physical and psychological abuse in the workplace also continued. In China, cases of domestic violence increased 120 per cent in the first three months of the year – a surge attributed to a greater willingness to report abuses.
In Pakistan, the state failed to prevent and prosecute violence in the home and community, including mutilation, rape and “honour” killings. From January to October in the province of Sindh alone, 183 women were murdered for supposedly harming family “honour”. The practice of “swara”, the handing over of a girl or woman for marriage to opponents to settle a dispute, was made punishable by law in 2005 but continued to be practised with impunity.
In March, the Human Trafficking Criminal Actions Eradication Act became law in Indonesia and was welcomed by local NGOs for including a definition of sexual exploitation and immunity for victims. However, trafficking in women and girls remained widespread in the region.
Also in March, the Taiwanese legislature passed several amendments to the Domestic Violence Prevention Law to include cohabiting same-sex and unmarried couples.
Parliaments around the world adopted resolutions calling for justice for the survivors of Japan’s World War II system of military sexual slavery. However, the thousands of “comfort” women who were forced to deliver sexual services to Japanese soldiers continued to be denied a full apology or compensation from the Japanese government. In March, Japan’s Prime Minister, Abe Shinzo, stated that there was no evidence that the “comfort” women were coerced into becoming sexual slaves.
The thousands of 'comfort' women who were forced to deliver sexual services to Japanese soldiers continued to be denied a full apology or compensation from the Japanese government
Moving human rights forward
Activists, civil society and social movements across the region were increasingly organized in mobilizing protests and actions challenging human rights issues, such as the widespread impunity concerning enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, torture and the rights of marginalized peoples.
In Papua New Guinea, the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence was formed in response to government inaction to combat the proliferation and use of illegal firearms. Women human rights defenders were increasingly vocal, organizing a high-profile silent protest addressing violence against women in October.
In Myanmar, fuel price increases, on top of an economy already in decline, sparked peaceful protests. Monks began leading nationwide protests against the government’s economic policies, and formed a new group, the All Burma Monks Alliance.
Laos ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in February. Thailand’s accession in October to the UN Convention against Torture brought to fruition many years of activism by Thai civil society and others, and followed hot on the heels of the Thai government signing the statute of the International Criminal Court in August.
In India, there has been a vigorous debate led by NGOs and civil society around the costs of globalization, and what this process means for the poor. The challenge for Asia-Pacific states is how to ensure the growing economic prosperity enjoyed by a lucky few in a handful of countries filters down the social scale and across borders.
This will only be achieved when human rights are enshrined at the centre of the region’s laws, and rhetoric is translated into action.
Venerable U Thilavantha, Deputy Abbot of a monastery in Myitkyina, Myanmar, was beaten to death in detention on 26 September, having also been beaten the night before when his monastery was raided. An unconfirmed number of prisoners died in detention after the crackdown in September, due to their treatment during interrogation.
Events that have occurred in 2008
The latest on human rights on amnesty.org
