Opinions

Marking 70th International Human Rights Day

TODAY, Nigeria will join other Nations of the world to celebrate International Human Rights Day. The United Nation on the 10th of December 1948, adopted a list of human rights for the protection of humanity and has since been celebrating the day as human rights day as a mark of its commitment to the principle and practice of the rights worldwide. The significance of the day is to remind the people of the world including Nigeria about the importance of the tenets of these rights which include the rights to equality, freedom from discrimination, rights to life, Liberty, personal security, freedom from slavery and freedom from torture and degrading treatment. These rights and more others deserve the adherence to their principle by the people and government beyond just understanding them but to be strictly committed to their promotion and best practices.

Ironically and despite human rights, people are loosing their lives daily to violence which has continued with some of our soldiers dying in the battle fields. As a result, humanity continues to be dehumanised while those alive are living with indignity. The Nigeria Voters Assembly notes with dismay the massive infringement of these rights, especially by the Boko- Haram insurgents worldwide killing the masses both Christians, Muslims, young and old, and perpetrating havoc and wilful displacement causing the government to establish camps outside their homes. In Nigeria particularly, the country is moving towards its general elections in 2019, therefore adherence to human rights principles and best practices required that political parties and politicians in all their dealings must respect human and democratic rights, so that lives can be better lived and properties kept saved.

Your spouse is a critical success factor —Funmi Roberts

Violence and torture in the electoral process, and against women and children in particular, must be avoided. Also, the government must begin to open access to better environment with good sanitation. Internal and inter State war must be avoided to reduce killings and reduce the establishment of camps in nearly all the States of the country. This is because internal displacements subject the people to degrading conditions and poverty which decreases on daily basis the quality of lives. It is ironic, that despite human rights, the world continue to watch with glee, as human lives are lost on daily basis in the face of unjustifiable tyranny. We must reaffirm our commitment to promoting human rights by ensuring that these fundamental rights are no more infringed upon.

Thuggery which breeds violence must be taken out of our elections, rigging must be aborted in the electoral processes while vote buying and selling must be discouraged for all times. Employment must be provided for the Old and Youths to stabilise the homes so as to ensure that security become the primary obligation of government to the people. For human rights to be meaningful, all Nigerians and the world Citizens must come together to re-write the genuine principles of human rights in their conscience to make the creation of human rights on 10 December 1948 and its yearly celebration meaningful. Finally, all developed and developing countries with conscience must rise to arrest the situation of human rights abuses to put an end to infringement and bad practices so as to bring back peace into the Country.