Statement by The Ministry of Foriegn Affairs and Immigration On Human Rights Day
Statement by
The Ministry of Foriegn Affairs and Immigration
On Human Rights Day
10 December
On 10 December 1948 in Paris, France, the United Nations General Assembly adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a milestone document that established, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected.
Beginning in 1950, to promote awareness about human rights among the people all around the world, and as a reaffirmation of their commitment to promote and protect the human dignity of all, countries around the world commemorate Human Rights Day on 10 December.
Standing up for human rights is critical in the twenty-first century. We live in a world that finds that it must face complex global challenges which daily threaten fundamental rights and freedoms. These include messages of discrimination, intolerance and hatred against minorities, cyber attacks and the failure to respect the right to privacy in the digital age, extremist movements and terrorist attacks, and large displacement of people and unprecedented humanitarian crises due to prolonged armed conflicts and natural disasters, among others.
A small island developing state, in The Bahamas, where every person is constitutionally “entitled to the fundamental rights and freedoms of the individual”, we are committed to protecting and promoting the indivisible human rights of all Bahamians, and indeed, all human kind.
These include the right to citizenship and security, freedom of assembly, association, belief and opinion, and expression, the right to demonstrate, picket and petition, freedom from forced labour, servitude and slavery, the right to privacy and to exercise political rights, rights when arrested, detained and accused, and the right to freedom of movement.
In The Bahamas, our rights of human dignity, equality and freedom are embedded and preserved in our Constitution, which is the cornerstone of our constitutional and representative democracy.
Since our independence on 10 July 1973, in The Bahamas, we have made notable progress in mainstreaming the promotion and protection of human rights. This includes the recognition of the rights of persons with disabilities, the rights of women and the child and the expansion of the health and social net.
Meanwhile, we have made concrete commitments to advancing human rights. For example, the Bureau of Women’s Affairs, which is responsible for gender equality and advancement of women in The Bahamas, has now been elevated to the Department of Family and Gender Affairs. Ms. Marion Bethel, a Bahamian, was in June of this year elected to serve on the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women. In addition, The Bahamas is seeking election to the Human Rights Council for the term 2019-2021.
The United Nations has played an essential role in advancing in the global human rights cause. Commencing with the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations has adopted a series of international instruments that expand the body of international human rights law. In addition, its human rights operations established on the ground, such as peacekeeping missions, and its various human rights bodies, such as the Human Right Council, have and continue to promote and protect human rights through both immediate and long-term action.
Nonetheless, despite advances, human rights abuses continue unabated worldwide.
This means we must be vigilant. We must remain vigilant and report abuse such as human trafficking, migrant smuggling, child and forced labour and violence against women, children, the aged, persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groupings of people. We can all make a difference; no action is too small.
Human rights are rights that everyone should have simply because they are human. On this day, let us re-commit to respecting human rights. It advances peace and security. It is in the interest of us all.