Upholding Human Rights is Everyone’s Responsibility

“Are the people of Nagaland literate enough on human rights and are they able to stand for their own rights and give due respect to the rights of others? The answer is ‘NO’ and the serious concern was that there was an urgent need to programme a vigorous defence and promotion of human rights. The educational institutions, colleges, NGOs and churches are to play an active role in promoting peace, justice and social transformation. The Government of Nagaland is yet to set up ‘State Human Rights Commission’ in the state.

Every year the 10th December is observed as International Human Rights Day to bring the attention of the people of the world that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is the common standard of achievement for all people and all nations. According to the UN website, This year’s Human Rights Day theme Recover Better – Stand up for Human Rights, relates to the Covid-19 pandemic and focuses on the need to build back better by ensuring Human Rights are central to recovery efforts, we will reach our common global goals only if we are able to create equal opportunities for all, address failures exposed and exploited by Covid-19, and apply human rights standards to tackle entrenched, systematic, and international inequalities, exclusion and discrimination. The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, adopted by the World Conference, marked the beginning of a renowned effort in the protection and promotion of human rights. Promoting human rights is one of the core purposes of the United Nations. And the core purpose of the United Nations was deliberately failing as Nagaland state could not constitute a State Human Rights Commission till date. Even the National Human Rights Commission, New Delhi asked every state to set up State Human Rights Commission and had also recommended to incorporate human rights education in state education board syllabus and further urged the NGOs to create more awareness. Human Rights are fundamental to our every existence without which we cannot live as human being. To protect human rights is to ensure that people receive some degree of decent, human treatment. However, in many cases public authorities and government official institute policies that violates basic human rights. Such abuses of power by political leaders and state authorities have devastating effects. Slavery, poverty, physical torture, destruction of property, rape, killing, hunger, sex exploitation, forced labour, child labour, commercial sex exploitation, corruption, illiteracy, etc. are against human rights. As indigenous people of the land, Article 371A of the constitution of India provides a special provision giving the Naga people rights to protect their own way of life, its land and resources. The various Naga Tribal Councils in Nagaland are to play a strong role towards the promotion and protection of the rights of indigenous people as indigenous inhabitants of Nagaland.

As per the definition given by section 2(1) (d) of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, right to life is guaranteed by the Constitution of India. ‘Life’ here means human life” and not mere animal existence. Right to life is guaranteed by Article 21 read with Article 14, 25, 27 and 28 of the Constitution of India. Right to food is universal human rights, which is acknowledged at the regional, national and international levels. The citizen’s right to be free from hunger enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution of India, is to be ensued by the fulfilment of the obligations of the State set out in Article 39(a) and 47. The right to food is about freedom from hunger. Therefore, it is very important for the state of Nagaland to effectively implement the National Food Security Act, 2013 without any involvement of wrong diversion and corruption. Many poor people around the world are going to die because they do not get enough food to eat. Food is basic to human existence and that is why it receives the foremost attention of mankind. Poverty is the main reason for families to send their children to work. Due to child labour, there is large scale exploitation and deprivation of human rights. Children’s rights are human rights. Children are no doubt supreme assets of the country. “Child is the father of man”. The Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, was a great human rights activist who strongly believed and practiced non-violence. One of the great American Presidents, Abraham Lincoln, was a man who had sacrificed his life for the abolition of slavery. Nelson Mandela was one of the great symbols of human rights of our time whose life was committed to human dignity, equality, freedom & justice.

Besides the rest of the country, Nagaland is an example of being a slaughter house of human rights. Atrocities on women at home and workplace, insurgency, problems of drugs, rape, alcoholism among youths and adults, child abuse and flesh trade, extortion, anti-Indian mentality, delay in receiving justice and growth of non-humanitarian values are indications of violation of human rights, which have seriously disturbed the peace and tranquillity of the State. A major theme of the human rights discourse is the Armed Forces(Special Power) Act of 1958 widely seen in the North-East as ‘draconian’. Rights and duties are one of the primary concerns of the human civilisation. These are closely connected with liberty, growth, development, dignity, responsibility and welfare of the general community. However, knowledge about human rights is not popular among the citizens of Nagaland. As a result, violation of human rights is so common in Nagaland that the purpose of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is defeated considerable number of times. The techno-hyped societies are progressing fast but not in terms of human rights, not only among the illiterate sections but also among the literate and educated ones.

The crying need of the developing world is to live in peace and harmony, and here human rights and development can move together, provided man is conscious of his rights and his social and national responsibilities. Human right is a symbol of hope and the need of the hour as violation of human rights has become a day to day event in society. Creating a safe, secured and harmonious environment for the neo-literate is the look of the family, the community, the civilised society and community at large.

Adv. Kezhokhoto Savi,
Asst. Professor Kohima Law College & President, NVCO