Human Rights Watch, Defending Human Rights
Values Under Attack, by Kenneth Roth, June 22, 2016
https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/06/22/defending-human-rights-values-under-attack
JUNE 22,
2016
Defending Human Rights Values Under Attack
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The human-rights building blocks of democratic society are
the ideas that we should see the humanity in each individual, respect and value
differences, and treat others with the respect that we want them to give us.
Yet these values are now under attack more intensely than at any period
in recent decades.
In
Europe–although Austria may have
just dodged a bullet in its presidential election– leaders like Hungary’s
Victor Orban and Poland’s Jarosław Kaczyński speak openly of building
“illiberal” democracy— one without essential checks and balances on executive power,
including protection for human rights.
In
country after country in Europe , far-right and
even mainstream parties trade in intolerance, xenophobia, nativism, and
fearmongering.
The
problem arises elsewhere as well. American demagogues advance their political
prospects by appealing to our worst instincts.
China and Russia
Yet Europe is
an important center of the problem.
It is the site of rising Islamophobia, the tarring and marginalizing of
entire communities, the demonizing of refugees, and dangerous efforts to turn
back the clocks to a time when society was thought to be more uniform, less a
melding of differences.
Insecurity is a major cause of these trends:
economic insecurity, as many people feel they are falling behind; physical
insecurity, because people enjoying a night on the town or a trip abroad are
randomly shot down; cultural insecurity, when the meaning of what it is to be,
say, French or German is no longer as simple as had long been assumed.
In
such times of insecurity, there is a tendency to retrench, to seek shelter
among those who seem most like us, to shut the gates to others, to blame them
for our problems and disappointments. That instinct provides the platform for the growing voices of hate.
Yet
these trends are not inevitable, nor
must our role be reduced to that of worried spectator. Because they put in
question the very nature of our societies, we all have a duty to reject this
movement toward hatred, exclusion and intolerance, and to do our part to
reverse it.
Easier
said than done, you might retort. These are big trends. How can a
single person make a difference?
If we all do our part, the task is not as
daunting as it might appear. Our first responsibility is to cut through
the myths and misrepresentations that often accompany the case for intolerance.
When did they solve rather than compound our problems?
Consider
the public discourse these days about immigrant and minority communities in Europe , particularly those of Muslims. Over
decades, most European governments have done a poor job integrating these
communities. Residents face limited job and educational opportunities,
discriminatory encounters with the police, a sense of not really being accepted
by society. Most residents do the best they can under the circumstances,
but some small minority is radicalized and turns to violence. This is a
serious problem, but is Islamophobia really the answer? These communities
are now an integral part of Europe . If
we do not enable their residents to build meaningful lives, if we continue to
frustrate their aspirations, if we do not welcome their many contributions,
their alienation and despair will only grow.
Or
take the problem of terrorism. It’s true that today’s terrorist threat in
Europe comes mainly from second and third
generation Muslim immigrants. A smart counterterrorism strategy reaches
out to the people who are most likely to learn of a terrorist plot before it
unfolds—the plotters’ family, neighbors and associates, many of them also
Muslim. We want them to feel part
of the solution rather than the problem. We want them to feel comfortable
reporting suspicious activity to the police. But Islamophobia does the
opposite. People who feel they
can’t trust the police, that they themselves will be regarded with suspicion if
their share their concerns, will remain silent.
Or
look at the refugees. As desperate people flee Assad’s barrel bombs and
the Islamic State’s atrocities, many are seeking a haven in Europe .
None of us wants to see chaos at Europe’s borders, but we should be
encouraging European governments to help these people by giving generous
funding to enable them to educate their children and support their families in
their countries of first refugee—in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan. And as for
those who may still want to reach Europe, we should be urging acceptance of
many more people directly from those countries of first refuge, without requiring them first to take a
dangerous boat across the Mediterranean .
Readers may or may not agree with each of
these arguments, but there are many more to be made to counter the voices of
hatred and intolerance. The key is not to assume that rising intolerance
is inevitable, that hatred is a natural product of challenging times.
These sentiments flourish only when uncontested. We must all do our
part to stem their flow.
But that leaves the question: how to make
oneself heard? Begin by paying attention to how you conduct yourselves.
Treat others the way you want to be treated. Be a model that others
will emulate. Positive examples can be contagious. They speak
loudly.
Then talk with your friends, families, and
communities. The more conversations, the better. Populists love to say that they speak for the community,
that they are the authentic voice of the people, that they are upholding
national values from foreign intrusion. For those who disagree, it is
important to say, “No, those people do
not speak for me.”
In
addition, these days it is easier than in the past to take part in the broader
public debate about the direction of Europe .
Unlike
less than a decade ago, social media such as Facebook and Twitter have greatly
democratized access to the public debate. To make our voices heard, we no
longer must depend on often-difficult access to the traditional media. We
all are capable of entering the public conversation from our laptop or mobile
phone. We should seize the opportunity to use that megaphone.
Remember,
every political movement starts locally. Every community begins with a circle of
friends. When chatting with
friends or family, when engaging on-line, find space to include commentary on
the latest assault on our values. Challenge myths with facts. Figure
out ways to advance the conversation. At first you may feel self-conscious talking
about these issues, but the more one joins the conversation, the more
comfortable it feels, and the more significant your voice becomes. Even
if we start with just a few people, there is a ripple effect. If we all
do our part, the ripples can become waves, even tides.
If we want a world built around the values of
human rights, we cannot take them for granted. There is an urgent need
for all of us to come to their defense. That requires each of us to do
our part.
- - -
This essay was
drawn from remarks to the graduating class of the American University of
Paris and has been published in Gazeta Wyborcza (Poland); Hospodářské noviny (Czech Republic); El Pais (Spain); Die Zeit (Germany); NRK (Norway); ETC (Sweden); Volkskrant(The Netherlands); De Morgen (Belgium); NOL (Hungary); Pravda (Slovakia); La Repubblica (Italy).
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https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/06/22/defending-human-rights-values-under-attack
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