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Human Rights in the Right
Contextual Perspective
Dilrook Kannangara
There is no debate on the need to protect human rights. However, care
should be exercised when interpreting incidents and incidence of human
rights violations. It is most important to identify where human rights
stands in a wide spectrum of priorities. If we are to look at developed
countries based on modern democratic principles, we can identify roughly
the following list of priorities.
- Sovereignty and territorial integrity of the nation
- National security
- National economy
- Public and national assets
- Law & order
- Human rights, labour rights and other individual rights of freedom
- Specific rights of secular groups
- ……..the list continues………….
I have not included such interests as “promoting global democracy”
as envisaged in the Vietnam war, Iraq war, etc. as only a handful of
nations had it as a priority and even that changed within a very short
time.
Higher priorities are protected even at the expense of lesser priorities
although all the above and many more are still considered priorities.
We know how priorities 3 to 7 were compromised by the US, UK, France
and many more democratic countries when faced with Nazi, etc. aggression
and also in many other instances. Peaceful nations nevertheless maintain
a very heavy defence spending at the expense of priorities 5 to 7 since
they know what is more important is national security over any concerns
the society has over the access to government documents/facilities,
military operations, extra-judicial justice resolution and human rights.
Yet another example would be how underdeveloped countries have identified
the importance of their national economy over labour rights and humanitarian
workplace conveniences. By these no country justifies exploitation,
but recognises the fact that it is more important to sustain the livelihoods
of the workforce and their dependants than to ‘kill’ their
employer.
On the other hand, Malaysia and Singapore has little to be happy on
their human rights record but they have plenty in terms of national
security, national pride, sovereignty, economic growth and political
stability. It is not by coincidence that Sri Lankans crave to be like
them.
If you look at the Sri Lankan context, priorities 1 to 7 are gravely
at stake due to the acts of the LTTE and their supporters. It is imperative
that each of the priorities 1 to 5 are upheld in that order, if we are
to even talk of human rights in Sri Lanka. Obviously there will be human
rights issues when a nation is at risk of loosing everything. We should
appreciate the fact that a temporary sacrifice of some of our human
rights is needed to save us from loosing everything we got. Also it
is important to assess the gravity of HR violations in terms of the
percentage of the population involved. During a war, it is acceptable
in practical terms if only a fraction of the 20 million is (temporarily)
affected.
Many howl about the Karuna group in regard to HR violations. However,
the government should take a practical stand.
- There is no justification to wage ANOTHER WAR on the Karuna group.
- Also there are no resources, man power and financial strength to
take on another war.
- Given the political presence of the TMVP (a registered political
party that has not violated the provisions of the Constitution or
the PTA; the TNA on the other hand has already done so) the government
is barred from banning or otherwise crippling the group.
- Also they have helped maintain law and order, obviously according
to their own methods some of which cannot be justified in a peaceful
society not faced with terrorism.
- When faced with many evils, the lesser evil is less damaging (than
the others). Obviously the LTTE is the mother of all evil. As long
as the LTTE womb remains, there will be many ‘illegitimates’
of the likes of suicide bombers, pirates, terrorists, etc. not only
affecting this country but also the region and the world at large.
In this sense it is the LTTE, as the parent, which should be responsible
for its splinter groups. Therefore our priority should be to destroy
the LTTE and that will stop breeding other terrorists.
- As medication should target the disease and not its symptoms, government
should target the terrorists as a priority over their minor splinter
groups.
However, volitation of human rights by these groups should be punished
appropriately. It should be done without reference to the group to which
they belong to as our Constitution does not recognise any armed group.
To sum up the above.
- HR violations by anyone should be brought to book
- Graver violations (in terms of the gravity of the violation) should
be punished harshly and in priority to others. Obviously bus bombings
are graver than extortion.
- Violations affecting a larger population (irrespective of race,
politics, etc) should be given priority attention and perpetrators
should be punished.
- HR violations of the Karuna group should be punished on an individual
basis.
- There is no justification to ban or exterminate the TMVP
- The terrorist womb - the LTTE - should be destroyed as a matter
of priority
- People should appreciate the nation’s priorities and should
willingly sacrifice some of our rights for a few more years for a
better future
As the pragmatic trade unionist goes: “the Company should be in
existence (even) for us to strike; therefore we wouldn’t damage
its property, reputation or cause severe disruptions just to win our
rights”. So should be the priority importance of national interests
over human rights. Those who try to put the cart before the horse are
simply doing so with vested interests. They are merely foxes in donkey
attire.
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