62 years and counting: Today is Human Rights Day December 10, 2010
Posted by muslimouttakes in Community.Tags: human trafficking, islam, muslim, sex
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Today is Human Rights Day which is celebrated annually across the world on December 10. The United Nations announced this day the proclamation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Although the world has made progress in some areas, in human rights, for others it has taken many steps back.
“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights,” says the declaration yet there are so many millions of people who do not enjoy this God given right. The violation of human rights shows its ugly face in discrimination across race, color, gender, language, religion, political opinion, national or social origin, disability, property, birth or other status.
Rather than sound abstract I’d like to touch upon just a few of the many hot button issues going on around the world. As Americans we take for granted the right of free speech and dissension. According to legal experts WikiLeaks hasn’t broken any laws, yet it’s being branded as a terrorist organization. The site is partnering with known and trusted media entities like the New York Times and Guardian to reveal what they see as non-classified information.
Yet governments and corporations have come together to intimidate WikiLeaks and its founder. They have tried to silence them, and the right of world citizens to know what their governments do and say behind closed doors.
Next comes the “war on terror”, even with Obama as President, many of us hoped for change, but the detentions at Guantanamo to other secret renditions continue. The illegal and immoral wars of Iraq and Afghanistan continue with incredible amounts of human suffering. The political hotspots continue to spiral downwards from the Besieged Palestinians in Gaza to sub-Saharan Africa, there is no peace or jutice in sight.
Closer to home while the US outsources jobs and technology to India and China, select Muslim countries are outsourced torture. Sorry I mean “enhanced interrogation” techniques. But all problems don’t lie with us and the West. Whether they be democracies or dictatorships from India to China, Singapore to Venezuela, many countries have improved their lot. Sadly the majority of Muslim countries as still stuck in the past. From feudalism to perpetuating dictatorships, there are many sources of the problem.
Getting back to Human Rights, did you know Muslim countries lead in human trafficking. That’s not a desirable number one position. That of the 17 countries that were given the “Tier 3″ listing reserved for the worst offenders, nine were Muslim countries or countries with a large Muslim population. Think about it. Those or our sisters and daughters being sold, humiliated, and exploited for petty or huge financial gains. Islam and its Prophet (PBUH) gave us human rights over 1400 years ago, yet collectively we have lost that humanity. I for my part just to build awareness created a site, Muslims Against Human Trafficking and a video
. Check it out. Of course we need to respect and honor human rights every day, this is just a small reminder. If you are not able to do anything else just share this with others.
