Author: Ophelia Benson

  • Critics Say UN HRC Undermines Rights

    International activist groups accused HRC of acting as a cover for states aiming to restrict free speech.

  • Reporters Without Borders on UN HRC

    ‘The change to the mandate of the
    special rapporteur on free expression is dramatic.’

  • HRW on the UN and Congo and Human Rights

    HRC failed to renew the mandate of the special rapporteur for DR Congo despite mass rapes and killings.

  • Leave Allah out

    I re-read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this morning, to confirm that it’s as secular as I remembered. It is. This is crucial.

    If you look at the preamble of the UDHR, you will see that there is no mention of any religion. All religions and cultures are assumed to be equal…But in the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam (hereafter called the Cairo Declaration), we can detect a completely different tone. Right from the first paragraph of the preamble, the Cairo Declaration confidently asserts the superiority of Islam by referring to the Islamic Ummah as the “best nation”…This is no implication, unlike in the UDHR, that all cultures and religions are equal. Indeed the rest of humanity is supposedly confused and in need of guidance from the “best nation”.

    And the guidance tells it that the only rights it can have are those that ‘the Shariah’ allows. Which is not a generous package.

    Take note the word “men” instead of “human beings” was used. In Islam, men and women are seen to have different obligations and responsibilities. Men of course can have four wives but women cannot have four husbands. In the UDHR, gender-neutral terms such as “everyone” or “human beings” are always used.

    David Littman takes a close look.

    Although traditions, cultures and religious background may be different, human nature is universally the same. The aim of those who drafted and approved the UDHR was precisely to affirm this universal human identity, separating it from particular and religious contexts, which introduce and sanctify differences and discriminations. Any attempt to bring in cultural and religious particularisms would simply remove the specifically universal character of the UDHR. Neither the UIDHR nor the CDHRI is universal, because both are conditional on Islamic law which non-Muslims do not accept. The UDHR places social and political norms in a secular framework, separating the political from the religious. In contrast, both the UIDHR and the CDHRI introduce into the political sphere an Islamic religious criterion, which imposes an absolute decisive and divine primacy over the political and legal spheres.

    To be continued.

  • The Cairo Declaration again

    Let’s take another, closer look at the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam, focusing on certain aspects of it. This is not a selective excerpt, this is one that pulls out certain words and ideas, so it’s not fair in the sense of quoting a fair sample in context. Be sure to look at the Declaration itself – there is plenty of sensible stuff in it. But it’s startling and interesting what a large amount of non-sensible stuff there is in it – what a lot of Allah there is and what an enormous amount of Shari’ah there is.

    Keenly aware of the place of mankind in Islam as vicegerent of Allah…Recognizing the importance of issuing a Document on Human Rights in Islam…Reaffirming the civilizing and historical role of the Islamic Ummah which Allah made as the best community…to affirm his freedom and right to a dignified life in accordance with the Islamic Shari’ah…fundamental rights and freedoms according to Islam are an integral part of the Islamic religion…they are binding divine commands, which are contained in the Revealed Books of Allah…

    All human beings form one family whose members are united by their subordination to Allah…All human beings are Allah’s subjects…it is prohibited to take away life except for a shari’ah prescribed reason…Safety from bodily harm is a guaranteed right…it is prohibited to breach it without a Shari’ah-prescribed reason…provided they take into consideration the interest and future of the children in accordance with ethical values and the principles of the Shari’ah…The State shall ensure the availability of ways and means to acquire education…so as to enable man to be acquainted with the religion of Islam…Islam is the religion of true unspoiled nature…Human beings are born free…there can be no subjugation but to Allah the Almighty…Every man shall have the right, within the framework of the Shari’ah, to free movement…unless asylum is motivated by committing an act regarded by the Shari’ah as a crime…Everyone shall have the right to enjoy the fruits of his scientific, literary, artistic or technical labour…provided it is not contrary to the principles of the Shari’ah…There shall be no crime or punishment except as provided for in the Shari’ah…Everyone shall have the right to express his opinion freely in such manner as would not be contrary to the principles of the Shari’ah. Everyone shall have the right to advocate what is right…according to the norms of Islamic Shari’ah. Information…may not be exploited or misused in such a way as may violate sanctities and the dignity of Prophets…Everyone shall have the right to…assume public office in accordance with the provisions of Shari’ah…All the rights and freedoms stipulated in this Declaration are subject to the Islamic Shari’ah…The Islamic Shari’ah is the only source of reference for the explanation or clarification of any of the articles of this Declaration.

    That’s a human rights document. Human rights human rights human rights – provided it is not contrary to the principles of the Shari’ah. And who decides what is contrary to the principles of the Shari’ah? Ah…that would be telling.

  • Because your opponents may become violent

    This is immensely depressing.

    The UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression will now be required to report on the “abuse” of this most cherished freedom by anyone who, for example, dares speak out against Sharia laws that require women to be stoned to death for adultery or young men to be hanged for being gay, or against the marriage of girls as young as nine, as in Iran.

    Good, isn’t it? The Rapporteur was supposed to report on violations of freedom of expression, now she will be required to report on the use of it.

    There can no longer be any pretence that the Human Rights Council can defend human rights. The moral leadership of the UN system has moved from the States who created the UN in the aftermath of the Second World War, committed to the concepts of equality, individual freedom and the rule of law, to the Islamic States, whose allegiance is to a narrow, medieval worldview defined exclusively in terms of man’s duties towards Allah, and to their fellow-travellers, the States who see their future economic and political interests as being best served by their alliances with the Islamic States.

    Well, adios equality, individual freedom and the rule of law, hello duties towards a tyrannical misogynist invented male deity.

    The Sri Lankan delegate explained clearly his reasons for supporting the amendment: “.. if we regulate certain things ‘minimally’ we may be able to prevent them from being enacted violently on the streets of our towns and cities.” In other words: Don’t exercise your right to freedom of expression because your opponents may become violent. For the first time in the 60 year history of UN Human Rights bodies, a fundamental human right has been limited simply because of the possible violent reaction by the enemies of human rights. The violence we have seen played out in reaction to the Danish cartoons is thus excused by the Council – it was the cartoonists whose freedom of expression needed to be regulated. And Theo van Gogh can be deemed responsible for his own death.

    That’s just it. ‘Don’t exercise your right to freedom of expression because your opponents may become violent.’ That may in certain circumstances (a bully has a knife at your throat; the Nazis have taken over) be sane prudential advice, but it is never principled advice. It may be a necessary precaution in times of extreme danger, but it should never ever be treated as the moral high ground. Giving bullies what they demand with menaces is not ever the moral high ground.

  • Swat Valley After Emergency in Pakistan

    Many believed that General Musharraf would act swiftly against the militants in Swat valley after he imposed a State of Emergency in Pakistan on Nov 3 2007. After all, extremism and militancy were what the general presented as an excuse to pull the plug on constitutional democracy and to suspend the fundamental rights in the country. There are several reports in today’s dailies that the militants have captured more installations over the last few days. According to the reports from the local residents, the whole valley, from Kanju to Kalam, has come under the control of Taliban over the last few days. Inamullah, a teacher, social worker and lexicographer, reports, “Taliban entered our village ‘Bahrain’ the other day with heavy weapons mounted on a cavalcade of vehicles snatched from government officials. They delivered a speech on megaphone near a police station and ordered the police to surrender and submit their weapons to them. The police had left the building just an hour ago and a group of local people was entrusted to guard the building. A few hours earlier the village elders had decided not to confront the Taliban but to persuade them to stay away from the area assuring them there would be no security personnel stationed in and around the village. The local people had decided to be impartial in the fighting between Taliban and the security forces. It was a historic day and I saw some very interesting scenes. Taliban moved forward through the valley and halted in Kalam town where local elders negotiated with them the same way. Now they have moved back to their stronghold and we hope our area (the upper hilly area of district Swat) will be safe from any impending military operation against Taliban, though it is true, we are nowadays living under Taliban”. There are also reports that several security personnel thought it safe to flee from the valley.

    In the meanwhile, Federal Minister for Political Affairs, Amir Muqam, has expressed disappointment over the deteriorating situation in Swat valley, “to be frank, unfortunately, there has been no improvement or sign of improvement in the situation on ground even after the promulgation of emergency”. The people of the whole valley feel themselves hostage to the firebrand Maulana Fazlullah and his 500 hundreds die-hard militant followers based in the villages of Mamderhai, Koza Bandia, Ningolai and Bara Bandai. According to the residents, there may be some 3000 sympathizers of the Maulana who might support him but might not accompany him in resisting the security forces. The residents of the upper Swat have started migrating either to the lower part of the valley or to other parts of the country. Educational institutions, business markets and government offices are closed down. The people living in the affected areas are terrorized after some eight beheaded bodies of the security personnel were shown to the people by the militants to win the support of the people a few weeks ago.

    Maualana Fazlurrahman, leader of a religio-political party, Jamiat-e-Ulemai Islam, said last Friday that the present situation in Swat was created as a result of the reaction of the masses against the policies of the present regime. In his view, the regime’s support of the US war on terror might be the main reason behind the insurgency. In the same vein, the interim government of the North West Frontier Province announced that it would reinforce the Sahria’a code earlier promulgated to appease the defunct Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi (TNSM) in the mid-nineties. As both of these assumptions are based on erroneous statistics, both seem to clearly miss the real target. In fact, a vast majority of the population in the valley has already lost trust in the religious leadership due to their inability to respond to the real problems of the people living in the valley. The religious leadership has ruled the province since the elections in 2002. Presently, Maulana Fazlurrahman has become a blue-eyed of the military regime after the imposition of emergency in the country. Sirajul Haqu, amir Jamaat-e-Islami N.W.F.P, called a Jirga in Chakdara on Oct 30, 2007 to gather support for Maulana Fazlullah who had been allowed by the MMA government to continue his activities. The Jirga called upon the government to end military operation in the valley. The local Taliban of Bajore and Momand Agncy also announced their support of Maulana Fazlullah on the same day.

    One may see a clear pattern of external and internal factors instrumental in bringing the valley to the present critical stage. One has to be conscious, though, of the distinctive features of the valley. Situation in the valley begs an analysis separate from the situation in Federally Administered Tribal Areas located to the south of N.W.F.P.

    The prominent among the external factors are the weakening of political institutions and the wave of militarization in the era of Ziaul Haque in the eighties. Afghan war and Zia’s dictatorship in a symbiotic relationship came dialectically opposed to the political institutionalization in the whole country, and especially in Swat valley, which remained under a benevolent autocracy for almost a century.

    During the eighties and the early nineties, foreign funding in the shape of petro-dollars helped permeate Wahabi interpretation of Islam in a previously balanced socio-cultural fabric of the valley. Traditional elites, divided in two prominent social groups, had to give space to the religious and marginalized groups because of the politics of Dala-Para (social grouping). The existence of two groups would guarantee a balance in the exercise of political power. The lack of political process in the country did not allow the indigenous socio-cultural and socio-political institutions evolve after the merger of the valley with Pakistan in 1969. Merger of the valley with Pakistan created another vacuum. The previously responsive judicial structure was replaced with a judicial code termed Provincially Tribal Administered Areas (PATA). The people of the valley had neither familiarity nor patience with the lengthy procedures of litigation, and consequently the people were frustrated with the whole judicial process. The vacuum enlarged even more after the Supreme Court of Pakistan disbanded PATA in the early nineties.

    Maulana Sufi Mohammad of the defunct TNSM apparently capitalized on this frustration of the people to launch his movement for the promulgation of his code of Sharia’a in the early nineties. The demands of Maulana Fazlullah seem to address the same old frustration of the people of the valley. The Maulana is probably not interested to address the issues related to the economic sustenance of the people.

    Some observers also believe that the role of the national and international agencies may not be ruled out in the present situation of the valley. The observers are of the opinion that the US might be interested to contain the march of Chinese to Gawadar Port and the Karakuram Highway to have an access route to Central Asian oil reserves, which might become instrumental in future in keeping the US trade interests at bay in the region. The powerful Inter Services Intelligence of Pakistan, the observers believe, might be interested to block the deployment of NATO forces in the region. The local residents in Matta, Durushkhela and Ningolai told this scribe that they had seen the militants of Jaish-e-Mohammad and those who might have come from Waziristan helping the local Taliban in bringing the upper Swat under their control.

    The key to understanding the internal factors lies in understanding the composition of Maulana Fazlullah’s supporters. The majority of the supporters belong to the lower rung of the social structure—the vocational groups who do not have a share in the land distribution of the area. The Maulana communicates with them in their language through his FM radio, gives them recognition, and owns them as his colleagues. The supporters of the Maulana in the marginalized groups take a sense of empowerment in their state of powerlessness. Both the state and the traditional elites along with the political elites of the valley, unfortunately, have all along failed to respond to the aspirations of those remained marginalized in an already marginalized society of Swat valley. It is where the Jihadist interpretation found its room. This is not to say that the interpretation of Maulana Fazlullah aims at getting empowerment for the marginalized groups of valley Swat. None of his demands asks for the development of infrastructure, employment, conservation of natural resources, development of socio-cultural institutions such as education, lifestyle, healthcare and transportation. Even if the government acquiesces into the demands of the Maulana, the common people and the marginalized groups of the valley will remain powerless and poor. The demands of the Maulana include wearing of head to toe veil for women, banning NGOs, closing down CD shops, and implementation of what he terms Islamic punishments for the wrong doers.

    This article was first published at Khadim Hussain’s blog and is republished here by permission.

  • Pastor Worried About Dawkins Lecture

    A leading figure in the Free Church of Scotland has criticised the organisers of the lecture.

  • Theological Parody From Theo Hobson

    ‘The Muslim idea of spiritual jihad can show us the way’ to go back to worrying about Satan and evil.

  • IHEU on the Death of Human Rights

    There can no longer be any pretence that the Human Rights Council can defend human rights.

  • Aaronovitch Patiently Repeats the Question

    Bishop of Durham refused to answer, so what else can he do?

  • Carlin Romano Reviews Susan Jacoby

    The Age of American Unreason feeds the notion of American anti-intellectualism as a no-brainer truth.

  • NSS on the End of Human Rights

    HRC was supposed to be a Council whose members genuinely supported the principles of the UDHR.

  • Run for your life

    ‘Ayesha’ (not her real name) – get out of there. Get out, and don’t come back. Ever. Get out right now.

    Her father died when she was six, and her mother married his very conservative cousin, who hit her hard in the face the first time they met, and went on from there. She was beaten up throughout her childhood. At fifteen she was forcibly engaged to a cousin. She ran away but was tricked into going home for another beating. She told a doctor; he told the social services, who questioned her mother, who denied it all, and Ayesha got the worst beating of her life.

    Her stepfather spied on her and one day saw her without the hijab. That evening, she was thrown into the bath and beaten. “My mother told me that if I didn’t start listening to her then my stepfather was going to rape me.” Ayesha confided in a female teacher, but her story was not believed. As preparations for the marriage moved forward, the bride-to-be was locked in a house whose outside walls were now topped with studded nails and barbed wire. Her stepfather spelt it out bluntly. If she tried to run away again, he would find her and kill her.

    She phoned Jasvinder Sanghera; she got out of the house and ran; she phoned the police, who almost took her back home, but Sanghera managed to convince them not to. She was safe; she moved to another city, she was about to start a degree course. But then she phoned a relative.

    Promises were made. She could come back. All would be forgiven. Four months ago, Ayesha went home. And so resumed her role as victim in an escalating cycle of threats and violence. The family is still insisting that she marry her cousin. She still refuses. A happy ending is not in sight.

    Get out, Ayesha. Run, and don’t look back.

  • Honourable motives

    Nice.

    The country’s powerful Islamic parties and leaders are resisting reform of a law that sanctions lenient punishments for those found guilty of so-called honour killings. Article 111 of the Iraqi penal code – passed in 1969 – allows a lesser punishment for the killing of women if the male defendants are found to have had “honourable motives”…Acting minister of state for women’s affairs Narmin Othman is leading a campaign to change the Ba’ath-era law. She is pushing for parliament to ditch the honour killings statute, so that men accused of such crimes are prosecuted for murder…United Iraqi Alliance MP Qais al-Ameri argued that honour crimes are permitted under sharia, or Islamic law. “Illicit sex is the most dangerous thing in a society, and there should be severe punishments against those who practice it.”…Iraqi Accord Front MP Hashim al-Taee said that he also supported the current honour crimes law because it is based on sharia.

    Oh well if it’s allowed under sharia, there’s nothing more to be said. Archbishop of Canterbury please note.

  • Conference to Remember Du’a Khalil

    Date: Saturday 12 April, 2008
    Time: 5.00-9:00pm
    Address:
    University of London Union (ULU)
    Room 3D,
    Malet Street London WC1E 7HY
    Closest underground: Russell Square

    A year after the world was stunned by images of a 17 year old girl being stoned to death in Iraqi Kurdistan; an international panel will debate the rise of honour killings, violence against women, gender apartheid and political Islam in Kurdistan/Iraq and the Middle East.
    The high profile speakers are women’s rights activists, academics and experts from Kurdistan, Iraq, Iran, Sweden, New Zealand, and Britain and include:

    -Dr Sandra Phelps: Head of Sociology Department, Kurdistan University
    -Houzan Mahmoud: representative of Organisation Women’s Freedom in Iraq
    -Heather Harvey: head of women’s campaign-Amnesty International in UK
    -Maryam Namazie: Spokesperson of Equal Rights Now; Organisation against Women’s Discrimination in Iran
    -Maria Hagberg: Cofounder of Network against Honour Killings in Sweden
    -Azar Majedi: Chair of Organisation for Women’s Liberation in Iran
    Chair: Maria Exall, Communication Workers’ Union National Executive in UK

    For more information and to confirm your attendance please contact the organiser: Houzan Mahmoud:
    houzan2007@yahoo.com
    Tel: 07534264481
    Organisation of Women’s Freedom in Iraq- Abroad representative

    Equality in Iraq

  • April 7: a Day of Remembrance

    Remembering Du’a Khalil Aswad and the thousands of other victims of ‘honour’ killings.

  • A Girl’s Years of Beatings and Imprisonment

    She finally escaped, but then she went back home.

  • Iraq: Islamists Defend Right to Murder Women

    United Iraqi Alliance MP Qais al-Ameri argued that honour crimes are permitted under sharia.

  • Ziauddin Sardar: Forced Marriages Disgrace Islam

    The first step to dealing with honour killings is to criminalise forced marriage.