revolutionindia
4th October 2004, 14:13
The release of the US State Departments annual report on Human Rights violations was met with worldwide disapproval and laughter. Supporting Human Rights and Democracy was originally scheduled for release on May 5th but was delayed for two weeks due to the publication of the, now infamous, photos of torture and abuse of Iraqi prisoners held by US troops in Abu Ghraib prison.
The 267-page report covers U.S. efforts in 101 countries (the US being an exception) to promote human rights, but is now being seen as a feeble attempt by the U.S. to establish some kind of moral authority in the international arena. In the words of Colin Powell, The U.S record shows how the United States worked worldwide in 2003 and 2004 to expose and remedy human rights violations and to foster the evolution of vibrant, stable democracies.
However, the resounding sentiment throughout the world is the opposite of this. The evidence of prisoner abuses in Iraq is a monumental disaster not only for U.S. credibility abroad but also for the cause of human rights, said Jos Vivanco, Latin America's regional director of Human Rights Watch. Nobody wants to even listen to what the United States has to say about human rights or democracy these days.
In fact, charges made in the report against countries who abuse prisoners bear striking similarities to those now being levelled against the U.S. For example, the report summarized Saudi Arabia's poor human rights record with these words: "Security forces continued to torture and abuse detainees and prisoners, arbitrarily arrest and detain persons and detain them incommunicado. This has even led one (anonymous) U.S. official to say that the release of the report "could make us look hypocritical. Clearly, this is an understatement.
No doubt, the US delayed the release of this report to try and restore some degree of credibility on the Iraqi Human Rights front. The US has wasted no time in offering a public apology and has even charged seven troops with human rights abuses with one conviction so far. However, this cover-up exercise will do little to restore confidence because the US has a long history of abuse and total disregard for the sanctity of human life. The only value that has remained constant for this nation has been its national interests
The 267-page report covers U.S. efforts in 101 countries (the US being an exception) to promote human rights, but is now being seen as a feeble attempt by the U.S. to establish some kind of moral authority in the international arena. In the words of Colin Powell, The U.S record shows how the United States worked worldwide in 2003 and 2004 to expose and remedy human rights violations and to foster the evolution of vibrant, stable democracies.
However, the resounding sentiment throughout the world is the opposite of this. The evidence of prisoner abuses in Iraq is a monumental disaster not only for U.S. credibility abroad but also for the cause of human rights, said Jos Vivanco, Latin America's regional director of Human Rights Watch. Nobody wants to even listen to what the United States has to say about human rights or democracy these days.
In fact, charges made in the report against countries who abuse prisoners bear striking similarities to those now being levelled against the U.S. For example, the report summarized Saudi Arabia's poor human rights record with these words: "Security forces continued to torture and abuse detainees and prisoners, arbitrarily arrest and detain persons and detain them incommunicado. This has even led one (anonymous) U.S. official to say that the release of the report "could make us look hypocritical. Clearly, this is an understatement.
No doubt, the US delayed the release of this report to try and restore some degree of credibility on the Iraqi Human Rights front. The US has wasted no time in offering a public apology and has even charged seven troops with human rights abuses with one conviction so far. However, this cover-up exercise will do little to restore confidence because the US has a long history of abuse and total disregard for the sanctity of human life. The only value that has remained constant for this nation has been its national interests