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Key global rights brainstormed at UTS:
- Freedom of speech/expression
- Right to a political voice
- Right to basic physical needs: food, water, shelter
- Right to education
- Freedom of religion
- Right to safety/security
- Freedom from slavery/servitude
- Freedom from oppression
Key global responsibilities brainstormed at UTS:
- One cannot do anything to deny rights to another
- One's rights end when they start impeding on another’s
- One must defend those who are discriminated against/unfairly treated
- One cannot decide basic needs/wants of others
- One must respect others’ choices
- One must take responsibility for actions
Volunteering abroad is something that students in first world countries all over the world partake in. Teenagers might do it for the feeling of helping someone, or for their resumé. Their friends commend them for helping the less fortunate. But, voluntourism violates one of the responsibilities that UTS has brainstormed: one should not decide the basic needs or wants of another. ‘Voluntourists’ often decide what they will be doing, without getting input from locals. Many do not realise what is wrong here, as the idea is not obviously a bad one.
However, infringements upon rights that are more obvious also occur. For example, in Canada, it is illegal to wear a niqab during a citizenship oath. Niqabs are often worn by Muslim women, as a choice, for various reasons including as a means of expressing femininity, or as a tool to feel more empowered. Zunera Ishaq, a Muslim woman and immigrant to Canada, expressed in a court affidavit that she felt the ban on niqabs was wrong, and that to her, covering her face is very important. In 2012, the Supreme Court of Canada accepted this and ruled that the ban should be struck down. Prime Minister Stephen Harper recently made the decision to appeal this ruling, saying “Most Canadians believe that it is offensive that someone would hide their identity at the very moment where they are committing to join the Canadian family”. As this turns into a prominent issue for the upcoming federal election, many forget that this is a real problem for many new Canadian Muslim women. This ban violates our rights: the right to freedom of religion, and the right to freedom of expression. Ishaq wrote that she felt that wearing a niqab was “mandatory to my faith”. She and her Muslim sisters that choose to express themselves by wearing niqabs as a symbol of their faith are clearly being violated in Canada by our Prime Minister.
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3 Comment(s)
Canada has also refused to endorse the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This positions Canada in a difficult situation when it comes to international efforts to enforce HR. How should Canadian citizens respond?
Hi Lynette,
Canadians must respond with anger at our government's failure - once again - to respect Aboriginal Canadians. For centuries, Canada's first peoples have suffered from oppression and exploitation by explicitly racist government policies that have attempted to strip them of their traditional cultures. Today, Aboriginal Canadians remain some of the most marginalised and impoverished members of our society. As former Governor-General Romeo Leblanc has said, we owe Aboriginal Canadians a debt that is four centuries old. Although finally endorsing the Declaration is only a small step, it is a step in the right direction as we attempt to repay that debt.
Thank you!
Kieran (UTS) :)
The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples established (or moved along) collective rights, cultural rights, and rights to self-determination. How do these rights intersect with most HR projects that promote the rights of individuals. There are some significant tensions. how should these be negotiated? It is easier when we have a very local / localized viewpoint, but with globalization, we have connections that require we understand the tensions.
Thank you so much for these ideas! I appreciate how you have raised some key tensions around rights and responsibilities- how to ensure you are meeting your responsibilities to other global citizens while not assuming you know what they need. I think the key is to examine rights and responsibilities in particular contexts--looking at historical and current issues. The example of the attempt to ban women from wearing the niqab at the citizenship ceremony and the response by the Supreme Court is another great example of how there are tensions and complexities inherent to rights and responsibilities. In this case, as in the zero tolerance policy in Ontario (which went to the Human Rights Commission), there are processes through which to examine these tensions. I think this is an on-going process in a democracy and these processes must be protected and supported. We must be really careful not to make assumptions about others' rights or lack there of and to look at the issue in a complex matter. I saw a couple of interesting related articles on this issue (there are others you can find that support the banning of the niqab as well- this is a controversial topic especially leading up to the federal election) http://news.nationalpost.com/2015/02/16/zunera-ishaq-the-woman-who-fought-to-wear-a-niqab-during-her-citizenship-ceremony/ http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2015/02/18/can-they-come-naked-to-citizenship-ceremony-siddiqui.html
Hi Karen,
The most important question for me is whether or not these policies come from a form of institutional Islamophobia. When our Prime Minister stands up in the House of Commons and declares Muslim Canadians to be "anti-women", what message does that send - especially given that Canadians have a history of being accepting and celebratory of multiculturalism?
Thank you,
Kieran (UTS) :)
Lynette
Feb 23, 2015