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RELIGIOUS PERSPECTIVES ON HUMAN RIGHTS

E-Newsletter
Vol.3 No.34
August 27, 2001


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Religious Perspectives on Human Rights is now available online at: http://www.rghr.net

Religious Perspectives on Human Rights is a weekly e-newsletter issued by Buddhist, Muslim, Catholic and Christian Groups on Human Rights, initiated by the Asian Human Rights Commission.

1) IMPORTANCE OF REMEMBERING
2) MUSLIMS AND EDUCATION by Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer
3) MR. PARK YOUNG-DO'S CASE - ARBITRARY DETENTION AND TORTURED TO DEATH
4) SIKH RALLY AGAINST FOETICIDE - From Sohail
5) Criminal Procedural Guidelines for Reforms of Criminal Justice System and Promotion of Respect for Human Rights
6) HUMAN LIVES AND PUBLIC HEALTH or COMMERCIAL INTEREST - Which comes First.
7) Home News

1) IMPORTANCE OF REMEMBERING

• Everyone matters. What happened to everyone matters. This is the only basis on which a society can remain good.
• When we talk of reconciliation, we sometimes forget about justice. Even about South African reconciliation commission, there are some questions. Did it help to reconcile without justice? Like the ICC and the case of Pinochet, there must be justice.
• In East Timor too, there is the question of dealing with those who were killed. It was good to hear that the mothers of victims have become spokespersons and are respected in South Korea. This needs to happen everywhere.
• We talk about memorials. When there is a place like that, it helps the parents and loved ones to remember their dead. When people disappear, you do not know where they are buried. In Kashmir when a foundation stone was laid for a memorial, it was removed by the military. Sometimes we are not allowed even to pay our respect to the dead.
• In South Korea, we brought these two people (Presidents) to court. There was due process. However, we do not believe that full justice was done. A lot of things were not investigated and not brought to justice.
• The real point is neither reconciliation nor justice. It is remembering. How you gather and keep information, how to monitor, how to preserve information as evidence of what happened. How do we keep the memory alive?
• Yes, that is the real issue. Reconciliation and justice are the end results. That result depends on how society remembers. It means how members of society remember. It is not just a matter about victims and perpetrators ONLY. It is about every member of that society. What does each person do regarding bad things that happen in a society. If each person keeps quiet, then whatever justice is done by a government won't matter very much. Each person has the problem of reconciliation and justice within him/herself. If this happens, society will become strong and capable of justice and reconciliation.
• Sometimes justice degenerates into revenge. It is a fine line that exists between the two. In Cambodia when a thief is caught, the whole mob gets together and kills the thief. They do not trust the police or the courts. Thus, there is the possibility of degeneration.
• For an outsider to have solidarity, he or she has to know about these tragedies. You can only know if it is made known to you. This happens only if things are remembered through collecting information and by sharing such information. This is very necessary from the point of view of international and regional solidarity.

( A summary of the discussion of the first evening at a workshop organised by HR School of AHRC in Hong Kong)

2) MUSLIMS AND EDUCATION

Dr. Asghar Ali Engineer

[Secular Perspective Aug 1 - 15, 2001]

It is generally thought that Muslims do not prefer to send their children, especially girl-child to school. They are mainly concerned about religious education and therefore are inclined to open more and more madrasas. However, there are many reasons for expansion of madrasas, which must be understood. It should be noted that during Muslim rule in medieval ages these madrasas were centres of higher knowledge and these madrasas provided religious as well as then available scientific knowledge known as 'ulum-i-'aqliyah (intellectual knowledge). These centres of learning were naturally patronised by the kings, nawwabs and jagirdars (feudal lords). Thus what is known as Dars-i-Nizamiyah synthesised both religious and natural sciences of the time.

This madrasa had come into existence during period of great crisis for north Indian Muslims when Muslims were facing British wrath and the 'Ulama were in the forefront of anti-British struggle much before Indian national Congress came into existence and national freedom movement started. These 'Ulama remained steadfast in their struggle for freedom and also became allies of the Congress and firmly opposed two nation theory and partition of the country. These 'Ulama led by Maulana Mahmudul Hasan opposed modern education not so much because it was modern and secular but more so as it was British imperialist system.

Before independence the 'Ulama catered to the poorer classes by opening madrasas where free religious education was imparted and many madrasas also offered free food and clothing. The period immediately after partition was also full of crisis for Muslims. The educated rich and middle classes migrated to Pakistan for greener pastures and poor illiterate masses were left behind. Once again it was madrasa education which came to their rescue and fulfilled their psychological and intellectual need.

However, having said this about the madrasa education I would like to discuss the situation about the modern secular education. It is necessary to dispel the stereotype that Muslims resist modern secular education and opt for madrasa education only. Such stereotypes, besides being unreal, are also dangerous as they intensify communal attitudes. Madrasas are looked upon as centres of fundamentalism and also now generally dubbed as centres of ISI activities. This is, to say the least, highly politically motivated. It is highly regrettable that Mr.Advani announced that madrasa education is a security risk. Mr. Advani and his intelligence services should know better. There may be a few black sheep but such sweeping statements are very dangerous and amount to condemning whole community. Those, which indulge in such activities should be isolated and punished under the law of the land.

Also, all over India one finds increasing number of Muslim colleges, particularly girl colleges coming into existence. It is highly encouraging trends. Muslims are still very backward as all social, economic and educational indicators bear out. Yet, the new middle class which is emerging on the Muslim horizon is realising that the community must advance in educational field in this information technology era.

( the complete text can be got from "csss" )

3) MR. PARK YOUNG-DO'S CASE - ARBITRARY DETENTION AND TORTURED TO DEATH

Recently, the Truth Commission announced that Mr. Park Young-do, one of the people who was killed at a detention centre in 1984, was tortured to death by prison guards. Even though this report was submitted to President Kim Dae-jung, the Korean government, especially the Ministry of Justice, did not admit responsibility for this incident and did not take any further action.

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) urges you to write a letter to express your concern and to put pressure on the Korean government to take further action to provide more details about this incident and to accept responsibility for his death.

Please write to the authorities in South Korea and urge them to:

• Officially acknowledge the report of the Presidential Truth Commission on Suspicious Deaths on Park's case and take further actions to bring those responsible to justice;
• Become a signatory to the 1968 U.N. Convention on the Non-Applicability of Statutory Limitations to War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity and ensure prompt and impartial investigations into crimes against humanity
• Abolish the practice of illegal or arbitrary detention and put an end to the practice of torture, ill-treatment and summary execution;
• Guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of all detainees in South Korean detention facilities at all times and allow detainees to have immediate access to legal counsel and medical care;
• Guarantee all human rights and fundamental freedoms and conform their actions to international standards as established in international pacts and covenants.

4) SIKH RALLY AGAINST FOETICIDE - From Sohail to AMAN

Fathegarh Saheb (Northern India) Aug 11: Hundreds of granthis (religious preachers) today converged in this district having the lowest female ratio in the country, to kick-start a campaign against female foeticide and infanticide. The female sex ratio in the district is 754 per 1,000 males and, the figure is plummeting further because of mushrooming ultrasonography clinics in the region. In some pockets, it is as low as 500..

"All Sikh gurus preached against the killing of females , In fact, the Sikh code of conduct categorically states that people should sever all relations with those who practiced female foeticide

" We are seeking the help of everyone to control the evil. Preaching by religious leaders alone will not help. We need the help of social workers, doctors, lawyers and anyone who believes that foeticide is an evil .The alarming statistics from this holy city have proved that the practice is not restricted to urban areas. It is practised as vehementaly in the rural hinterland as well," Shiva said.

THE TELEGRAPH,CALCUTTA

5) Criminal Procedural Guidelines for Reforms of Criminal Justice System and Promotion of Respect for Human Rights

Launched by: Judges Society, Office of the Attorney General of the Kingdom of Nepal, Police Headquarters, Nepal Bar Association.
Managed by: Center for Legal Research and Resource Development, CeLRRd.
This has been a remarkable project in terms of sensitizing the actors towards need of protecting human rights and raising the standard of criminal justice system in Nepal.

(The guidelines can be provided on request: you may write to "Yubaraj Sangroula ( CeLRRd )"

6) HUMAN LIVES AND PUBLIC HEALTH OR COMMERCIAL INTEREST - Which comes First.

A post card campaign has been initiated by a coalition of NGOs in Hong Kong calling for an in-depth review of TRIPS - keeping in mind the peoples lives and public health. It is widely recognized that "every year over 11 million people die from infectious disease. These people had no access to medicine because of high costs." It is recommended that as concerned persons that you write to your government requesting them to take up the position that lives come before commercial interest at the negotiations during the TRIPS review council. In fact one of the basic demands should be regarding the use of generic in place of the patented drugs.

7) HOME NEWS;

1) A workshop commenced on 16th on Human Rights School with 23 participants from 13 countries is still on and will be completed on 22nd.
2) Urgent Appeals on "INDONESIA: political detentions, police brutality, denial of right to freedom of assembly, expression, association", "UPDATE: Kartini's stoning sentence commuted" been issued.