eBook | The United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights & Human Rights Day (10 December)

“Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home — so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. […] Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.” — Eleanor Roosevelt

Learn more | UN Human-rights Day >>

“Human beings are as good a creator as a destroyer. According to scientific studies, this planet has entered the phase of sixth extinction where man-made destruction, if not stopped, will be the undoing of not only the human race but also the other lives on the earth. In this context, I would urge you not to treat the issue of human rights in isolation and pay equal attention to nursing Mother Nature which is deeply wounded by the indiscretions of human beings. In India, we believe that every particle of the universe is a manifestation of divinity. Let us rekindle our love for nature to conserve and enrich it before it is too late.”  – Droupadi Murmu | Speeches by the 15th President of India (20 September 2023)  >>

Source: ADDRESS BY THE HON’BLE PRESIDENT OF INDIA, SMT DROUPADI MURMU ON THE OCCASION OF INAUGURATION OF 28TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING AND BIENNIAL CONFERENCE OF ASIA PACIFIC FORUM OF NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTITUTIONS
URL: https://www.presidentofindia.gov.in/speeches/address-honble-president-india-smt-droupadi-murmu-occasion-inauguration-28th-annual
Date Visited:24 September 2023

“The issue is not whether the world’s economy is governable toward ambitious goals like promoting social justice, equality between countries and greater democratic control for the bulk of the world’s people, but whether it is governable at all.” – Mogobe B. Ramose quoting Globalization in question by Hirst, P. and Thompson, G in “Globalization and ubuntu” (The African Philosophy Reader), pp. 732 | Globalization >>

“As per a study on human trafficking, the state of Jharkhand has emerged as India’s trafficking hub with thousands of tribal women and girls being trafficked out of the state each year to Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and beyond [while] human traffickers are also involved in many cases of missing children.” – The Wire | Shakti Vahini | Tourism locations | Adivasi tribal bondage slavery trafficking (Safe search) >>

“Childline 1098 is a 24×7 emergency, free phone outreach for children in distress. It is one of the world’s biggest emergency helpline services dedicated to children, and is considered to be among the country’s largest emergency response systems” – The Hindu, 17 April 2022 >>

The National Human Right Commission (NHRC) describes “crimes like rape, molestation, torture, fake encounter in police custody as manifestations of a systemic failure to protect human rights”;

It reports that “rights of the people were violated or negligence was shown by a public servant in the prevention of such violations”; NHRC concludes:

“Atrocities against vulnerable sections of society – women, children, disabled and the elderly – are often compounded when they belong to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes”; and therefore demands:

India must ratify the International Convention against Torture.