December 24th, 2009
Letter to Human rights Watch/Press Department – ASIF,Genocidestopper.
Dear Ms. Drake,
Further to my phone call, we would like to ask you how better we could closely and shoulder to shoulder work together on the Human Rights issues in the African Great Lakes Region particularly in Rwanda and Democratic Republic of the Congo.
If your method of defining human rights is correct then it would not be hard for you to understand that on one hand Rwanda is run by RPF criminals and people have no rights at all. On the Other hand, the DRC is experiencing huge human rights violations due to the protection of criminals from Rwanda. We are about the no mention of the impunity that Paul Kagame enjoys as he uses his proxy armies in Congo with officially the objective of destroying the FDLR described as a criminal and terrorist organization.
At the same time, we will have criminals like General Mutebusi actually in Rwanda and General Nkunda who also injoys protection from General Kagame somewhere in Rwanda and finally General Bosco Ntaganda, the RPF “protégé” who still kills and rapes with total impunity in Congo and who still enjoys protection from KABILA-KAGAME-MONUC before he got replaced BY ANOTHER RPF CRIMINAL. We all know that those CNDP “MILITARY LEADERS” were or still are RPF military members since the Rwanda invasion October 1st, 1990.
Instead of creating confusion in the public, why are you afraid to join our voices and ask for ending support to General Kagame by American and British individuals including the Pentagon and the British administration?
We all know and have proofs that General Kagame is the real big issue. Our campaign urges everyone including Human Rights Watch to ‘Finger General Kagame’ as their contribution to fighting Congolese and Rwanda rising war crimes rate. How long are we going to deal with false issues whereas the real issues might help the Congolese and Rwandan people to retrieve peace through Justice? Not to address the real issues will always lead to the non-ending violence in that region. General Kagame will always find somebody else to replace those criminals already identified by the world community and Rwandan and Congolese victims as well.
Finally Human Rights Watch and African survivors International, as Human rights organizations, we should focus on Peace and democracy rather than fueling wars in that region. In Rwanda, we should encourage dialogue between all parties in the conflict. Justice should be for all. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, we should encourage an independent inquiry about crimes committed in the Eastern region of the Congo and bring to justice those criminals.
Congolese people are wondering whether they less value than Central African Republic people. Why? Because the former vice president of Congo got jailed and send to the ICC for allegedly crimes committed in the Central African Republic. The Hutu community and the majority in Rwanda still wonder why RPF criminals are not brought to justice even though the RPF crimes were very well documented.
What can we do in these situations? How do you respond to that?
We look forward to hearing back from you.
Jean-Christophe Nizeyimana
Director
African SurVivors International
What are human rights?
Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible.
Universal human rights are often expressed and guaranteed by law, in the forms of treaties, customary international law , general principles and other sources of international law. International human rights law lays down obligations of Governments to act in certain ways or to refrain from certain acts, in order to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms of individuals or groups.
Universal and inalienable
The principle of universality of human rights is the cornerstone of international human rights law. This principle, as first emphasized in the Universal Declaration on Human Rights in 1948, has been reiterated in numerous international human rights conventions, declarations, and resolutions. The 1993 Vienna World Conference on Human Rights, for example, noted that it is the duty of States to promote and protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms, regardless of their political, economic and cultural systems.
All States have ratified at least one, and 80% of States have ratified four or more, of the core human rights treaties, reflecting consent of States which creates legal obligations for them and giving concrete expression to universality. Some fundamental human rights norms enjoy universal protection by customary international law across all boundaries and civilizations.
Human rights are inalienable. They should not be taken away, except in specific situations and according to due process. For example, the right to liberty may be restricted if a person is found guilty of a crime by a court of law.
Interdependent and indivisible
All human rights are indivisible, whether they are civil and political rights, such as the right to life, equality before the law and freedom of expression; economic, social and cultural rights, such as the rights to work, social security and education , or collective rights, such as the rights to development and self-determination, are indivisible, interrelated and interdependent. The improvement of one right facilitates advancement of the others. Likewise, the deprivation of one right adversely affects the others.
Equal and non-discriminatory
Non-discrimination is a cross-cutting principle in international human rights law. The principle is present in all the major human rights treaties and provides the central theme of some of international human rights conventions such as the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
The principle applies to everyone in relation to all human rights and freedoms and it prohibits discrimination on the basis of a list of non-exhaustive categories such as sex, race, colour and so on. The principle of non-discrimination is complemented by the principle of equality, as stated in Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”
Both Rights and Obligations
Human rights entail both rights and obligations. States assume obligations and duties under international law to respect, to protect and to fulfil human rights. The obligation to respect means that States must refrain from interfering with or curtailing the enjoyment of human rights. The obligation to protect requires States to protect individuals and groups against human rights abuses. The obligation to fulfil means that States must take positive action to facilitate the enjoyment of basic human rights. At the individual level, while we are entitled our human rights, we should also respect the human rights of others.
© African SurViVors International
The Truth can be buried and stomped into the ground where none can see, yet eventually it will, like a seed, break through the surface once again far more potent than ever, and Nothing can stop it. Truth can be suppressed for a “time”, yet It cannot be destroyed. ==> Wolverine
