A society with no respect to human rights will inevitably plunge into social chaos and economic decline, said the head of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM), Mariyam Azra, speaking at a reception held on Saturday night to mark International Human Rights Day.
In the ceremony attended by President Mohamed Nasheed and senior officials, Azra noted that much has to been done in guaranteeing the rights given to all individuals, groups and societies.
Highlighting the increased physical, sexual and emotional abuse of children in Maldives, Azra said that the regulations have to be formulated to identify and protect them.
She also encouraged people to end domestic violence and the stigmatising of women, providing them equal opportunities in social, economic and political fields.
“The state also needs to provide better protection to people with special needs, ” added Azra.
She noted the importance of implementing a monitoring mechanism to oversee the rights of the expatriate workers, which currently accounts for one third of the total populace.
“The authorities need to monitor their living conditions before giving the work permit, as well during their stay here,” Azra said.
Minivan News recently reported a steep rise in human trafficking, which was calculated to be the second largest contributor of foreign currency to the Maldives at US$123 million.
In 2010, the United States’ State Department listed the Maldives second on its Tier 2 Watchlist for Human Trafficking, following a report that Bangladeshi workers were being exploited in high numbers by fake companies promising work permits.
Azra highlighted the need for the formulating the laws and regulations, to establish legal framework to follow the international declarations the government has signed, and urged parliament and other institutions to support the process. A report on the practice of human trafficking in the Maldives is pending.
Azra also noted that the commission had faced several complaints concerning the decentralised healthcare system, urging the government to ensure better health services in islands.
Speaking at the ceremony, President Mohamed Nasheed accepted that a lot of work had to be done by the state to ensure human rights, and reiterated the importance of investigating the torture of inmates during the former government.
He had earlier criticised HRCM for failing to conduct a full investigation of torture faced by inmates at prisons in the country.
Speaking at the ceremony, Nasheed also restated his position that human rights is not a strange concept in Islamic Sharia. Safeguarding the dignity of the human being was a fundamental obligation of Islamic Sharia as well, the President added. The punishments and rulings of Islamic Sharia were not inhumane, Nasheed said, claiming that confusion arose in interpreting those rulings.
He also said the Maldives had missed an opportunity to demonstrate “the nobility of Islamic Sharia” to the world, after it reacted “in a Jihadi spirit” to controversial statements made by visiting UN human rights chief Navi Pillay last month.
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Human rights are a load of crockery. They don't have them in Iran, and they do just fine.
If Nahseed wants to really honour human rights he should also acknowledge all human rights abuses in his regime.
I am glad ACC came back strongly to criticize Gayoom. This guy think he is still above the law. I think Zuhair from PO must explain the people the greatest recession since the great depression is going on in the western world. The dollar has dropped against all major currencies and the oil prices are hovering at $90- 105 a barrel for a long time. The Maldives airlines and the shipping lines were bankrupt and it is not the intention of STO to compete with businessmen, so the prices in Maldives is also high. This is not because President Nasheed is in power, but because of factors beyond our control.
The Human Rights Commissioner Mariyam Azra is not fit to be in her present post.
There was religious violence a day back in Male’ and as usual she choose be silent on this issue.
Shame on you Mariyam Azra, are you not ashamed to take your fat salary. The taxpayer’s money is wasted on such incompetent people.
President "Anni," enough nonsense! Perhaps I am the first Westerner to wake up and leave your religion of "Annism" behind but I will make sure more will learn the truth! I say this because, the only Maldivians who have the right to talk about human rights are those 17 protestors who stood for religious freedom, and those who supported them, the rest of you, shut the hell up it is just crap coming out of your mouths when you say human rights!
Ben you are an idiot!
@Kareeemuddin... Perhaps... but I stopped believing that change can come about through a slow evolutionary transition when I saw the savage nature of the zealots and realized, that change has never been realized without resistance, without suffering.
It has never happened in history.
I'd rather be a free idiot, yet die with the knowledge that I had a heart, than be a coward who hides his impotence behind a facade of 'false democracy', or worse still, a savage brute who hides his uncultivated, undeveloped self, his selfishness, jealousy, lust and greed through a face of religious truth!
I am an idiot, but you are a jealous coward!
@ Hassan Ahmed
It's not just Azra who should be ashamed. What about all the other members? They are also earning a fat pay check and not putting in a day's work to improve the human rights situation of this country. While criminals are released on our streets on "second", "third" and "fourth" chances, the rest of the population lives in fear of what they are going to do next, to earn their "fifth" chance! And what do our human rights commissioners do? Nothing! Shame on the whole lot, not just one person!
OMG!
What outrage over human rights, especially over religion!
Can anyone tell me where on earth the human have rights?
When we have a President who lies to the public day in and out and heads a regime that has become synonymous with corruption how can we expect to create a society that respects human rights.
why mark human rights in maldives when we dont have the basic human rights first and foremost?
After reading the headline "HRCM marks human rights day with reception", I decided that I should not read further.
Yes, HRCM had a nice reception! Is that what they could think of to mark Human Rights Day? Have a nice dinner, some fancy speeches, go home and sleep! Well done HRCM!