HUMAN RIGHTING
Delivered on the Occasion of Human Rights Day 2013
10th December 2013
Princess Hotel, Belize City
Milestones are important. They provide opportunities for us to stop, to
assess, and to reflect. Human Rights Day 2013; the 20th anniversary
of United Nations Office of the Human Rights Commissioner in Belize is
no different. Today’s occasion provides an excellent platform for
honest stocktaking.
It is no small thing that we can have this encounter fearless of the
consequence of what is said. The UN has the space to offer its frank
report on 20 years of ‘working for your rights’; and I have the
opportunity to share some reflections without security forces awaiting
my exit from this room. We live in a democracy that respects human
rights. For that we should be thankful.
May
I
publicly
express
my
gratitude
to
the
distinguished
representative, Roberto Valent, for the kind opportunity afforded the
Bar Association of Belize to share some reflections on this auspicious
occasion.
Franklin D. Roosevelt gave a very sage enjoinder to speech-givers:
“Be sincere, Be brief, Be seated.” I promise to be guided accordingly.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is now 65 years old. The
Declaration represents one of the defining documents of mankind. Its
pedigree: the Magna Carta (1215); the Petition of Rights (1628); the
United States Declaration of Independence (1776); the French
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (1789); the First
Geneva Convention (1864) all informed the Declaration that we today
accept as an article of faith.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is the single document that
compels us today, individually and collectively, as our supreme duty to
respect those bundle of rights with which we are all created. Those
nations gathered in Paris, France in 1948 in the aftermath of World
War II agreed and proclaimed: “this Universal Declaration of Human
Rights as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all
nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society,
keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching
and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and
by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their
universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the
peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of
territories under their jurisdiction.”
This evening on Human Rights Day, we as Belizeans, and indeed all of
us as members of the human family, must grasp this occasion to
solemnly recommit to the ideals of the Declaration; renew our
obligation to respect the rights of all our brothers and sisters; and
redouble our efforts to educate and disseminate the basic notions that
define us as citizens of the this planet. Those of us who are members
of the legal profession are called to a higher duty in this regard.
The Bar Association of Belize joins others in tipping our hat to you and
your colleagues who work tirelessly to encourage Belize to comply with
its commitment to the suite of human rights obligations.
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For us, our touchstone is the Belize Constitution. Belize became a
nation on the 21st September 1981 “affirm[ing] that the Nation of
Belize shall be founded upon principles which acknowledge the
supremacy of God, faith in human rights and fundamental freedoms,
the position of the family in a society of free men and free institutions,
the dignity of the human person and the equal and inalienable rights
with which all members of the human family are endowed by their
Creator.” These fundamental tenets and principles, woven throughout
the Belizean Constitution, constitute an ‘umbilical cord’ to the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It domesticates Belize’s
universal commitment.
I need not elaborate the fundamental rights and freedoms that are
found in Part II of the Constitution; they are there as guarantees of
the dignity of the human being. Over the years, persons in Belize have
used them to check unlawful state action and to vindicate their
inalienable rights.
Our courts have found that an unmarried teacher, who is employed by
a church-run school, cannot be terminated because she is pregnant.
That is unconstitutional discrimination and a violation of her right to
work. A citrus farmer cannot be forced to join an association in order
to deliver his fruit to a citrus factory. No, that deprives him of his
constitutional right to associate and disassociate as he chooses. The
penalty of death cannot be automatically imposed on all persons
convicted of murder. Punishment must fit the crime and it is cruel and
inhuman to condemn to death a murderer except in cases that are
“the rarest of the rare”. The indigenous Maya have a constitutional
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right to customary land title in respect of their traditional lands. That is
their collective property right.
These few and varied examples demonstrate that in very practical
ways that the human rights guaranteed to all in Belize can be and
have been enforced. While we can draw comfort from these decisions,
we are painfully aware that others continue to have their rights denied
them. There is work to be done.
Our courts have held that “a generous and purposive interpretation is
to be given to constitutional provisions protecting humans and that a
court is required to consider the substance of the fundamental right at
issue and ensure contemporary protection of that right in the light of
evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a mature
society….” Attitudes change; standards evolve; needs and desires are
refined and reformed. Society and institutions are therefore required
to adapt. And, most of all, over time, rights require “contemporary
protection”.
Therefore, as a society we have to design appropriate solutions to
trending issues. How will we guarantee the rights of members of the
LGBT community? Is the death penalty constitutional? Are persons on
remand in prison for years truly innocent until proven guilty – are they
being afforded fair trials within a reasonable time? Can the state
continue to compulsorily acquire property without paying reasonable
compensation within a reasonable time? How will we give full
recognition to the property rights of the indigenous Maya especially as
their rights have been affirmed not once but three times by our
Courts? Happily, we don’t have to answer these weighty questions this
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evening. But a nation, founded on the respect for human rights is
called upon to answer them, and to do so promptly.
The excellent document launched this evening has highlighted the
achievements of Belize in the area of international human rights
commitments. It has also identified the gaps and defaults in our
obligations. I have every confidence that the Office of the High
Commissioner
will
continue
to
engage
constructively
with
the
Government in this regard. But I point to a few issues as we look to
the future.
The ultimate guardian of human rights in any democratic society is an
independent and impartial judiciary. The Judiciary in Belize is
challenged. It remains underfunded and understaffed. Three years
ago, there the Supreme Court was staffed by a chief justice and eight
puisne judges. And yet, this complement was unable to cope and a
backlog existed. Today, through promotion and attrition, we have only
the Chief Justice and six puisne judges. This is a critical situation that
demands urgent attention.
Three years ago there were five judges hearing civil cases including
constitutional claims. Today there are only three. A denial of access to
the Supreme Court for the prompt determination of constitutional
claims undermines the guarantees enshrined in the Constitution.
Justice delayed is justice denied. A recent study (unpublished) of the
Kolbe facility revealed some startling details. There are interminable
delays for persons on remand awaiting trial – in one case of up to
seven years. Thirty-seven percent of the prisoners are awaiting trial;
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not yet sentenced. Of the 183 foreign inmates 71 are awaiting
deportation hearings. There are six persons detained in Kolbe who
have been found to be insane or deemed mentally unfit to stand trial.
In the most egregious case, a person stood trial for manslaughter in
1976, aged about 20. He is held in a cell of his own in a unit housing
other inmates with mental health problems. He was found to be insane
and has been kept in prison ever since, for 37 years. Unless the
judicial system is able to provide effective relief to all persons who are
incarcerated, the hope and promise eloquently expressed in the
Universal Declaration and the Constitution is as if writ in water.
The history of human rights advocacy in Belize has in large part been
written by non-governmental organizations like the Human Rights
Commission of Belize, the National Organization for the Prevention of
Child Abuse and Neglect and the Women’s Issues Network. It is
neither sufficient nor is it right for the burden to carried by civil
society. It is high time that we move to the creation of a properly
staffed and funded institution for the promotion and protection of
human rights in keeping with the Paris Principles (2003). We already
have the Office of the Ombudsman. But it has met with measured
success. All of us have a duty to advocate for its strengthening. And I
daresay there is a need to expand its remit and powers to effectively
address allegations of human rights violations.
In 2001, the Preamble of the Belize Constitution was amended “to
require policies of the state … to protect the right of the individual to
basic education [and] basic health.” In so doing we fell short,
deliberately so, of according these fundamental rights their proper
place within the fundamental rights and freedoms Chapter of the
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Constitution. The universality of the right to basic education and basic
health has pride of place in the Universal Declaration. It seems to me
that the time has passed to enshrine, as enforceable rights in the
Constitution, the human right to basic education and basic health. Our
unenviable record in meeting our Millennium Development Goals in
these areas is sufficient to provoke action.
At the beginning I said that milestones are good. When Belize marked
25 years of Independence, Antoinette Moore SC, the doyen of human
rights in Belize, wrote a paper entitled: ’25 years of Human Rights in
Belize: From Theory to practice, A Work in Progress’. She concluded by
posing the following question: “In the final analysis, however, the
question for this growing nation in the next 25 years is whether the
people and government of Belize have the will and the courage and
are truly prepared to do what is required to translate the theory of
human
rights
into
everyday
practice
that
will
improve
and
fundamentally transform the lives of the people so that the dignity of
all in Belize will be respected.” I do not know the answer to that deeply
searching question. But, I must believe that we can find the courage to
do right by all.
The work of ‘human righting’ is constant. The Universal Declaration
itself calls for “teaching and education to promote respect for these
rights and freedoms”. The Office of the UN Commissioner for Human
Rights has an important role to play in mainstreaming human rights in
Belize, and in helping to strengthen national institutions. The Bar
Association of Belize is ready to engage, to join hands, to light a
candle of hope for those who have rights but are hopeless and
helpless.
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It is only left for me to end by quoting from one of the greatest of the
greats: “Our single most important challenge is therefore to help build
a social order in which the freedom of the individual will truly mean the
freedom of the individual.” Nelson Mandela - may he find sweet
repose.
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