From: barnhart@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Mr. Aaron Barnhart)
Subject: IPS:AFRICA: HUMAN RIGHTS FOCUS DIFFERS IN NORTH AND SOUTH
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 1992 02:07:17 GMT
Organization: Evanston, Illinois, U.S.A.

Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Reference: Third World Dvpmnt
Title: AFRICA: HUMAN RIGHTS FOCUS DIFFERS IN NORTH AND SOUTH


tunis, nov 3 (ips/baher kamal) -- protection for women against
sexual harassment is seen as a basic human right in
industrialized countries, but in africa people still seek to
enjoy the right to food, housing, health and education, an
african human rights official told ips.

while the concept of human rights is universal, there are
serious differences of emphasis between the world's regions, said
nana busia of the african centre for human rights studies, a
non-governmental organization (ngo) based in ghana.

busia, who is among delegates from 39 countries attending a
nov. 2 to 6 meeting on human rights in africa, also charged the
industrialized north of applying double standards with regard to
human rights in the third world, and, in particular, in africa.

''we all know that the african regimes which violate human
rights the most are precisely those most friendly with the
industrialized countries,'' he said.

moreover, the international system, dominated by the rich
western countries, is in itself a clear example of human rights
violation, since it does not permit the development of the
poorest, busia charged.

another evidence of international ''hipocrisy'' on human
rights is that, while yugoslavia receives much attention from the
north, somalia, another country, one also peopled by human
beings, is abandoned, he stressed.

busia said he was pessimistic about the prospects for an
improvement of human rights in the so-called new world order.

on the political plane, he pointed out, the united nations
itself is becoming a rubber stamp of the will of one or a handful
of powers.

in the economic sphere, busia argued, the effects rigorous
structural adjustment and the strong protectionism by the north
have on the poorest countries was another example of the
violation of the rights of the most vulnerable peoples.

the ngo official's statements reflected the general trend of
speeches by african leaders attending the regional meeting.

african delegates lay emphasis on the need to guarantee the
right to development as a basic human right.

they said the existing international system which, especially
its economic aspect, limits and hinders the development of third
world countries, was unviable. (more)
----


well-known african leaders, like tanzania's salim ahmed
salim, secretary-general of the organization of african unity
(oua) and adnan omran of the arab league, called for a more
democratic international system as a condition for the
application of human rights.

the regional meeting is one of a series of encounters being
held in various parts of the world in preparation of the
international human rights conference, scheduled for 1993 in
geneva.

the geneva-based international commission of jurists presented
the meeting with a set of proposals for reinforcing international
human rights protection mechanisms.

these included the creation of an international penal court
where human rights violators would be tried.

the attorney-generals and justice ministers of kenya, uganda,
tanzania, malawi, lesotho, zimbabwe, swaziland and botswana also
presented a series of joint proposals on the administration of
justice and human rights in africa.

the proposals form a legal framework aimed at guaranteeing the
observance of human rights.

if adopted by the meeting, they will be among recommendations
the african group will present at the world conference.
(end/ips/trd/so/bk-cs/kb/92)