'Development and progressive realization of Human Rights':

Economic benefits for all

Text of the speech by Plantation Industries Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe at the Awards Ceremony of the National Human Rights Quiz Competition to commemorate International Human Rights Day, organized by Caritas Sri Lanka - SEDEC on December 7, 2010

It is my distinct pleasure to address you on this important occasion. As a former Minister in charge of the subject of Human Rights, I recognize the value of and appreciate this effort on the part of Caritas Sri Lanka and CEDEC to foster a greater consciousness of human rights among the younger generation, in particular. Most people agree that human rights are an important part of the social and political discourse in modern societies.

All human endeavours are in some way connected with a broad perspective of human rights. For instance what appears to be a purely economic-development oriented project will improve the people's quality of life, their access to goods and services and will lead to a broadening of their choices and opportunities. Ultimately, this leads to the fuller realization of their human rights.

Productive members

Choice and capabilities are at the core of what pre-eminent economists such as Professor Amartya Sen place at the core of human development.

Knowledge of one's rights as well as duties enables persons to maximize their opportunities and be useful, productive members of society and this can only be achieved through education - not only formal education but activities such as these which are essential ancillaries to education. It is also essential to participate in democratic governance and public activity and events such as these generate interest in and create awareness of the larger social dimensions of human rights in the social context.

Nothing is more important than being mindful of human rights at a time of great social change - an imminent prospect for our country. Growth in economic terms must be balanced and tempered with considerations of social equity and justice. Legal declarations of civil and political rights are less meaningful if basic economic welfare-expressed in terms of the right to work, the right to fair remuneration and working conditions and the right to social security are not guaranteed.

Social tranquility

One of the most important considerations for Sri Lanka, embarking as we are on a fresh path towards national reconciliation and progress after three decade of armed conflict, is to guarantee that all segments of our country have an equitable stake and share in the benefits of economic development. Security and social tranquility are essential prerequisites to ensure this advancement as a nation.

Every post-conflict society must deal with several challenges, if is to secure the goals of rapid economic development and the rebuilding a fractured society. Reconciliation, for this reason, assumes great significance and is one of the cornerstones of the Government's policy orientation aimed at national renewal based on the Mahinda Chintana: Vision for the Future.

Universal Declaration

Coming back to the topic of my address: 'Development and the Progressive Realization of Human Rights', progressive realization connotes those rights that are regarded within the paradigm of social, economic and cultural rights. It reaffirms the artificial split between civil and political rights on the one hand and economic, social and cultural rights on the other.

Today, as we commemorate human rights day, we must recall that the seminal modern exposition of human rights is contained in the Universal Declaration of 1948. The Declaration made no distinction between these categories of rights.

Indeed if we all recognize that rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and mutually reinforce one another, we should not recognize this dichotomy. That being said, it is relatively easy to state that civil and political rights-the right to life, the freedom from torture, the right to recognition as a person, the right to equality - are naturally inherent in human beings as Thomas Jefferson, inspired by the 'French Declaration of the Rights of Man', saw it.

On the other hand, no State can guarantee all the economic rights in equal measure as it greatly depends on the developmental state of the country. Indeed, the aspirations of any society to better health, education, food security and social equity are never static. Even rich industrialized countries work towards improvements in these areas.

Professor Harold Laski defined rights as "those conditions of social life without which no man can seek, in general, to be himself at his best." Only a human being who is absolutely the best she/he can be said to be fully possessed of human dignity. From the standpoint of socialism, social acceptance and recognition of claims and the performance of duties are as importance as asserting rights.

Social welfare

This vision puts the collective interest foremost and views the individual as benefiting from his or her positive contribution to the nation's overall welfare and belonging to a progressively improving societal condition.

As a result of this philosophical divide, in the last six decades of realization of human rights, two very different visions and gradations of realization of human rights became apparent. Liberal democracies advocated individual rights and concentrated on civil and political rights, whereas socialist nations emphasized economic rights and social welfare.

Some degree of fusion became apparent in the social welfare states of Scandinavia, in particular, which emphasize liberal democracy in their political structures but who also invest heavily in public health, education, social welfare and protection. Why this brief overview is of importance to us is that we must chose a balanced model - given our reality of poverty, lack of balanced development, need for improvement of services and lack of infrastructure.

Against these challenges, we have a steadily growing economy and improving stability, social tranquility, law and order and physical security being guaranteed through the defeat of terrorism, a talented pool of human resources and opportunities for exponential growth in investment and GDP.

Five-year plan

We need to exploit these positives in line with a clear vision and strategy to overcome the challenges we face. We are fortunate that President Mahinda Rajapaksa has provided us with such a plan and a vision. All that remains is to push forward as a united country, a united people, united by one purpose: a better tomorrow.

This is the broad context within which we must seek to progress as a nation, protecting all rights and seeking to secure for our people, the right to development. As a concrete first step we are focusing attention on a five-year plan: the National Action Plan on Human Rights.

This was an initiative we undertook in 2008 as a part of our preparation for and participation in the Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. The basis of the action plan are the comments and recommendations received and accepted by Sri Lanka during the review as well as observations and recommendations of treaty bodies and human rights mechanisms of the UN system.

Our own national priorities and needs also enriched and informed the content of the plan. This stage was followed by a comprehensive mapping exercise of our strengths and weaknesses and thereafter by broad consultation and discussion amongst Government and civil society stakeholders, led by the Attorney General.

This formed the basis for refining and finalizing the action plan. The outcome of the implementation of the action plan will be a definite step forward in fulfilling Sri Lanka’s commitments in the field of human rights as expressed by our Constitution and broad participation in the core human rights treaties.

I must mention that the theme for this year’s commemoration of human rights day is human rights defenders who act to end discrimination.

This is a continuation of the focus of discrimination which was the theme of last year’s human rights day. ‘Human rights defender’ is an amorphous concept which defies definition. It encompasses individuals, groups, institutions and non-governmental organizations in terms of the UN General Assembly Declaration of 1998. Sri Lanka has urged for a more precise definition of the concept in light of the State’s responsibilities towards this category of persons and entities.

Accordingly, this year’s Budget presented by the President invests disproportionately in developing the conflict-affected areas. This could be cast in terms of a measure of positive discrimination. The people in the conflict-affected areas were deprived of many of the facilities and services due to terrorism, that the rest of the country took for granted. Fair and equitable development must ensure that all persons all over Sri Lanka, progress to the same levels, have the same capacities and capabilities and have a similar range of choice in determining their futures. This principle is at the core of national reconstruction and reconciliation.

The ultimate aim of our efforts at post-conflict reconciliation must be to crate a true Sri Lankan identity. One that acknowledges, nurtures and celebrates our rich diversity but also serves to unify us as one multicultural, multi-religious, multi-ethnic and multi-lingual Sri Lankan people.