Human Rights Violation with the actions taken after 9.11

On Friday the 8th as a side event, the International Service for Human Rights held a briefing on the Human Rights Framework under Threat: Challenges and Opportunities, presented by Joe W. (Chip) Pitts, an international Human Rights Lawyer and Delegate to UN Sub Commission of the Minnesota Advocates.

The Expert started his presentation expressing his concern on how many countries has followed the US actions. According to Amnesty International, 80 countries of the globe have been directly impacted by the policies taken by President Bush.

Mr. Pitt's presentation was divided on two parts, the first one concerning the national scene of Human Rights Violation with the Patriotic Act, and the second one its international impact.

On the aim to stop terrorism, he highlighted the fact that the Patriotic Act gravely violated some of the content on the Bill of Rights.

Mr. Pitt stressed that the US Congress passed the law 99 to 1, and that from his experience he knows that the law was not even carefully read before been voted.

Among the violations of human rights, he also stressed that the very broad definition of terrorism, was made in such a way that the definition could suit even any pacific protest. So the freedom of expression is been violated.

Another violated right is privacy, since for the first time government is able to search into ones privacy without any judicial warned. Mr. Pitt stressed equally his concern on the existence of military tribunals, by which any foreigner living in the US (on a legal basis or not) may be put into trial. For example, 100 Arabs have been imprisoned without a fair trial.

On the international scene, the Expert recalled the cases of China, Ethiopia and Macedonia among others, where the governments are following the US example and big injustice and violations of Human Rights are taking place. India and Malaysia were major examples, the latter having an "internal security act" which violates the right of expression.

All these examples pointed out a concern that although the US is a leader in international law, it has nevertheless negatively impacted the rest of the world in many ways.

By: Paula Bula

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