Crucible Centre for Human Rights Research

Ted Tan, MA Human Rights student at Roehampton, writes about his experience as a Human Rights Activist in Singapore and why he chose to study Human Rights at Roehampton. This article has been submitted on behalf of #Roeactivism, Roehampton’s 16 days of Activism.

As a human rights activist, I found that in trying to persuade another of the merits of human rights values, I sometimes struggle to offer a substantive defence beyond the basic premise of 'we have human rights because we are all human'. After all, I come from Singapore – yes, the once Champion of 'Asian Values'. Although recent remarks by some of the top diplomats seem to indicate that human rights is somewhat “acceptable” after all; albeit with the usual caveats of context. So it is all too easy for me to encounter cynics and sceptics, some of whom I count as friends, expressing doubt on the applicability of human rights in a country where communitarian values are officially prized over individual rights and meritocracy valorised as a key pillar of governance.

This inevitably raises the question on how else I could better persuade and convince more of my fellow citizens of the validity and universality of human rights. A case in point is the on-going struggle to obtain for migrant domestic workers full recognition as workers and their entitlement for a full off-day. I have sat through closed door consultation whereby employers have loudly remarked that they don't need “them (domestic workers) to know their rights”.

While I could perhaps acquire knowledge through self-study from books and the internet, it has been tough to balance between familial obligations and full-time work that has little to do with human rights; and not to mention the administrative and organising grind of voluntary advocacy work. There were few spare moments to reflect more deeply on the experience and to reconcile the practice with nagging questions. Also, there was simply a lack of peers who could entertain or join my quest to fulfil the intellectual hunger that gnaws at me. With such relatively barren ground for the purpose of my quest, I could only look outwards.

Although it sounds ironic, but thanks to the pragmatism that is ingrained in all Singaporeans, Roehampton won out as one of the more cost effective choice out some of the few UK universities that offer Human Rights studies beyond the legal perspective. For that I am extremely grateful for the VC Scholarship offered by the university that certainly helped in defraying the tuition fees. Thus in pursuing a MA in Human Rights and International Relations, aside from satisfying my own curiosities, I also hope to contribute in my own small way toward future human rights work at both local and regional levels. 

Samantha Bashford, second year Sociology student at Roehampton, writes about the death penalty and its undermining of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This article has been submitted on behalf of #Roeactivism, Roehampton’s 16 days of Activism.

The method of punishment by death seems a completely prehistoric concept in contemporary society. It is the ultimate denial of human rights, destroying an individual’s right to life and is essentially murder. The Universal Human Rights declaration, signed in 1948, clearly states that ‘Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.’ This statement was made over 65 years ago and yet, although some countries have abolished their death penalties, many still employ the use of it. Capital Punishment has not been abolished in many states, therefore, many individuals have been subject to torturous executions. The Death Penalty must be abolished as a punishment as it allows judges to ‘play god’. Nobody should be given the right to make decisions on ending life, not even a judge. Death is not justice.

 The concept of Capital Punishment can and has allowed for the deaths of innocent people who have been wrongly put on trial. When found innocent, these people cannot be released, death is permanent and irreversible. Mistakes such as this are evident in every justice system and are made far too often, resulting in the deaths of many innocent individuals. Although it is rare, the death penalty can also be abused by some states against the poor or members of racial, ethnic, political or religious groups. It is vital that Capital Punishment is abolished under international law so certain states cannot abuse it. Below is a picture that Amnesty International used in their campaign on the death penalty; there were many other pictures like this that showed the last meals of innocent men put on death row. 

Some may believe that the death penalty as a form of punishment would deter criminals from committing crimes as they fear the consequence. However, the UN has noted that the death penalty does not deter crime.  It is not an effective method and very much outdated.

The United States and China are important examples to use when looking into the topic of the death penalty. Failing to sign the Universal Human Rights Treaties on abolishing the death penalty, these two countries make up two-fifths of the authority of the Security Council, which has the ability to permit important world decisions. If the authorities of the Security Council are failing to provide the most basic rights to their own people, surely they should not be permitted that much power? The Security Council has the authority to sanction intervention in states where human rights violations are happening. With only five members, two of them still using the Death Penalty as punishment, branding them the right people for the job has been largely debated and often controversial. The US is well known for its Death Row where prisoners are kept before execution. These prisoners are then usually injected with a lethal chemical and killed.

Furthermore, when Amnesty International conducted an experiment on how many people were executed in China they were not provided any statistics, allowing one to assume a high number of people are being killed each year. This is an inhumane way of treating individuals; no-one deserves to lose their life no matter what they have done. If the crimes they have committed were that terrible, surely a better method of punishment would be to keep people imprisoned and make sure the individual knows that what they have done is wrong.  If they have committed an act such as murder surely to kill them will make us just as bad?

To conclude, the death penalty very much exists in contemporary society and is still used by some the most powerful countries in the world. Its flaws are evident and killing innocent people cannot be condoned. The death penalty should have been abolished globally years ago. To kill people for their crimes is an old-fashioned method of punishment; there are other ways to punish individuals. We do not need to take their basic human rights and dignity because it is immoral, and also strongly opposes the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. There is no morality in the death penalty; it is simply revengeful murder. 

By Samantha Bashford – 2nd Year Sociology Student

On the anniversary of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, Amrita Gokal writes about experiences of Terrorism and how they, along with the media and society, have unjustly reinforced notions of Islamophobia. This article has been submitted on behalf of #Roeactivism, Roehampton's 16 days of Activism.

Today, the 26th of November, Mumbai (India) completes 5 years of facing the worst possible terror attacks. South Mumbai happens to attract a lot of tourist attention due to its lively atmosphere. With the restaurants, bars and shops always open. There’s always something to keep the people of this city and its tourists entertained. However, on the night of November 26th 2008, a group of terrorists managed to turn the entire city of Mumbai upside down. There was open firing at tourist spots such as Leopold Café and innocent people were held hostage in the two best hotels of South Mumbai; The Taj Mahal Hotel & the Trident and Oberoi group of hotels. This went on for 3 whole days and over 166 people were confirmed dead while over 300 were injured. Mumbai had never been that chaotic. It was later known that the group of terrorists who were all set to make Mumbaikers panic were a part of the Lashkar-e-Taiba(LeT) and were trained in Pakistan. However, this massive attack was not planned by a Pakistani. The mastermind behind this was a man named David Headley who was actually American. Shocking, right?

In 2011, a man named Anders Breivik bombed government buildings in Oslo (Norway) and then moved on to the island of Utøya (Norway) where he shot approximately 85 people. At first it was assumed that it was an Islamic terrorist group that carried out this atrocious attack in Norway. After all the assumptions made regarding how this could have been an act of terror in the name of ‘jihad’, it was later discovered that Anders, a Norwegian,  was working alone and had his own personal motives in terrorising people of his country. The point of this being, before anything was known about the attacker, it was immediately assumed that it was an Islamic-terror group.

9/11 has been one of the worst terror attacks ever. It was all over the news in every country. What I personally fail to understand is why did the CIA detain and torture random innocent people? The CIA appointed a group of doctors and psychologists in order to torture apparent suspects of the 9/11 terror attack. Health professionals working with the military and intelligence services "designed and participated in cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment and torture of detainees". All of this was against their ethics, but it was still carried out. Over 500 innocent people were tortured and after a year when no evidence was found they were released. Again, most people who were detained were Muslim/Israeli college students or just normal working class men. What made the CIA detain these people? Well, a student wrote about the hijackers in his college book, which made him a suspect. There were other such random picks and all of them had one thing in common- they were Muslims.

All these major atrocities have led people to believe that the entire Muslim community is bad. Halloween 2013 and other fancy dressed parties in London now leave me disappointed as I realise to what extent this belief has succeeded in sowing seeds of stereotypical thoughts in young minds. Boys and men dressing as Arabic suicide bombers is seen as humorous and, strangely, accepted. Of course these are often done by students. But, according to my point of view, this is a really shallow thing to do and I’m surprised how people found this amusing. Considering the Muslim population living in London, I find it a little insensitive to play jokes that reinforce negative stereotypes in such an unsympathetic manner.

Terror-groups have managed to interpret the word ‘jihad’ very differently. ‘Jihad’ does not mean killing innocent people for their religion. It’s a reason they use to cover up for the sin they are committing now. I read an article by BBC that explained the true meaning of jihad and it had nothing to do with hurting innocent people. It was more about being peaceful, protecting their religion, doing social work etc. In places like France, Muslim women have been asked not to wear a ‘hijab’; however that is against the rules of their religion. How can one be stopped from preaching its own religion? Especially as freedom to choose your own religion is a fundamental right enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Another thing I would like to point out is that when the New York, London, Mumbai and Norway attacks happened, it was all over the news in every country and was a very big deal and it should be.  But things like this happen near enough daily in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other predominantly Islamic countries and people are still unaware of it.

I blame media for this stigma that has been attached to the entire Islamic religion. Islam is a religion that preaches peace just like every other religion. For instance, the Daily mail a few years ago wrote about how Muslims were migrating to the UK and then were trying to ban Christmas. This was completely sensationalised and this story is still being shared every year on social networks. Things like this have created a hatred for the Muslim community. I do not stand for such discrimination amongst people. In my opinion, the media holds great responsibility in reporting current happenings of the world impartially. They exist to create awareness amongst people but in reality it’s all for profit, hence the crazy sensational and hateful stories promoting nothing but fear against Muslims. 

Dr. Greg Kent and our MA students write about their adventures in Bosnia, Kosova and Croatia.

Sunday 28th April Stolac, Bosnia > Mostar/Sarajevo, up the Neretva valley  Rita Carvalho writes: Our first day in Stolac started early with the sound of the call to prayer coming from the closest minaret. Minutes later the bells of the nearest church sounded equally loud. We remember thinking that it almost sounded like a ‘competition’ between the two faiths. Demir Mahmutcehajic, a local politician and former activist gave us a tour around the town and we interviewed him at length on many subjects. He explained to us that Stolac still experiences a huge divide between Croat and Bosniak ethnicities. The children, as Demir explained, still attend segregated schools, and depending on the families, befriending people from a different ethnicity seems not to be easy.

In the end, all of the interviews pointed to similar issues and problems, as the very last one in Sarajevo with Balkans Insight, journalist Elvira. Constitutional reform is the major obstacle and it is hindering the country to its further development. Although people do care about these issues, they are more concerned about keeping their jobs and maintaining a decent standard of living. Questions such as “Do we have enough money to send our children to school?” or “Can we afford our parents medicine?” occupy the minds of most people. And who can blame them? With four governments and four million people (a rough guess as there is no census so far) such a small country cannot maintain such a huge administration; again, one of the main reasons for constitutional reform.   By the time we had finished all the interviews was around 2pm, and we decided was time to see some exhibitions in the city. As such, we went to the Srebrenica Gallery and to the Sarajevo Siege Exhibition. If somehow we thought we were prepared for what we were going to see and experience we could not be more wrong. For some of us the experiences were too personal for different reasons, what we felt, what we heard, what we saw from the inside and then on the outside in the reality were just too wrong. It still lacks explanation. All these crimes are still denied by many of those who committed them – that haunts the victims.  Wednesday 1st May Pristina, Kosova > Shkodra, Albania

Karolin Kuhla writes: After a rather short night in a minivan, passing through the borders of Bosnia, Serbia, Montenegro and finally Kosova (only possible against a payment of ‘insurance money’), we arrived at our destination: Pristina. Compared with the cultural beauty recently experienced in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the capital of the newly independent Republic of Kosova appeared less remarkable, but still friendly with regard to its citizens nonetheless. We were, furthermore, lucky to conduct three impressive interviews in spite of the fact that the 1st May is a national holiday in the Balkans. Firstly, we interviewed Albin Kurti, a charismatic, well-read and highly entertaining leader of the Vetevendosjei, an Albanian nationalist political movement, opposition party and activist network. His movement for Self-Determination argues in favour of a reunification with Albania.

We heard a different, perhaps more nuanced, certainly less nationalistic perspective from Linda Gusia, an academic and women’s network activist. Eli Gashi,the director of Alter Habitus, an Institute for Studies in Society and Culture, joined us for afternoon coffee in the centre of Prishtina. She deepened our understanding of the post-conflict reconciliation process in the region by explaining their project about a collective memory in Kosova and how transitional justice still needs much to be done. With thoughts of these meetings swirling inside our heads we visited the old bazaar of Pristina before we went back on the road, making it in good time to get some impression of beautiful Albania on our way back to Dubrovnik.  Thursday 2nd May  Dubrovnik, Croatia

I have a dream That one day I’ll be free To express what I feel and say what I mean And to believe and fight for what I want to be

I have a dream That all people are equal No matter of the colour of their skin No matter where they live and what they believe in

I have a dream That one day education will be for free Because knowledge is the key If we want to succeed

I have a dream That even though I’m a woman I’m still a human And I have freedom of speech Dear teachers, respect me for who I am Not for who you want me to be, Cos we’re humans not numbers, You see,

There is one thing you should know: Seed love to receive love These are not only my religious beliefs, This is also what is taught by democracy. Killing people is insanity Because killing an innocent man is equal To killing all the humanity

I have the right to live free From bondage, chains and slavery Violence and abuse or being accused and used I saw a little girl crying on the street Because she didn’t have anything to eat And I’m asking you now: Is this how the world should be?

We students are the future. And if you don’t give us proper education, Are you afraid of us destroying future generations? Dear teachers, equality if what you have to teach, And besides that, you have to practice what you preach, I have a dream that all written above will become real Just as Martin Luther King: I have a Dream!

Crucible's Dr Aisha Gill writes for the New Statesman on sexual exploitation, victim experiences and seeking justice.

The Legitimacy of the Syrian Armed Opposition: Interview with Jan Egeland - 25th April 2013

By Dr Michele Lamb

On the tenth anniversary, in 2008 many of the key players involved in the development of the Good Friday Agreement were reunited. For some it was cause for celebration, for others there was still little to celebrate.  As we approach its fifteenth year, what has happened in Northern Ireland?

When human rights and equality were put at the heart of the Good Friday (Belfast) Agreement, not all people working for peace in Northern Ireland were supportive. I had conversations with people working in community relations programmes who worried that human rights and equality legislation would exacerbate and embed division, and whilst they supported human rights in principle, they believed that contact and ultimately reconciliation between divided communities could be undermined if human rights were used by each community in the pursuit of their own aims. This was of course a complete misunderstanding of the purpose and role of human rights. Human rights protect people from a state that too often wishes to restrict or remove them from individuals and groups. They also place a duty on the state to protect the human rights of those living within its borders, and where it fails to do this, ensure that there is remedy. In other words, they make governments accountable.

But there is another aspect of human rights that is important in divided societies emerging from conflict. Human rights can provide a shared language through which individuals and groups can negotiate the boundaries of their own rights and duties and how they interact for the good of all. This horizontal relationship is important where communities may have been manipulated by political elites and armed groups to see their rights and wellbeing as being undermined by the claims of the ‘other community’ so that claiming human rights is regarded as a zero sum activity.

By Dr Jennifer Melvin

Today, villages across Rwanda prepare to host commemoration ceremonies to mark the 19th anniversary of the genocide that officially began on 7 April 1994 and resulted in the deaths of an estimated 800,000 Tutsi.  This year’s ceremonies are guided by the theme ‘Let us commemorate the Genocide against the Tutsi as we strive for self-reliance’.  The value of relying on one’s own efforts is not lost on the country’s RPF government as the message has pervaded state-sponsored discourse about unity, reconciliation, and development for more than a decade.  One of the stated goals of the community-level gacaca genocide courts which officially closed in 2012 was to prove that Rwanda could solve its own problems,  while the RPF’s Vision 2020 development document formally outlines the government’s plan to reduce the country’s dependence on international  aid by the year 2020. 

Self-reliance may be approaching more quickly than expected for Rwanda as numerous international donors including the UK temporarily suspended aid in 2012.  This action followed accusations that Rwanda was providing weapons, military supplies, and recruits to the M23 rebel group operating in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.  A panel of UN experts published a report in October 2012 stating that Rwanda was partially funding the rebellion with revenue generated from the re-exportation of minerals smuggled over the border from DRC. 

The Between the Lines and Truthloader

Mobile Citizen Journalism Challenge 

Make a film on your mobile, upload it, and get the chance to win an iPhone5 and see your video featured on Truthloader. 

Deadline for entries: Friday 12th April 2013

THE CHALLENGE

What are you passionate about? What gets your goat? What does the mainstream media miss? What’s your perspective?

Make a film on your mobile phone on a topic you care about or a subject you want to investigate. Whether you want to highlight an issue, give someone else a voice or tell a story that’s personal to you, this is your chance to say it in your way.

WANT SOME INSPIRATION?

The Truthloader YouTube channel is home to hundreds of videos from citizen journalists around the world.  See their Top 20 Videos here www.bit.ly/truthloader.

THE PRIZES

The top five entries will each be featured on the Truthloader Youtube site in May 2013.

The overall winner will receive an Iphone5 handset and the latest three DVDs from documentary distributor Dogwoof.

THE RULES

- Films must be between 1 minute and 5 minutes in length

- Films must be filmed solely on a mobile phone

- Entries must be received by 12th April 2013

HOW TO ENTER

Enter your film by self-publishing it online and then spreading the word to us.

All films must be uploaded to YouTube. Once your film is online, send us the link one of two ways:

- Either email the link to [email protected] with the subject ‘Mobile Citizen Journalism Challenge’

- Or tweet the link to @BTLfest with the hashtag #BTLcitizenjournalism.

Winners announced: Tuesday 30th April 2013

Any questions, email [email protected].

Crucible was joined by Bosnian War Camp survivor, Kemal Pervanic, who spoke about life during and after the war to students on the MA Human Rights and International Relations programme. This is a snippet of the interview with Kemal. The full version can be found on our website.

From 1st March 1992 to 14th December 1995, an international armed conflict took place in Bosnia following the collapse of Yugoslavia. The War in Bosnia witnessed some of the worst atrocities in Europe since WW2, including the Srebrenica genocide which saw the killing of 8000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys and circa 30,000 Bosnian Muslims expelled from the area. Kemal, a survivor of one of the concentration camps which was used to carry out 'ethnic cleansing', speaks of his experiences during and after the war.

Anthony Iban, one of Crucible's undergraduate Human Rights students, whilst interning for Operation Black Vote wrote about his perspective on Hip Hop. Music, and thus Hip Hop, is a powerful and engaging way to inspire and present messages to a diverse audience. As Anthony writes, Hip Hop is not all bad...

As a child on my way to school I remember sitting in my dad's car tuning the radio to Choice FM. I used to look forward to the car journey just so I could listen to the latest songs, then go to school and discuss them with my friends.

My dad never had to worry too much about the message the music put across or how apparent the censorship of the swearing was because most of the music was positive with a few exceptions.

I am a real hip hop enthusiast and have over 9,000 songs on my iPod and 60% of the songs are rap/hip hop. So it hurts me when I have discussions with people (predominantly older) and they have negative opinions about hip hop and the message it conveys.

However, I am beginning to understand. After tuning in to Choice FM on a Wednesday at 4pm  -  the first thing I heard  was a song that oozes with misogyny. At the time when children are likely to be in their parent's car on the way home from school. I can see why people have these conceptions about hip hop.

So I am here to put the hip back in to hop for the doubters.

Dr Andrew Fagan joined the Crucible Centre for Human Rights Research to speak on the topic of Burma (or Myanmar, if you prefer) on 5th February 2013, drawing on his experience as founder and director of The Geneva Foundation. Unsurprisingly, the talk drew quite a crowd – not uncommon with events on human rights issues in Burma, a once isolated state shrouded in mystery which has been thrust into the spotlight of the international community since the beginning of a slow process of reform in 2011. Burma's "iconic" status in the human rights community, Dr Fagan explained, can be compared to that of apartheid South Africa, in that it was an issue that was able to rally mass international support.   Amongst the many things touched on, Dr Fagan spoke about the on-going reform process, the challenges he faced as an academic providing practical human rights training, the economic and political effects of international isolation and the work of the Geneva Foundation in conjunction with the British Council. One of the most gripping topics was that of ‘the pains’ he experienced in Burma, namely the subject of the Rohingya and the controversial nature of this topic when broached amongst the Burmese activists he worked with. The issue of the Rohingya is but one of the many difficulties facing Burma today, and although the path to reform seems like a long and arduous journey, it is ultimately encouraging to see organizations such as the Geneva Foundation providing the groundwork for human rights discourse. Dr Darren O’Byrne provided an insightful response to the talk, touching on the tools academics may use in human rights practice and advocacy.   Whatever one’s opinion of the state of the current reform process, one thing can remain certain – that there is still a huge amount to be done in the way of promoting and protecting human rights in Burma, and that the work of academics / activists such as Dr Fagan is much needed to steer things in this direction.