Best 453 quotes in «human rights quotes» category

[Israel's military occupation is] in gross violation of international law and has been from the outset. And that much, at least, is fully recognized, even by the United States, which has overwhelming and, as I said, unilateral responsibility for these crimes. So George Bush No. 1, when he was the U.N. ambassador, back in 1971, he officially reiterated Washington's condemnation of Israel's actions in the occupied territories. He happened to be referring specifically to occupied Jerusalem. In his words, actions in violation of the provisions of international law governing the obligations of an occupying power, namely Israel. He criticized Israel's failure "to acknowledge its obligations under the Fourth Geneva Convention as well as its actions which are contrary to the letter and spirit of this Convention." [...] However, by that time, late 1971, a divergence was developing, between official policy and practice. The fact of the matter is that by then, by late 1971, the United States was already providing the means to implement the violations that Ambassador Bush deplored. [...] on December 5th [2001], there had been an important international conference, called in Switzerland, on the 4th Geneva Convention. Switzerland is the state that's responsible for monitoring and controlling the implementation of them. The European Union all attended, even Britain, which is virtually a U.S. attack dog these days. They attended. A hundred and fourteen countries all together, the parties to the Geneva Convention. They had an official declaration, which condemned the settlements in the occupied territories as illegal, urged Israel to end its breaches of the Geneva Convention, some "grave breaches," including willful killing, torture, unlawful deportation, unlawful depriving of the rights of fair and regular trial, extensive destruction and appropriation of property not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly. Grave breaches of the Geneva Convention, that's a serious term, that means serious war crimes. The United States is one of the high contracting parties to the Geneva Convention, therefore it is obligated, by its domestic law and highest commitments, to prosecute the perpetrators of grave breaches of the conventions. That includes its own leaders. Until the United States prosecutes its own leaders, it is guilty of grave breaches of the Geneva Convention, that means war crimes. And it's worth remembering the context. It is not any old convention. These are the conventions established to criminalize the practices of the Nazis, right after the Second World War. What was the U.S. reaction to the meeting in Geneva? The U.S. boycotted the meeting [..] and that has the usual consequence, it means the meeting is null and void, silence in the media.

It [freedom] rings bells to remind humanity that the most precious gifts in life––like children and love and time––must never be taken for granted.

It has been heart-warming, in the midst of all our sadness, to see a good mix of people from different backgrounds, different cultures, different religions or with no religion involved in demonstrations and urgent actions to support our calls for justice and peace. Those tireless supporters have tried to make a difference one act of kindness, one act of solidarity, one act of charity at a time. And they did so because they believe that all humans are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They believe in acting towards one another in a spirit of humanity because human rights are universal, and justice and peace are human rights.

I think it is especially the duty of our churches and youth organizations for the church to directly address bullying and to implement programs to take the matter seriously and put an end to the merciless evil. Shenita Etwaroo

It is a mistake to look upon liberty as just a set of principles – just so much language printed on fine heavy paper – something you recite and then lean back and take it for granted that liberty has just been given to you. Liberty must be engraved in our heart and practiced every minute to the letter and spirit. We cannot even exist as first class human beings, unless we are willing to go down into the dust and blood and fight a battle every day in our lives to preserve it against all prejudicial odds, for ourselves as well as our neighbors.

It is better to act right than seek right.

It is character that should be the sole measure of judgement in the society of thinking humanity, and nothing short of that would do.

It is easy for us to accept that the division of people into 'superiors' and 'commoners' is a figment of the imagination. Yet the idea that all humans are equal is also a myth. [...] Advocates and of equality and human rights may be outraged by this line of reasoning. Their response is likely to be 'We know that people are not equal biologically! But if we believe that we are all equal in essence, it will enable us to create a stable and prosperous society.' I have no argument with that. That is exactly what I mean by 'imagined order'. We believe in a particular order not because it is objectively true, but because believing in it enables us to cooperate effectively and forge a better society. Imagined orders are not evil conspiracies or useless mirages. Rather, they are the only way large numbers of humans can cooperate effectively. Bear in mind, though, that Hammurabi might have defended his principle of hierarchy using the same logic: 'I know that superiors, commoners and slaves are not inherently different kinds of people. But if we believe that they are, it will enable us to create a stable and prosperous society.

it is hard to argue that housing is not a fundamental human need. Decent, affordable housing should be a basic right for everybody in this country. The reason is simple: without stable shelter, everything else falls apart.

It is most definitely possible to be a Christian and champion women’s rights. Jesus was a champion of women’s rights. Jesus fed the poor. Jesus forgave all. In order to fix the world, we all need to act a lot more Christ-like.” -Shenita Etwaroo

It is our duty to stand up for humanity. Step in and correct things that are wrong.

It is the press, above all, which wages a positively fanatical and slanderous struggle, tearing down everything which can be regarded as a support of national independence, cultural elevation, and the economic independence of the nation.

It is vital to acknowledge the new reality before taking any steps to change the existing policies. The world is not the same anymore. Tackling religion-based terrorism is perhaps one, if not the most serious threat the world face in the 21st century. Unfortunately, more terror attacks like the ones in San Bernardino, Brussels and Paris are expected to occur. While those attacks were a reminder of the challenges that lay ahead, they exposed the need to have an improved early warning system that may ultimately save civilian lives. Such a system should take into account the shortcomings of the current warning frameworks and evaluate the usefulness of warnings generated by improved models that would cover a broad range of attacks, larger geographic areas within the country in question and a wide range of potential attack scenarios. The system is likely to facilitate well informed decisions on the assessment of information gathered from different sources. In this vein, finding a balance between protecting human rights and ensuring national security is key.

It is time for the international community to work for the creation of an independent Kurdistan as they did once for the Jews after the Holocaust. The current war against ISIS, which is perceived by many as World War Three, can be compared to World War Two. After horrible wars, great changes can be brought about for those who have suffered extreme injustice.

It is time to recognize the past and ongoing genocides to prevent new ones. Together we can build a better world!

It’s a sick irony that the top elite conservatives of the United States expect every single school child to recite a pledge that boasts freedom and justice for all, when they really only want it for themselves.” -Shenita Etwaroo

IT’S ALL CLEAR ISIS INVADES YOUR SPHERE YET NO ONE IMAGINES YOUR FEAR BUT DON'T WORRY TAUSSI MELEK IS HERE RESTORING LIVES NEAR

It's not enough for the torch of liberty to be held up high only by one woman, every human must hold the torch up high in every corner of the world.

It seems to me that the greatest triumph of any human rights movement, be it fighting for racial, religious, sexual or gender equality – is to achieve that moment where eyes are opened so wide that a sort of blindness sets in. I don’t care if someone is black, white, gay or straight. I don’t care if a woman has children or no – I just want to know who they are. [...] At the end of the day, gender differences seem to me to be just a tiny, tiny drop in the great expanse of things that make people unique. Unique, not ‘different’, not ‘other’ merely another piece of that great teaming mass that makes up the wonderfully rich, thrillingly varied definition of ‘humanity’." [Playing Butch: Blog entry, February 24, 2014]

It's more important to be kind than right.

It’s not our place to judge the guilt or innocence of the prisoners, Nurse Webster. The sooner you learn that the better. Any other approach just leads to conflicts of duty and undermines the smooth running of the institution. We are here to ensure that the prisoners are dealt with firmly and professionally. It’s up to their lawyers to handle matters pertaining to their sentences.

It's not enough to be born as a human body, each human must earn his or her admission into the human race with humane actions.

It’s not utopian to demand that in a world with this kind of technology, that as a moral demand, a society feed, clothe and house its people. A society that doesn’t do it, with the kind of technology and the wealth we have is beneath contempt and makes a mockery of all the previous history of civilization.

It would seem that the right to equality and human rights is far more an exclusive thing than an inclusive thing.

It's terrifying to think you could become the next statistic.

It takes thousands of people to turn an illegal political order into a democratic injustice. And as it happens, a huge portion of those people are civil servants. So, if even a handful of civil servants stand strong, responsible and conscientious, then no politician has the power in his pea-brain to do injustice to the people.

I wasn't free... I realized that I had been living in a birdcage all that time .. The world was so big but the'd forced me into a tiny cage

I've come to gamble." The old man's mouth twitched. He put down his shish kebab and leaned toward Percy. "A gamble...how interesting. Information in exchange for the harpy? Winner take all?" "No," Percy said. "The harpy isn't part of the deal." Phineas laughed. "Really? Perhaps you don't understand her value." "She's a person," Percy said. "She isn't for sale.

I was bullied from the time that I was a small child and into my adulthood—sometimes, I still feel as though I’m being bullied. It has left me with my own scars to bear, and we truly must prioritize helping our children in situations like these. Shenita Etwaroo

I will follow anyone... and remind everyone... of the pain of the Yazidi women

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE AND TELL EVERYONE ABOUT... THE REAL WAR ON WOMEN ON YAZIDI GIRLS & WOMEN

I will follow anyone... And remind everyone... Of enslaved Yazidi women... Raped... And forced... To donate blood to ISIS men...

I will follow anyone... And tell everyone... How grateful I am... To the Western nations.

I will follow anyone and tell everyone my message because it is urgent: Please humanity Protect Yazidis.

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE... AND BEG EVERYONE... TO HELP RESCUE ALL IMPRISONED WOMEN.

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE... AND REMIND EVERYONE... OF THE FATE OF NEGLECTED YAZIDI CHILDREN

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE... AND REMIND EVERYONE... OF THE FATE... OF THE ENSLAVED... YAZIDI WOMEN

I will follow anyone... and remind everyone... that their fear is genuine.

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE... AND BEG EVERYONE... TO BE A HERO... AND SAVE THE YAZIDI NATION

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE... AND REMIND EVERYONE... OF THE RAPE OF THE YAZIDI WOMEN

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE AND REMIND EVERYONE OF THE SUFFERING... OF THE ENSLAVED... YAZIDI WOMEN

I Will Follow Anyone And Tell Everyone How They Abduct... And Torture Children In the Name Of Religion

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE... AND TELL EVERYONE... THAT THIS IS HAPPENING... IN THE CENTURY TWENTY-ONE

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE... AND THANK EVERYONE... WHO TRIES... TO BRING SMILE BACK... TO THIS WOMAN

Jeg vil være frontløberen. Jeg vil gerne forandre verden med min bog og mine budskaber og mine ord, som jeg har nedfældet fra sygesengen i de seneste to år af mit liv, hvor jeg bare har været indlagt og været syg.

Joy is found when you focus your energy on improving human dignity, human capacity and human values.

Liberty must be engraved in our heart and practiced every minute to the letter and spirit.

Ketidaktahuan dan ketidakpastian kadang-kadang jauh lebih membunuh daripada pembunuhan.

Life in this form is one-time chance, death is the inevitable consequence for anyone who is born. The record of one’s death is the primary respect one could render to the lost one. Tears of all relatives of missing people are indeed flowing due to this invaluable action by the authority.

I WILL FOLLOW ANYONE AND TELL EVERYONE HOW THEY SPONSOR... THE KILLING OF THE YAZIDI NATION