AIT Human Rights Lecture Series
Timely human rights lecture by esteemed Swedish Ambassador
Human Rights are a tool for development and security,
Ambassador Jan Axel Nordlander
Just as the world’s gaze focused last week on the ever deepening political crisis in neighboring Myanmar, against the backdrop of the military government’s violent response to peaceful civilian demonstrations, AIT welcomed to its public speaker’s rostrum H.E. Mr. Jan Axel Nordlander, Ambassador for Human Rights, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sweden, a leading global advocate for the promotion of universal human rights.
Ambassador Nordlander’s speech on September 25th was the second in an extramural lecture series on human rights organized by the Asian Institute of Technology this year. Given the immediacy of the unfolding events in Myanmar, Ambassador Norldander’s address on “Human Rights – a Tool for Development and Security” was exceptionally timely and well received by the large audience present at AIT’s Milton Bender Auditorium.
“No government can excuse abuses of civil and political rights while blaming it on poverty or lack of budget or the lack of development,” Ambassador Nordlander told the audience, saying it is the duty of the state to protect their citizenry to promote human rights and to fulfill their obligations according to international conventions. “The state is the duty bearer and the citizen is the rights bearer,” he said. Sweden has a longstanding reputation for human rights promotion and advocacy and has continued on that track since becoming a member of the European Union twelve years ago. Ambassador Nordlander, the former Ambassador of Sweden to Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Lao PDR, is a well-known and influential international voice on the issue, currently serving in numerous capacities with regard to human rights advocacy.
At present, he is a member of the Advisory Board for the Swedish Agency for International Adoption, and is an expert for the National Delegation for Human Rights, Sweden. The ambassador is also Co-Chair of the Inter-ministerial Committee for Human Rights; and maintains the post of Deputy Head of Sweden’s Delegation to the United Nations Human Rights Council
In keeping with his central thesis, Ambassador Nordlander spoke passionately about the role played by the advancement of human rights for sustainable development, for human security, and also as a tool in conflict prevention, peace-building and for keeping peace.
“After all, human rights are about the right to life, the right to dignity and an equal world for all human beings, values that are common to all religions and which form an ethical ground that we are all standing on,” Ambassador Nordlander said.
He noted that while respect for human rights is essential in terms of human dignity, it is also necessary for the advancement society as a whole. As such, he places special emphasis on the rights of women and minorities, arguing that focus for them should now shift from legislation to implementation.
For Ambassador Nordlander, conceptual framing of the term ‘freedom’ is central to the very notion human rights; not only as it applies to political freedom and various constructs of democracy, but also as it penetrates into humanity’s specific liberation from forms of want and fear. Seen this way, a person attains levels of freedom from want by not having to worry about possessing enough food to eat for the day, or basic medical care for the family, or education for the children. Similarly, freedom from fear means not having to dread violence inflicted from one’s own security forces, or for that matter from opposition groups, terrorist groups, or whoever they may be, and even from local officials who want to extort money from citizens.
Ambassador Nordlander reminded the crowd that – according to the United Nations’ Consensus, from a Conference in Vienna 1993 – human rights are unequivocally universal. They are valid for everyone, everywhere, regardless of political system, regardless of cultural background, regardless of religion. Thus when it comes to practical implementation of human rights, we all have to pay due regard to cultural differences, he said.
All human rights are equally important and also inter-dependent. So, political rights are not more important than social rights and economic rights are not more important than civil rights. “They can be introduced, respected or promoted according to different time schedules because economic, social and cultural rights, to some extent, depend on economic resources, while political and civil rights do not,” Ambassador Nordlander detailed.
“Poverty belongs with economic exploitation and is a frontal attack on human dignity. Poverty is not only about the lack of money, but it is also about the lack of power,” he said, adding that if you are deprived of the enjoyment of your rights; if your lack the means of redressing an injustice; if you cannot influence your leading condition and the society in which you live – then that situation is also part of your poverty.
The ambassador cited as an example the detrimental impact of corruption on developing societies. The theft of taxpayers’ resources postpones the fulfillment of development growth and undermines the rule of law, since it will be money that dictates the behavior of officials instead of the law.
So, there is a tremendous need for empowerment, the ambassador concluded. Without empowerment one will be stuck in the present situation. “Therefore, it is important that we all fight poverty not only from a ‘needs’ perspective, but also from a ‘rights’ perspective.”
H.E. Mr Jan Axel Nordlander also served as Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Board of the Asian Institute of Technology.
To see video of Ambassador Nordlander’s address on “Human Rights – a Tool for Development and Security”, please visit:
(For higher bandwidth)
mms://internalcast.ait.ac.th/Human_Rights/25-sept-2007-548k.wmv
(For lower bandwidth)
mms://internalcast.ait.ac.th/Human_Rights/25-sept-2007-282k.wmv