CURTAIN RAISER: HUMAN RIGHTS DAY, 2020 (09.12.2020)

New Delhi, 9th December, 2020

Human Rights Day is celebrated on the 10th December every year to commemorate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which was adopted and proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1948 as the shared standard yard stick to protect human rights across the globe. The Declaration recognizes that the inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of mankind are the foundation of justice, freedom and peace in the world. It reaffirms the faith of the people of United Nations in the fundamental human rights.

The theme decided by the United Nations for this year’s Human Rights Day, relates to the COVID-19 pandemic and focuses on " the need to recover better by ensuring Human Rights are at the heart of recovery efforts". It emphasizes that “we will reach our common global goals only if we are able to create equal opportunities for all, address the failures exposed and exploited by COVID-19, and apply human rights standards to tackle entrenched, systematic, and inter-generational inequalities, exclusion and discrimination. 10thDecember is an opportunity to reaffirm the importance of human rights in re-building the world we want, the need for global solidarity as well as our interconnectedness and shared humanity.”

The Commission is organizing a function through virtual mode on Thursday, the 10th December, 2020 to celebrate Human Rights Day. Mr. Nityanand Rai, Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, will address the events as the Chief Guest. Mr. Justice P.C. Pant, Member, NHRC and former Judge of the Supreme Court will preside over the function in the presence of NHRC Members, Mrs. Jyotika Kalra and Dr. D.M. Mulay. Mr. Bimbadhar Pradhan, Secretary General, NHRC will also address the event.

During the last 27 years, since its inception on the 12th October, 1993, the Commission has endeavoured to promote a culture of human rights. The NHRC, India, like most of the human rights institutions in the world, is a recommendatory body as per the Protection of Human Rights Act passed by Parliament. But this provision has not come in the way of most of the recommendations of the Commission being accepted by the Governments resulting in the trust and confidence of the people in it.

Apart from looking into the complaints of the human rights violations, the Commission’s functions also include reviewing safeguards provided under the Constitution or any Law, make recommendations for effective implementation of International Conventions/Covenants, undertake research and organize seminars and discussion programmes on human rights issues, spread awareness about human rights and encourage efforts of non-governmental organizations towards promotion of human rights.

It has made a number of interventions on key issues of human rights, which include, among others, issues of bonded and child labour, prison reforms, right to health, mental healthcare, rights of persons with disabilities, silicosis, illegal clinical drug trials, pesticides in food items, pricing of drugs, corporate-social responsibility, manual scavenging and sanitation, human rights of women.

Beside taking cognizance of human rights violations and conducting enquiry into them, the NHRC is also mandated for creating an enabling atmosphere as a preventive mechanism to check incidents of human rights violations. For this, it has been consistent with its efforts to increase awareness about the importance of promotion and protection of human rights through workshops, seminars, conferences, internships, open forum discussions, open hearing and camp sittings, moot court competitions, debate competitions for para- military forces, human rights short film competition.

The NHRC, India continues to hold ‘A’ status accreditation with the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions, GANHRI. The Commission is a founder Member of Asia Pacific Forum and is valued for its contribution in the deliberations at various international forums on the issues of Human Rights violations.

In line with its endeavour to expand its outreach, the Commission, this year launched its Twitter Handle and further expanded its HRCNet Portal by taking on board various State Human Rights Commissions. This will help reduce duplication of complaints and also make easy tracking the status of the complaints. The State authorities can also file online reports to the NHRC using this portal to avoid delay in providing relief to the victims of human rights violations. This year, the Commission also started video conferencing with the State authorities to expedite disposal of cases.

It is also collaborating with National Service Scheme, NSS, Nehru Yuvak Kendra Sangathan, NYKS and the National Cadet Corp, NCC to spread human rights awareness and literacy through their vast networks. The Commission has set up a focal point for Human Rights Defenders and continues to engage with the NGOs, civil society representatives and Human Rights Defenders for the betterment of Human Rights in the society. The Commission has sponsored various research studies by eminent scholars attached with various institutions.

The Commission converted its fifteen days short term internship into online mode keeping in view the COVID-19 related guidelines. During Covid-19 lock down, in addition to taking suo-moto cognizance of media reports on the plight of people including the migrant labourers, the NHRC also intervened in the suo moto writ of the Supreme Court in the matter of migrant labourers. The Commission also constituted an expert group to come out with the NHRC Covid-19 Advisories. These include NHRC Advisories on Human Rights of Elderly Persons, Right to Mental Health, Rights of Women, Rights of Prisoners and Police Personnel, Informal Workers, Business and Human Rights and Future Response, Right to Food Security and Nutrition, Rights of Persons with Disability, Protection of the Rights of Children, Right to Health, Protection of the Rights of LGBTQI+ Community.

Since its inception 12th October, 1993 till 06th December 2020, the Commission has registered 19,50,695 cases and disposed of 19,32,533. Total Rs.1,88,16,08126/- have been paid as relief to the victims of human rights violations in 7105 cases by various state agencies on the recommendations of the Commission.

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