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The road to peace<br />
The OIC and its monitoring of human rights<br />
Opinion 13<br />
DT<br />
SUNDAY, JULY <strong>23</strong>, <strong>2017</strong><br />
P O S T<br />
BREAKFAST<br />
• Muhammad Zamir<br />
The preamble of<br />
the Universal Declaration<br />
of Human Rights states:<br />
“The inherent dignity and<br />
equal and inalienable rights of all<br />
members of the human family is<br />
the foundation of freedom, justice,<br />
and peace in the world.”<br />
Upholding of human rights<br />
has gained focal attention all over<br />
the world. It is generally agreed<br />
that absence of this important<br />
factor within the paradigm of<br />
governance affects individual<br />
security, collective security, and<br />
also national security.<br />
In this context, there is also<br />
consensus that elements like<br />
sectarianism and absence of<br />
respect of socio-cultural rights<br />
respect and protection for<br />
different societies with separate<br />
value-structures.<br />
The youth is our future<br />
This has been done with the belief<br />
that this will strengthen the role<br />
of youth and also foster peace and<br />
development in all OIC member<br />
states.<br />
Details of the efforts<br />
undertaken by the IPHRC in this<br />
regard was recently enumerated<br />
by its Vice Chairperson, Dr Rashid<br />
Al Balushi, during the 44th session<br />
of the OIC Conference of Foreign<br />
Ministers (CFM) held in Abidjan<br />
Republic of Cote d’Ivoire from<br />
<strong>July</strong> 10-11. His address touched<br />
on the theme of “Youth, Peace,<br />
and Development in a World of<br />
Solidarity.”<br />
Dr Balushi also pointed out<br />
that despite resource constraints;<br />
IPHRC’s effort was being widely<br />
recognised by the international<br />
human rights community. In<br />
this context, he also informed<br />
Don’t just promote human rights, ensure them<br />
BIGSTOCK<br />
IPHRC has been charged to play a more proactive<br />
role in promoting human rights<br />
among different communities<br />
have also had an effect on the subregional<br />
and regional matrix.<br />
The prevailing situation<br />
of terrorism and violence in<br />
different parts of the world --<br />
resulting out of fundamentalism,<br />
communalism, populism, and<br />
misinterpretation of religion --<br />
has resulted in displacement of<br />
populations, both internally as<br />
well as across frontiers.<br />
Such an equation has<br />
particularly emerged within the<br />
parameters of parts of Africa<br />
in general and North Africa in<br />
particular, and also in several subregions<br />
within the Middle East and<br />
parts of South and Southeast Asia.<br />
Armed violence has contributed<br />
to instability, loss of lives, and<br />
tension in the context of bilateral<br />
relations.<br />
Recognition of these factors<br />
appears to have persuaded<br />
the Organisation of Islamic<br />
Cooperation (OIC) member states<br />
to focus their collective attention<br />
towards the upholding of human<br />
rights. In this context, the OIC<br />
Independent Permanent Human<br />
Rights Commission (IPHRC) has<br />
been charged to play a more proactive<br />
role in not only promoting<br />
human rights but also ensuring<br />
the member states about IPHRC<br />
conducting two field visits to<br />
Palestine and Kashmir and also<br />
preparing detailed reports on the<br />
ongoing human rights situation in<br />
these sensitive areas.<br />
The IPHRC has apparently<br />
also carried out research and<br />
prepared a detailed report on the<br />
subject of “Sexual orientation and<br />
Gender identity” and also tried<br />
to review the Cairo Declaration<br />
on Human Rights in Islam against<br />
existing universal human rights<br />
instruments.<br />
Both these studies with<br />
concrete recommendations were<br />
later submitted to the 44th CFM<br />
for consideration and appropriate<br />
follow up. It would be fitting at<br />
this point to outline the manner in<br />
which the IPHRC evolved within<br />
the OIC. It is an expert body<br />
with advisory capacity that was<br />
established by the Organisation of<br />
Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as one<br />
of the principal organs working<br />
independently in the area of<br />
human rights.<br />
A new avenue of peace and order<br />
The creation of IPHRC was<br />
enunciated in the New OIC Charter<br />
adopted by 11th Islamic Summit<br />
held in Dakar, Senegal, on March<br />
13-14, 2008. The commission<br />
was formally launched with the<br />
adoption of its statute by the<br />
38th session of the Council of<br />
Foreign Ministers held in Astana,<br />
Kazakhstan, on June 28-30, 2011.<br />
The nascent commission has<br />
since emerged as a fully functional<br />
human rights mechanism<br />
pursuing its multidimensional<br />
objectives and mandates. From<br />
its first regular session, the<br />
commission adopted a set of five<br />
guiding principles for its work.<br />
These include the principles of<br />
complementarity, introspection,<br />
prioritsation, incremental<br />
approach, and credibility.<br />
The IPHRC has also claimed<br />
that they are now offering<br />
programs of assistance to member<br />
states in a variety of areas such<br />
as advancing human rights,<br />
reviewing the corresponding<br />
domestic legislations, counseling<br />
with regard to obligations<br />
under international human<br />
rights instruments, awareness<br />
campaigns, and provision of<br />
technical assistance for capacity<br />
building, etc. One can only hope<br />
that these objectives do not suffer<br />
due to absence of political will or<br />
financial contributions.<br />
Support is key<br />
The OIC, in this significant<br />
journey, needs to fully support<br />
the IPHRC while it undertakes<br />
measures towards advancing<br />
human rights and fundamental<br />
freedoms in member states<br />
as well as the fundamental<br />
rights of Muslim minorities and<br />
communities in non-member<br />
states in conformity with the<br />
universally recognised human<br />
rights norms and standards and<br />
with the added value of Islamic<br />
principles of justice and equality.<br />
This effort aimed at promoting<br />
and strengthening human rights<br />
in member states should also<br />
include interfaith and intercultural<br />
dialogue as a tool to promote<br />
peace and harmony among<br />
various civilisations and the<br />
promotion of the true image of<br />
Islam -- as a religion of peace and<br />
understanding.<br />
This will need extending<br />
support to member states and<br />
their national institutions in<br />
the promotion and protection<br />
of human rights for all in an<br />
independent manner. It will also<br />
require reviewing the OIC’s own<br />
human rights instruments and<br />
recommending ways for their finetuning,<br />
as and where appropriate,<br />
including the option of<br />
recommending new mechanisms<br />
and covenants.<br />
Subsequent promotion of<br />
cooperative working relations<br />
with relevant bodies of the<br />
United Nations will help to<br />
strengthen regional human rights<br />
mechanisms with the support<br />
and association of accredited civil<br />
society organisations.<br />
A vast network<br />
IPHRC, with its member states<br />
spread over four continents<br />
is designed to work as a<br />
cross-regional human rights<br />
mechanism that brings together<br />
and promotes the universal<br />
character of human rights. Over<br />
the last three years, the IPHRC<br />
appears to have deliberated on<br />
a number of important issues of<br />
contemporary concern such as<br />
rights of women and children,<br />
right to development, combating<br />
Islamophobia, extremism, and<br />
intolerance.<br />
It would, however, be fitting<br />
for OIC member states to<br />
understand that the objectives<br />
for setting up the IPHRC can only<br />
be meaningfully achieved if they<br />
seriously abide by the stipulations<br />
set forth in international<br />
instruments and not just in lipservice.<br />
Conformity with these<br />
aforementioned principles will<br />
then ensure good governance<br />
particularly with regard to the<br />
millions of expatriate workers<br />
-- both female and male -- who<br />
now work in the Middle East from<br />
least developed and developing<br />
countries.<br />
It will be a challenge, but I shall<br />
try to make certain of this during<br />
my tenure as an elected member<br />
of the IPHRC for three years from<br />
February, 2018.•<br />
Muhammad Zamir, a former<br />
Ambassador and Chief Information<br />
Commissioner of the Information<br />
Commission, is an analyst specialised in<br />
foreign affairs, right to information, and<br />
good governance. He can be reached at<br />
muhammadzamir0@gmail.com.