CAIRO: Nadia Younes “represented the best of what an international civil servant should be, said Mary Robinson, the first female president of Ireland from 1990-97 and United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights from 1997-2002.
Robinson was invited to speak at the American University in Cairo (AUC) on Sunday for an annual memorial lecture dedicated to the memory of Nadia Younes, who worked at the UN for over 30 years until her death in the 2003 bombing of the organization’s headquarters in Baghdad.
Although they worked in different countries, Robinson spoke fondly of the many encounters she had had with Younes, and praised her for her “pioneering role in advancing women’s leadership in the UN.
Drawing on her professional and personal experiences, Robinson’s lecture – entitled The challenge of making human rights central to peace and development – outlined the importance of putting human rights at the forefront of the international community’s agenda. She also stressed the need to tackle issues like gender inequality, the plight of displaced peoples, and repressive governance.
Implementing greater human rights, she said, was still very much an “uphill climb , but growing awareness of human rights throughout the world – at both official and local levels – gave cause for optimism.
Robinson answered questions on the current conflicts and human rights situations in Sudan and Palestine.
She described conditions in occupied Gaza and the West Bank as “intolerable and expressed hope that the upcoming Annapolis conference would produce results for the Palestinians living there. On Sudan she said that strengthening the African Union forces was important while efforts to bring the conflicting parties to the negotiation table were ongoing.
On a recent visit to Chad, she met with refugee Sudanese women who had been subjected to rape, violence and forceful eviction from their homes, but who refused to be “passive victims.
“They were full of ideas about how things had to change. They needed security, food, and the other basics first – but they wanted women to participate in peace talks and be involved in the development of the region.
She stressed the need to hold governments accountable, institute the rule of law, and alleviate corruption and repressive measures taken by certain governments.
Apart from the human suffering they caused, she said, these factors also “set back development and make societies less secure.
In the age of globalization, implementing human rights was also the responsibility of the private sector, Robinson continued, highlighting the role multinational corporations could play in improving transparency and accountability with the governments they deal with.
Moreover, corporations had a duty to respect the rights of the workforces and the environments of the countries in which they were operating.
Robinson dismissed criticisms that the ideal of universal human rights was specifically western. Health, education, and basic freedoms, she argued, extend beyond borders and cultures.
“We need to reclaim this as our birthright, she said.
