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Arab
Commission for Human Rights
Arabe
Commission des Droits Humains
I. What is the Arab Commission for Human Rights?
The Arab Commission for Human Rights is an independent non-governmental organization dedicated
to the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms throughout the Arab
world. Without any political
affiliation, the Arab Commission for Human Rights is guided in its work by the
principles established in, most notably, the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights (UDHR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights (ICESC), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR) and all other international human rights instruments.
Founded on January 17,
1998, by a group of 15 human rights advocates from different Arab countries,
the Arab Commission for Human Rights is a pan-Arab human rights organization
with a focused regional mandate on the promotion of the human rights culture,
defense of fundamental freedoms, and protection of all human rights victims in
the Arab world irrespective of belief, political conviction, sex, religion, or
color. The Arab Commission for
Human Rights is open to all Arab citizens who have a serious dedication to the
furtherance of human rights principles and who can prove serious devotion to
human rights advocacy work without any political affiliation. The Arab Commission for Human Rights is
meant to be clearly away from any political involvement of any kind, and has
every intention to remain so.
The Arab Commission for
Human Rights main priority in all its work is clearly outlined in a firm stance
against all violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms throughout the
Arab world. Members of the Arab
Commission for Human Rights are Arab and non-Arab individuals who come form
across the Arab world and are all known for their serious commitment to the
furtherance of human rights.
Serious consideration is given to any request of affiliation or
membership in the Arab Commission for Human Rights and is only approved after
careful examination to the satisfaction of all concerned that a new member has
something to offer the Arab Commission for Human Rights in its work away from
any political involvement of any kind.
The Arab Commission for
Human Rights is operated by its Board of Directors which is composed of the
following human rights advocates:
· Doctor
Violette Daguerre (Lebanon), President
· Counsellor
Nejib Hosni (Tunisia)
· Dr Mohamed
Sayed Said (Egypt), Adviser
· Doctor Moncef Marzouki (Tunisia),
· Khalil Abu
Shammaleh (Palestine)
· Counsellor
Bechir Essid (Tunisia)
· Mr. Saad Abdel
Rahman (Saudi Arabia)
· Counsellor
Soufian Shouiter (Algeria)
· Izzat Mroua
(Lebanon)
· Cousellor
Mostafa al-Hassan (Egypt)
· Mr.Naser al-Ghazali (Syria),
· Mr. Omar
Mistiri (Tunisia),
· Abderrahim
Sabir(Morocco)
· Zeyna Larbi, (Syria),
· Doctor Haytham Manna (Syria)
Two thirds of the Arab Commission for Human Rights’ members live in the
Arab world while the rest live in Europe.
The Arab Commission for Human Rights has been granted the right to work
as an independent non-governmental organization in France in accordance with
the French Law of Associations (known as Law of 1901) and is planning to open
two other offices in the Mashraq and Maghreb Arab countries in the near
future. The Arab Commission for
Human Rights has, since its creation on 17 January 1998, established a network of national,
regional and international contacts and is proud of its firm working
relationship with nearly fifty non-governmental organizations in the Arab
countries and the world.
II. Why was the Arab
Commission for Human Rights founded?
It is a universally
acknowledged fact that Arab countries are increasingly witnessing marked
drawbacks in human rights and fundamental freedoms since the Gulf War. Such drawbacks eradicated any sense of
optimism that was left after the fall of the Berlin Wall and that was even
deepened by a general political failure on the regional level. In the meantime,
the relationships between Arab governments and their citizens were becoming
increasingly suppressive; while the legal and operational situations of human
rights advocates in at least eight Arab countries have certainly deteriorated
during the 1990s, little or no noticeable achievements were made by other human
rights advocates in many other Arab countries.
On the other hand, there was no signs that any improvements are taking place on the human rights front either. Human rights violations continued to be on the rise due to civil wars, foreign occupation, sanctions, economic crisis and political disorders as well as daily attacks on the people's freedoms and rights due to the unfair administration of society by the state(s). Such a difficult situation in which the Arab human rights movement found itself has resulted in several problems, both structural and operational, both of which has affected its work and formation. Among the most notable results are the following:
1- An unbalanced growth of the
human rights movement in different countries in the Arab region. In some countries, however, a large
number of human rights organizations do exist while other countries might not
have any recognizable form within which similar organizations may work. A situation as such has dictated a more
dynamic attitude towards regional activism which should create a healthy
atmosphere for organizations to grow, so that their work can cover other
countries particularly the ones where the message is not deliverable yet. It also requires a secure coverage with
which human rights violations can be faced and protection for human rights
violations’ victims can be secured, as much as practically possible, through
viable means with a regional approach.
2- Many of the 'North' and
international organizations are affected by a western vision which concentrates
its efforts on the problems of arbitrary detention, judicial supervision,
enforced disappearances, and torture.
Such vision neglects economic, social and cultural rights as well as
many other essential rights to the existence of a human being. Such a situation necessitates that a
comparison which is based on an indivisible and a wholesome approach toward all
human rights in the Arab world as a whole is maintained.
3- Different chauvinistic,
religious extremist forms of repli sur soi began to exist in a way which
demands a regional movement in this part of the world in order to retrieve
trust in the human values via conceptual and responsible defense of the
universal values of human rights.
4- A clear gap between the
human cultural product and the daily activities does exist which requires more involvement
for think tanks in the work that is being done, and for the human rights
advocates themselves to take a larger part in the cultural fight for
enlightenment.
5- Poor communication and
exchange of expertise among the Arab human rights advocates do exist. It is now necessary to begin a new
trend of work which should include the nature of studies and field work that
are being conducted, cooperation among Arab organizations and establishing
links between the South and the North on the one hand and between the regional
and international entities on the other hand.
It is true to argue that
our generation is facing difficult circumstances and is suffering from the mix
up between political activism and human rights advocacy. We have thus never
seen clearly the nature of the relationship among the three powers nor the
differences between a national front and a non-governmental organization
either. The human rights movement
in the Arab world has, before it reached the age of maturity, quickly moved
towards fast institutionalization which added the question of funding to its
many problems.
Many human rights advocates in the Arab world have therefore chosen
professionalism as a way to continue their work particularly since the
components of a civil society were rather weak and the fact that cadres were
often exhausted too soon. Whether
we like it or not, such problems do affect the movement, its aims, its future
and its belonging to the society.
This consequently requires more commitment and a deeper approach in
facing the objective and subjective problems of the human rights sphere in the
Arab world. It also is of an equal
importance to avoid falling in trap-like situations where the absence of
cooperation and coordination of work can create unhealthy competitive
relationships.
III. The Aims of the Arab
Commission for Human Rights
After many discussions which began in the Summer of 1997 among human
rights advocates from seven Arab countries in which the above problems were
addressed and analyzed, a meeting took place on 17 January 1998 after which the
birth of the Arab Commission of Human Rights was declared. The aims of the Arab Commission for
Human Rights include the following priorities:
1. Conducting studies based on field
missions on social, economic and cultural rights, and on civil and political
rights in all the Arab countries.
2. Evaluating the consequences
of economic sanctions and their impact on human rights in this part of the
world. Based on such evaluation,
an international document is to be prepared which can if adopted, protect the
nations of the world form such a collective punishment.
3. More research and studies
work will be devoted to the rights of vulnerable groups such as women,
children, displaced persons refugees, and foreign workers (particularly in the
Gulf and in Europe).
4. Study state violence and the
phenomenon of socially-rooted violence, and critically address the arguments
presented in defense of authoritarian states and repressive state security and
intelligence services. It is
planned that at least one study this year will be dedicated to this issue.
5. Taking part in publishing a
book on torture in the Arab world in the twentieth century which is planned to
be available by the 10th of December 1998 to mark the 50th
Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
6. Building bridges between
NGOs of the South and those in the North, Arab and non-Arab, and working
towards reinforcing inter-Arab cooperation through joint activities and
partnerships.
7. Employ the use of modern
communication methods among the human rights advocates and organizations to
achieve a wider outreach scope for information.
Bank Details
Credit Lyonnais
Banque: 30002
Guichet: 00524
N° Compte 0000007885J
R.I.B 65
Domiciliation
CL MALAKOFF
Intitulé du compte
C.A.DROITS HUMAINS
5, RUE GAMBETTA
F-92240 MALAKOFF
Contact Person
Dr. Violette Daguerre
Secretary-General
E-Mail: cdfdh@compuserve.com