【明報專訊】Human rights are the fundamental rights that every person is born with. Regardless of race, skin colour, gender, language, religion, political view, ethnicity and other statuses, all people are entitled to live independent and dignified lives. The United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights delineates the fundamental rights that should be enjoyed by humankind and conveys the UN's determination to protect these rights. But the declaration is not a binding international covenant. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights list the basic principles of fundamental human rights and freedoms. They require signatories to take all kinds of measures to uphold these rights. Both covenants apply to Hong Kong.
◆WHO：Health is a fundamental human right
The World Health Organization (WHO) believes that health is a fundamental human right. Everyone should enjoy the protection of a healthcare system, and everyone should have equal opportunities in enjoying the highest and achievable health level. This includes affordable and good-quality healthcare, water that is safe to drink and a hygienic environment.
◆Controversy over treatment of mental patients
According to the Mental Health Ordinance in Hong Kong, a mental patient who meets certain criteria(if he or she must be treated in hospital to protect his or her safety as well as that of others, for example), he or she must receive treatment in hospital if agreed by two doctors. This procedure is said by some to be a limitation on the patient's freedom of person and autonomy.
◆HK criticized by the US
The State Department of the US published a yearly report in March 2019. Citing the outlawing of the Hong Kong National Party(香港民族黨)and proposed legislation of the national anthem law, the report criticised the central and Hong Kong governments for suppressing political and academic freedom. The SAR government responded by saying that Hong Kong people's freedom and human rights were protected by the Basic Law and the Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance.
◆"Reeducation" camps in Xinjiang
Though a signatory of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, China has not implemented the covenant. The Beijing authorities are often criticized by the international community for riding roughshod over freedom of assembly, freedom of speech and freedom of publication as well as persecuting dissidents. In August 2018, members of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination said that millions of Uyghurs(維吾爾族) had been confined in "reeducation camps".
Call to release incarcerated Uyghurs
Rian Thum, an Associate Professor of History at Loyola University New Orleans, wrote in Foreign Affairs that about five to ten percent of Uyghur adults were locked in "reeducation camps" in Xinjiang. According to his article, the Chinese government was still stepping up surveillance by prohibiting the teaching of the Uyghur language at schools and destroying Uyghur historical buildings. But the Xinjiang authorities claimed that the reeducation camps were aimed at rooting out terrorism.
Text: MingPao reporter
Translated by Terence Yip
[通通識 第597期]
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