Operation Cast Lead Remembered

  

On December 27th 2008, Israel  without warning began an intensive campaign that would last 22 days, combined with a ground invasion which they called 'operation cast lead,' It would lead to  death and destruction and international condemnation and protests and would be met by Palestinian resistance in Gaza.
In the aftermath of the offensive, a UN-appointed fact finding mission found strong evidence of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by both the Israeli military and Palestinian militias. Investigations by human rights groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch came to the same conclusion. 

Six months before Cast Lead, Israel negotiated a ceasefire with Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups in Gaza. Under the agreement, which went into effect on June 19, 2008, both sides agreed to stop hostilities across the Green Line, the de facto border between Israel and the Gaza Strip. Despite a number of violations by both sides, the truce was largely successful. 

Hamas negotiators claim that Israel agreed to end its closure of Gaza's border crossings as part of the ceasefire agreement, however Israeli officials dispute this. While Israel did resume operations at one border crossing, the overall policy of closure did not change. Two months after the truce began, the UN reported that the number of goods allowed into Gaza actually decreased.

Nevertheless, overall, a situation of relative quiet prevailed in and around Gaza until November 4, when Israeli soldiers staged a raid into the Strip, killing six members of Hamas. The attack, which took place on the eve of the US presidential elections, ended the ceasefire and led to an escalation of hostilities culminating in Cast Lead the following month.

Despite claiming that Operation Cast Lead  was a response to Hamas rockets and Hamas was refusing to negotiate another ceasefire, which was untrue, Israel later revealed it had been planning the offensive for 6 months. The reality was that Israel provoked Hamas, and then used their retaliation as an excuse to launch the offensive for two reasons to send Hamas a message and to attempt to recover the kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit. 

Operation Cast Lead proceeded in two phases: a week of intense aerial bombing followed by two weeks of a joint air and land assault and invasion. The surprise attack began at 11:30 a.m. on December 27, 2008, with Israeli F-16 fighter jets, Apache helicopters, and unmanned drones striking more than 100 locations across the tiny, crowded Gaza Strip within a matter of minutes.

Among the targets were four Palestinian police stations, including the central police headquarters in Gaza City, where a graduation ceremony for new officers was underway. Ninety-nine police personnel and 9 members of the public were killed in the first minutes of the attack. By the end of the first day at least 230 Palestinians had been killed.

 The massive bombardment continued until January 3, 2009, when the Israeli army invaded the Strip from the north and east. Israel's navy also shelled Gaza from offshore. The  ferocity of the attack was  unprecedented in the more than six decade conflict. Reports of the exact number of Palestinians killed vary, but casualty figures supplied by credible independent nongovernmental organizations are generally consistent.

The Gaza-based Palestinian Centre for Human Rights reported that the offensive left 1,419 Palestinians dead, including 1,167 civilians. The Centre also reported more than 5,000 Palestinians wounded, as did the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The Israeli human rights group B'Tselem reported 1,385 Palestinians killed, including 762 noncombatants, and 318 minors under the age of 18.

Officially, local authorities in Gaza put the total Palestinian fatalities at 1,444. For its part, the Israeli government claimed that 1,166 Palestinians were killed, including 709 combatants.According to Israeli authorities, three Israeli civilians and one soldier were killed by rockets fired from Gaza during Cast Lead. Nine Israeli soldiers also died in combat in Gaza, including four killed by friendly fire. According to the UN, 518 Israelis were wounded.

On January 18, 2009, under enormous international pressure and just two days before Barack Obama was sworn in as President of the United States, Israel declared a unilateral ceasefire and withdrew its forces from Gaza. Palestinian armed groups followed with a separate unilateral ceasefire.

In April 2009, following international outrage at the carnage caused by Cast Lead, the UN Human Rights Council established a Fact Finding Mission to investigate possible violations of international law committed during the conflict. Leading the mission was Justice Richard Goldstone, a former judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa and war crimes prosecutor for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia.

The four members of the mission visited Gaza in late May and early June 2009, holding hearings there and in Geneva. They conducted 188 interviews and reviewed more than 10,000 pages of documents, more than 30 videos, and 1,200 photographs.

Israel refused to cooperate with the inquiry, denying the mission the opportunity to meet with Israeli officials or visit the West Bank.
As a result of its investigation, the mission issued the so-called "Goldstone Report," a 575-page document detailing alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the Israeli military. The report also accused Palestinian armed groups of war crimes as a result of indiscriminate rockets attacks on Israeli civilians living near Gaza.  an incendiary substance that is illegal when used in populated areas. Israeli forces illegally used white phosphorus (a banned chemical weapon)  in attacks on at least two hospitals (Al-Quds Hospital and Al-Wafa Hospital), as well as the central UN compound in Gaza City. Numerous civilian casualties were caused by white phosphorus in the small, densely populated Strip. leading to symptoms that medical professionals had never seen before. Burning flesh to the bone. In what amounts to  a war crime in violation of international law. Also there was deliberate targetting of civilians and vital infrastructure. 

In addition to the Goldstone Report, human rights groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch issued reports of their own documenting numerous allegations of war crimes being committed by Israeli forces.

The horrors inflicted remain  indelibilly embedded in the minds of all Gazans. As many as 340,000 Palestinians were displaced by Peration Cast lead and due to the blockade many of these remain homeless. Twelve years later, Gaza still relies on international  aid for day to day activities, including the most basic needs such as food and drink. 75% of homes  destroyed are still waiting to be rebuilt. Leaving many people still displaced. The people of Gaza  left with a legacy of poverty and economic injustice,  80% of the population lives under the poverty line. 1.8 million of people in Gaza still locked in like animals by Israels illegal blockade, that  prevents them from access to essential goods that are needed to rebuild and sustain life.
In a sense the war never ended. People still demanding an end to the occupation and justice, because without justice, peace will remain a distant illusion.as conditions for Palestinians  continue to deteriorate our solidarity with the people of Gaza and Palestine is more necessary than ever.

 

Further References

 

Amnesty International

Operation 'Cast Lead': 22 Days of Death and Destruction (July 2009)

Impunity for war crimes in Gaza and southern Israel a recipe for further civilian suffering (July 2009)

Breaking the Chains

Poems and songs are written

To illuminate our shadows,

From Gaza and other prisons

Tales of endurance daily woven,

Where rights of humanity are violated

When darkness alters feeling,

With craft can open windows

Release all the doors that contain,

Allow the fire in hearts to be nourished

Hear the sparks of another tongue,

Feed the lonely, so their not forgotten

Allow feelings of love to be exchanged,

Under sky clouds of passing division

Allow thoughts to heal and mend,

Under the constant threads of unhappiness

let our words, soften the world's gloom.

The Sonics - don't believe in christmas

We have all  lived through  12 months  dominated  by coronavirus , a disease that has at least exposed the fragility and inequality of the global economy like nothing before, 

combined with thousands  going hungry, the  NHS on its knees, food banks growing , don't get me started on the chaos that will be caused by Brexit. This morning alone we have seen miles of queues along the M20 as companies rushed to stockpile before the end of the of the transition period, with swathes of  Britain now in in Tier3  Covid restrictions , Brexit talks  looking grimmer and grimmer  and relations between  the UK Government  and devolved  parliaments worse than ever it does not seem to be the  season to be merry. 

As Tony Blair hints at return to political life to lead coronavirus vaccination efforts , are we not already doomed enough. With forces of racism, xenophobia,  intolerance exploiting our fears, as we struggle on,  lets try not give up hope, find a way to create a fairer society, personally I feel that  getting rid of the Torys is now a national emergency.

In the face of  continual hardships, as all of us now forced into lockdown, I offer some simple musical respite, there are all types of Christmas songs, from the pure and sacred to the the ultra profane,  but  this song from the Washington state garage rock band The Sonics from 1965  really makes my feet shuffle, it's a mighty fine distraction .  In these crazy, twisted fucked up times, wishing you a peaceful and safe holiday, look after yourselves.

Mother Maria of Paris : Anti Fascist Martyr

 

 

Maria Skobtsova , known as Mother Maria of Paris, who saved numerous Jews in Nazi-occupied Paris,  was born Elisabeth Pilenko on 20th December 1891 to a well-to-do Russian family in the Latvian city of Riga. Her parents were devout Orthodox Christians and in this atmosphere of piety Elisabeth was raised to love and serve God. All this changed at the age of fourteen when her father died, which seemed meaningless and unjust to her. She decided that she no longer believed in God and declared herself an atheist. "If there is no justice, there is no God!" she said.

During her teenage years, Russia was in the throes of the approaching end of Tsarist rule, the subsequent revolution and Communist rise to power. Elisabeth became enamored of this revolutionary movement and at the age of 18 married a member of the Bolshevik party. While at the university in St. Petersburg, she was involved with an avant-garde literary circle and later published two volumes of poetry that were highly acclaimed.  Though she still regarded herself as an atheist she began to question her revolutionary sympathies as she saw the violence, poverty and suffering that the revolution plunged Russia into. Little by little, her earlier attraction to Christ and His Church came back to life and grew deeper in her soul. She began to read the Gospels and lives of the Saints. She applied for entrance to the Theological Seminary at St. Alexander Nevsky Monastery in St. Petersburg, an unprecedented request. Up to this date only male students preparing for the priesthood were admitted to the seminary and yet, surprisingly, she was admitted to the renowned school.

By 1913 Elisabeth's marriage had collapsed and ended in divorce while she was expecting their first child, Gaiana. Returning home to her family's country estate in Russia's south, she joined the Social Revolutionary party  after the February Revolution. She apparently wished to assassinate Leon Trotsky for closing the SR Party Congress, but friends persuaded her to instead move back to the Black Sea to work for the SR there. She was very active as a community organizer in Anapa, and in 1918 was elected mayor of the city when it fell under White Army control. 

She led underground resistance against the Bolsheviks, while trying to protect the population from the terror of the new regime. She was arrested and put on trial, but managed to escape capital punishment due to a skilled defence and help by the judge, D. Skobtsov, whom she ended up falling in love with and marrying. Before long Elizabeth was again pregnant and her son, Yuri, was born and later another daughter, Anastasia. With the Bolsheviks beginning to gain the upper hand in the civil war, Daniel and Elizabeth decided s too dangerous to remain in Russia and after a long journey found themselves in Paris, France in 1923.

Tragedy struck the family in 1926 when five year old Anastasia died of influenza. After keeping vigil by her daughter's bedside for a month and watching her beloved child die, Elizabeth penned these mournful words:

"When someone you love has died, the gates have suddenly opened onto eternity, all natural life has trembled and collapsed, yesterday's laws have been abolished, desires have faded, meaning has become meaningless, and another incomprehensible meaning has grown wings on their backs..... Everything flies into the black maw of the fresh grave: hopes, plans, calculations, above all, meaning, the meaning of a whole life. If this is so, then everything has to be reconsidered, everything rejected, seen in its corruptibility and falseness. " 

In Paris, more and more moved by religious impulse after the deaths of her daughters, she completed a course of study at the St. Sergius Orthodox Theological Institute by correspondence, and in 1932 became a lay nun, taking the name Maria. She became aware that God was calling her to become a mother to all people who would cross her path. She felt that she was to share the love she had for her daughter with all people, especially "for all who need maternal care, assistance, or protection," as she said. While her husband supported the family by driving a taxi, Elizabeth devoted herself more and more to social work and theological writing. Perhaps a result of their daughter's death, Elizabeth's second marriage to Daniel Skobstov was dying and they soon separated.

Elizabeth acquired a position with an agency that assisted Russian refugees living in France and saw first-hand the poverty and dire circumstances in which they lived. With two failed marriage behind her, Elizabeth searched for what her true vocation in life was to be. With the support of her bishop, Metropolitan Evlogy, she began to consider the monastic life. But she felt herself drawn to a new form of monastic life, one that combined prayer and contemplation with service to those in need around her. She was tonsured a nun in 1932 and given the name Maria. Metropolitan Evlogy blessed her to devote herself to a new kind of monastic life, what she called "monasticism in the world." She opened a house of hospitality in Paris to serve the poor, the homeless, the desperate. She was not content to simply wait for the needy to ring her doorbell but traveled the back alleys and bars of Paris seeking out those in need of her maternal care. She entered those places where other people were simply afraid to go; she found beggars and drunkards, took them to her home, washed, clothed, and fed them.

The last phase of Mother Maria's life began when the German Nazis conquered and occupied France during World War II. While it would have been possible for her to flee France as the Germans were advancing toward Paris, she refused to leave. "If the Germans take Paris, I shall stay here with my old women. Where else could I send them?"

Mother Maria joined some colleagues in preparing and dispatching food parcels and funds to families of more than 1,000 Russian émigrés who were imprisoned by the Nazis.Early in 1942 the Nazis began their registration of Jews. Jews began to knock on the door of the house of hospitality asking if the chaplain, Father Dimitri Klepinine, would issue fake baptismal certificates to save their lives. With the support of Mother Maria, Father Dmitri issued the fake documents, convinced that Christ would do the same. When the order came from Berlin that the yellow star must be worn by all Jews, many French Christians felt that this was not their concern since it was not a Christian problem. Mother Maria replied, "There is no such thing as a Christian problem. Don't you realize that the battle is being waged against Christianity? If we were true Christians we would all wear the Star. The age of confessors has arrived."  She also hid Jews at Lourmel and forged documents for them.

In July, 1942, mass arrests of Jews began to take place--12,884 were arrested of whom 6,900 were children. They were held prisoner in the Velodrome d’Hiver, Paris’ sports stadium, just a kilometer from Mother Maria's house, before they were sent to Auschwitz. With her monastic robe gaining her entrance, she spent three days at the sports stadium distributing food and clothing and even managing to smuggle out some children by bribing garbage collectors to hide them in trash cans. Her house of hospitality was literally bursting at the seams with people, many of them Jews. Mother Maria remarked, "It is amazing that the Germans haven't pounced on us yet." She also said that if anyone came looking for Jews she would show them an icon of the Mother of God.

On February 8, 1943 the Nazis did pounce and arrested Mother Maria, her son Yuri, Father Dmitri, and their helper, Elia Fondaminski. In the pocket of Yuri was found a letter from a Jewish family asking for a false baptismal certificate.

Father Dmitri was interrogated by Hans Hoffinan, a Gestapo officer. A portion of the interrogation has been preserved:

Hoffman: If we release you, will you give your word never again to aid Jews?

Father Dimitri: I can do no such thing. I am a Christian and must act as I must.

 (Hoffinan struck the priest across the face.)

Hoffman: Jew lover! How dare you talk of helping those swine as being a Christian duty!

Father Dimitri: (holding up the cross from his cassock): Do you know this Jew?

For this Father Dimitri was knocked to the floor.

Mother Maria and those arrested with her were all sent to concentration camps--the men to Buchenwald and Dora and Mother Maria to Ravensbruck. There, as prisoner Number 19263, she continued her ministry among her companions, with the strength of her faith giving them encouragement and love in the midst of hopelessness and despair. Finally, Maria, her health broken, could no longer pass the roll call on Good Friday 1945. She stepped into the line with those women condemned to die, hoping to inspire them to meet their fate with faith in God. As one witness wrote, “She offered herself consciously to the holocaust . . . thus assisting each one of us to accept the cross. . . . She radiated the peace of God and communicated it to us.” Mother Maria Skobtsova was  killed in the gas chamber at Ravensbruck concentration camp on March 31, 1945, Holy Saturday, only a week before the camp was liberated. 

In 1985, Yad Vashem recognized her as Righteous Among the Nations for her work saving Jews from the Holocaust, and in 2004, with some controversy, she was a former socialist revolutionary who was twice-married for starters, and she remained an intellectual of leftist bent throughout her life, the fact that she smoked, and her somewhat heterodox preaching,  the Russian Orthodox Church canonized her as a martyred saint.

Passing Christmas Lights

 

Passing colors glowing, tinsel hung high 

Christmas lights, shimmering and sparkling

the smell of food, enticing on tongue

another world lingers though

a different reality resides

in the corner of our eyes

beyond the tragedy of hunger

the waste of consumerism

austerity that daily bites.

For many now the air drips with sadness

as the cold season blows again

people on their own, due to Covid pandemic 

as the sky above turns dark and grey

citizens left wanting, running on empty

struggling on, feeding on misery and decay

but think of all the Turkey's that will be  saved.

Perhaps some small acts of kindness
will be sufficient to keep some gladness alight
against buffeting winds, strength can grow
allow people to decorate hearts with hope
fill glasses full of reason and some cheer
with little things, perhaps time will heal
abandon the past, infiltrate the future 
share some sustenance of survival.

Musical Highlights : 2020

 

Ok  it's been a rather crap year with our daily lives transformed by the pandemic, that  continues to  challenge us. But despite the strangeness of 2020 music has continually arrived to give much needed respite.Music acting as a balm and also a mirror, creativity inspiring  people to think differently about the world,

From the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement to Black Lives Matter, musicians have heralded major political movements that have helped change the world. In  these troubling  times a lot of the best music of the year responded in one way or another, to the  constant uncertainty we are all now travelling. 

Now is a time to pause and reflect .To all those who’ve grieved the loss of a loved one this year, felt the pain of racial injustice create fresh wounds and open old ones, or lost sleep not knowing how they would be able to protect and care for their loved ones in these uncertain times, I sincerely  hope  music has at least comforted your life as much as mine.

Bandcamp by the way, an artist-focussed platform that allows people to support their favorite musicians and labels under pressure from the COVID-19. continues to support musicians  and artists who have been hit especially hard .Lets  continue to try and support those that continue to enrich our lives.This year’s awesome Bandcamp Fridays initiative has been a huge success, with CEO Ethan Diamond revealing that an incredible $40 million has reached in-need artists and labels in 2020. 

“On the first Friday of every month since March, we’ve waived our revenue share to help support the many artists who have seen their livelihoods disrupted by the pandemic,” writes Ethan in a statement as the year draws to a close. ​“Over the course of these nine days, fans paid artists and labels $40 million dollars, helping cover rents, mortgages, groceries, medications, and much more. If you’re among the nearly 800,000 fans who participated, thank you.”

Happily, Ethan continues that Bandcamp Fridays will be continuing next year as things are still looking relatively uncertain right now.

“Although vaccines are starting to roll out, it will likely be several months before live performance revenue starts to return,” he adds. ​“So we’re going to continue doing Bandcamp Fridays in 2021, on February 5, March 5, April 2, and May 7. As always, isitbandcampfriday.com has the details. 

“If you’ve started to feel guilty about buying music on any day other than Bandcamp Friday, here’s something to keep in mind: on Bandcamp Fridays, an average of 93% of your money reaches the artist/label (after payment processor fees). When you make a purchase on any other day of the month (as 2.5 million of you have since March, buying an additional $145 million worth of music and merch) an average of 82% reaches the artist/label. Every day is a good day to directly support artists on Bandcamp!” Fuck Amazon.

Seasons greetings, a big shout out to everyone who helped keep funds coming in for those in the music industry in 2020. Reminisce about the good times, respect to the music makers and to the NHS staff who continue their work, which is so admired, working long shifts, saving lives. In these dark days be safe, stay alert, take care. In no particular order here are my musical highlights of the year.

 

1.  We Are the Cellar Bar Restoration Society - Various

 

 

 

2. Efa Supertramp - Apocalipstick Blues.

 3. Carla Bley / Andy Sheppard/ Steve Swallow - Life Goes On 

4. Igran  Hamasyan - The Call Within 

5. Cynefin- Dilyn Afon / Following the River

 6. Spurious Transients - The Internal Inferno Of The Nocturnal Mock Turtle

7.Muddy Summers and the Dirty Field Whores - The elegance of Mud

8.  The Cravats – Hoorahland

9. Primitive Ignorant - Sikh Punk

10 Idles - Ultra Mono

11.Asian Dub Foundation -Access  Denied

12. Bill Fay - Countless Branches 

13. Sean Taylor - The Path into the Blue

 14. Datblygu - Cwm Gwagle

15. Penny Rimbaud - Arthur Rimbaud in Verdun

 

16. Antibalas - Fu Chronicles

 

17. Makaya McCraven and Gil Scot Heron- We're New Again

 

 18. FourTet - Sixteen Oceans

 

 19. Cornershop- England Is A Garden

 

 20. JARV IS - Beyond the Pale

 

Alchemy.

Hearts are like parachutes 

sometimes they fail to open
but it's not always dark  when we fall
in our gasps, broken hearts are mended
skip centuries, provide moist happiness

seduce our minds in rooms that change

release tired thoughts of into the atmosphere

and in depth of the night, poems will be built.

Like acrobats by the rivers edge,

balancing sensitively before  plunging into waters deep

revealing charms, like perfumed breezes
swimming among currents of transformation.

as flickering lights go out, chains cast of

consciousness teasing, thoughts drifting 

allow the smuggled sighs of yesterday

to take us to the land of dreams

Cymru Rhydd / Free Wales

There is fire in the air

time of old spirits resurgence

moments to ponder

spinning on and on

the grave injustices

of tryweryn, capel celyn

flooded  against a peoples will 

to provide Liverpool with water

Epynt a community evicted 

to make way for a military range.

The time when precious children

were punished and beaten

for simply speaking their native tongue

these  acts have never been forgotten

etched  in a nations  memory

to justify Cymric vision

of putting past wrongs to right

where once their were whispers

voices unite together for independence

no longer wishing to live under chains.

Travelling through waves of longing 

hopes and fears forever thronging 

among threads and currents flowing 

navigated thoughts, rhetoric of belonging

over barricades halting progress

turn the page, open a brand new book

to dream and dare among ubiquitous shoots

as a new season arrives sprouts new routes 

drifting in imperceptible process of change

filling pockets with formulas to rearrange.

Desiring a future built from freedom

not some half thought pipe dream

in  a peoples uprising of mighty force

the dragon can be truly woken

across hills and valleys

daily delivering strength

igniting passion, a people's will

our underestimated power

filling hearts and minds with pride

with discontent demand a Welsh republic

a truly fair and equal society for its citizens

the British  crown of domination abandoned,

International Human Rights Day 2020 : Recover Better - Stand Up for Human Rights

December 10th is Human Rights Day. On this day the whole world celebrates (this year mostly virtually) one of the greatest  accomplishments of the last century, the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.in 1948. The Declaration set out, for the first time in history, those fundamental human rights that Governments all over the world undertook to respect, protect and promote. .In 1950, the Assembly passed resolution 423 (V), inviting all States and interested organizations to observe 10 December of each year as Human Rights Day.

 And ever since that auspicious day it has stood as the first major stride forward in ensuring that the rights of every human across the globe are protected. From the most basic human needs such as food, shelter, and water, all the way up to access to free and uncensored information, such has been the goals and ambitions laid out that day.

The Declaration proclaims a simple, yet powerful idea :

 "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights,"  "They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood."

These rights are the birthright of all people: it does not matter, what country we live in and even who we are. Because we are human, we have these rights; and Governments are bound to protect them. They are not a reward for good behaviour, nor they are optional or the privilege of a few- they are inalienable  entitlements of all people, at all times- regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. And because they are universal, they are also matters of legitimate concern; and  standing  up for them is a responsibility that binds us all.

 It is the most translated document in the world, available in more than 500 languages.  When the General Assembly adopted the Declaration, with 48 states in favor and eight abstentions, it was proclaimed as a "common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations", towards which individuals and societies should "strive by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance".

Although the Declaration with its broad range of political, civil, social, cultural and economic rights is not a binding document, it inspired more than 60 human rights instruments which together constitute an international standard of human rights. It has helped shape human rights all over the world.

Today the general consent of all United Nations Member States on the basic Human Rights laid down in the Declaration makes it even stronger and emphasizes the relevance of Human Rights in our daily lives.The High Commissioner for Human Rights, as the main United Nations rights official, plays a major role in coordinating efforts for the yearly observation of Human Rights Day.

Human Rights Day reminds us that there is much to be done  and around the world to protect those who cannot voice or respond to perpetrated discrimination and violence caused by governments, vigilantes, and individual actors. In many instances, those who seek to divide people for subjective means and for totalitarian reasons do so around the globe without fear of retribution. Violence, or the threat of violence, perpetrated because of differences in a host of physical and demographic contrasts and dissimilarities is a blight on our collective humanity now and a danger for our human future.

Human Rights are the basic rights and freedoms that belong to every person in the world, from birth until death. They apply regardless of where you are from, what you believe or how you choose to live your life. They should never be taken away, these basic rights are based on values such as dignity, fairness, equality, respect and independence. But human rights are not just abstract concepts, they are defined and protected by law.

The aim of Human Rights Day is to raise awareness around the world of our inalienable rights – rights to basic needs such as water, food, shelter and decent working conditions. In the UK we are protected by the Human Rights Act 1998, however in other countries, especially developing countries, the laws are not in place to protect people and to ensure that their basic needs are met.

For millions of people, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is still just a dream.Many people around the world are still denied the most basic of human rights on a daily basis. Women’s rights are still repeatedly denied and marginalised throughout the globe, despite 70 years of the milestone declaration on human rights. Confronted with widespread gender-based violence, hate and discrimination, women’s well-being and ability to live full and active lives in society are being seriously challenged. 

Racism, xenophobia and intolerance are still  problems prevalent in all societies, and discriminatory practices are widespread, particularly regarding the  targeting of migrants and refugees. including in rich countries where men, women and children who have committed no crime are often held in detention for prolonged periods. They are frequently discriminated against by landlords, employers and state-run authorities, and stereotyped and vilified by some political parties, media organizations and members of the public.

Many other groups face discrimination to a greater or lesser degree. Some of them are easily definable such as persons with disabilities, stateless people, gays and lesbians, members of particular castes and the elderly. Others may span several different groups and find themselves discriminated against on several different levels as a result.

Those who are not discriminated against often find it hard to comprehend the suffering and humiliation that discrimination imposes on their fellow individual human beings. Nor do they always understand the deeply corrosive effect it has on society at large.

Nearly a billion people do not have enough food to eat, and  even in wealthier countries like the UK and the US where there is an increasing growth in food banks. Poverty is a leading factor in the failure to protect the economic and social rights of many individuals around the world. For the half of the world population living on less than $2.50 a day, human rights lack any practical meaning.

For this  Human Rights Day we must continue to  stand with all people targeted for giving expression to the vision and values embodied in the declaration. Every day must be Human Rights Day, as every person in the world is entitled to the full and indivisible range of human rights every day of his or her life.Global human rights are not selective in their value or meaning, nor are they limited to a day or time of year. Until all people have access to these human rights we must stand up, advocate for, and insist that more must be done. Human Rights Day should serve as a reminder to act for those lacking basic rights each and everyday. 

 Human Rights Day calls on us all to ‘stand up for someone's rights today!’ It reminds us what we have achieved over the years to respect, promote and protect human rights. It also asks to recommit and re-engage in championing these rights for our shared humanity since whenever and wherever humanity's values of equality, justice and freedom are abandoned, we all are at greater risk.

This year’s Human Rights Day theme is to "Recover Better - Stand Up for Human Rights". This year the theme is in sync with the COVID pandemic and it focuses on creating equal opportunities for everyone to address the failures and disappointments we all were exposed to due to COVID -19. and focuses on the need to build back better by ensuring Human Rights are central to recovery efforts. 

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 intergenerational inequalities, exclusion and discrimination.

The COVID-19 crisis has been fuelled by deepening poverty, rising inequalities, structural and entrenched discrimination and other gaps in human rights protection. Only measures to close these gaps and advance human rights can ensure we fully recover and build back a world that is better, more resilient, just, and sustainable.

The UN partners for Human Rights have listed out measures that should be kept in mind to seal the gaps in human rights protection that were fuelled by COVID crisis this year. There is a list of measures that need to be followed to make our society and in turn the whole world a more resilient and just place.

• End discrimination of any kind
• Address inequalities
• Encourage participation and solidarity
• Promote sustainable development

 It’s important to acknowledge that human rights, have rarely been gifted to us through benevolent leaders. Rather, they have been won after long fought battles and collective struggle. We need to recognize and pay tribute to human rights defenders the world over, putting their lives on the line for others, our voice must be their voice. 

 As thousands of struggles have proved, human rights are a vital lever in the quest for equality and social justice. If governments will no longer protect human rights it will be up to us, the people to keep on fighting for them and ensure our human right are always upheld.

Lets work to achieve a better life for all. And more importantly, to continue to take a stand for people whose human rights are still not being met across the globe, find a way to use our voices for those who may not have an opportunity to advocate for themselves. At the same time  strengthening  international law and justice in order to end impunity, and bring to justice those guilty of violations of human rights and offer protection to their victims. 

 Today is an opportunity to reaffirm the importance of human rights in rebuilding the world we want, the need for global solidarity as well as our interconnectedness and shared humanity. A future  of cooperation among citizens, peoples and between nations. It is a a prerequisite for a more peaceful future where disputes are solved through negotiation and diplomacy. 

"If your neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor, "- Desmond Tutu

http://www.un.org/en/events/humanrightsday/  

 I Have the Right

I have the right to my own opinions
to state what I believe to be the truth,
I believe in freedom of thought
I believe in freedom of speech,
I have the right to be free from bondage
to be free from chains and mental slavery,
to choose what I want to be, where I need to go
because this is my right to be free.

I have the right to speak out
this is my choice, this is my conscience,
this is my right to freedom of expression
this right allows me to speak out against oppression,
this right allows me to stand against transgression, 
                                           aggression, exploitation
this right acknowledges that all born equal and free.

Everyone  is a unique individualistic form 
all have a right to life and liberty,
dignity and pride, the security of protection
that allows us to cry, to love and laugh,
remember that when justice is forgotten 
alternative paths trample down opposition,  
decency and justice, respect, and all that has been given
so  keep on fighting for human rights with no inhibition
remember actions speak louder than words
and what unites us is greater than what seperates 

Amidst The Bones of Winter

The air around us full of spite and bitterness

Weight of debt is crushing poor countries

Hearts pound relentlssly as sadness triplicate

Harm, keeps shattering nations apart

Death clouds rising from battered singed earth

The scars we trace, visible across the world

But still the  ebb, and the cuckoos cry

As our eyes awaken, cold with loss

Many resenting change, but many seeking for it

Time to be patient, time to be strong

With unbounded love and iron will

Share solidarity now times are tough

Cling on for now to mundane things

Past winter, lets hope solidity brings

Trouble's fading, the end of fear

Beyond black depression in which we sink

True peace and tranquility not currently near

May the storm we currently embrace, to recede.

Feet treading  deeply in the mire of solitous path

Mask up with rainbow hues, look ahead

Seek always  facilitators of kindness,

Beyond politicians who bludgeon us to death

Against the shrill blasts that inflict us daily

The homeless still sleeping  in shivering streets

The sickness of racism, planting poison 

Carry on loving, following flickering stars in sky

Leap frog from the ruins, bomb the earth with healing.