nondiscrimination and equality before the law ... Saint Kit

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HUMAN RIGHTS
From Risk to Vulnerability Caribbean and Global
Perspectives

and HIV

• IN THE CARIBBEAN

Wednesday, August 6, 2008 Session Room 4

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Background

• Caribbean a study in diversity
• Population of approx 34 million
• Consisting of continental nations
• Large and small island states
• 34 independent countries
• continued colonisation by the USA, UK, France,
  Netherlands
  
• Spanish, English, French, Dutch and
  Creole-speaking

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Background

• Diverse legal backgrounds
• French Civil law
• Roman Dutch Law
• English Common Law
• Dutch law
• Spanish
• Mixed systems St. Lucia Guyana

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Sources of Human Rights

• Written Bills of Rights contained in
  Constitutions
  
• Constitutions are supreme law of the State
• Legislation in accordance with the Constitution
  (Education Act establishes right to Education but
  not stated in Constitution) International
  Treaties and Conventions
• Protocols and opinions by Intl HR Bodies

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Rights Recognised in Caribbean

• nondiscrimination and equality before the law
• freedom from inhuman degrading treatment and
  punishment
  
• autonomy, liberty and security of the person
• freedom of expression, assembly and association
• protection from deprivation of property
• protection from arbitrary search and entry

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Rights Recognised in Caribbean

• protection of the Law
• freedom of conscience
• freedom of movement
• protection from discrimination on the grounds of
  sex, race, place of origin, political opinions,
  colour or creed
  

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Limitations

• Constitutions largely recognise civil and
  political rights not social and economic
  rights
  
• Limited applicability of Intl
• HR Instruments

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UN Treaty Bodies - Reporting History
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UN Treaty Bodies - Reporting History
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HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN THE CARIBBEAN

• Extra- judicial killings
• Torture and ill-treatment
• Sexual assault and rape, domestic violence
• Invasions of privacy
• Arbitrary detention
• Denial of employment and education opportunities
• Violence
• Detention of juveniles with
• convicted prisoners

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Human Rights and HIV

• Exclusion social, migration
• Denial of Services - education, heath care,
  housing, insurance, work permits
  
• Homophobic Violence
• Breaches of Privacy
• Sexual abuse
• Denial of reproductive rights
• Dismissal from work
• Criminal sanctions
• transmission of HIV

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Human Rights and HIV

• HIV has exposed pre-occurring HR abuses
• Has led to more abuses
• Forced society to face them and question
  why!!!!!!!!!!
  

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the AIDS epidemic has shone a remorseless light
on every moral issue in every society it has
touched. It has exposed hypocrisy and
double-dealing and unjust privilege it has
accentuated inequality and injustice and it has
revealed misrule.
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Can we legislate morality? and if so whose?
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Definition of Morality

• Descriptive usage a code of conduct held to be
  authoritative in matters of right and wrong,
  whether by society, philosophy, religion, or
  individual conscience.
• Normative and universal sense an ideal code of
  conduct, one which would be espoused in
  preference to alternatives by all rational
  people, under specified conditions.
• Morality as synonymous with ethics, the
  systematic philosophical study of the moral
  domain
  

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Caribbean Morality

• Largely based on religious principles
• God is our moral centre and all rules set out
  in the bible are to be strictly observed
  
• Culture
• Taboos
• Secrecy
• Non acceptance or understanding of human rights
  principles
  

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Legislating Morality

• Has society the right to pass judgment at all on
  matters of morals?
  
• If society has the right to pass judgement has it
  also the right to use the weapon of the law to
  enforce it?
  

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Hypocrisy!!!!!!

• Vulnerable populations are labeled as societal
  outcasts
  
• the MSM is nasty and perverted
• the PLHWA is a threat and dangerous
• the SW is a scourge
• they all called this on themselves because of
  their low or lack of moral fiber
  
• The adulterer or fornicator is accepted

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Hypocrisy!!!!!!

• There is no compassion
• Tolerance
• Love of neighbour
• Forgiveness
• Sharing
• All christian principles echoed from every
  pulpit on days of worship
  
• more appropriate response is to deny, reject,
  ostracize, belittle, taunt, threaten, assault, or
  kill the rejects.
  

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HIV and Human Rights

• Human rights promotion and protection is central
  to the response to HIV/AIDS. Denying the rights
  of people living with HIV, and those affected by
  the epidemic, imperils not only their well-being,
  but life itself.
• HIV/AIDS and Human Rights International
  Guidelines, 2003

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Caribbean Vulnerable Communities

• Regional coalition of civil society actors
  working with marginalised and vulnerable
  populations
  
• Prisoners
• Orphans and Vulnerable Children
• Youth (boys and girls) in Especially Difficult
  Circumstances
  
• Substance Users
• Undocumented persons (refugees, deportees, etc)
• Sexual minorities (LGBT)
• Sex Workers
• Regional support for national programming to
  scale up response
  
• Coordinated regional advocacy
• Promote rights based approach to HIV
• programming

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CVC

• Vision
• To transform, based on human rights, social
  justice, respect for human diversity, social
  inclusion, and the reduction of vulnerability,
  the national and regional consciousness of the
  social and economic factors driving the HIV and
  AIDS epidemics

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What have We Done?

• GrenChap in Grenada produced a Shadow Report for
  the Grenada Periodic Review
  
• Jamaica AIDS Support for Life in Jamaica fostered
  a partnership with HR organisations to combat
  homophobia among the police
  
• Maxi Linder in Suriname has and continues to
  promote the rights of Sex workers
  
• AIDS Action Foundation in St. Lucia is engaged in
  advocacy in promoting a rights based approach
  

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LGBT
SU
2 major consultations Bahibe Declaration Fos
tered the establishment of Cari Flag
- Includes all sexual minorities
Pioneered pilot projects with LGBT groups at th
e national level
Policy and advocacy on substance use and
criminalization of SU Establishment of CHRC
Mobilization of resources to establish drop-in
centres
SEX WORKERS
Prisoners
3 major consultations Establishment of Sex Wor
ker Coalition Working towards establishing link
ages with regional and Intt Networks
Financed the participation of 4 SW to IAC
Working with penal authorities to establish STI
control policies to ensure access to sexual and
reproductive health and ARVs
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CONCLUSION

• CVC is committed to achieving an environment in
  which moral majorities are held to a standard
  which recognizes the dignity of every human
  being.

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• Gracias
• Merci
• Mèsi anpil
• Dank je wel
• Danki
• Ngiyabonga
• Thanks