Human rights: ‘Compliance a must for personal, economic growth’

Book launch session held at National Book Day Festival.

ISLAMABAD: Human rights are not just important on an individual level but their compliance is essential for economic growth at the collective level. The UN encourages countries to form specific and tailored human rights frameworks for themselves.

This was stated by UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator Dr Jacqueline Badcock at a speakers’ corner session to mark the National Book Day Festival organised by the National Book Foundation (NBF). A host of issues including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, climate change, volunteerism and the role of UN volunteers came under discussion.

Badcock spoke about the 30 articles in the declaration of human rights and highlighted three generations of human rights. “The first generation of human rights pertains to basic human rights, the second revolves around the state of human rights and the third around the right to peace and development,” she said.

First secretary at the Italian Embassy Elena di Vito said Italy has been stressing on women’s and children’s rights as that is their area of concern.

ILO Pakistan Country Director Francescod’Ovidio said “As an intellectual or as a human being, everyone should be aware of the fact that they have certain basic human rights”.

Book launch

While speaking at a book launch session, NBF Managing-Director Dr Inamul Haq Javaid highlighted the importance of different languages in Pakistan.

Poets and scholars recited poetry and verses in Pashto, Balochi, Seraiki, Punjabi and Sindhi, among other languages. The launch was followed by a reading session and discussion.

“The idea is to introduce and give prominence to all languages spoken in Pakistan and encourage readers to read them,” said AIOU VC Prof Dr Shahid Siddiqui.

Ehsanul Haq, a Punjabi professor, recited poetry from his book followed by Dr Amjad Bhatti who read excerpts from his work.

Scholar and writer Dr Fatima Hassan recited a few verses from a book by Risalo Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai. Prof Nasir Saeed also recited Pashto poetry.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 25^th, 2015.