On this day, we remember and commemorate the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, as the first legal commitment undertaken by democratic societies to protect fundamental human rights and freedoms from arbitrary state interference.
Since then, the modernization and enrichment of legal texts aimed at ensuring the safeguarding and enjoyment of rights without discrimination by all people has been undeniably important, with the result that today we have at our disposal a broad institutional framework as a tool for the assertion of fundamental human rights.
But is this ultimately enough?
The challenges remain, the need for constant vigilance in the field of human rights protection is becoming ever more acute and the joining of forces is a one-way street for their respect and recognition.
What if there are now binding texts for the protection of human rights, when these alone cannot prevent the violations committed throughout humanity.
Our fellow human beings continue to suffer discrimination, marginalization or even exploitation, while difficult economic conditions and ongoing conflicts or conditions of persecution that force people to flee their countries of origin reflect our failure as global citizens to safeguard the effective enjoyment of human rights indiscriminately, and particularly for vulnerable groups of the population.
The dark streets of war continue to take centre stage , the sirens continue to threaten, sometimes to stimulate memories and sometimes to alert individuals to the impending danger.
74 years after the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as a necessary means of preserving human dignity against the paranoia of the second world war, its reminder is now more relevant than ever.
Armed conflicts, torture, prisoners of war, rape, uprooting, despair... Humanity is once again testing its strength, especially its mental strength.
As an Ombudsman institution, and NHRI (National Human Rights Authority) as guardians of the rule of law and the protection of human rights, we have a key role in identifying vulnerable groups of the population and supporting them.
We have a role to be their voice and their cry, and especially this year with the recent re-evaluation of the Commissioner for Administration and Protection of Human Rights by the relevant UN Sub-Committee as NHRI, awarding the status (status) A for the first time, our role becomes more pronounced and our responsibility greater!
Next to every citizen, every governed, every human being, regardless of race, colour, origin, next to every desperate gaze, always at the forefront of their protection and the cultivation of a culture of respect for them.
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