Int’l Human Rights Day highlights progress, work to be done

AMMAN — The Kingdom is committed to progress in the different dimensions of human rights, but still there is much to be done, according to experts.

Observed annually on December 10, Human Rights Day commemorates the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) in 1948 by the United Nations General Assembly, according to the UN website.

The UDHR proclaims the rights that all people are entitled to as human beings, regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status, the UN website added.

Echoing an opinion shared by a pool of experts, sociologist Hussein Khozahe said on Saturday that “Human Rights Day is a turning point for the expansion of the human rights protection system”.

Many countries, including Jordan, seek to benefit from international days such as Human Rights Day, as they are considered to be a chance to reinforce human rights achievements, take note of progress made in this area and resolve any human rights breaches, he added.

More importantly, Khozahe noted that there are many indicators that capture the various principles of human rights which cannot be ignored, such as the happiness indicator, unemployment indicators and freedom indexes.

In 2022, Jordan ranked the second unhappiest country in the region on the World Happiness Report. The unemployment rate stood at 22.6 per cent during the second quarter of 2022.

While there have been far-reaching reforms and legislative developments in Jordan, some challenges are still ongoing, advocate Israa Mahadin told The Jordan Times on Saturday.

“There is no one country in the world that has fully applied human rights standards, and Jordan is in the process of improving everything that is related to human rights and freedoms,” Mahadin, who is also head of Karak Castle Centre for Consultations and Training, said.

The Kingdom has a “strong” commitment to promoting and protecting human rights, Mahadin added.

Regarding women’s rights, she noted that recent institutional amendments are in favour of women, and expressed her hope that women would thereby be better represented and protected.