Toespraak van minister Koenders bij de uitreiking van de Mensenrechtentulp 2014

Toespraak | 09-12-2014

A little under two years ago, Google launched its latest gadget: Google Glass − a fascinating piece of new technology. Through it, the world acquires a new layer of information. You can navigate the streets with a small map that pops up in front of your eyes; you can look at a concert poster and order tickets on the spot; you can talk to a friend on the other side of the world while you’re on the train heading home. In short: the future is hip, convenient and exciting.

And there’s more. Google Glass lets you stand in front of a person, take a photo and call up information about them from the internet. The app, called NameTag, was launched earlier this year. Very useful new technology, its makers claim. When you meet someone new you can check whether they’re a potential friend, life partner or even babysitter: a photo is all it takes to find out who they are and what they do.

It’s not hard to feel excited by all the new possibilities the internet has to offer. I marvel at today’s technology. It’s truly mindboggling to think that less than ten years ago, most of us didn’t even have a smartphone yet. But nowadays, being connected wherever, whenever is second nature.

Let me give you one more example before I get to my point: two or three weeks ago, the official trailer came out for the new Star Wars movie. Within minutes, the internet was abuzz with excitement. Not so long ago, trailers were something you watched at the cinema: but now we simply call them up on our phones, tablets and laptops.

My point is this: as every Star Wars fan knows, there are two sides to every coin − or, perhaps more fittingly, there is a dark side to the force.

Google Glass lets you take a photo of someone without them even knowing it. You can then find out everything there is to know about them online. Some people might say they have nothing to hide − a faulty and overused argument − but privacy is an important freedom for everyone.

Of course, the seemingly unstoppable thrust of new technologies in our daily lives has its plus side. But as we all know, there’s always a dark side − Mideast Youth is a product of the great, liberating power of the internet. But it is all too aware of the internet’s equally repressive potential. Mideast Youth chooses to empower people. Because even if we acknowledge the dark side of the force, it’s our own duty and responsibility not to be led astray. We must, so to speak, keep aiming for the light.

This is the sixth year that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has awarded the Human Rights Tulip. The prize is an important part of the Dutch government’s policy on human rights and human rights defenders. In previous years, the prize has not been without controversy. But that’s not a bad thing. Indeed, a little controversy can be refreshing when it comes to advancing the values of human rights.

The prize focuses on human rights defenders − individuals and organisations − who demonstrate both innovation and great courage. That’s why Mideast Youth is such a worthy winner of this year’s Human Rights Tulip. The organisation works innovatively, using all the digital means available to give people a platform. And by people I mean ordinary young people, volunteers, people with ideals. People who stand up for social justice, freedom of speech and human rights. It’s almost as if the Human Rights Tulip was conceived for this very organisation.

Mideast Youth provides platforms where young people can discuss topics that are taboo or actively suppressed. Like equal rights for Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgender people; equal rights for religious and ethnic minorities like the Bahá’í and the Kurds; and the protection of labour migrants who face dire conditions in many parts of the Middle East. Perhaps it’s best said in their own words:

'Mideast Youth places a specific focus on access to information, free speech and minority rights. Our sites are designed to be tools in the hands of those seeking social change, providing an outlet that bridges the gap between their voice and the world’s attention. At their core, all of our diverse projects are about taking the powerful voice of an individual and connecting it to a network that ensures it is heard by the world. By focusing on creating tools and building communities, Mideast Youth contributes to a system of empowerment that can fight oppression no matter what form it takes.'

Mideast Youth gives a voice to those who advance human rights in the broadest sense of the word:

• Mideast Tunes is a music library for musicians who work underground, using their music to bring about change. There are now almost 7,000 tracks available.
• Crowdvoice.org is an open-source platform gathering online information about social movements around the world, from Mexico to Australia, in one place. Its goal is to map all social movements that advocate change through crowdsourcing.
• Then there’s ahwaa.org where young LGBT people find a safe haven to discuss their experiences and ask questions. Ahwaa, incidentally, means ‘passions’.

Ahwaa.org is a meeting place for young LGBT people throughout the Middle East and North Africa. For those who are struggling with their identity and may not have anywhere else to go, the website provides a crucial outlet in a country where being open about your sexuality may prove very dangerous. The concerns that underlie the website dovetail with one of the three cornerstones of the Dutch government’s policy on human rights − advancing LGBT rights worldwide. Our focus is to prevent violence and promote social acceptance and openness. Advancing LGBT rights in the Middle East and North Africa is extremely difficult.

• Migrant-rights.org provides multilingual information on the rights and political situation of labour migrants. People can add sources themselves too.
• There’s also Tabeebi, a health directory that helps people in the Gulf find their nearest hospital based on their insurance cover.

Some of these websites attract over 100,000 unique visitors a month, a testament to the impact of the platforms that fall under Mideast Youth’s umbrella. 

It seems, however, that advancing any form of human rights is becoming increasingly difficult in today’s world. This worries me greatly.

Last week, I had the privilege of addressing the Rabbani Foundation, where I referred to a poem by Faraj Bayrakdar about the Syrian city of Homs. I would like to repeat a few lines of that poem *):

 

                For almost twenty years

                of absence, obsession and delusion

                for twenty years abandoned

                at its crossroads

                the guards overwhelmed me with weapons

It is a eulogy for the city of Homs − a resilient city, but one tormented by the atrocious crimes that have been unleashed upon it. Bayrakdar tells of love and of how the city is at the core of his being. War is a human tragedy − and a personal tragedy. Sometimes I worry that the human rights defenders still active in Syria are at risk of being forgotten.

There is something in these lines that speak to a greater fear. I’m deeply concerned about the dramatic worldwide downturn in the state of human rights. We’re seeing the rapid rise of illiberal, autocratic regimes. We’re seeing more countries where religious minorities are being persecuted or face unequal treatment − from the Copts and Christians in parts of the Middle East to the Muslim Rohingya minority in Myanmar. Women’s rights are being trampled, LGBT people repressed. In Syria and Iraq, sectarianism and ultra-violent extremism are beyond our imagination. Both anti-Semitism and Islamophobia are on the rise in Europe and beyond. Where identity transforms into ideology, our language grows sharper and human rights are often among the first things to be discarded.

We find ourselves having to confront grave violations of the principles we believe in most dearly. Values are more important than ever − values that distinguish our societies from the dark forces at work in other parts of the globe. The Netherlands stands firm on the advancement of democracy, the rule of law and human rights. Values are our interest. Yet we can’t be naive. We can’t advance these values with the wave of a magic wand. We can’t force their spread. Our idealism needs to be chaperoned by strategy and perseverance. Activism is needed. But this could inadvertently hurt the human rights cause more than ever if local activist groups and defenders are not in the lead. Human rights are universal – there can be no doubt about that – but their implementation is by definition a local challenge.

As some of you might know, a few weeks ago the UN General Assembly elected the Netherlands to the Human Rights Council for the 2015-2017 period. The Netherlands will use its membership of the Council to respond rapidly and effectively to human rights situations worldwide. Being a member of the Council will give us the chance to actively work on promoting freedom of expression. On protecting the rights of women, sexual minorities and human rights defenders. And on championing the right to a fair trial. We will also strive wholeheartedly for greater recognition of human rights in conflict zones.

The importance we attach to human rights is not just expressed in words. The Netherlands is a leading donor to UN organisations that promote human rights, such as the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, UNICEF and UNHCR, and we will continue to support them. We firmly believe in hearing a wide range of voices in the Council.

The Netherlands is a strong advocate of active roles for civil society organisations in the UN’s human rights institutions and actively defends their right to speak within the Human Rights Council. In addition, we have supported the establishment of a trust fund to enable Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries to participate in the Council.
It’s important to acknowledge that values cannot be forced upon people − but they must be defended. Here we have to guard against two things:

• ritualising our human rights policy;
• and trivialising human rights.

These are two sides of the same coin, and they arise when the language we speak, the semantics in which we address each other on this topic, become exhausted or hollow.

All true advocacy in the name of human rights must be local and unconventional. Human rights are rarely advanced by military force, but more often by the painstakingly slow, long-winded processes of local activism. Processes full of setbacks. In the Dutch government’s experience, it’s the small-scale initiatives – the ones that have to be kept below the radar – that are often the most effective. And they can be scaled up at crucial times. We have to act as a catalyst.

Of course, the safety of local activists is essential − and that brings me to Esra’a Al-Shafei. Despite her young age, it was she who founded Mideast Youth, working together with volunteers throughout the region. Al-Shafei and her organisation are extremely well adapted to the digital world. Innovation is a great antidote to the risk of ritualisation and the exhaustion of our repertoire. Of course, there are no quick fixes. But Mideast Youth is not about quick fixes. They’re in it for the long haul – an innovative organisation spearheading the digital revolution, and committed to the rights of individuals to choose their own paths in life.

Before I invite her to the stage, I would like to say how pleased I am that the public vote played such an important role in deciding this year’s winner. The advice of the jury, represented here today by Frank La Rue, Barbara Oomen and Shahzad Ahmad, has also been very valuable.

I proudly congratulate Mideast Youth and its founder, Esra’a Al-Shafei, on winning this year’s Human Rights Tulip. Today, amid current global events, we need to look for the scarce rays of light that creep through the darkness. We need your voice more than ever.

Thank you.

*) Note: the poem quoted can be read in full at the following website - www.aljadid.com/content/tashriqa