Human rights must not be partisan issue, Rousseff argues

In a ceremony held Friday (Dec. 11), President Dilma Rousseff handed the Human Rights awards to 18 personalities and institutions who stood out in the field this year. The prize is considered the highest award from the Brazilian government to people and institutions for their work in the defense and promotion of human rights in the country.

Among the recipients is Minister Ricardo Lewandovski, head of the Supreme Court and the National Council of Justice, awarded under Prevention and Combat of Torture, for the custody hearings initiative, which ensures that those arrested in flagrante delicto be able to appear before a judge in 24 hours or less, thus averting illegal conduct during the time spent in prison.

Several times in her speech, the president mentioned the relationship between human rights and democracy in the nonpartisan defense of these principles. “Human rights must not be the issue of single parties, factions, or political stances,” she argued.

Rousseff listed what she described as the government's human rights achievements over the last few years, like the eradication of hunger and poverty, the inclusion of black youths in universities, the expansion of people's access to health care, the implementations of policies for handicapped people and the improvement of women's care. Nonetheless, she says, a new challenge arises for each accomplishment, especially when it comes to fighting violence against black young people and ensuring the right to land to indigenous people, slave descendents, and other of traditional communities.

“It's a long list of challenges. Our trajectory as a nation was marked over the course of history by the commitment with a few and the exclusion of the majority. There's also the burden of slavery we carry. We—both government and society—have done a lot, but we must be aware that there's still a lot to be done,” the president declared.

Nilma Lino Gomes, Minister of Women, Racial Equality and Human Rights, also defended the strides made in the defense of human rights, and said that society must not tolerate setbacks. “We cannot tolerate shrewd maneuvers which may cause our rights to suffer a setback. We do not tolerate them, nor shall we agree to stepping back. We'll move forwards, with our president as our leader.”

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira