20 YEARS WORKING FOR YOUR RIGHTS.

On the occasion of the World Human Rights Day today, December 10, the Environmental
Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) has advocated that the Federal
Government anchors human rights promotion on sustainable policies that guarantee
protection of livelihoods and social security of Nigerians. 

Every year starting December 10, 1950, the United Nations has marked the Human
Rights Day to bring to the attention governments and ‘of the peoples of the world’
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as the common standard of achievement for
all peoples and all nations.
The theme of the 2013 event is 20 Years Working for Your Rights, re-emphasizing
again the thrust of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, adopted by the
World Conference in 1993, which marked the beginning of a renewed effort in the
protection and promotion of human rights. The declaration is regarded as one of the
most significant human rights documents of the past quarter century.
In a statement issued in Lagos yesterday, ERA/FoEN Executive Director, Godwin Ojo
said that: “The global commemoration of the World Human Rights Day should be a
wake-up call for the Nigerian government to go beyond mere lip service to actually
taking the issue of social security and livelihoods protection as pivots to
guaranteeing the wellbeing of all classes of Nigerians”.
Furthermore, Ojo said: “We are not happy that though Nigeria subscribes to
international laws that guarantee human rights right, yet it has failed to address
cases of ecocide in the Niger Delta, inequalities  and environmental and human
rights abuses that have left our people disillusioned”.
“As a critical suggestion to government to address the inequalities, ERA/FoEN is
proposing a National Basic Income Scheme (NaBIS) as a social security of about
N10,000 to be paid to all Nigerians who are unemployed. This initiative will not
only uphold human dignity, reduce poverty, and unlock creative potentials for the
generation of employment opportunities, it will reduce crime currently ravaging in
our society and threatening its fabrics.”
“Our argument is further strengthened by the fact that the Vienna Declaration posits
that the human person is the central subject of human rights and fundamental
freedoms, and consequently should be the principal beneficiary and participate
actively in the realization of these rights and freedoms”.
“We insist that the Nigerian government must go beyond sloganeering the issue of
human rights to adopting the NABIS and initiating policies that ensure that the
promotion and protection of all human rights and fundamental freedoms are a
priority.
“The 2013 World Human Rights Day presents another opportunity for the Nigerian
government to halt policies that are not pro-people and have led to massive
disillusionment across the land. It is now time to empower our people and give them
a sense of dignity. Social security is the way to go,” he insisted.