Excellency,
It was with keen interest that the FIDH International Board, meeting on 3-4 December 2004, took note of Chapter VI (on Terrorism) of the Report by the independent panel of eminent persons on the reform of the UN.
Of course particular wordings and references call for in-depth examination. But as a declaration of principle, this report is a welcome reaction to the serious abuses the FIDH has been describing for many years. It confirms the analysis human rights defenders have been making since at least 11 September 2001, that it is not possible to fight terrorism effectively without adressing the root causes and without scrupulously respecting the rights and freedoms in whose name this fight is undertaken.
Continued inequality and double standards give the recruiters of terrorists their best arguments. Undermining freedom in the name of the fight against terrorism weakens the cause it is intended to serve. That human rights NGOs have been repeating this tirelessly is one thing, but that the UN should have stated it publicly is quite another. It is a decisive step, because the UN is the legitimate place for defining and ensuring the primacy and universality of fundamental rights as the only effective, defendable basis for the all-essential fight against terrorism.
The UN therefore bears the main responsibility for ensuring that primacy and universality: and talk is not enough. It is of the utmost importance that these words, long awaited by human rights defenders, have now been uttered for the first time at UN level. The FIDH hopes that the UN, as the international institution that enjoys the greatest legitimacy, will fully adopt them and make them as effective as they deserve. We assure you of our keen interest, and our disponibility to suport your efforts on this file.
Sincerely yours,
Sidiki Kaba
President of the FIDH