NIA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (December 12, 2018) – The following is a release from the Department of Youth and Sports in the Nevis Island Administration regarding the launch of the United National Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Youth for Human Rights St. Kitts-Nevis Organization and its bid to canvass members on Nevis.
In observance of Human Rights Day observed on December 10th, the United National Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Youth for Human Rights St. Kitts-Nevis Organization wishes to announce its official launch to commemorate this auspicious occasion.
This group is focused on sensitizing and educating the young people of St. Kitts-Nevis of their fundamental human rights which the country serves to recognize since signing on to the United Nations in 1983.
The group is also focused on ensuring that the laws and policies that are implemented in the country are in accordance with the human rights, especially as it relates to youth.
The organization is currently spearheaded by a working group, comprised of various federal youth stakeholders such as the Department of Youth in Nevis, St. Kitts National Youth Parliament Association (SKNYPA), CARICOM (Caribbean Community) Youth Ambassadors and the Queen’s Youth Representative.
The goal of this workgroup is to continue to push the mandate of the Youth for Human Rights initiative along with establishing an official constitution for the organization. The workgroup is also responsible for ensuring participant registration across both islands, which in turn will lead to an official executive body being formed.
The success of these areas would lead to the international recognition of the group which will in turn lead to additional benefits and recognition on the international stage for youth in St. Kitts and Nevis.
The Youth for Human Rights mandate includes the recognition and observance of the 30 basic human rights as defined by the UN Charter of Human Rights. These rights are as follows:
1. We Are All Born Free & Equal. We are all born free. We all have our own thoughts and ideas. We should all be treated in the same way.
2. Don’t Discriminate. These rights belong to everybody, whatever our differences.
3. The Right to Life. We all have the right to life, and to live in freedom and safety.
4. No Slavery. Nobody has any right to make us a slave. We cannot make anyone our slave.
5. No Torture. Nobody has any right to hurt us or to torture us.
6. You Have Rights No Matter Where You Go. I am a person just like you!
7. We’re All Equal Before the Law. The law is the same for everyone. It must treat us all fairly.
8. Your Human Rights Are Protected by Law. We can all ask for the law to help us when we are not treated fairly.
9. No Unfair Detainment. Nobody has the right to put us in prison without good reason and keep us there, or to send us away from our country.
10. The Right to Trial. If we are put on trial this should be in public. The people who try us should not let anyone tell them what to do.
11. We’re Always Innocent Till Proven Guilty. Nobody should be blamed for doing something until it is proven. When people say we did a bad thing we have the right to show it is not true.
12. The Right to Privacy. Nobody should try to harm our good name. Nobody has the right to come into our home, open our letters, or bother us or our family without a good reason.
13. Freedom to Move. We all have the right to go where we want in our own country and to travel as we wish.
14. The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live. If we are frightened of being badly treated in our own country, we all have the right to run away to another country to be safe.
15. Right to a Nationality. We all have the right to belong to a country.
16. Marriage and Family. Every grown-up has the right to marry and have a family if they want to. Men and women have the same rights when they are married, and when they are separated.
17. The Right to Your Own Things. Everyone has the right to own things or share them. Nobody should take our things from us without a good reason.
18. Freedom of Thought. We all have the right to believe in what we want to believe, to have a religion, or to change it if we want.
19. Freedom of Expression. We all have the right to make up our own minds, to think what we like, to say what we think, and to share our ideas with other people.
20. The Right to Public Assembly. We all have the right to meet our friends and to work together in peace to defend our rights. Nobody can make us join a group if we don’t want to.
21. The Right to Democracy. We all have the right to take part in the government of our country. Every grown-up should be allowed to choose their own leaders.
22. Social Security. We all have the right to affordable housing, medicine, education, and childcare, enough money to live on and medical help if we are ill or old.
23. Workers’ Rights. Every grown-up has the right to do a job, to a fair wage for their work, and to join a trade union.
24. The Right to Play. We all have the right to rest from work and to relax.
25. Food and Shelter for All. We all have the right to a good life. Mothers and children, people who are old, unemployed or disabled, and all people have the right to be cared for.
26. The Right to Education. Education is a right. Primary school should be free. We should learn about the United Nations and how to get on with others. Our parents can choose what we learn.
27. Copyright. Copyright is a special law that protects one’s own artistic creations and writings; others cannot make copies without permission. We all have the right to our own way of life and to enjoy the good things that art, science and learning bring.
28. A Fair and Free World. There must be proper order so we can all enjoy rights and freedoms in our own country and all over the world.
29. Responsibility. We have a duty to other people, and we should protect their rights and freedoms.
30. No One Can Take Away Your Human Rights.
For more information or to express your interest in joining this organization, please contact the Department of Youth in Nevis at 469-5521 ext. 2017.
Also, feel free to visit our official Facebook page “UNESCO Youth For Human Rights SKN”, for more information about this initiative and other human rights information and educational material.
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