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November 16, 2005
New Kid On The Human Rights Block
Everyone knows that human rights organizations like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have an institutional bias toward the Left. I've become immune to the frustration resulting from the way in which these organizations seemingly assign equal weight to a death penalty case in Texas and a genocidal episode in Rwanda or Iraq.
But today CNSNews highlights a new human rights organization that is founded on a stable and proven foundation: free market capitalism combined with the rule of law.
Members of the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) conducted their first meeting in New York City Nov. 10, stating that their goal was to spread human rights and democracy throughout the Americas.
Guest speakers at the HRF event warned about "unelected" organizations that have secured places at the "decision-making table" of the United Nations. The speakers stated that these "unelected" groups operate on the premise of human rights concerns, but have a real goal of undermining the sovereignty of democratic nations and the war against terrorism. [...]
The Foundation emphasizes property rights and free markets as the basis for human freedom.
The founding members are a strong group indeed--they include Thor Halvorssen, the founder of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Education (FIRE), and Father Robert Sirico, founder of the Acton Institute for Religion and Liberty.
This is all great news, and it reminded me immediately of this post I wrote about a group of economists and activists who are challenging the institutionalized wisdom of "international aid is a cure for African poverty".
Reading further down the CNSNews article, I was pleasantly surprised to find that one of the speakers at the HRF launching was Franklin Cudjoe, leader of Imani: Center for Humane Education in Ghana and one of the African intellectuals profiled in my previous post. CNSNews:
Cudjoe pointed to one of the globe's worst human rights crises - the conflict in Sudan - which involves violent militias allegedly supported by the Sudanese government targeting civilians and routing them from their homes. It's estimated that 2 million civilians have been forced to flee.
"What's happening in Sudan is not a religious conflict, despite what you've heard," said Cudjoe, "but is due to an absence of clearly defined property rights, which always endangers the rights of humans."
Reaction by the human rights establishment was typical:
Curt Goering, deputy executive director of Amnesty International, also dismissed the HRF's charges [...]
"The U.S. is losing, if it hasn't already lost, the global human rights debate and the results of the course of action suggested by the speakers (at the HRF event) would inevitably damage further the U.S. image worldwide, something which this country can ill-afford."
Oh sure...I need Curt Goering to tell me all about the damaged worldwide image of the United States. Once again, the proper path of US foreign policy does not for a second depend upon the wishes of a bunch of self-hating Euros.
I think the establishment of the Human Rights Foundation, based as it is on championing individual freedom, rule of law and free markets, is a very welcome development. I hope it gets some press.
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