Statement to the Storting on human rights by foreign minister Bjørn Tore Godal, 10 October 1996

Statement to the Storting on human rights by Foreign Minister Bjørn Tore Godal, 10 October 1996

Madam President,

Every day, Norway takes new initiatives to defend human rights in countries where fellow human beings are oppressed. Never before have so many people who are imprisoned, persecuted or missing received so much effective assistance from Norwegian diplomats or relief organizations. Never before have we so actively confronted power-seeking leaders with specific violations of human rights and concrete proposals for improvement.

This week, our prime minister has raised the matter of violations of human rights in Burma and child labour in the ASEAN countries with the Thai authorities. Yesterday, she began an active, purposeful dialogue on human rights with Vietnam, which included handing over documentation from Amnesty International. At the same time, Abdul Hakim of Indonesia has been visiting Norway and will receive, as requested, increased support from Norway for his extensive work in Indonesia.

On Monday and Tuesday, I had talks with Israeli and Palestinian leaders on measures to reduce violence and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Palestinian areas. In Colombia, both the guerrilla leaders and the Colombian authorities have asked us to assist in an extensive exchange of prisoners. We have also promised representatives of Albanian groups in Kosovo that arrangements will be made for a visit next week for discussions at political level of new solidarity projects.

The active line we are pursuing is not without cost: we have recently been the target of new, serious accusations made by authorities who wish to avoid becoming the focus of our critical attention. As recently as this week, the Kenyan authorities again attacked Norway for our support for Koigi wa Wamwere and other political prisoners.

Madam President,

This is just a glimpse from this week's human rights agenda for the Government and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. And I might add, this week is nothing out of the ordinary.

There has been a general desire in the Storting for a more detailed discussion on various aspects of and principles underlying our international commitment to human rights. This has been made clear on many occasions, notably in the debate on foreign affairs on 8 February. As an introduction to such a discussion, the Minister of Development Cooperation, the Minister of Trade and Shipping and I will present the main features of the Government's policy for the promotion of human rights in other countries. Our international commitment to human rights is wide-reaching and has an impact on most aspects of our foreign policy.

The Norwegian people's deep respect for human worth means that the safeguarding and promotion of human rights is a cornerstone of all our policies. It occupies a particularly prominent place in our peace efforts, where it combines idealism with self-interest: the greater the respect for human rights, the safer the world will be for us all. To quote the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights: "... recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and unalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world".

A good deal of progress has been made in the struggle to promote human rights ideals and to persuade states to make binding commitments under international law to uphold these ideals. Yet we receive daily reminders of the fact that in terms of actual compliance much remains to be achieved. There is growing awareness that human rights, as defined in the Universal Declaration, apply not only to Western cultures but to all people in all countries. Think of some of the major events that are still a source of great encouragement to us, such as the collapse of the dictatorships in Eastern Europe, the end of apartheid in South Africa, the fall of the military junta in Chile .... This awareness is being translated into practical policies in these and many other countries, but we must not cease our efforts when results are not forthcoming.

Norwegian impatience has placed us at the forefront of the struggle to secure a decent life for every individual. The Government feels a clear responsibility to promote human rights by a wide range of measures, of which contact and dialogue are the most important in terms of exerting influence.

The "we are best" attitude has of course its limitations. I need only point out how our own perception of what constitutes a decent life has changed through history in close keeping with social and economic developments in our own country. We must respect the fact that other societies have different traditions and different solutions to problems. However, we do have the right not only to expect but to demand respect for generally recognized human rights that are binding under international law. These rights are laid down in the two UN covenants of 1966 relating to civil and political rights and to economic, social and cultural rights respectively.

In my statement today I will be focusing on civil and political rights, in other words fundamental individual rights such as the right to life, freedom from torture and arbitrary imprisonment, freedom of religion and expression, and the right to association and peaceful assembly. The Minister of Trade and Shipping and the Minister of Development Cooperation will expand on Norway's efforts to promote economic, social and cultural rights.

If we are to achieve our goal of improving the human rights situation, we must exploit the opportunities available to us through multilateral cooperation as well as in our bilateral contacts with other countries. According to the UN Charter, military measures to force a state to stop violating the rights of its citizens may only be considered when international peace and security are at stake. And the possibilities of succeeding in this area are slight, but they should be developed. Consequently, the international community also has to employ other methods of persuasion, ranging from various degrees of criticism and boycott to more positive assistance. Our choice of strategy must depend on the degree and extent of the violations, the attitudes of those we aim to influence and those we aim to help as well as on the kind of international support we are able to muster.

It is important not least to enhance the ability of the international community to prevent internal conflicts in order to prevent violations against the population. This is what lies behind the Government's proposal to establish a UN fund for preventive action.

The Government's standpoint is that the international community has a right and a duty to react when a state fails to display a minimum of respect for human rights. In such cases, the principle of national autonomy must take second place. Norway will continue to make an active effort to persuade all states to accept fundamental human rights obligations under international law. Furthermore, it is important that we take part in monitoring compliance with international agreements, including the two covenants I have just mentioned and other agreements relating to torture, the rights of indigenous peoples and the elimination of racial and sexual discrimination, to mention only a few key areas.

Here we are by no means alone. At the UN General Assembly every autumn, and at the annual spring session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, we cooperate with like-minded countries in bringing violations of human rights to the attention of the world. The hectic diplomatic activity exhibited by countries attempting to avoid official criticism indicates what a burden it is for them to be on the receiving end of such censure from the world community. Thus, it is not true that such criticism runs off like water off a duck's back. Governments which have criticisms to make also have to make great efforts to ensure backing from as many other countries as possible in the form of criticism and proposals for action. The fact is that if there is not enough support for criticism or measures, this will weaken their impact and at worst be cited as a victory by the government responsible for the violations.

Some of the breadth of the UN's involvement in the field of human rights can be seen in the number of working groups and special rapporteurs that have been appointed for countries where the position of human rights is weak. There are also other monitoring mechanisms, such as the special rapporteurs on torture, freedom of expression, summary executions, religious intolerance and child prostitution. And finally, the office of High Commissioner for Human Rights has been established to take overall responsibility for UN efforts in the field of human rights. The Government is working to strengthen the position and effectiveness of the High Commissioner.

As part of the work of promoting international efforts to safeguard human rights, it is important that the world community is able to prosecute those responsible for the worst violations. We have provided active support for the two international tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. The Government is now among the main proponents of the move to establish a permanent international war crimes tribunal.

Although the European Convention on Human Rights of 1950 is more effective than the UN's instruments for safeguarding civil and political rights, Europe still needs even better monitoring and control arrangements. The Government has therefore actively supported the move to merge the European Court of Human Rights with the European Commission of Human Rights to form a single permanent court and to introduce a system of periodic monitoring of compliance under the auspices of the Committee of Ministers.

Before I conclude my discussion of multinational channels of influence, I would like to mention the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and Interpol. Our extensive support for the efforts of the OSCE to ensure just and free elections is an important means of supporting human rights. As regards the work of Interpol, Norway has been a prime mover in international cooperation to bring the worst offenders against children to justice for crimes including trade in children for prostitution and pornographic purposes, sex tourism and other types of abuse. The World Conference on the sexual abuse of children held in Stockholm in August showed the magnitude of these serious violations of human rights.

In our bilateral contacts with other countries where we are seeking to improve the human rights situation, our principal approach is to establish a dialogue and offer incentives. Interaction is in itself the best means of sharing cultural values. We provide substantial support for governments and NGOs that work to strengthen respect for human rights by means of measures such as legal aid for victims of human rights violations, courses for lawyers, teachers, journalists and others on human rights issues, documentation of and dissemination of information about violations of human rights and the establishment of an independent mass media. Through the Government's resource bank for democracy and human rights, NORDEM, several hundred election experts, lawyers, experts on minority rights and investigators have been sent to problem areas. Support for human rights measures is also included in long-term development cooperation projects, as the Minister of Development Cooperation will be describing in more detail.

One of the countries where we have chosen in recent years to pursue an active dialogue is China - the home of one quarter of the world population. In our relations with China we acknowledge the social and economic progress that has been made, and the great challenges this huge society is facing. But at the same time we call attention to the violations of human rights and the lack of legal safeguards both as a matter of principle and in connection with specific issues. Currently we are preparing several projects to spread information and increase awareness of human rights in China, in response to requests from both Amnesty International and Chinese individuals who are working for political change in their country. The Dalai Lama and the monk Palden Gyatso from Tibet support our policy of dialogue and open lines of communication, which of course also includes direct criticism of human rights violations in China in general and Tibet in particular.

Indonesia is another country with which Norway has chosen to maintain a dialogue. This does not mean that we are satisfied with the human rights situation there, but that through dialogue at political level and bilateral cooperation in a number of areas we have established an effective basis for exerting influence. The Government will not automatically break off a dialogue even in the event of setbacks. Recent developments in Indonesia illustrate this point. We have expressed our unease and concern over the situation and have for instance protested against the arrest of the independent trade union leader Muchtar Pakpahan. I raised these questions with the Indonesian foreign minister in New York two weeks ago. When the Minister of Industry and Energy, Jens Stoltenberg, visits Indonesia in a few days' time to take part in a seminar on technology, he will discuss questions of basic human rights and trade union rights. The Catholic Church in East Timor and Indonesian champions of human rights receive Norwegian support for their efforts. They support our policy of dialogue and have no desire for us to stay away.

Human rights considerations also underlie our involvement in areas such as short-term humanitarian assistance, e.g. to the Palestinians, and our support for the democratization process and reconstruction in the former Yugoslavia. Today Norway is receiving a visit from the Guatemalan foreign minister. The massive violations of fundamental human rights perpetrated in Guatemala over the last decades form a sombre backdrop to his, and our, peace efforts. The reintegration of refugees and the promotion of the rights of indigenous peoples are two important elements in this process.

Our concern over the treatment of minorities such as the Tibetans in China and the Kurds in Turkey is an integral part of our commitment to human rights. Recently the problems of the Kurds have again attracted the attention of the world. The Government feels that the international community must now take a greater share of the responsibility for the fate of the Kurds. We will continue to take up the Kurds' cause with the Turkish authorities and, together with like-minded countries, we will take the initiative to have the issue placed higher up on the agenda of international organizations.

The Government is occasionally criticized for not being consistent in the measures it employs, or for using apparently conflicting measures. In our relations with other countries the means must always be adapted to the end, and our overriding objective must always be to find ways of improving the human rights situation as effectively as possible. In some cases the Government has concluded that it is impossible to achieve anything through dialogue. Burma is one such case. The forces for democracy in Burma, led by the Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, have asked us to isolate the regime. We therefore actively support economic sanctions and international censure. The Government advises Norwegian companies not to invest in Burma, supports the government in exile and helps Burmese refugees.

Iran is another such case. Norway cannot maintain normal relations with Iran as long as the Iranian authorities do not, either in word or in deed, dissociate themselves from the fatwa, with its totally unacceptable violations of generally recognized principles of human rights and of the most fundamental norms of international law for intercourse between nations. The results of the EU's critical dialogue with the mullah regime have been meagre.

Economic sanctions should only be used as a last resort when other measures have been tried and found wanting. As we have seen in Iraq, effective international sanctions affect the entire population, not only the regime and its supporters. The political results may be difficult to predict and do not always correspond to the intentions. However, Norway will of course give its loyal support, regardless, to any sanctions adopted by the UN Security Council, a measure that has proved to be effective, for example, in the case of the previous regime in South Africa.

Unilateral Norwegian sanctions will seldom, if ever, be an effective means of exerting pressure. Their symbolic effect, which is so often referred to, is stronger in Norway than abroad. It is usually easy for a regime to find substitutes for relations with Norway. As well as having a disproportionately severe effect on Norwegian industry, unilateral measures would undermine international confidence in Norway as a trading partner. Small and vulnerable as we are, we also object in principle to the idea that any country should boycott another without being authorized by the United Nations. We therefore do not agree with the USA's boycott of Cuba.

In most cases economic relations lead to increased material well-being which often helps to improve the human rights situation, at any rate in the economic and social fields. We will seek to reinforce these positive effects through a purposeful, constructive dialogue with our trading partners. The Government encourages Norwegian business and industry and trade unions to share the responsibility of spreading Norwegian values and attitudes in the countries with which we cooperate. This is one of the topics the Minister of Trade and Shipping will be dealing with in her statement.

I would also encourage other sectors of Norwegian society to intensify their efforts on behalf of human rights. Members of the Storting, political parties, organizations of all kinds and indeed, every Norwegian man and woman, should bear these questions in mind in their international contacts even more than they do already. Through a united national effort like this, we are helping to build widespread popular understanding and support for human rights efforts in other countries.

I would like to conclude by noting that the force of our international efforts on behalf of human rights springs mainly from a common set of values and a deeply felt commitment, which is, fortunately, shared by the Norwegian people, to the fight against all outrages against human dignity. This has something to do with Norwegian history. The challenge lies in finding the best means of transforming commitment and goodwill into greater freedom and justice for our oppressed, exploited and abused fellow human beings. Norway has undertaken to share a global responsibility for safeguarding human rights, a responsibility that must be fulfilled with realistic expectations and respect, but also with solidarity and compassion.

Here the efforts of the authorities, human rights organizations and business and industry are not enough. I wish therefore to encourage other sectors of Norwegian society to intensify their efforts on behalf of human rights, not least in practical terms. I would venture to say that representatives to the Storting, political parties, organizations of all kinds, and each and every Norwegian citizen should become more conscious in their international contacts. By means of a concerted national effort to promote human rights, we will be able to help to foster broad-based popular understanding of and support for human rights efforts in other countries.