Human Rights:

The Worsening Global Crisis with the United States

Rasa - Americans from all walks of life, including students, women, minorities, immigrants and Muslims, continue to take to the streets nationwide to express their fear, anger, concern, and outright opposition to what a Donald J. Trump presidency represents.

News ID: 424970

Date: 11 November 2016 - 21:57

RNA - The rallying cry "Not My President!"; "No Trump, No KKK”; “No Fascists USA!"; "Stop Trump's Hate!" sends a clear message to those who are still on Cloud Nine: America has a human rights problem – on a global scale.

Here, the so-called “global champion of human rights” should realise that its manifold human rights violations and issues are mainly for the following reasons:

-The Obama administration – the Trump administration will soon follow suit  - frequently accuses countries (including, for example, Iran, China and Russia) that protect their citizens against destructive, fraudulent governments and cults of violating human rights. The US even imposes sanctions or threatens those countries with economic boycotts should they not accept its self-serving views and narratives on these issues.

-The US is the only country in the world that attempts to strong-arm other countries, its enemies in particular, into accepting its foreign policy views on the proxies it supports – including separatists, “moderate” terrorist groups, and deposed puppets and dictators.

-The US chides other countries – mainly its enemies - for alleged human rights violations, but consistently and deliberately refuses to acknowledge - let alone address – its own dismal record of human rights violations and those of its allies Israel, Saudi Arabia and other Persian Gulf Arab states. For instance, the US government uses differing measures to falsely claim that nationwide protests against the Trump election are “riots”, or that Saudi-led allies are not violating human rights law when they kill civilians in the illegal war on Yemen.

-The US refuses to address or agree with outspoken critics like the UN Human Rights Council, Amnesty International, UNICEF, Human Rights Watch, and other rights groups and aid agencies that believe America's attitude toward International Law and International Humanitarian Law - including its fight against the International Criminal Court, its use of torture in the War on Terror, its indiscriminate bombing runs in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Yemen, or its inconsistent application of the Geneva Conventions - presents a serious threat to the international community.

All this and more are indeed the reasons why across the world, human rights groups and organisations are also reacting with great concern to the election of Trump. They are desperately urging him to make a renewed commitment to human rights, and to work with, rather than against, the international community.

The problem is, Trump has already made clear that just like Team Obama, “My administration will always put America’s interests first.” Meaning, all those disillusioned, marginalised Americans are right to express their fear, concern, anger, and opposition to his “shocking” election in cities nationwide. They know, and the whole world should realise, that Trump’s stated goal is not to help lift humanity up or work for the common good. He will never lead a strong and compassionate response to humanitarian emergencies which have prompted the worst refugee crisis in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya and Afghanistan since World War II.

That's all folk. The man who refuses to abandon his anti-human rights rhetoric, and found a path to the White House through a campaign marked by racism and xenophobia, is not going to fully respect and promote human rights, much less uphold America’s obligations under International Law, represent all Americans, and “drain the swamp” that is America’s human rights problem. Quite the contrary, he has pledged and is determined to close American minds, American hearts, and American borders. Any doubters should ask the Republican Party.

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