120th Birthday of Anisio Teixeira

                A little more than six months ago, precisely on 12th July, the Brazilian writer Anisio Teixeira would complete 120 years old. So this post is a tribute to him. He fought all his life for a better Brazilian education in all levels, but for change really happens we need to involve everybody in this fight, doing quality education a priority for parents, policymakers, educators and students. This post is a summary of three article the first was published at   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An%C3%ADsio_Teixeira. The second was published at https://humanas.blog.scielo.org/en/2020/10/22/in-democracy-education-is-not-a-privilege/. The third was published at https://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0104-59702012000200017&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en

                      Anisio Spínola Teixeira (1900-1971)  was a Brazilian educator, jurist and writer. He was one of the reformers of Brazilian education of the early 20th century, being an advocate of progressive education in the country. He was one of the co-founders of the University of the Federal District in 1935, and of the University of Brasilia in 1960. Anisio Teixeira was born in Caetité, Bahia, child of a doctor and landowner, he graduated in Law at the UFRJ in 1922. He started working as general-inspector of education of the state of Bahia in 1924, and visited Europe between 1925 and 1927, studying the educational system of several countries. In 1927, he went to the U.S. studying at the Columbia University, where he came in touch with John Dewey's pragmatism. Inspired by that philosophy, Anisio came back to Brazil where he went to be R.J. Director of Education. He believed that education should be public, free, and laicist, attuned to a developing industrialized society, not focusing in memoration, but allowing the students' development. In 1951, he was appointed director of Instituto Nacional de Estudos e pesquisas (INEP). He with Darcy Ribeiro and other, planned a new university for Brasilia and then UNB was founded in 1961, with Anisio Teixeira as its first rector. After the 1964 Brazilian coup d'etat, Teixeira went to the U.S., teaching at the Universities of Columbia and California. Back in Brazil in 1966, he became a consultant for the Getulio Vargas Foundation. Anisio Teixeira died in 1971, in circumstances considered obscure. His body was found in an elevator in Rio de Janeiro. Despite the accidental death report, there are suspicions that he was a victim of the repression forces of military government.                                                                                                                                                                                                         In Anisio's view, the public school offers a democratic, critical, emancipatory education which are the basis for integration and social development. In this aspect, schools for a democratic society must necessary be universal, free, mandatory, secular and efficient, also it must constitute national policy. The education he proposed consists of creating a democratic environment provided by scholar education that demands a school built for this purpose. The public school, proposed by Anisio, is one that enables and stimulates the plurality of social participation and considers the students' interest in educational practice, focusing its work on the development of students' relational, intellectual and operational skills. It is through this school that we can make individuals realize the importance of their intellectual freedom, the development of their abilities, and how much they are strengthened when thinking and practicing together. Therefore, public schools is they way to establish intellectual and political equality, In Anisio Teixeira's view (1971), this is the way in which the problems of the rigid social stratification and the serious unevenness of Brazilian society could be faced, aiming for the creation of equal opportunities according to the essence of the democratic regime. The research points to the need of raising awareness and fighting for democratic rights, especially in the field of education, and of the investment of training professional educators with a reflexive, critical, and political freedom. For the democratic transformation to happen, it is also proposed the construction of educational public policies that encourage and provide opportunities for popular participation as a mean to develop citizenship habits. Thus, the schools is no longer an institution separated from reality and becomes the space of an educational community that interacts with civil society. The reflection upon the role of the public school, in the formation of a democratic society, becomes even more pertinent and necessary in the time that the world is living. The COVID19 pandemic increased social inequality in education and quality education is everyone's right and democracy can not tolerate the privileges of the elites.                                                                                                                                                                                                                 "Education is not just an asset for individuals, but a need for society". This statement by Anisio Teixeira was made in May 1968. His intention upon saying this was to highlight the social function of universities, which he understood as shaping and divulging the nation's culture, as producing knowledge, as fostering empirical study and research, as harboring professionals of acknowledged technical expertise. If the problem of Brazil's modernization was on the agenda in the 1920s-1930s, uniting the education who signed the 1932 manifesto, then in the 1950s-1960s, the same issue was taken up again in a different manifesto that was published in 1959. With many signatories in common with the previous ,amifesto, with whom new figures joined forces, the manifesto "mais uma vez convocados" expressed the urgency they felt at the time to have education democratized. The changes brought in by the coup d'etate and ensuing military dictatorship in 1964 marked another period of regression and dispersion of the work of intellectuals involved in education projects, demonstrating that in Brazil the impact caused by new institutional models is not enough of itself to assure results, nor even the continuation of changes in the field of culture. The movement to restructure Brazil's universities in the 1960s was constrained by the higher education reform of 1968. This reform was critized on two counts by Anisio Teixeira, who did not believe that changing, improving or modernizing Brazil's universities could be achieved by legal instruments. In his view, higher education reform had to burgeon from the inside. Defending liberty as a basic principle and by which teaching and research were undertaken within universities. Anisio further added that the steadfast defensen of universities autonomy could never be achieve as a state concession, but as the outcome of the free exercise of university activities, constituting a model of democratic culture and practice.

International Anti-Corruption Day - Part II

                    This post is a summary of four articles. The first was published at   https://ungass2021.unodc.org/ungass2021/index.html. The second was published at   https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_20_2416. The third was published at https://www.ifes.org/publications/ifes-helps-shape-uns-international-anti-corruption-agenda. The fourth was published at https://www.idlo.int/news/policy-statements/statement-idlo-special-session-general-assembly-against-corruption-2021

                   On 17 December 2018, the General Assembly adopted resolution 73/191 entitled "Special session of the General Assembly against corruption", in which it decided to convene in the first half of 2021 a special session on challenges and measures to prevent and combat corruption and strengthen international cooperation. The Assembly invited the conference of the states to lead the preparatory process for the special session by addressing all organizational and substantive matters in an open-ended manner and requested the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime to provide substantive expertise and technical support. The Conference approved a draft resolution entitled "Special session of the General Assembly against corruption", for subsequent adoption by the General Assembly, in which it decided that the special session will be held from 2 to 4 June 2021. The UNGASS 2021 website was created as a first step in the preparatory process and it is expected to function as a repository for all relevant information relating to the special session. The website will be updated on a continuing basis to reflect the progress made by the Conference in the preparatory process for the special session.                                                                                                                                                                                         The European Commission has taken a number of measures to address corruption in the E.U. Important progress has been made on legislation on anti-money laundering, public procurement, whistle-blower protection and asset recovery. The fight against corruption is among the topics addressed in country-specific recommendations. Further E.U. measures including the new European Public Prosecutor's Office, with a mandate to investigate, prosecute and bring to judgment crimes against the E.U. budget. The recent E.U. Rule of Law Report highlights the fight against corruption as a fundamental pillar for upholding the rule of law. Corruption also has an impact on the business environment, which is why anticorruption is also an important component of the Recovery and Resilience Plans. On the global stage, the E.U. has played an important role in the adoption in the resolution that paved the way for the Special Session of the U.N. General Assembly to combat corruption and strengthen international cooperation, planned for June 2021. The Commission also organises regular anti-corruption workshops across the E.U. to support Menber States and provide funds. Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, said: "Corruption is a threat to democracy and it has no place in the E.U. Institutions. By setting out our plans for an anti-corruption review at E.U. level, we are fulfilling our international commitments and we are strengthening the E.U. role in the global fight against corruption.                                                                                                                      The International foundation for  Electoral Systems (IFES) welcomes the opportunity to inform this agenda and believes that global commitment and cooperation on anti-corruption has become even more imperative as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has undermined existing transparency and accountability mechanisms globally and increased the risks of corruption. As part of our contribution to preparations for UNGASS 2021, IFES has recommended that the General Assembly include the following six priority areas in the agenda:  1) Increasing transparency and accountability in political finance.   2) Addressing election-related corrupt practices.   3) Strengthening anti-corruption authorities and other independent institutions.   4) Strengthening judicial ethics and independence.   5) Leveraging civil society to bolster oversight and implementation.   6) Bolstering the U.N. Convention against Corruption review process.                                                                                                                                                                                                         The General Assembly of the U.N. decided to convene a special session on challenges and measures to prevent and combat corruption and strengthen international cooperation. The special session, scheduled for 2 to 4 June 2021 will result in the adoption of a "concise and action-oriented political declaration". International Development Law Organization (IDLO) is the only global inter-governmental organization exclusively devoted to promoting rule of law to sustain peace and development, welcomes the organization of a special session to prevent and combat corruption and strengthen international cooperation. IDLO remains committed to the promotion of transparency and accountability, and people-centered justice through the rule of law and will reflect this commitment. Corruption has a profound negative impact on advancing the rule of law, good governance and human rights and on security and economic progress. The combat of corruption is a major component of Sustainable Development Goals. Corruption, bribery, theft and tax evasion, and other illicit financial flows cost developing countries $1.26 trillion per year. Corruption also poses as a key obstacle to accessing public services, curbs political participation and decision making. Emerging research in Latin America shows that new digital solutions combined with an open data policy could reduce the corruption risks and enhance integrity of public procurement processes. Given the central role played by judicial institutions in the implementation of the range of anti-corruption measures required. Judicial transparency is a fundamental component in preventing of corruption. Key international best practices in ensuring transparency include the publication of judicial decisions, and enhances consistency in judicial decision-making. In Kyrgyzstan the creation of a website with a despersonification system that anonymizes sensitive data enables over 90% of judicial decisions are now published and civil society and the judiciary itself, are using the decisions to advance judicial integrity and professionalism, document judicial trends and develop data-driven tools, such as an interactive map of judicial decisions and related analysis.

International Anti-Corruption Day

                    A little more than one month ago, precisely on 9th December 2020, the world celebrated the fight against corruption. The fight against corruption is very important,  so we all should be involved in this fight, because the theft of public resources harm us all. But we all should know that this fight is not easy, because activists for this important ethical cause can become a target to some powerful persons, the people should not be naive, there are many people that are not interested in this activism, in this fight. This post is a summary of two articles. The first was published    at  https://www.transparency.org/en/news/international-anti-corruption-day-2020-things-can-really-get-better-next-year-ungass-2021. The second was published at https://www.transparency.org/en/ungass-2021-commit-to-transparency-in-company-ownership-for-the-common-good

                     9 December is International Anti-Corruption Day. It is a day for governments, businesses and the whole of society to renew our commitment to working together to end the devastating impact of corruption on people's lives around the world. At the end of a year like 2020, this could not be more important. Independent of Covid-19, investigative journalists' exposes have again this year laid bare the weaknesses in the global financial system that allow public wealth stolen from poor countries to be laundered and spent in rich ones. The crisis has demonstrated that protecting public resources and putting an end to illicit financial flows is a matter of life and death, in the most literal sense. With multiple COVID-19 vaccines showing positive results under rigorous scientific testing, and some countries beginning to distribute, many are thinking ahead to how we "Recover With Integrity" - the theme of this year's International Anti-corruption Day. In its first virtual edition, the 19th International Anti-corruption Conference, welcomed a record number of participants, showing there is a resolute determination among all parts of our societies to achieve a strong recovery which, in the words of U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, "must include measures to prevent and combat corruption and bribery." Wherever we look around the world, the criminal and corrupt never cease to undermine the common good. As the deadly proliferation of corruption during the COVID-19 pandemic clearly shows. One key opportunity to tackle corruption challenges head-on is the first U.N. General Assembly Special Session Against Corruption, also known as UNGASS 2021. In far too many parts of the world, high-level public officials are robbing populations. The uncomfortable truth is that advanced economies are enabling or even fueling this kind of corruption. We can not afford UNGASS 2021 to be another event where government leaders take turns to condemn corruption with grandiose metaphors but fail to recognise what must change. That is why we need all parts of societies to come together and call on the international community to use this meeting as a key milestone in fighting corruption. On this international Anti-corruption Day, we are highlighting three key reforms that need to be agreed in the coming months, so that 2021 can be the year when we finally break through the barriers against progress in the global corruption.   1) Transparency in Company Ownership - ever since the Panama Papers in 2016, it has been clear that large-scale theft of public resources is possible because the corrupt can hide behind opaque corporate structures. Abuse of shell companies is among the reasons why many countries are facing greater challenges to day in dealing with COVID-19. For decades, companies with anonymous owners have enabled corruption and other crimes. This has meant that public resources that could have served to improve healthcare systems, were embezzled from public coffers. UNGASS 2021 offers an opportunity to turn the tide. That is exactly what a diverse group has said in an appeal in a letter, asks government leaders to endorse central, public registers of ownership as a global standard. At UNGASS 2021, we must commit to transparency in company ownership for the common good.    2) Justice Instead of Impunity - After the veil of secrecy is stripped, and we know who's robbing our communities, will there be justice? Unfortunately, national justice systems are often unable or unwilling to hold the powerful to account. At the same time, corrupt high-level officials have the upper hand and can act with impunity under the current international framework. The former dictator of the Gambia, Yahya Jammeh is a textbook case. After being ousted from power in 2017, he has lived in comfortable exile in Equatorial Guinea. How can he and others be brought to account? There are no simple solutions, but there are multiple proposals on the table. We urge UNGASS 2021 to mandate the creation of a task force to study available solutions and suggest the way forward. This group should be asked to propose a legal definition of grand corruption, referred to as "corruption involving vast quantities of assets" in U.N. documents, as well as new agreements and mechanisms to endure accountability. But during U.N. gatherings, impunity for grand corruption is often the elephant in the room. We need the governments to step up during UNGASS 2021 once and for all. Reluctance to focus on the most serious forms of corruption has nothing to do with political ideology. It is about protecting the self-interests of those in powerful positions.    3) Recovery of Stolen Assets - Justice is not only about prosecuting corrupt officials, but also about compensating the communities and individuals that have been robbed, a legal process called asset recovery. Stolen money is often hidden in richer countries, in real estate, company shares or bank accounts. Consider Isabel dos Santos, whose assets were seized earlier this year in Portugal at the request of Angolan authorities. But there are barriers to returning assets to their rightful owners, even when they are located and confiscated. Countries signed on to the U.N. Coalition Anti-Corruption should recognise the links between asset recovery and the realisation of human rights as enshrined in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In 2020, it is abundantly clear that corruption does not recognise national borders. Those in political power abuse gaps in the international anti-corruption framework to steal. On this International Anti-Corruption Day, we are calling on government leaders to do their part in tackling the global crisis of corruption, so that our communities can recover not just from 2020, but from decades of impunity for grand corruption.                                                         The U.N. General Assembly's decision to hold a Special Session against corruption in 2021 created a historic opportunity for the international community to address the global crisis of corruption. The undersigned groups and individuals are united in the conviction that it is of the utmost urgency to put an end to the abuse of anonymous companies that facilitates corruption. Companies that exist only in paper are tools for the diversion of resources needed to advanced development. Beneficial ownership information on the persons who ultimately own, control or benefit from a legal vehicle, enables cross-border enforcement and the tracing of ill-gotten assets for confiscation and return. In public contracting processes, it helps in the detection of conflicts of interest and corruption. We have come together to address government leaders currently preparing for UNGASS 2021  with one clear message, transparency in company ownership is more than a technical solution to a problem. It is a matter of social justice. Corruption devastates the lives of billions of people around the world. We need decisive reforms to ensure that the resources needed to pay for critical public services such as schools and hospitals are not simply misappropriated and hidden. The time for action is now.

Report on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in the Americas

                    This post is a summary of the chapter V with the title of, "Problems faced by human rights defenders in the hemisphere," of the report with the title above published at   http://www.cidh.org/countryrep/Defenders/defenderschap5.htm

                    A large number of human rights defenders in the Americas are victims of reprisals and undue restrictions as a result of their work of promoting and protecting the rights of persons who live in the hemisphere. This makes the work of protecting and defending human rights difficult, and in many cases risky. The Inter-American Commission on Human rights has verified the existence of a variety of practices that hinder the exercise of human rights defense. These practices are violations of the right to life, liberty and security, due process and a fair trial, freedom of expression, privacy, and judicial protection. The Commission considers it  necessary to clarify that patterns have been established based on disturbing incidents that constitute violations of rights. Nonetheless, there are common characteristics that make it possible to determine and classify the patterns such as: who commits the violations, when they are committed, and the persons who are the victims of such conduct. The Commission wishes to emphasize that one of the most serious consequences of these patterns of violations targeting human rights defenders is that they send society as a whole an intimidating message putting it in a defenseless situation. These acts are aimed at causing generalized fear, and so, at discouraging all other human rights defenders, and intimidating and silencing the denunciations, claims, and grievances of the victims of human rights violations, spurring on impunity, and full realization of the rule of law and democracy. Both the Commission and the Inter-American Court have found that violations of the human rights defenders have a direct intimidating effect on the processes of vindicating rights or denouncing violations. This chilling effect is suffered by the victims of human rights violations, who under the effect of fear refuse to lodge complaints, will not meet with threatened human rights defenders, and stay away from the offices of organizations that have been threatened. Based on the information received, it has been observed that the violators seek to provoke generalized fear to avoid public denunciations. To this end, the vulnerability-exacerbating effects of such conduct extend persersely to society as a whole, with a much more detrimental impact on defenders. This effect, in addition, re-victimizes those who have been targets of violations, whose search for the truth, justice and reparation is impeded. In some states violations are systematic and interrelated, producing a general atmosphere of danger for the defense of human rights. This danger is all the greater if there is a serious lack of state protection and a failure to investigate the violations. On other occasions, The risk increases when grievances are put forth by defenders advocating the adoption of administrative measures or changes in state policy. In other cases, the violations appear to be acts of retaliation when a favorable result is obtained, such as demarcating indigenous territories, expropriating lands for campesino communities, awarding compensation to the victims of violations, or publishing truth commission reports. Human rights defenders are frequent victims of violations of the right to life such as extrajudicial executions and forced disappearances. Such violations are one of the most serious obstacles to the work of human rights promotion by society in general. In additional, the Commission has received, with concern, reports of assassinations of human rights defenders in several countries. Some of them had provided information to the Commission in recent years. In general, disappearances and executions are preceded by the lack of adequate protection for human rights defenders who report having been victims of persecution and threats. The Commission notes that the lack of adequate protection for defenders who report having been victims of persecution, surveillance, and threats, entails a lack of defenselessness that fosters attacks on their lives. The victims of homicides and disappearances are generally those who are most prominent for their work reporting human rights abuses, or for their leadership. In killing them, the assailants seek to make an "example" of the victims, bring a halt to reporting on violations, getting the human rights organizations to leave certain zones, and bringing about a drop in the number of complaints presented. According to the information received by the Commission, it is also common for human rights defenders or their family members to be followed constantly wherever they go, or to kept under surveillance at their offices, residents, and elsewhere. There are many methods used to follow these persons. In many cases, these methods are practically imperceptible; in other cases they are detected easily, since that is the assailant's intent: for the victim to know that he or she is being watched, and that his or her movements, as well as all the persons with whom he or she meets, are known. The Inter-American Commission has received several complaints describing attacks on life and personal integrity, threats, surveillance and intimidation of defenders, as well as raids of and attacks on the offices of their organizations. The Commission has indicated that surveillance activities of human rights defenders give rise to state responsibility for flagrant violations of the right to privacy. Another worrisome aspect is the use of legal actions against defenders, including actions that are pursued to harass and discredit them. In some cases, the states use criminal laws that restrict or limit the means used by defenders to carry out their activities.. In other cases, criminal proceedings are instituted without any evidence, for the purpose of harassing the human rights defenders, who must assume the psychological and economic burden of facing a criminal indictment. Apart from the problems plaguing the judicial systems in the Americas, which keep them from operating soundly, the Commission observes that there is, especially in those countries from which a larger number of complaints come, a lack of political will, impartially, and independence when it comes to investigating attack on human rights defenders. The complaints that have been received suggest that there are serious problems in the investigations, for example, they do not relate the intimidation and threats directed against defenders to the type of work they do. The problem is also reflected in the attacks against judicial officers who seriously and effectively investigate and prosecute attacks suffered by human rights defenders.

10th Anniversary of this Blog - Part IV

                Good morning for whom is reading this text in the morning. Good afternoon, if you are reading in the afternoon and good evening for whom is reading at night. As last post of the year, I've decided to carry on celebrating the decade doing this blog. The celebration started I writing about how I've been an resilient activist for better education. The second I wrote about how important is the GDP growth for development and to create better conditions of living for the population. And in order to better analyse the growth in differents countries we need to compare countries with the same stage of development. The third I wrote about the importance for all of us to defend human rights. Now it is time to write about others important issues I have been writing in this ten years, besides those I said previously. If you have been reading this blog, you have realized that there are many texts about democracy, politics, political inclusion, and justice. All these issues are interconnected. For a better country all of them must work well. All political scientists say that the better political system is that with full democracy with period plebiscites, accountable politicians with incentives for renovation and transparent organisms. An impartial and based on human rights judiciary system is also fundamental. So, I need to ask you, Are we having all these conditions for improvement in Brazil. The Brazilian people want these changes. It is what was shown in the huge protests of June 2013. That is why I keep remembering the second biggest manifestation in Brazil history. We should never to give up fighting for a better country, with better democracy with a better and inclusive politics. Have you already thought about the importance of a more inclusive politics? Without more candidates with real chances to win, the mandate owners may feel little pressure to work for a better country, state or city, besides they feel they can easily win every election without being accountable for their work or lack of it. So, it is fundamental importance to have a political system that support and encourage people take side on politicals issues that direct or indirect affect their lives and participate in the election. A health democracy needs as many citizens participating as possible in the political debate as well as in the elections. If you want to read more about the importance of popular participation you can read this text, http://thepeopleteacher.blogspot.com/2016/07/strengthening-citizen-participation-in.html But I think that everyone knows it, so I have to ask, why have I had my right to participate in the elections systematically violated? It should have a law compelling a political party that promised to register a candidate to do it. If not they are free to deny some candidate the right to participate in the election. And nothing happens to them. They did not have any reason to deny this right to me. On the contrary, I decided to participate in the elections because the people was asking me to do it. Since 2011, when I joined a party, we have waiting and wishing this justice. Here in the city where I was born and live, the people know me since I started to work for my father when I was fourteen years old, so they know I am a ethical, hard-working, honest and sympathetic person, and they want to see me as a politician. And why can they not have their desire accomplished? But now it is not only them, we have realized the support for my political rights coming from all over the world, the desire of a lot of people abroad and from other parts of Brazil to see me working as a politician. By the way, I really appreciate all the support we felt here, I really would like to thank you all. We all have to recognize  people that use their work as journalist or their fame as actor or actress to lower hypocrisy and to increase truth and justice. And I hope never disappoint all these support and we will have to keep our fight for human rights, democracy and justice for many years ahead for the good of humankind.

Human Rights Day 2020

             This post is a summary of three articles. The first was published at https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/human-rights-day-2020-theme-campaign-slogan-importance-2336402. The second was published at  https://www.standup4humanrights.org/en/humanrightsdays2020.html. The third was published at   https://virgin.co.uk/branson-family/richard-branson-blog/thoughts-on-human-rights-day

                 This year's human rights day focuses on the devastating fallout of COVID-19 pandemic on the underpriviliged people, children, and women and the need to build back better by ensuring human rights are central to recovery efforts. Human Rights Day is observed on December 10 and every year the U.N. encourages nations "to create equal opportunities for all and address the issue of inequality, exclusion and discrimination. Human Rights Day is a great opportunity to spread awareness about the importance of human rights in our communities and worldwide solidarity in rebuilding after the pandemic. "Recover Better - Stand Up For Human Rights" is the theme for human rights day this year. The aim is to engage with all partners and also involve the people to push  for transformative action. The pandemic has pushed innumerable people to the brink. In order to "build back better", the widening gap among people must be addressed, according to the world rights body. 1) End discrimination of any kind.  2) Take steps to protect economic rights.  3) Encourage participation and solidarity.  4) Promote sustainable development.                                                                     The theme for this year's Human Rights Day relates to the COVID-19 pandemic and focuses on the need to recover better by ensuring human rights are at the heart of the recovery efforts. The global COVID-19 crisis has been fuelled by deepening poverty, rising inequalities, strucutural and entrenched discrimination and other gaps in human rights protection. Only measures to close these gaps and advanced human rights can ensure we fully recover to a world that is better and more resilient, just and sustainable. Human Rights Day is an opportunity to reaffirm the importance of human rights in re-building the world we want, with global solidarity, interconnectedness and shared humanity. The annual celebration of Human Rights Day highlight how people everywhere stand up for human rights. In Geneva, on 10 December, UN human Rights will host "Recover better: stand up for Human Rights", an exclusive online audio-visual event. The 90-minute programme will highlight innovation by and inspirational stories of people and organizations that are finding ways to rebuild a better world by placing human rights at the heart of the recovery from COVID-19. In New York, UN Human Rights will host "ACelebration of COVID-19 Frontline Heroes." This one-hour virtual event will spotlight frontline workers who have borne the brunt of the pandemic and community organizers who have helped those around them to cope with the pandemic in a human rights-centered manner. In Latin America, an online concert will be organized on recovery better through music.                                                                                                                      Human Rights Day is more than a commemoration of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by UN members states on 10 December 1948 - in and of itself a real accomplishment of a weary human family emerging from the bloodshed and terror of World War II. It is a good reminder that the idea of human rights must never be taken for granted. Millions around the world continue  to live under constant threat of discrimination, intimidation, persecution, torture and even death for standing up for their human rights and those of others. Many continue to languish in prisons for speaking truth to power, for demanding recognition and respect, for challenging authoritarianism and oppression. Perhaps the most tragic part for many is that their voices are never heard, their stories never told, and their names never known. As respect for the rule of law has eroded in so many places, and human rights and human dignity have come under attack from populists and authoritarian rulers alike, this is the moment to stand up, speak our minds and demand change.

Some Psychological Aspects of Privacy

               This post is a summary of the article with the title above published at    https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/lcp/vol31/iss2/5/

                 The state of privacy is related to the act of concealment. Privacy is an outcome of a person's wish to withhold from others certain knowledge as to his past and present experience and action and his intentions for the future.The wish for privacy expresses a desire to be an enigma to others or, more generally, a desire to control others' perceptions. What consequences follow from compulsory visibility? One may hope that the rough answer to this question attempted below will be deemed relevant and useful in appraising the value of privacy in certain of its legal contexts. An adult person lives his life in relation to various social systems. He is taught appropriate ways to behave, depending upon his age, sex, family position, occupation, and social class. If he does not conform to extant role-definitions, sanctions are directed against him. A kind of sanction applied against actions and utterances that are unacceptable, or not intelligible to others, is the process of denigrating the actor or utterer by calling him "mentally ill." If a person can not or will not learn expected roles, he may be regarded by others as "mad." When this happens, the person can be hospitalized. Prior to the pronouncement that he is cured or improved, the patient is subject to eletric shocks, injections, administration of tranquilizing drugs, and conversations with a professional person ( psychiatrist, psychologist, or nurse). The experience of psychotherapists have shown that people maintain themselves in physical health and in psychological well-being when they have a "private place." Those responsible for ruling and leading a society, whether self-appointed or elected, have a vested interest in knowing what people are thinking, feeling, and doing. Even in a democracy, they may spy upon people and reporting to the authorities what they have seen. Bur where there is not privacy, there is little or no individuality. The whole process of a person's becoming a unit is one of divesting himself of his private existence. Sartre's statement holds a psychological as well as an artistic truth. One view of "hell" is changelessness. The person who can not grow, who experiences his own being and the being of the world as "frozen" in its present status, is in a kind of "hell." Without the availability of private places, people suffer individually, and society suffers collectively. As a psychoterapist, I have frequently been called upon to help persons find more viable ways to live than those that have culminated in a breakdown. In my opinion, our educational institutions are misnamed. The schools, from kindergarten through university, might better be called training institutions for promoting conformity in ideology and social behavior. True educators, by contrast, aims at awakening, illuminating and expanding consciousness, at eliciting new possibilities of thinking, feeling and acting; at exploring new realms of value; at providing standards of truth and justice that afford a basis in consciousness for criticizing and modifying existing ways. People who emerge, thus educated, from our institutions of learning are rare. If exploration and inventiveness in ways to live, play, and interact with others is not permitted, or, if permitted, is not conceivable or tolerable to rigidly trained people, we can expect increasing rates of suicide, alcoholism and drug addiction, and psychological and physical breadown. If the general population came to believe that private life is free, that its privacy is to be respected, and that variety, not uniformity, in ways to live is a value, then the expected catastrophes following may be averted. Doubtless, too those current aspects of family life that militate against the quest for viable and health-yielding ways to live in private will have to be changed. In short, privacy is experienced as "room to grow in," as freedom from interference, and as freedom to pursue experimental projects in science, art, work, and living. In the name of the status quo and other,  privacy may be eroded. But without privacy and its concomitant, freedom, the cost to be paid for the ends achieved, in terms of lost health, weak commitment to the society, and social stagnation, may be too great.