December 10th is Human Rights Day and I wish everyone could join in and understand the meaning of the day. This day was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. Human rights are the fundamental rights and freedoms that belong to every person in the world. Our human rights history is a long one. The concept of human rights has evolved over time and gained international support following historic catastrophic events such as the Holocaust and World War I, in order to defend and protect future generations from completely ignoring their human rights.
The universal human rights statement is something that embraces us all and affects everyone from all walks of life because they state which rights we have. The statement also empowers all of us by inspiring people and remembering that everyone has equal rights that should be implemented fairly. Everyone should be made aware of their human rights so that everyone is treated fairly. It is clear that discrimination continues to occur in our world and that some people in some countries are more fortunate than others. We must stand up for our own rights and other people’s rights and know that a fair world is one where everyone has human rights and can continue to make progress in seeking to protect future generations and their rights as people.
The theme for this year is young people standing up for human rights and this is very relevant to us as the Welsh Youth Parliament. It's important for young people to have a voice to make a difference and we as young people have our rights too. There are 42 of them and they are part of the UN convention on children’s rights. These 42 entitlements include the needs of children and young people to become happy, healthy and safe individuals. In 2011, Wales became the first country to incorporate the convention into law which was fantastic. I want every child and young person to know that they are never too young to make a difference and that they are never alone. Young people's participation is important to make a difference, to inspire future generations, to involve all young people and to know that every single voice should be heard.
For me, a human rights day should be a day to celebrate equality and a day to celebrate and exercise our human rights. Personally, I think we can all use this day to remember and acknowledge the inequalities and injustices of the past, and to use them to learn and move forward, ensuring equality in our human rights and fairness for all. Human rights are based on pride, dignity, fairness, equality, respect and autonomy. These values protect our freedom, and our control of our own lives. Human rights mean that we have the right to freedom and to make our own decisions and to participate in society and included in it, which is something that everyone should have. It is a shame that this is not the case for everyone in this century.
We all have to protect our human rights by standing up for them. We can take action in our daily lives to uphold our rights and promote our relationship to all human beings. Every person in our world deserves the same rights as the person next door. We must respect every individual, every religion, every race, every gender, learn from the past and plan a world where everyone has the same opportunities in life to do what's right for them and to make a difference in the world. Everyone has the right to make a difference, whoever they are and we must respect that and respect each other and know that nobody is inferior to each other. Everyone was born with freedom and equality, and everyone deserves the same freedom and equality throughout their lives. We should remember human rights day and its importance to our daily lives.
