Shillong, Dec 10: International Human Rights Day 2018 was celebrated for the first time in the State here today at Yojana Bhawan, Shillong, which was attended by Governor, Meghalaya, Tathagatha Roy as the Chief Guest.
Addressing the gathering, the Governor of Meghalaya said that when it comes to human rights of the people the enforcement agencies and forces have to exercise caution and also be responsible and accountable while performing their duties. He however added that inaction on the part of these enforcement authorities amounts to violation of human rights.
In regards to the violation of human rights in the North Eastern region the Governor referred to the long international boundary of the region which poses a challenge to the enforcement authorities who have to strike a balance between the unity and integrity of the country while keeping in mind that the human rights of the people are not violated. He also said that human rights violations in the neighbouring countries have repercussions on the country.
The Governor urged the Meghalaya Human Rights Commission (MHRC) to scale up its activities on various issues concerning human rights violations. During his address he also paid tribute to the lesser known champions of human rights and made a call to address human rights violations through mandated mechanisms.
In the Concluding Remarks, Dr Justice Aftab Hussian Saikia, Chairperson, MHRC, said human rights are being violated everyday as people no longer fear or respect law. He added that the soul of human rights is in the Fundamental Rights which is in our constitution and Article 21 of the Indian Constitution that provides ‘that no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to the procedure established by law’ is the torch bearer of human rights.
Earlier, Member, Meghalaya Human Rights Commission, P J P Hanaman while delivering the Welcome Address gave an overview of MHRC and spelt out its salient features. Mr R Chandranath, IPS, Director General of Police, Meghalaya spoke on the role of police in addressing Human Rights violations, B Bhattacharjee, Additional Advocate General of Meghalaya deliberated on the role of the Judiciary in addressing Human Rights violations.
While Padmashree, Patricia Mukhim spoke on the role of media and media persons in highlighting human rights violations, in this occasion were Additional Chief Secretary, P W Ingty, Secretary, MHRC, Aldous Mawlong, officials and personnel from the police and students from various universities.
