UNMISS donates human rights books to parliament

31 Oct 2012

UNMISS donates human rights books to parliament

25 October 2012 - South Sudan must embed global human rights in its laws to ensure the national parliament respected and followed them, an UNMISS official said in Juba today.

Handing over thousands of books to the National Legislative Assembly, UNMISS Human Rights Officer Irena Angelova stressed the importance of equality and inclusivity as the new nation grows.

"Parliament must ensure that polices are grounded in the principles of non-discrimination, equality, transparence...and inclusion," she said.

To assist parliament in this task, the UNMISS Human Rights Section donated over 5,000 books covering different facets of global human rights to the national parliament.

The books' titles included "Rule of Law", "Rebuilding Lives", "Human Rights in Armed Conflict", "Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance" and "Harmful Traditional Practices on Women and Children".

Ms. Angelova said the literature would enable Members of Parliament and other parties to acquaint themselves with human rights, legal research and analysis and provide a solid foundation for legislators to better make informed decisions.

She added that this would reinforce the use of human rights approaches in a wider array of parliamentary activities.

"Knowledge is power," she said. "Once you acquire it, use it to develop your communities."

The deputy chairperson for the Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs Committee in the Assembly, Gabriel Guot Guot, lauded UNMISS for the donation.

"These books will make a difference," said Mr. Guot. "Human rights books were not available (at the assembly) before."

He added that the cross-cutting significance of the books would encourage many legislators to read them.