The Importance of Inclusion

Ammara Maqsood | Mandi Bahauddin, Pakistan

Everyone in this world has the right to freedom in their lives. Rights and responsibilities go side by side. Everyone should be treated like a human being. Despite these facts, hatred towards minorities is a common issue faced by the world. Minorities include a particular group of people who belong to a different religion, culture or race than the majority in a population. They may be immigrants, indigenous groups, or permanently settled in the country or community where they settle.

Conflicts between minorities and majority groups of people may be based on political or religious grounds. These conflicts can lead to violence, fighting, and human rights violations.

What is important to recognize, is that no one has the right to attack sacred places, and nobody has right to kill others. To many of our readers, these facts may seem obvious. However, as we continue to look at the media and the many examples of discrimination and human rights violations that take place against minority groups around the world, it becomes clear that this belief is not held by everyone. No matter how the perpetrators justify their inhumane actions, there is no reason why anyone should bring harm to innocent lives. I wish that more people, more governments, more dominant groups could recognize this fact. The fact that, as humans, we are more similar than we are different. And even if we are different, our shared humanity, should make us recognize the right to dignity and life for everyone, regardless of how they identify themselves.

Chaos in New Delhi is a perfect example of religious and political disagreement between Hindus and Muslims. After World War Two, the concept of human rights was introduced in international discourse. The rights of minorities and immigrants are clearly outlined in the United Nations Human Rights charter. The act of marginalizing a group in a country is against human rights law. Minorities have a right to enjoy their lives with freedom. They should be able to freely practice their religion according to United Nations Human rights charter.

Apart from the rights enshrined in this charter, no country can be a true democratic state if it does not include a representative from every group, in law-making. States should ensure the proper implementation of rights for all human beings to avoid instability in the region. Peace and harmony must be the first priority of every state. Everyone has to play their part in making this world a peaceful place for everyone, regardless of our differences in religion, culture, or other identifiers.