Human rights can be compatible with traditional practices, starting with cultural awareness as the grounds for this process. Julio E. Sobenes Ortiz

Julio E. Sobenes Ortiz

Cultures and Human Rights

Arequipa / Issues – The world is divided into countless nations, some of which escape the traditionally accepted idea of nation (for instance, it is undeniable that one can have no doubts about the existence of the Gipsy nation, or the Palestinian nation, who none of them share a territory yet they do have common customs and traditions). All along history these nations have consolidated themselves, respecting their undeniable right to self determine their belonging to a particular State or not.

These nations generated their own culture in an individual manner. Each one of these cultures has had its own conception of divinity, of the role of men and women, the role of the State, interpersonal relations, dressing codes, etc. This peculiarity makes the inhabitant of our Latin American Andes, for instance, feel that they don’t identify with a "national ideal", and on the other hand, those who live in the cities, who are more "western", look at the former as savages who if are not "tamed" voluntarily, must be tamed by force.

World recognition of the different national groups is an undeniable task, over which there can be no discussion. The dream of extreme equality in this sense does not crumble down for economic reasons, but for socio-cultural reasons, which takes us to a new approach concerning the role of the international community towards the future.

WE ARE ALL EQUAL… YET DIFFERENT

From a legal point of view, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights gives us a world-wide legal instrument that allows that the minimum requirements of all the inhabitants of the planet be recognized. This Declaration, the undeniable fruit of the desire for a more just world, is the work of positive law. There was no debate about the grounds of these rules, nor which is the philosophical current that backs them. It is simply the agreement between the parties, between the representatives of all the member States; it is the victory of Rousseau.

When we look at the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a question arises: Do we all share the same interpretation of the minimum requirements that this document defines as universal? The answer is no. Each culture, throughout history, has developed a different idea of what is and what isn’t necessary in order to live; what is indispensable for human development within its community.

Diversity, fruit of the multiplicity of cultures, brings forth the difficulty of confronting the equality outlined by the Declaration with the incomprehension regarding the cultures of the world. Cultural non-discrimination is harmful "equality" since we must face the courts of law with the same rules, when very often we live under quite different cultural systems.

HELLO, - ¿CÓMO ESTÁS?

Dialogue between the different cultures in order to achieve a universal compression, is the most logic solution. This process, which is called interculturality, is the one that will lead us towards understanding the particular situation of each one of the different nations.

Interculturality, as action, starts as an awareness process, by giving each culture its value without underestimating anyone and least of all any human group. This approach clashes with conceptions based in the superiority or inferiority of different cultures, which in itself means not-understanding this phenomenon. Recognizing other cultural systems different from our own is the process that starts out the stage of reflection and rapprochement towards other nations, this is how we will achieve the desired world comprehension.

Ignoring them leads us to constant conflict, a perfect sample is the current world situation, where the struggle between cultures is constantly present. At an international level, the West fights against what it considers as "terrorism" while on the other side, they see this process as a holy war which could even lead them to achieve the salvation of their souls.

NO DIALOGUE

What is really shocking is that there is no dialogue. The fear of the mainly "developed" nations leads us to think about future world conflicts based in the different cultures. The globalizing process, in this case, has not been able to respond with the speed that the problem requires. Thus we realize that the idea of the market is not a homogenizing fact, but that man, apart from the economic needs he might have, has other needs which are related to his traditions and customs.

Facing this scenario, radical postures talk about imposing, that is, a process which will first judge which culture is correct or not; after the evaluation we will impose our way of thinking over these "incorrect cultures" in order to homogenize and make all men equal. The imposition will necessarily lead us to conflict, since the clash inside these communities will be unimaginable.

Facing this scenario, the solution passes through the affirmation of the Declaration of Human Rights. We cannot eliminate or reconsider that idea, it would lead us to a revisionism we consider unnecessary and dangerous, since we believe that that document can definitely be shared by the different cultures, yet not through imposition but through dialogue.

A PROPOSED SOLUTION

The process of dialogue that must be lead in order to take that proposal into practice starts out with the recognition and non-judgment of the other cultures, placing ourselves at the same level, without superiority or inferiority, in every aspect, from the smallest to the most important ones, without classifications.

Secondly, the proposal must be accompanied by an inculturation process, that is, not imposing Human Rights but going deep into the reality of each one of the cultural communities, so that they become aware that Human Rights can be compatible with their traditions, starting with cultural awareness as the grounds for that process.

These tasks lead us to reflecting about the positive factor of each culture, putting aside what we might see as negative. This approach is based in the fact that every culture has, so to speak, a scale of values which is generally based on the idea of welfare for everyone, that is, personal development, a point which is shared by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

In this case we reaffirm our position that the inculturation of Human Rights, not its imposition; dialogue and not violence, will lead us to a better objective, in a fairer world based on the respect for every nation and every human being.

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Julio E. Sobenes Ortíz. Lawyer, Consultant in matters of Public Administration at local government level. University Professor. Columnist in Peruvian newspaper El Pueblo. http://juliosobenesopinion.blogspot.com .