A brief commentary on some news items

My time is a bit limited, so, much as I would love to write properly researched articles on the following topics, I can't. 

Firstly, the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect has published a commentary and supporting data on the election of nations which are human rights abusers (notably, Venezuela) to the UN General  Assembly's Human  Rights  Council. These publications are clear, concise and accurate: I agree with their thrust, and I am pleased that specific recommendations have been made.

My main problem with the commentary is that I am having trouble finding a copy of "the Irish Principles" that it refers to. I was eventually able to track down a copy from an interesting analysis of the principles that I found first. (Unfortunately, informal names don't appear in official designations - SIGH ) 

I also consider that one of the fundamental problems with the HRC is that it is too large (47 nations, out of a membership of 193 nations, and election by nations, rather than human rights experts - or at least preliminary screening by human rights experts) - one of the reasons that some of these human rights abusing nations get on to the Council is that they are needed to meet the combined effects of quotas on representation from regions and rotation of membership: when there are only a few nations from a region, and everyone else has had a turn at membership of the HRC, it winds up being politically awkward to reject an abusive nation - they should be rejected, but no-one has had the integrity to do so thus far (except, I think, for Libya).

Next, a disturbing failure to apprehend a sanctioned war criminal which resulted in him being able to gamble at a casino in my home city - see here - losing six million dollars would surely have made him noticed? This is a staggering failure of (a) border controls (are we back to having a Border Control Farce?), and (b) operation of the casino concerned - and this incident has been raised as other concerns are been alleged.

I hope that this does not represent the same sort of disdain and contempt for the international rule of the law that allowed Sudan's notorious war criminal president to travel without being arrested for so long - at least in that case there was the pretence of an argument diplomatic immunity, which does not apply in this instance.

It is difficult to conceive that an hardline ex-cop like the current Commonwealth Home Affairs Minister would allow such a blatant disregard for the law, so I am inclined towards this being a stuff up. Nevertheless, it needs to be investigated (as both bodies say they are doing), the causes identified, and action implemented to make sure we never again allow a criminal of this type to flit in and out.

Thirdly, an opinion that "corporations will never be vanguards for free speech in a new era of ideological competition with the People’s Republic". Now, the points the article makes about China's growing confidence/fear (I suggest it may be both at the same time), the internal CCP documents, and the ideological conflict between the Chines Communist Party and the West are all true, valid, and well worth considering.

However, the comment that "multinational corporations . . . are not structured to have a moral compass which guides decision-making" is dated, and only partly correct. There is a growing recognition within the business world of the importance of being ethical - business leaders have taken stands on Equal Marriage, modern slavery (e.g., Andrew Forrest), conflict minerals, and other progressive issues. Not all businesses, true, and they are still subject to the profit imperative, but don't downplay the growing moral conscience, whether it comes from education by activists that has increased awareness, personal beliefs / characteristics, or activist shareholders: it is present, it has a heart beat, and it is growing.

Having made that qualification, though, I also endorse the importance of civil society . . . and political leadership on such issues.

Finally, the working week. I must have missed this at the time, or didn't give it proper attention, but the notion of a 15 hour working week, provided it comes with people having an adequate, comfortable lifestyle, may be one we have to adopt as the population ages, and some people pay only lip service (see here, here, here, and here) to the notion of adequately enabling older people to work and survive with dignity. The concept has been floated again: see here.