총 40페이지

02
Editorial
Infringement of Human Rights
in Cultural Diversity
H
uman Rights are the natural rights and freedom that every human being is
entitled to and should never be violated. On July 4, 1776, the U.S. Declaration
of Independence involved a statement on individual human rights that marked
the beginning of a new paradigm. Yet these rights often become the subject of fierce
debateswhenpeoplequestionwhethercriminalsshouldenjoysimilarrightsornot.People
also wonder if these rights are practiced only on paper, considering many instances like
employersfailingtoprovidehumaneworkingconditionsfortheiremployees.
Itisalsotruethatsevereviolationsofhumanrightsoccurandsomeofthemoccurquite
explicitly. Recently, two such violations caught my eyes. One is the practice of witch
hunting in Congo and the other is the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM),
performedonyounggirlsinmanycountries.
This August, a TV program, “W” covered a ‘witch hunting’ ritual prevalent in Congo.
InCongo,80percentofpeopleareChristians.However,therearesomeculturalpractices
thatpeopleinotherculturescanneverunderstand.InthecaseofwitchhuntinginCongo,
childrenbetweentheageof3and17canbethetargets.Apastororaprophetpointsout
at a child blaming him/her for bad luck. After being pointed out, the child is subjected
to some inhumane procedures in order to make the ‘devil’ go out of his body. The
procedures include dropping hot wax from a burning candle on the child’s flesh, poking
thechild’seyeswithfingersandsoon.Somekidsareevenlockedupinacellandstarved
todeath.
Similarly, FGM is another custom practiced in grave violation of basic human rights.
The FGM procedure is performed to remove the outer genitalia of women in order to
preservehervirginity.Consideringtheviolentandinhumannatureofthepractice,several
civil groups have tried to stop the ritual. However, it still prevails. I watched a video
recordingofanactualsceneofFGMinaclass.Ayounggirlcriesinfearassheisbeing
taken for the FGM procedure. Some adult women tie the girl with a rope to prevent her
frominterruptingtheprocedure.SeveralvideorecordingsofFGMhavebeencirculating
ontheInternetpromptingpeopletothinkmoreabouthumanrightsviolation.
AfterIcametoknowabouttheseissues,“DiversityofCultures”becameadilemmafor
me. Yes, it is reasonable to recognize other cultures that have originated from different
environments.Theunbearablepainthatthekidsandthegirlshadtogothrough,however,
isheart-rending.Thetugofwarbetween‘diversity’and‘humanrights’isstillanissueto
bediscussedanddebatedon.
Editor-in-Chief
LeeKyeong-eun
www.theargus.org

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