indiatoday.in
Quote of the Day by Navi Pillay: The biggest violators of human rights are states themselves...
“The biggest violators of human rights are states themselves, by commission or omission.” These words by Navi Pillay, a South African jurist and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, underline the responsibility governments carry in protecting people. She made the remark during a talk titled National Sovereignty vs. International Human Rights at the University of Georgia School of Law on October 19, 2016. The university's Dean Rusk International Law Center recorded the statement while reporting on her address. She was awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize on October 9 for her efforts to promote peace and international law. The quote raises an important issue: human rights violations do not only occur when authorities actively harm people. They can also occur when those in power fail to prevent abuse or protect people from it. WHO IS NAVI PILLAY? Born in Durban, South Africa, on September 23, 1941, Pillay grew up during apartheid, a system of racial segregation and discrimination. She became a lawyer and defended political prisoners during the apartheid era before making history as the first non-white woman appointed to South Africa's High Court. She later served as a judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and...
