Justice and human rights are at the heart of what Trócaire does and who we are. We believe that every woman, man and child is born equal and with the inalienable right to a dignified life, free from injustice.
Our work is grounded in Catholic Social Teaching, which stresses the dignity of each person and their inalienable human rights, along with their responsibilities, regardless of culture, ethnicity, gender or religion. This belief in the unity and diversity of humankind is the basic value we bring to what we do.
Over the past four decades, Trócaire has worked alongside our partners in Kenya to protect and respond to basic human rights. We are therefore very pleased to have been able to support our partner CRECO to capture and share the findings of this very important report on human rights violations during COVID 19.
This report places a particular emphasis on the role of the state, as the state is primarily responsible for ensuring the respect, promotion, protection and fulfilment of rights. The report does not disregard the importance of actors such as the civil society, INGOs, and
Academia. However, the focus in terms of demanding accountability is on the state, which has a duty to protect citizens against human rights abuses. Finally this report stresses that COVID19 should not be used as a weapon to advance and promote human rights violations.
Trócaire continues to support partner organisations to monitor, document and advocate against human rights abuses with a view to achieving an end to impunity and uphold the observance of international human rights law. Taking a rights-based approach means that we put human rights at the centre of development and strive to ensure that universally recognised standards of human rights are promoted and upheld at all times and in all situations, including COVID 19.
In conclusion I would like to appeal to donors and INGOs to reflect on their commitment to the promotion of human rights in Kenya Funding for this very crucial work has been on the decline over the past decade despite the fact that any violation of people’s basic human rights is a violation of the Sustainable Development Goals that Kenya is striving to meet. This cannot be done without additional support to promote Justice and Human Rights.
Download the full report here.