Treating others with dignity and respect is fundamental for a better world by Amnesty International 12:02pm 10th Dec, 2011   December 2011    People across the world, particularly young people, have begun to believe the unbelievable. More importantly, they have begun to hope again.    The growing clamour for a fairer system - one based on public human rights for all - seems to have caught the political and corporate establishment by surprise. Governments have been left scrambling to regain both control and their moral authority as old institutions are challenged.    There have been some big steps forward since the Universal Declaration of Human rights was adopted on December 10, 1948, but many of the promises and policies have since rung hollow. Six decades on, we live in a world where the divide between rich and poor is wider than ever.    More than 2 billion people are still trapped in a desperate, downward cycle of marginalisation, disenfranchisement and poverty. Large sections of society are shut out of the political process. Women are still seen as second-class citizens. And millions are dying every year because they can"t access medical care, clean drinking water or cheap, life-saving drugs.    But this year, this Human Rights Day, something is different. Something has changed. This year, there is hope.    From the streets of the Middle East and North Africa to city centres around the world, people are demanding action. They are questioning the very foundations of the systems that have governed their lives. They are harnessing the power of technology - mobile phones, social media, YouTube - to build solidarity. They are sensing that they hold the real power, and that they can shape a better world.    To reclaim their legitimacy as leaders, businesses and governments must listen. They must cast aside the politics of the past. They must rein in the unaccountable governance of countries and businesses that have blighted lives and left too many people behind. And they must put respect for human rights, particularly of vulnerable groups, above political and economic gain.    As part of the growing people"s movement for public accountability, we have seen protesters showing the world that change is possible. By bravely facing down rifles and tanks, by bringing down entrenched regimes and by challenging powerful corporations, they have shown that ordinary people can do extraordinary things.    They have shown that people do matter, and that treating others with dignity and respect is fundamental for a better world. Most importantly, they have shown that hope can be re-born out of the ashes of indignity, injustice and despair.    Amnesty International''s Demand Dignity campaign, aims to end the human rights violations that drive and deepen global poverty. The campaign mobilizes people all over the world to demand that governments, corporations and others who have power listen to the voices of those living in poverty and recognise and protect their rights.    Everyone, everywhere has the right to live with dignity. That means that no-one should be denied their rights to adequate housing, food, water and sanitation, and to education and health care.    People living in poverty have the least access to power to shape the policies of poverty and are frequently denied effective remedies for violations of their rights. Visit the related web page
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