BHRN Celebrates Human Rights Day

The Bahamas Human Rights Network (BHRN) celebrated Human Rights Day at the HUB in Nassau this past Wednesday December 10th. The celebration was in observance of the 60th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It also marked BHRN's second anniversary since it was publicly launched in conjunction with Human Rights Day 2006.

Prof. Michael Stevenson, head of the law department at the College of the Bahamas, led a discussion on the topic of human rights and the Bahamian constitution. The discussion was followed by a reading of the Bahamian constitution which then flowed into Express Yourself--the HUB's weekly open mike poetry, spoken word, and other performed arts night.

Appropriately, the past week has also marked a significant milestone for human rights in the Bahamas. The Bahamian government has announced its intention to repeal the law permitting corporal punishment during the upcoming legislative term, a move that has been applauded by BHRN as well as Amnesty International.

Sadly, we were also reminded that much still needs to be done to confront religious bigotry and human smuggling.