A
right is that basic or permanent part of you that can never be removed. It is
never bought or granted by the state or kingdom or culture. Freedom on the
other hand is the right to do something or not to be controlled by someone
else. The rights and freedoms of individuals and groups shall be respected,
upheld and promoted by all organs and agencies of government and all persons. That
is provided for in the constitutions of many countries and the 1948 UN
declaration of international fundamental
human rights and freedoms.
You
have a right to life, you have a right to personal liberty, and you have a
right to fair hearing and judgment. You have a right to
privacy; you have a right to human dignity, right to Education. On top of that,
you are to have freedom which includes the following: - freedom of conscience,
expression, movement, religion, assembly and association.
Do
not sit and watch your rights being infringed on and your freedoms abused.
Stand up and say no to unjust practices in your vicinity for if you don’t, you may
be suppressed, dominated, out competed and wiped out.
Let
not that neighbour of yours with a fat abnormally big belly rebuke you when you
are agitating for something right. Talk because you have the right and that the
other person has no right whatsoever to distract your rights. Let not your neighbour
play very loud music and you are not comfortable but just hear on. Talk and
tomorrow you will have the peace of mind. Let not those colleagues of yours
intimidate you because of your colour, origin, race, religion and others. That
is prejudice and racism. Talk and rise against it because you have a right to
belong where you want.
Successful
people know their rights and freedoms and know how to use them better without
infringing on other people’s rights. Knowing your rights and standing for them,
creates an enabling and favourable environment. Never see something wrong going
on and you keep quiet about it, you will be equally guilty for it. But remember
in whatever you do with your rights, no one is above the law and ignorance of
the law is no defence in court. Know what to do, where, how and why? Not just
doing something because you have a right and freedom. Be careful, the law will
squeeze you and you will have no breathing space. The power is in your hands to
do what is right for you. Respect other people’s rights and freedom and you
will be on the safer side of the law.
If
you do not know your rights, you will be denied what would have helped you in
your endeavours. You need peace, you need protection, you need knowledge, you
need to feed and you need shelter.
Let’s
learn to destroy that element in us that keeps us to fear. Let’s destroy that
habit in us that make us see unjust practices and we keep quiet. Let’s kill
that attitude in us that prevents us to talk when we are being unfairly
handled. Do not get tired of talking, even if it is that police officer with a
pistol, even if it is that neighbour of yours with an ocean of vehicles and you
have a bicycle. Say no to corruption even if it is that father of yours who
pays your fees and threatens to stop if you talk. Even if it is that Prime
Minister, tell him it is unfair and that he/ she must stop. Even if it is that
head teacher of yours who threatens to expel you if you question his/ her
tendencies.
If
we do that, we shall have better homes, we shall have better nations and we
shall have a better world.
If
you can sing lucky Dube’s songs for years and years, why can’t we talk about
unfairness for decades and decades? Let’s talk and the perpetrators shall
realize that there is something wrong that must be stopped. The slaves would
not have had freedom if Marcus Gurvey had gotten tired of agitating for the
rights of blacks living in western countries. Africa would not have had
independence if the leaders we had then had kept quiet and shied away from
seeking for what was right for them.
Let
not that clumsy brother-in-law or sister-in-law of yours force you into sex;
say not because you have a right to privacy. Let not that obese woman who
claims to be your boss fondle you, she will infect you with incurable diseases
and you will die. Let not that man next to you in the office entice you into
sexual relation, your company shall realize and you will lose the job. Let not
that lecturer of yours with unquestionable appetite for sex demand for your
body, say no because you have paid tuition and it is his obligation to mark
your papers. Let him not threaten to give you a retake because you have a right
to fair judgment.
If
you think that injustice is good for you, then support it and seek it, but if
you think that injustice is an evil, then stand up strongly against it. “Our
country, our lives, our world, our tomorrow”. Say no to unjust practices and we
shall have a better tomorrow. A just and fair society
"where there's always prejudice and preconceived bias, however much you try to be good, you will always be bad"
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