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The Three Winning Essays of 2001
Stefanek Gabor
Age: 10
Budapest, Hungary
What do Human Rights mean to me?
"The freedom is a good thing. Unfortunately children are not always free, because their parents direct them.
"It would be very good if everybody were free. But it could cause problems as well if criminals were free. Like now the demolition of the World Trade Center and Pentagon. It would be very bad.
"Freedom should always be used for good. Otherwise the world could be destroyed.
"But many good people are deprived of freedom. People don't like this. Soldiers are not free. Human Rights are harmed in many countries. People are not happy there. I hope that you are free and happy.
"Good freedom for you."
Baguani Kiringi
Age: 15
Zurich, Switzerland
What do Human Rights mean to me?
"Basically I do not know too much about Human Rights, but I know for sure that men should have free religion, a right to live in a flat, to work and to express his opinion freely. Due to the colour of his skin he should not be discriminated.
"I myself have a darker skin colour and it has happened to me that certain persons did not appreciate this at all. There is a family where I am living which is very hostile towards foreigners. It has happened already several times that I was outside with some friends of mine and a bus driven by with a boy who showed us the sign "Heil Hitler."
"I consider that this should stop as such racistic statements exist for long enough and one should definitely take effective actions against such. To improve this situation we should use Freedom of Speech to improve the relationship between us and others."
Jakub Kyncl
Age: 16
Czech Republic
What do Human Rights mean to me?
"It is very strange and maybe a little unpleasant feeling to write about human rights and what I think about them at a time when in the U.S.A. failed the most important right — right to life. Although this is very cruel moment, the U.S.A. is still trying to keep the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was declared in 1948 and with small changes is still accepted by all nations. But for me as a boy from middle Europe, there are more important children rights, which have to be accepted by the whole world. As a child is considered everyone who hasn't reached the age of 18. A few of the most important rights are for normal teenager — right to an education, free choice of religion and right to have one's own opinions without possibility of being forced to other opinion by any pressure or violence. Of course I realize that these rights aren't the most important for children in Africa or some developing countries but nevertheless I suppose that it doesn't mean that their importance is less. The fact that a child shouldn't be held in slavery or otherwise physically or psychically maltreated is already included in general human rights, but that won't help in the case that on some places of our planet there are children still sold to slavery or even cruelly killed just for organs like animals. But twenty disappeared children in developing "third world" ...what is it for their authorities? Just another case which won't be solved. Simply disappeared twenty children, but who cares?
"Can't people tell themselves that we live in a little degenerated world? In one — less matured — part of world are children sold just for organs for which you can get on black market hundreds or thousands dollars. In the second — one of the most matured parts of the world — the U.S.A. die thousands of innocent people just because of unnecessary terrorist attack. And in the other part of world, in Palestine, many Arabs celebrate death of these thousands innocent people and give their children sweets in celebration of that attack. It is apparent that in these children there will be deep rooted hate against everything American. Their hero won't be Superman or Vinnetou, but vile terrorist like Osama bin Laden who "bravely" attacked the country which is except of Israel center of "Arabian and mainly Palestinian intolerance." Children see just victory of their country and hero in foreground of it. They don't see how innocent people of other countries suffer and don't understand trespass of their rights. This is very similar to the former big totalitarian countries of Europe — Germany or Russia. It is nearly admirable, that when I visited one Internet address to light an imaginary candle with a short message for victims, I notice that all messages written by people from the U.S.A. were practically reconciled with the thing that happened and didn't call for immediate payback against the most probable trespasser — Afghanistan. I know that it is influenced by shock which is in the U.S.A. much bigger than in Europe. But the second reason is that the U.S.A. is a very religious country and killing is against their faith. But I have to say that people from Afghanistan themselves broke rules of their religion — Islam. In the Koran, the sacred book of Islam, it is clearly written as in the Bible: You shall not kill. But back to other messages. When I was reading messages from Europe I was really surprised by their aggression. Yes, of course that there was written something like rest in peace but almost everyone wrote behind it text like: "NUKE" all Arabs! or Retaliation against Afghanistan must be cruel and without regret. Well that is true, but we aren't those who have to make decision. Yet. Now it's the U.S.A. and I think that when they wake up from this bitter dream, they will do what is necessary. But how to do it without breaking human rights? That is a really difficult question and I wouldn't like to be in George W. Bush place although I would like to be a politician. But the fact is that Palestinian children will feel themselves what the terrorist attack for the U.S.A. meant. Problem is that the smallest children will have except of natural instinct of sucking and walking into a natural hate of the U.S.A. and everything coming from there and made there. But how to defend children against these effects? Another difficult question which I can't answer. Fortunately I'm not one of the people which must find a way how to do it very quickly. Not an easy job.
"There is nothing so receptive and teachable like a small child. There is no human act which won't meet with its response. There is no human right, which can be taken as a less important than others. And also there is no excuse for people who participated in a terrorist attack and no excuse for reaction of most Palestinians. And I pray for the first mistake of one of the greatest augurs ever — Nostradamus. Because he was right, the Third World War is closer than we can only imagine. And there is no other moment when the human rights are broken more than in a war."
"I would like to dedicate this essay to all victims of attack on W.T.C. and Pentagon. To all passengers and members of crew on each plane and mostly to all rescuers who have died during effort to save other lives."
A Letter from Irving Sarnoff
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