Eternal Vigilance

Moderator: John Suárez

Guests: Alyaksandar Milinkevich, Trudy Stevenson, Tamara Sujú Roa, Sabe Amthor Soe, Jose Gabriel Ramón Castillo

 

 

 

Five human rights activists united under the platform “Eternal Vigilance,” gathered to share their experiences with political opposition in the face of state oppression. The panelists described the deficient state of freedom in their respective countries and emphasized the necessity of determination and resistance against oppressive regimes.

 

Belarusian opposition leader Alyaksandar Milinkevichdescribed the methods used by the state to control its citizens, stating that “it’s not a visible oppression; people are not thrown into prisons. It's not killing in the physical sense; it's the killing of the human soul and human dignity.” Speaking of the fear Belarusians are facing today, Milinkevich said that it is not the same as under Stalin, it is a fear of being left “without a job and money to live.” Solidarity for those involved in the struggle gives them strength, added Milinkevich.

 

Trudy Stevenson, member of the reformist Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in Zimbabwe, also highlighted the importance of “eternal vigilance” as a way of putting pressure on Mugabe's regime. She spoke of the critical economic situation in the country and the violence and kidnappings carried out by the regime in order to quieten opposition voices. Despite the fact that the reformist MDC now forms the new government with Mugabe, which has led to some positive changes, Trudy Stevenson called this “a somewhat unhappy marriage,” pointing to the problem of the opposition now frequently being “reluctant to rock the boat and to protest.”

 

Venezuelan activist Tamara Sujú Roa criticized the hypocrisy of the Venezuelan government as it cites human rights abuses abroad, but practices censorship and persecutes political dissidents at home. She urged democratic countries to choose whether they want to belong to“the countries respecting human rights or to those who are violating them constantly,” and asked, “when will the world stop preferring economy to human rights?”

 

Sabe Amthor Soe from the Burma Center in Prague lauded the solidarity of the Eternal Vigilance platform and of democratic countries such as the Czech Republic, although she sees the possibilities to improve the situation as very limited: “The regime doesn’t care what the international community thinks. There is very little we can do,” she said.

 

Jose Gabriel Ramón Castillo,Cuban human rights activist and sociologist, introduced his speech by paying homage to a Cuban political prisoner Eduard Diaz Castellano, with whom he held a 28-day prison hunger strike against human rights abuses three years earlier, earning him a 65 year-long prison sentence. Jose Castillo delivered a presentation entitled, “Who are the Enemies of Freedom – Reasons and Deeds,” highlighting, for example, the way “predators of freedom,” such as Hugo Chavez or Khaddafi, are basing their crimes using the concept of “positive liberty” as defined by Isaiah Berlin; dressing their practices in “collective welfare”. He also pointed to the existence of other, less known enemies of freedom.