Johnson Mayamba
In the early 1770s, escalating colonial oppression forced American colonies to contemplate a radical idea; independence. This historical moment set the stage for a revolutionary document that would not only give birth to a nation but also set the tone and inspire global human rights standards for centuries ahead.
As tensions with Britain reached a boiling point, delegates from each colony formed the Continental Congress in 1775, which debated and moved towards this common cause. In June 1776, a five-member committee was appointed, chaired by Thomas Jefferson, a talented political writer, tasked with drafting the declaration.
The committee’s draft, incorporating enlightenment ideals of liberty, justice and equality, was modified by Congress. On July 2, 1776, Congress voted for independence, and the Declaration was ratified on July 4, 1776, marking the official start of the United States as an independent nation. Most historians agree that these popularised ideals inspired French revolutionaries such as Maj Gen Marquis de Lafayette, who had fought in the American Revolution and later became the drafter of France’s Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen in 1789.
Fast forward to the 20th Century, the US founding document became a yardstick for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly on December 10, 1948, in Paris. The US Constitution’s preamble, which speaks of “establishing justice” and “securing the blessings of liberty”, inspired the UDHR’s preamble, which recognises the “inherent dignity” of all human beings. The UDHR’s structure and content were inspired by the US Bill of Rights, emphasising individual freedoms and protections.
Because the UDHR is a soft law document, meaning it is non-binding, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) was adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 16, 1966, allowing member states to make commitments. The ICCPR’s focus on civil and political rights reflects the US Constitution’s strong protections for civil liberties. Continentally, the UDHR also inspired the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Charter), having a similar structure in its preamble and categorised human rights.
Most countries, in some way agree, that these human rights are universal and inalienable, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated, and ought to be respected, protected and promoted. To that effect, Uganda signed, ratified and acceded to the ICCPR and the African Charter without any reservations, meaning it agreed to uphold these international standards. These treaties later inspired our Bill of Rights under Chapter Four of the 1995 Constitution.
The five pillars of the US-Uganda relations; health, education, security, economic development, and democracy, aim to uphold these shared human rights standards that foster liberty, justice and equality. The US has consistently advocated for these values in Uganda, as it does worldwide, emphasising that true development can only be achieved when the rights and freedoms of all citizens are upheld.
However, it does not work alone but also partners with the Ugandan people. More than 6,000 Uganda leaders have benefited from several US exchange programmes in the last six decades. These empowered alumni return to Uganda with best practices learnt from the US to advance these universal values countrywide. While these ideals are universally desirable, we still face challenges in fully realising them as Ugandans; widespread corruption and poverty, human rights violations and abuses, and sometimes political instability, often undermine our efforts.
But as the US Ambassador to Uganda, William W Popp, noted on June 20 while passing out 75 participants of the Foreign Policy Executive Programme that I was part of, “a threat to freedom in one part of the world is a threat everywhere.”
Whenever the US stands up to hold other nations accountable, it’s not about posturing, imposing or interfering in internal affairs; all it does is secure this moral obligation member states have committed themselves to and protect that lasting legacy that everyone is “born free and equal in dignity and rights.” In joining the US to commemorate 248 years of Independence, let us reaffirm our dedication to these enduring values of liberty, justice and equality for all.
