Statement from the Executive Director

Comparative Human Rights Program Mission Statement

"The struggle against apartheid was also part of a worldwide struggle against racism and fascism". Hon. Dr. Frene Ginwala, M.P., Speaker, South African Parliament, on the occasion of signing the UConn-ANC Partnership agreement

Conscious of the similarities in the history of race relations in the U.S. and South Africa, and in solidarity with the people of South Africa in their democratic transformation, the Comparative Human Rights Program is committed to:

Promoting reciprocal learning on issues of human rights;Raising moral consciousness around the ideals of human rights; Facilitating the preservation and writing of history related to human rights; Contributing to educational efforts that lay the foundation for harmonious race relations; Fostering mutual understanding and cooperation between people of different backgrounds; And developing strategies for peaceful resolution of conflicts.

Activities designed to translate these goals into practice include: developing interdisciplinary academic programs in human rights; fostering educational exchanges between South Africa and the US; publishing an international scholarly journal on comparative human rights; facilitating dialogue and disseminating information through seminars and conferences about the observance and abuse of human rights; coordinating collaborative studies that propose models of harmonious human relations; and engaging people in activities that highlight the dignity of all human beings.

Historical Significance of Comparative Human Rights
Living in peace under a democratic rule of law, it is easy to take human rights for granted. The violations of fundamental rights to which hundreds of thousands of people are subjected every day seem abstract. Yet when violations of human rights decimate a population, as during the holocaust of the Jews under Nazism in Germany; dehumanize others, as during the legalized injustice of the apartheid era in South Africa; debilitate a group of people, as happened with the genocide in Rwanda; or terrorize a populace, as occurred during "ethnic cleansing" in the former Yugoslavia the silence of those not directly subjected to abuse diminishes our common humanity. As the great civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr., in a letter from Birmingham Jail on April 16, 1963, noted, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."

History demonstrates that violations of human rights have come to an end only when those not directly affected have had the courage to join in the fight against the perpetrators. In the words of Senator Robert Kennedy, in an address delivered at the University of Cape Town on June 6, 1966: "Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance".

If the tragedies that in the past have poisoned human relations, destroyed livelihoods and claimed a multitude of human lives are not to be repeated, it is imperative that we educate ourselves about issues of human rights and cultivate tolerance for other people who may be different from us but who share a common humanity. This project and the programs that flow from it will create opportunities to explore the differences and commonalties in various struggles for human rights and, in the process, help work out proactive strategies to build harmonious human relations and contribute to creating a conducive environment for productive economic activities in South Africa.

This is a great opportunity for the University of Connecticut and citizens of this state and elsewhere in the US to take a leading role in efforts to raise consciousness on the vital topic of human rights and to join hands with the ANC as it engages with other groups in the process of reconciliation and healing since the end of apartheid. We urge people of goodwill to support this worthy project.

Under the Aegis of the UConn-ANC Partnership
On March 1, 1999, the University of Connecticut and the African National Congress of South Africa signed an historic agreement to partner to preserve the history of the struggle against apartheid and to advance understanding of human rights. The agreement designates UConn as the sole repository for ANC materials in North America, establishes a comparative human rights program at UConn and mandates UConn to assist in conducting oral interviews with about 200 leaders of the ANC. The Comparative Human Rights Program is under the leadership of Professor Amii Omara-Otunnu, who is also the Executive Director of the UConn-ANC Partnership; the Oral History Program is directed by Professor Bruce Stave; and the Archives Project is headed by Tom Wilsted of the Dodd Center.

You can be part of this exciting partnership for human rights by giving moral and/or financial support, and by participating in any of the activities. Your participation in and contribution to the Partnership is greatly appreciated. For further information, please contact the office fo the Executive Director:

UConn-ANC Partnership
241 Glenbrook Road Unit 2124
Storrs, CT 06269-2124
860-486-0647
Fax: 860-486-2545
ancadm01@uconnvm.uconn.edu