Amnesty International?s annual reports are eagerly awaited by both human rights defenders and offenders the world over. The former use these painstakingly compiled documents as leverage against oppressive regimes while the latter fear the negative publicity and international opprobrium that they can generate. By offering a glimpse of the global human rights situation, as well as detailed country overviews, these reports really act as a human rights barometer.

In the case of the country overviews, no news is definitely good news for governments. But even if Mauritius has the privilege of not featuring in AI?s 2007 annual report, which was published this week, the director of Amnesty Mauritius, Linley Couronne, warns against the risk of falling prey to complacency. ?The fact that Mauritius does not feature in the 2007 annual report does not necessarily mean that everything is rosy.?

He expresses his concern that impunity remains an obstacle to human rights on the African continent. ?Impunity is a big problem in Africa as well as in other regions. Police and law enforcement officers in many African countries are held accountable for serious human rights violations, including arbitrary arrests and detention, torture and other ill-treatment.?

Moreover, the country?s absence from the 2007 annual report does not absolve it from not having been firm enough towards on of its neighbours. As active member of the Southern African Development Commu-nity (SADC), it is complicit in the deafening silence that has characterized the region?s position on Zimbabwe.

?Amnesty International is concerned that the SADC has so far failed to speak out against torture and violence being perpetrated by ZANU-PF supporters, war veterans and in some instances soldiers. We are concerned that African leaders have been slow in reacting to the human rights crisis that has been developing in Zimbabwe since 2000. This has allowed human rights violations to be committed with total impunity.?

Despite having 2.2 million members in more than 150 countries, this international organization for human rights advocacy has ?limited resources? and thus cannot scrutinize all the human rights offences in the world. Its activities are funded by its members and public donations. AI is ?independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion?.

Training in best human rights practices

The director of Amnesty Mauritius believes that one of the most pressing issues confronting Mauritius in terms of human rights is inciting racial hatred. He singles out certain sectarian newspapers as being particularly culpable of this crime. He finds it ?unimaginable? that such practices are still allowed in this day and age and intends to lobby for a strengthening of the legislation that deals with inciting racial hatred.

He is alarmed by the fact that certain political leaders have recently been demanding the reinstatement of the death penalty. ?It?s deplorable that some people seem to be going backwards while most African countries are progressing in this domain.? Last December at the United Nations general assembly, no less than 17 African countries voted in favour of the moratorium on the death penalty, while 20 abstained. ?I truly hope that it?s a temporary thing and that they?re not really serious about it.? He also deplores that the National Human Rights Commission is not ?100% independent. We would like the NHRC to be totally free?.

On a brighter note, Linley Couronne explains that the police force has given him access to its four training centers. This has allowed him to address 500 police recruits on the theme of human rights: past, present and prospects. ?They have been very receptive to the message. We needn?t perceive the police as human rights offenders. They afford this country?s citizens the opportunity to enjoy their civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.? Amnesty International will also be dispatching a policing expert to Mauritius later this year. She will be given the opportunity to train 50 police trainers and ten members of Amnesty Mauritius, on the ins and outs of human rights best practices.

To conclude, the director of Amnesty Mauritius compares the human rights situation in Mauritius to the age-old ?glass half-full, glass half-empty? metaphor. It all depends on which way one looks at things. As an optimist he ascribes to the glass half-full philosophy. And he believes that, although there is ?room for improvement?, human rights are becoming increasingly entrenched in the Mauritian psyche.