Inauguration du Centre Nassim

The new Centre Nassim for the rehabilitation of victims of torture was inaugurated on November 29 th in Beirut . The Center, a project of the Lebanese Center of Human Rights (CLDH), affiliated to Solida, is supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands .

For this occasion, the Ambassadors of the Netherlands and Italy were present, as well as the UNHCr Delegate, and representatives from the EU, from several Embassies, from ICRC and from different NGO's and local and international associations.

The ambassador of the Netherlands , H.E. Mr. Robert Zeldenrust pronounced a speech in which he insisted on the necessity of the respect of the Human rights as well as the necessity of respecting international laws specially the Convention of the United Nations against Torture. Please find below the speech of his Excellency.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is almost 60 years ago since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Treaties on Political, Civil, Economic and Social Rights were signed. Much progress has been made in the acceptance of human rights but, unfortunately, in many parts of the world human rights are still not fully respected. Basic human rights such as the right not to be tortured, the right to freedom of expression and the right to a fair trial are not respected everywhere. They should be. Human rights are the same for everyone, everywhere and always. Apart from this, respect for human rights serves a wider interest. A lack of respect for human rights increases the chance of conflict and destabilization in a country. Human rights are a pre-condition for sustainable stability, security and prosperity.

For the Netherlands , human rights are a central theme in its foreign policy. Our guiding principle is the universality of human rights. We respect cultural diversity but in our view cultural diversity can never serve as an excuse to deny someone his or her rights. This is why the Netherlands supports to prevent and combat torture and to abolish the death penalty. This is why we support initiatives to enhance freedom of religion and the right of individuals not to be discriminated on the basis of their sexual inclinations, this is why we support initiatives to abolish child labour, to mention just few examples.

The Netherlands Minister of Foreign Affairs has recently announced a new Human Rights Strategy and a new Human Rights Fund out of which human rights activities abroad will be funded. One of the activities which we are proud to support out of this fund is the establishment of the Centre Nassim for the rehabilitation of torture victims here in Lebanon . The fact that a centre for the treatment of torture victims in Lebanon is established means that, unfortunately, this phenomenon has not yet been eradicated in this country. This is regrettable, particularly since Lebanon is a signatory of the UN Convention against Torture. Torture should stop, wherever, whenever, and Lebanon should respect its obligations under the Convention against Torture.

The new Centre Nassim is an initiative of the organization Solida/Centre Libanais des Droits de l'Homme. We are proud to be working with Solida/CLDH on the establishment of this centre. Solida/CLDH has shown itself to be everything a human rights organization should be, i.e. courageous and steadfast even in the face of obstacles facing its work.

I hope that the Centre Nassim will be able to provide support and relief to those victims of torture whose plight has not been addressed and whose lives have been affected forever because of their experiences. But, of course, my real hope is that there will be no new victims of torture in this country and that sooner rather than later the Centre Nassim will not be necessary anymore. I wish the staff of the Centre Nassim will not be necessary anymore. I wish the staff of the Centre Nassim every success in their work.

Thank you very much.

The Centre is open from Monday to Friday from 9 am to 6 pm. Persons seeking support form the Centre can come directly (Bakhos bldg, 4th floor, Mar Youssef street, Daoura), or can call for an appointment (01 240061).