There is still a ''deep chasm'' between statutes set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and reality, Italian President Giorgio Napolitano said Wednesday during Italy's celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the declaration.
The president said that while progress had been made, governments, associations and individuals needed to make a ''renewed and stronger commitment'' to prevent violations of human rights in the face of ''the insufficiency of efforts made so far''.
''While in many parts of the world ancient violations have still not disappeared, the safeguarding of rights must now also deal with new threats linked to terrorism, the safeguarding of the environment and climate change, invasions of privacy and the impact of the economic crisis on quality of life,'' he said.
Napolitano said he hoped celebrations in Italy on Wednesday would contribute to familiarising young people with the contents of the declaration.
According to a survey by the Conference of Regional Council Speakers issued on Wednesday, around 85% of young Italians have heard of UDHR but half of these said they had not read it.
Young Italians thought the only human right violated in Italy is that of the right to work, according to the survey.
CHARITIES CALL FOR ACTION.
Italian organisations meanwhile took advantage of the anniversary of the UDHR to press the government for action.
UNICEF Italy President Vincenzo Spadafora urged the defense of children's rights to be put ''in first place'' on government agendas and in light of the Group of Eight (G8) summit to be held in Italy next year.
''Children's rights are perhaps the most violated in the new century due to an explosion of phenomena such as abuse and exploitation of minors,'' he said.
He added that this year's increase in the number of people suffering from hunger to almost a billion, ''many of whom are children'', also required addressing urgently.
Consumer rights group Cittadinanzattiva meanwhile said there were human rights issues to be dealt with closer to home, citing violations to the basic rights of immigrants in Italy as well as of people with mental health problems.
Italian families living below the poverty line and citizens exposed to pollution also had their rights violated, it said.
Catholic groups including Catholic Action meanwhile called on the Italian government to ratify the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings.
In Rome, around 100 people from a handful of associations and unions staged a sit-in at state broadcaster RAI to ask for greater coverage of human rights issues.
''We're not here to celebrate the anniversary but to say to people who are oppressed that we're on their side,'' said protestors, many of whom wore blindfolds as a symbol of solidarity.
CELEBRATIONS AT THE VATICAN.
Among events marking the UDHR across the country, the Vatican held a commemoration ceremony led by senior prelates cardinals Tarcisio Bertone and Renato Raffaele Martino, while Pope Benedict XVI was due to attend a celebratory concert.
Elsewhere in Rome, people with disabilities, immigrants, gypsies and the relatives of victims of war or mafia violence met with artists, students and environmentalists in a demonstration calling for a greater focus on human rights for those without a voice.
The UDHR was drafted in response to the horrors of the Second World War and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on December 10, 1948.
Its 30 articles set out basic rights and freedoms that are considered obligatory for all UN member states, although there are no sanctions for its breach or enforcement mechanisms, such as committees or courts.
However, the Declaration carries great moral weight and is often used to apply diplomatic pressure.
More importantly, it is considered the founding document of international human rights law, shaping it through the expression of basic principles that are now taken for granted and which have been adopted in numerous other binding documents, such as the European Convention on Human Rights.
