PWHCE - Democracy and Human Rights Project

The PWHCE Democracy and Human Rights Project works for human dignity and human rights.

PWHCE believes that human rights can be best upheld through a stable, secure liberal democracy in which social institutions have the right to independent operation.

PWHCE observes that the greatest threats to human rights in the past century have come from totalitarian ideologies put into practice.

It is therefore impossible to create a truly free, peaceful and humane world while ignoring or apologising for the executors of totalitarian ideologies, or by turning a blind eye to the repression practiced by the world's despots.


Articles, Documents and Resources on our site
Dictatorship and Democracy
Asia	China's Number One Subversive Gerald Mercer writes about a dissident in the People's Republic of China Obituary: Nguyen Van Thieu David Bennett on the last President of South Vietnam S-21 Interrogation Manual Excerpt from a document captured from the Khmer Rouge 1984 Rules concerning corpses of executed criminals This document casts light upon some of the ghoulish human rights abuses taking place in communist China today.
Europe	The Talented Mr Yeltsin David Bennett writes about the first democratically elected President of Russia, Boris Yeltsin Speech holding Russia to Account for its role in World War II Speech by Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga, 12/01/2005 Application Form to Travel Outside the Soviet Union Soviet era document that illuminates the nature of the communist regime Speech holding Russia to Account for its role in World War II By Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga, 12/01/2005 Application Form to Travel Outside the Soviet Union Soviet era document that reinforces Solzhenitsyn's conception of the Soviet Union as one vast prison system
Middle East	Mesopotamia: Earliest Form of Democracy? This excerpt from Raul S Manglapus' book, Will of the People: Original Democracy in Non-Western Societies (Freedom House, New York, 1987), argues that democracy is not simply an ideology of Western Modernism, but is in fact the natural state of human society. In particular, several ancient civilisations are shown through archaeological evidence to have possessed advanced democractic institutions. Restoring Freedom to Arab Countries Allan McDonald looks at democratic developments in the Arab world. The Freedom Democracy Brings Gerald Mercer writes on Iraq's election and Beijing's hypocrisy Winds of Change: Democracy and Security Outlook in the Middle East Compiled by Trevor Stanley, this page reports on the prospects for democratic reform and security in the Middle East Open Letter to the Misguided Muslims: Appeal for Enlightened and Moderate Islam By S A Rehman, peace activist Prisoner Abuse and the Future of Iraq Guest editorial by Gerald Mercer Coalition of the Willing information resource Compiled by Trevor Stanley, this page demonstrates that the invasion of Iraq was not, as its opponents claim, unilateral. It refutes claims that members of the Coalition were motivated by fear or greed by providing links to statements by leading politicians and intellectuals that describe the ethical reasons many countries had for participating, particularly those that had suffered under totalitarian oppression and looked to the western democracies for protection. Statement of Vilnius Countries on Iraq The Vilnius countries outline the ethical case for action against Saddam Hussein's Ba'athist Iraq
Vietnam and Iraq	John Negroponte: The Career of a Conservative Idealist Outlining the career of John Negroponte from Vietnam to Iraq, David Bennett argues that Negroponte's 'conservative' quest for liberal-democracy and against tyranny in Vietnam can more accurately be described as 'idealist' than the non-interventionist campaign of the so-called liberal-democrats in the US Congress. Two Sides to Every Story: A Vietnamese Perspective on the Wars in Vietnam and Iraq By Quynh Dao, Vietnamese human rights campaigner. Talk given for Perspectives on World History and Current Events
News
Action Alerts	The Committee to Protect Bloggers tracks attempts to repress dissident web loggers (bloggers), maintaining a network of correspondents in countries such as Iran and Syria. These banners represent two groups of bloggers who have been detained for the crime of expressing their opinions.

Recommended Books and articles

A Sense of Duty: My Father, My American Journey - a memoir by Quang X Pham
	Quang X Pham, a refugee from South Vietnam, became a USAF pilot and fought in the 1991 Persian Gulf War. This book outlines Mr Pham's reunion with his father, who was also an air force pilot, but in the Vietnamese air force. On sale 12 April 2005 through Ballantine Books.
Sneak preview	Read an excerpted chapter from A Sense of Duty
Buy on Amazon	Purchase on Amazon.com
Also by the author	U.S. Mustn't Betray Iraq as It Did South Vietnam - LA Times 3/5/2004 We came because we lost our country - Orange County Register. Honoring the Men Who Died for My Freedom - Wall Street Journal >> More articles >>