Trend of Normalizing Violence, UN: International Law Destroyed Before Our Eyes

JAKARTA - The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, is concerned about the normalization of the use of violence to resolve disputes.

"We must not return to using violence as a organizing principle," Turk said while giving an update on the human rights situation around the world to the UN Human Rights Council, Friday, February 27, quoted by AFP.

Turk warned that "the threat and use of violence to resolve disputes is becoming more frequent and normalized."

He revealed that the number of armed conflicts has almost doubled since 2010. "The world has really become a more dangerous place," he added.

According to him, competition without compromise using power and strength without caring about the emergence of human rights violations is increasingly common.

"The players compete to control land, energy, attention. But for what?" Turk said.

"Dominating the global economy? Gathering more power? Putting AI in space? Of course, power must serve other purposes," he continued.

Turk then slammed leaders who "use power for their own benefit, (who) exploit and subjugate."

He also expressed concern that those he referred to were "attacking the institutions designed to keep us safe - the United Nations (UN), including the International Court of Justice; the International Criminal Court; this Council, and its mechanisms."

Turk said a decade ago, "an attack on a hospital triggered global protests... (But) the latest figures show that now there are an average of 10 attacks per day on health services."

"The world cannot stand idly by while the edifice of international humanitarian law and human rights is demolished before our eyes," he said.