is a well-known consumer advocate who made his name standing up for the ordinary man in the street against large corporate interests. This would appear to make him a obvious favorite as far as human rights are concerned. Indeed, he shared Gore’s preoccupation with environmental issues as one would assume a Green Party candidate would. At the same time he appears to also share Gore’s very naive understanding of what human rights are and about the government’s responsibility is for ensuring them. Nader’s sense of the government’s responsibility for ensuring respect for human rights appears to be better than Gore’s in so far as environmental and social human rights are concerned, but not much different in so far a civil and political rights are concerned. As Nader has little chance of winning the election, the more interesting question would be what his impact could be if he gave human rights a more prominent position in his campaign. Unfortunately, he also did not see the issue as being very important and so he did not respond to the letter sent to him in July 2000.
Write Raph Nader yourself!
You don't believe me that the next President of the United States is ignorant about human rights? Well write them yourself and find out. Her are the candidates addresses...and a drfat letter follows as a guide if you think you need help.
The Honorable Ralph Nader Nader 2000 Primary Committee, Inc., P.O. Box 18002, Washington, DC 20036
Fax: 202-265-0183 Email: campaign@votenader.org
Model Letter
Dear Mr. {candidate},
As a concerned voter, I am writing to you as a candidate for our nation's highest office to enquire about your policies concerning human rights. br> Please inform me of the following:
1. Will you press the Congress to ratify human rights treaties? And if so, which ones? 2. Do you view the United States government as bound to the international legal obligations it has undertaken by ratifying international human rights treaties?
3. Will you pledge to respect and obey all decisions by international human rights bodies concerning human rights in the United States of America?
4. Will you take steps to ensure that the United States brings all of its laws in to accordance with its international human rights obligations?
5. Will you agree to take action against all other countries that violate international human rights law regardless of whether they are friendly or unfriendly, important trading partners or not?
6. Will you, if elected, publicly profess your respect for human rights and constantly speak out in defense of human rights while you are president?
7. Will you ensure that the United States ratifies the Convention on the Rights of the Child during your tenure?
These questions are vitally important for me in deciding for whom to vote in the November 2000 election, Please provide me your answers to these questions as soon as possible.
