GUEST COLUMN
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November 2009
Meet Our Featured Guest Columnist: David Sack
David Sack is a former director of the International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh.
Q: What does "health and human rights" mean to you?
A: The most fundamental human right is the right to survive and to lead a healthy life, and this is especially true for children who are most vulnerable. It only takes a serious illness in the family to understand how this event takes precedence over all other concerns. It would seem that the true nature of humanity is to assist others who are sick or injured, so it seems strange to have to claim health as a "right." It should be "human nature" rather than a "human right."
A: The most fundamental human right is the right to survive and to lead a healthy life, and this is especially true for children who are most vulnerable. It only takes a serious illness in the family to understand how this event takes precedence over all other concerns. It would seem that the true nature of humanity is to assist others who are sick or injured, so it seems strange to have to claim health as a "right." It should be "human nature" rather than a "human right."