The Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), on Wednesday expressed worry about the alarming rate of human rights abuses and domestic violence in the country.

The Commission is therefore designing a national Human Right Action Plan that will promote long-term prevention of the phenomenon.

Mr Joseph Whittal, Director of Legal and Investigations of the Commission made this known at the graduation ceremony for 72 final year students of the Nurses Training College in Sunyani, after a nine week training course on basic human rights.

The trainees were taken through various human rights and integrity lessons including introduction to fundamental human rights, human rights and national instruments and further understanding of human rights: theory and practice.

Other topics discussed were human rights in the health profession, rights and responsibilities in the work environment and human rights in the domestic arena.

Mr Whittal said, CHRAJ had introduced the course in health training institutions to, among other things, empower trainees to promote and protect the rights and freedoms of patients as well as the vulnerable in the society.

Currently the Commission is undertaking a national baseline survey on all forms of human right abuses to facilitate the plan, which would also be supported by a Legislative Instrument.

The CHRAJ director emphasised that, the rate of reports about human rights abuses and all forms of domestic violence called for a new approach, whereby human rights, values and principles would be given the needed attention.

These values, he said, include the right to safe and clean living environment with clean water, adequate housing, nutrition, social security and education as well as the right to expect and demand quality healthcare.

“The enjoyment of the right to health, which is fundamental, and on which the right to live largely depends, will be meaningless unless there is a mutual understanding between patients and healthcare providers,” the CHRAJ director stated.

Mr Whittal said it was against this background that the Commission had decided to extend its promotional activities to healthcare providers by introducing the basic human rights course to equip students in health training institutions.

He explained that having piloted the programme in the Central Region for the past six years, the Commission decided to replicate it in other regions to, among other objectives, help instil the culture of respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms in public institutions.

Madam Halimatu Nuhu, Regional Director of CHRAJ, expressed appreciation to the staff and students of the college for their commitment to the programme.

She advised the participants to utilise the knowledge they had acquired to bring positive change at their job places.

Madam Felicia Frema Atobra, a representative of the trainees, thanked CHRAJ for the course and expressed the hope that the programme would be extended to basic and second cycle educational institutions.

Certificates of merit were presented to 60 of the participants who excelled at the course.**