The Working Group and the Steering Committee of SPA were impressed by the
lawyers' "Basic Principles". However, they knew that the archival profession did not
need to develop a statement that would have the sweep of the lawyers' document,
which aimed to cover the entire activities of the profession. Nor did they want to
supplant the International Council on Archives' Code of Ethics or deviate from the
ICA Principles of Access. Rather, they wanted to develop a statement that would
reflect on the three principal archival functions—appraisal and acquisition,
arrangement and description, and access and reference-as they relate to human
rights. The drafters also wanted the document to provide support for archivists
confronting special problems, such as handling records that may provide evidence of
crime or managing displaced archives. And they wanted to incorporate support for
archivists as professionals and professional organizations. After a first draft and
several revisions, the paper was shared with the Working Group and further
revisions made.
The current draft "Basic Principles on the Role of Archivists in Support of Human
Rights" is organized in two sections: a preamble and a set of principles, following the
structure of the "Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers". The preamble provides the
background for the principles, referring to United Nations documents, civil society
statements, and archival precepts. The principles, 23 paragraphs in all, are grouped
in six sections. The first two sections cover the basic archival functions; the third
covers the special situations of displaced archives and of archives that appear to
document violations of human rights; the fourth through sixth sections are devoted
to the roles and rights of archivists as professionals.
The "Basic Principles" are now under review within the International Council on
Archives. They will be published for worldwide comment, and after that they will
surely change—amended, reduced, expanded—before they become a final document.
When all the review and revision is completed, the ICA as a body will decide whether
to adopt the "Basic Principles". If it does, then the International Council on
Archives should consider submitting the "Basic Principles" to the United Nations
Human Rights Commission, asking it to recommend (a) that governments respect
the "Basic Principles" and take them into account within the framework of their
national legislation and practice; (b) that non-governmental institutions employing
archivists respect the "Basic Principles" and apply them, as appropriate, within their
institution, and (c) that all United Nations Special Rapporteurs and other
international officials dealing with human rights issues be made aware of the
importance of the issues discussed in the "Basic Principles".
No document, however, well written, can ensure that archives with importance for
human rights will be preserved, protected, professionally managed, and made
available. But a statement such as the "Basic Principles" is crucially important to
reinforce the capacity of archivists to manage records with significance for human
rights, to urge governments and nongovernmental institutions alike to provide the
resources required to enhance the performance of the archivists, and to integrate
archives into all human rights projects. When developing strategies for supporting
human rights, archives and archivists are not a luxury: they are a necessity.
Basic Principles of the Role of Archivists in Support of Human Rights
DRAFT -January 2014
Whereas the Universal Declaration of Human Rights establishes principles
of respect for the dignity of people that can be effectively supported by the use of
archives,
Whereas Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights declares that
everyone has the right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through
any media and regardless of frontiers,
Whereas governments have the responsibility to promote and protect the right to
seek and receive information as a fundamental prerequisite to ensuring public
participation in governance,
Whereas the Joint Declaration by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on
Freedom of Opinion and Expression, the Organization for Security and Cooperation
in Europe's Representative on Freedom of the Media, and the Organization of
American States' Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression on 6 December 2004
states, "The right to access information held by public authorities is a fundamental
human right",
Whereas the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights' Updated Set of
Principles to Combat Impunity asserts that itis responsibility of the State to "ensure
the preservation of, and access to, archives concerning violations of human rights
and humanitarian law"; proclaims that the right to know, including knowing what
is in archives, is both a personal and collective right and that the state has a duty to
remember; and emphasizes the importance of archives in ensuring that persons
will be held accountable while guaranteeing the fair defense of everyone charged
with a penal offense,
Whereas the Global Principles on National Security and the Right to Information
(Tshwane Principles) emphasize the importance of archives, declaring that
governments should not be permitted to withhold information that would enable
victims of human rights violations to seek and obtain a remedy for their violations,
Whereas the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
affirms that indigenous peoples have the right to maintain, protect and develop the
past, present and future manifestations of their cultures, including their archives,
Whereas the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
declares that persons with disabilities are entitled, on an equal basis with others,
to recognition and support of their specific cultural and linguistic identity,
Whereas the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child declares that
children have the freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of
all kinds, through the media of the child's choice,
Whereas adequate protection of the human rights and fundamental freedom to
which all persons are entitled, be they economic, social and cultural, or civil and
political, requires that all persons have effective access to archival services provided
by independent archival professionals,
Whereas the archival profession commits to respect the dignity of people in its best
practices,
Whereas professional associations of archives have a vital role to play in upholding
professional standards and ethics, providing archival services to all in need of them,
and cooperating with governmental and other institutions in furthering the ends
of justice and the public interest,
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