‘Human rights in decline in US’

International lawyer Barry Grossman says human rights in the United States always Å“take a back seat to national security.”

Å“Human rights are becoming a little more than a rhetorical framework, a lip service to liberal ideas in public policy debates,” he said in a phone interview with Press TV on Sunday.

Å“The security apparatus on the other hand remains completely impervious to public opinion,” he added.

Grossman made the comments as Amnesty International has said it is Å“deeply concerned” about US spying activities and has urged President Barack Obama to consider Å“human rights” when introducing reforms to government spying programs.

In an open letter on January 9, Amnesty International said Obama should Å“put human rights at the center of U.S. policy” in order to ensure real reform.

Grossman noted that, Å“national security has been in the ascendancy for some years now and human rights are correspondently in decline.”

The content of national security in America has been expanded to embrace an ever-broadening range of covert and illegal activities from eavesdropping to commercial espionage and targeted killing, he said.

President Obama has indicated to members of Congress that he plans to seek little change in a controversial National Security Agency program which collects masses of raw data on the telephone calls of Americans, Reuters reported.

Grossman said the NSA, which operates Å“behind the curtain of national security” is Å“completely unaccountable to public opinion and even political oversight.”

Å“There is really no intent for politicians to challenge the supremacy of the security apparatus.”

HJ/HJ

Source: Press TV