Criticism has peculiar moral values, some say. Let’s face it – taking a comment made against you is not an easy thing to do.
Sometimes you would rather fi re a stinging comment right back than bite the bullet or endure the unpleasant feeling.
Criticism can be a form of communication. It is one way of providing you with a feedback or giving you an honest opinion about something you said or did. It could also advise you on how to do your work or perform it better.
To act or respond rationally when criticisms are fi red at you requires a lot of patience and a good understanding of the person or people criticising.
Also, not all criticisms are bad anyway. Most are good and even if they are bad, they are not the “worst thing that has ever happened”. In the business world, criticism is often used to better products or service rendered to customers. We refer to this as ‘consumer feedback’ or “complaint”.
When we undergo a professional training our opinions are often sought. We are asked to rate the quality of the training content, its delivery and the method used. We give our opinions on how to improve things like food and venue. We refer to these criticisms as “evaluation.”
They help professional trainers improve their performance so that your learning environment is improved next time around. Criticisms are also constructive, which means they may help you achieve “better or bigger” things. They force you to seriously think about your weaknesses, with the objective of making a decisive shift towards making needed adjustments.
When you are judged, it does not necessarily mean you are the big bad wolf and everything about you is bad. It could mean you need to simply “pull up your socks”, consider your priorities, use time well or change your processes.
Criticism is part of the development and learning process. No baker gets the perfect cake on the first day of baking. No chef cooks the most tantalising dish on day one and even professional gymnasts don’t always score the perfect 10. They all go through periods of being told “you are not doing things right”.
Many public icons and successful people in the world today were once told “you are not good enough and you will never make it”. But they took criticisms made against them and things pointed out about them, and made the resolute choice to do better.
They were unflinching in their quest to improve their situation. They would never have said “I don’t care about what you just said” or “Too bad! That’s just the way I am” or “Just look at you first.
How dare you judge me!” When we are told we have a problem or if we face disapproval that we feel is uncomfortable, we may feel “attacked” and may say or do something we may regret later on. The secret is asking some serious questions that matter – Where did I go wrong? How can I correct the situation?
What do I need to do? And if you feel you are indeed in the wrong, it is prudent to first accept that you’ve made a mistake. Say sorry and move on. If you don’t admit to your mistake, you cannot progress and you will always be trapped in your web of unaddressed problems.
This week the media has been kept busy with news about the content of the United States Department of State 2020 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Fiji.
Significant human rights issues highlighted in the report include: cases of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, in some cases leading to death; restrictions on free expression, such as substantial interference with the right of peaceful assembly; and trafficking in persons.
The report noted, among other things, that while government investigated some security force officials who committed human rights abuses, it said impunity remained a problem in the security forces in some politically connected cases.
The 2020 report said the Constitution and the Public Order Act provided immunity from prosecution for members of the security forces for any deaths or injuries arising from the use of force deemed necessary to enforce public order. It claimed Fijian authorities used the POA’s wide provisions to restrict freedom of expression and association.
It noted the Fiji Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Commission “declined to address politically sensitive human rights matters and typically took the government’s side in public statements”. This it said have led observers to “assess the FHRADC as pro-government”.
Commission director Ashwin Raj said he would respond once certain parts in the report were first clarified. Some journalists have publically rebuked the US report and typically taken government’s side. They have missed the opportunity to carry out their democratic and moral responsibility to question and hold government accountable.
And in doing so, they have done a great disservice to ordinary citizens who depend on the media as a mechanism for promoting the human rights agenda and questioning authorities for any human rights breaches. It is important that we treat the contents of the US report as “positive criticisms”.
We cannot purposely disregard its contents and bury our heads in the sand like the ostrich, thinking that ignoring truths and pretending not seeing our wrong will improve our situation. Ignoring our mistakes and thinking they will magically disappear is absurd and naïve. It will work to the detriment of all Fijians, especially the most vulnerable, poor and disadvantaged among us.
The US report, by no means, makes America free from cases of human rights abuses. In fact, no country in the world has a clean slate but what makes a country truly democratic is how it deals with human rights abuses.
The US report tells us that America is committed to the enjoyment of human rights in the world and is concerned when leaders fail in their duty to promote and protect them. It also shows to us that, as a good global citizen, human rights forms a central part of US foreign policy and “unchecked human rights anywhere in the world can contribute to a sense of impunity everywhere”.
The 2020 report is particularly important for all global citizens because it contains some of the human rights breaches experienced in the world against a backdrop of challenges we all faced as a result of COVID-19. It tells us that the pandemic resulted in unprecedented health and economic problems the world over and impacted many of our human rights and fundamental freedoms. Furthermore, the concern is that some governments may use the crisis as a “pretext to restrict rights and consolidate authoritarian rule”.
The onus is on our government to identify what must be done to address human rights issues highlighted in the US report and demonstrate that it possesses the political will to see it done to ensure we live in a Fiji that is stable, peaceful and prosperous.
Until we meet on this same page same time next week, stay blessed, stay healthy and stay safe!
