Dreams of Peace and Freedom
At a time when human rights and international law feel particularly precarious, I had the privilege of being invited to the preview of a new performance at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Dreams of Peace and Freedom commemorates the work David Maxwell Fyfe, the Edinburgh-born drafter of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The script, songs, and accompanying imagery are the work of Sue Casson which she performs alongside Lily and David Blackmore, the great grandchildren of Maxwell Fyfe.
Through statements and reflections from Maxwell Fyfe’s speeches, commentary, letters exchanged with his (rather formidable) wife Sylvia Harrison, the tone and vision for the rule of law and the rights of all of this Conservative MP and Lord Chancellor, lead architect and prosecutor at the Nuremberg War Crimes trials are set out in song, images, and voice.
In musing that “our laws are not static any more than our society or human nature are static. Their roots, well grounded in history and watered by wisdom are constantly putting out fresh branches and leaves for the comfort of all people“, Maxwell Fyfe’s reflections remind us that social realities change, but what must remain constant is the right to dignity and respect for all.
Meanwhile, it seems that Maxwell Fyfe’s reminder is necessary as we have seen non-peaceful attacks on migrants and other racialised groups increasing, as evidenced in the last few days across Scotland, and the rights to peace and freedom of many other people are increasingly marginalised. In the last few weeks, the Scottish Human Rights Commission has written to Police Scotland warning of potential human rights violations in the policing of peaceful protestors.
The performance traces Maxwell Fyfe’s family heritage as victims of the Highland Clearances, through to his professional rise to Lord Chancellor and lead prosecutor at the Nuremberg trials and then architect of the ECHR. This all resonates with the current work of the SHRC including exposing gaps in economic, social and cultural rights in the modern day Highlands and Islands of Scotland and the current and enduring treatment of Scottish Gypsy Travellers; our timely engagement with the criminal justice system and Police Scotland that policing protests must demonstrate proportionate actions; and that prisoners are entitled to know their rights and exercise them through transparent and effective complaints processes within a wider system of accessible justice.
At the global level, his desire for lasting peace and a commitment to never return to levels of past brutalities remains as out of reach as ever.
Rather than be despondent at the failures of rights realisation at this 75th anniversary, I will take heart from the vision of a politician and lawyer who despite his political leanings and high social position, claimed the value of a rights-based approach to law and public policy as the way to secure rights and freedoms in everyday life. I hope more politicians of all parties can learn from our history of rights in law and practice, rooted in the values demonstrated by Maxwell Fyfe, and commit to the enduring value of the ECHR and the institutions it has seeded.