Universalism implies
the empowerment of people. It protects all
basic human rights-economic and social
as well as civil and political-and it holds that the right to food is as sacrosanct as the
right to vote. It demands non-discrimination
between all people, irrespective of
gender, religion, race or ethnic origin. And
it focuses directly on human beings-respecting
national sovereignty but only as
long as nation-states respect the human
rights of their own people.