Human rights

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Human rights refers to the concept of human beings as having universal rights, or  status, regardless of legal jurisdiction or  other localizing factors, such as ethnicity, nationality, and  sex. As is  evident in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, human rights, at least in the post-war period, are  conceptualized as based on inherent human dignity, retaining their universal and  inalienable character.

The existence, validity and  the content of human rights continue to be the subject to debate in philosophy and  political science. Legally, human rights are  defined in international law and  covenants, and  further, in the domestic laws of many states. However, for many people the doctrine of human rights goes beyond law and  forms a fundamental moral basis for regulating the contemporary geo-political order. For them, they are  democratic ideals.

[edit] Human rights legislation

Where it  has been adopted, human rights legislation commonly contains:

• security rights that protect people against crimes such as murder, massacre, torture and  rape
• liberty rights that protect freedoms in areas such as belief and  religion, association, assembling and  movement
• political rights that protect the liberty to participate in politics by expressing themselves, protesting, participating in a republic
• due process rights that protect against abuses of the legal system such as imprisonment without trial, secret trials and  excessive punishments
• equality rights that guarantee equal citizenship, equality before the law and  nondiscrimination
• welfare rights (also known as economic rights) that require the provision of education and  protections against severe poverty and  starvation
• group rights that provide protection for groups against ethnic genocide and  for the ownership by countries of their national territories and  resources

See International human rights instruments.

[edit] History

 is  not a treaty...[In the future, it] may well become the international Magna Carta." Eleanor Roosevelt with the Spanish text of the Universal Declaration in 1949"> is  not a treaty...[In the future, it] may well become the international Magna Carta." Eleanor Roosevelt with the Spanish text of the Universal Declaration in 1949" width="200" height="158" longdesc="../../../e/l/e/Image%7EEleanorRooseveltHumanRights.gif_06bf.html" />

"It is  not a treaty...[In the future, it] may well become the international Magna Carta."^[1] Eleanor Roosevelt with the Spanish text of the Universal Declaration in 1949

Appalled by the barbarism of the Second World War, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. While not legally binding, it  urged member nations to promote a number of human, civil, economic and  social rights, asserting these rights are  part of the "foundation of freedom, justice and  peace in the world". The declaration was the first international legal effort to limit the behaviour of states and  press upon them duties to their citizens following the model of the rights-duty duality.

Many states wanted to go beyond the declaration of rights and  create legal covenants which would put greater pressure on states to follow human rights norms. Because some states disagreed over whether this international covenant should contain economic and  social rights (which usually require a greater effort to fulfill on the part of individual states), two treaties were prepared.

In 1966 and  1976 respectively, the  and  Political Rights">International Covenant on Civil and  Political Rights and  the  and  Cultural Rights">International Covenant on Economic, Social and  Cultural Rights came into force. With the Universal Declaration of Human Rights these documents form the International bill of rights.

	...recognition of the inherent dignity and  of the equal and  inalienable rights of all members of the human family is  the foundation of freedom, justice and  peace in the world
—Preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948

Since then several other pieces of legislation have  been introduced at the international level:

•  and  Punishment of the Crime of Genocide">Convention on the Prevention and  Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (entry into force: 1951) [1]
• Convention against Torture (entry into force: 1984) [2]
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (entry into force: 1969) [3]
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (entry into force: 1981) [4]
• Convention on the Rights of the Child (entry into force: 1989) [5]
• Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (entry into force: 2002)

With the exception of the non-deformable human rights (the four most important are  the right to life, the right to be free from slavery, the right to be free from torture and  the right to be free from retroactive application of penal laws), the UN recognises that human rights can be limited or  even pushed aside during times of national emergency - although "the emergency must be actual, affect the whole population and  the threat must be to the very existence of the nation. The declaration of emergency must also be a last resort and  a temporary measure" [6]. Conduct in war is  governed by International Humanitarian Law.

[edit] International bodies

The  and  Political Rights">International Covenant on Civil and  Political Rights created an  agency, the Human Rights Committee to promote compliance with its norms. The eighteen members of the committee express opinions as to whether a particular practice is  a human rights violation, although its reports are  not legally binding.

A modern interpretation of the original Declaration of Human Rights was made in the  and  Programme of Action">Vienna Declaration and  Programme of Action adopted by the World Conference on Human Rights in 1993. The degree of unanimity over these conventions, in terms of how many and  which countries have  ratified them varies, as does the degree to which they are  respected by various states. The UN has set up a number of bodies to monitor and  study human rights, under the leadership of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR).

[edit] Regional legislation

There are  also many regional agreements and  organisations governing human rights including the European Court of Human Rights, which is  the only international court with jurisdiction to deal with cases brought by individuals (rather than states); the  and  Peoples' Rights">African Commission on Human and  Peoples' Rights; Inter-American Commission on Human Rights; Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam; Inter-American Court of Human Rights; and  Iran's Defenders of Human Rights Center.

[edit] History of human rights

See also: History of democracy

Ur-Nammu, the king of Ur created what was arguably the first legal codex in ca. 2050 BC. Several other sets of laws were created in Mesopotamia including the Code of Hammurabi, (ca. 1780 BC) which is  one of the best preserved examples of this type of document. it  shows rules and  punishments if those rules are  broken on a variety of matters including women's rights, children's rights and  slave rights.

Cyrus Cylinder

The Persian Empire (Iran) established unprecedented principles of human rights in the 6th century BC under the reign of Cyrus the Great. After his conquest of Babylon in 539 BC, the king issued the Cyrus Cylinder, discovered in 1879 and  recognized by many today as the first human rights document. The cylinder declared that citizens of the empire would be allowed to practice their religious beliefs freely. The cylinder also abolished slavery, so all the palaces of the kings of Persia were built by paid workers in an  era where slaves typically did such work. These two reforms were reflected in the biblical books of Chronicles and  Ezra, which state that Cyrus released the followers of Judaism from slavery and  allowed them to migrate back to their land. The cylinder now lies in the British Museum, and  a replica is  kept at the United Nations headquarters.^{[citation needed]}

Three centuries later, the Mauryan Empire of ancient India established unprecedented principles of civil rights in the 3rd century BC under the reign of Ashoka the Great. After his brutal conquest of Kalinga in circa 265 BC, he felt remorse for what he had done, and  as a result, he adopted Buddhism. From that point, Ashoka, who had been described as "the cruel Ashoka" eventually came to be known as "the pious Ashoka". During his reign, he pursued an  official policy of nonviolence (ahimsa). The unnecessary slaughter or  mutilation of animals was immediately abolished, such as sport hunting and  branding. Ashoka also showed mercy to those imprisoned, allowing them outside one day each year, and  offered the common citizen free education at universities. He treated his subjects as equals regardless of their religion, politics or  caste, and  constructed free hospitals for both humans and  animals. Ashoka defined the main principles of nonviolence, tolerance of all sects and  opinions, obedience to parents, respect for teachers and  priests, being liberal towards friends, humane treatment of servants (slavery was non-existent in India at the time), and  generosity towards all. These reforms are  described in the Edicts of Ashoka.

Elsewhere societies have  located the beginnings of human rights in religious documents. The Vedas, the Bible, the Qur'an and  the Analects of Confucius are  some of the oldest written sources which address questions of people’s duties, rights, and  responsibilities.

In 1215 King John of England issued the Magna Carta, a document forced upon him by the Pope and  English barons, which required him to renounce certain rights, respect certain legal procedures and  accept that the will of the king could be bound by law. Although the document did not itself limit the power of the king in the Middle Ages, its later reinterpretation in the Elizabethean and  Stuart periods established it  as a powerful document on which constitutional law was founded in Britain and  elsewhere.

In 1222, the Manden Charter in Mali was a declaration of essential human rights, including the right to life, and  opposed the practice of slavery.

Several 17th and  18th century European philosophers, most notably John Locke, developed the concept of natural rights, the notion that people possess certain rights by virtue of being human. Though Locke believed natural rights were derived from divinity since humans were creations of God, his ideas were important in the development of the modern notion of rights. Lockean natural rights did not rely on citizenship nor any law of the state, nor were they necessarily limited to one particular ethnic, cultural or  religious group.

U.S. Declaration of Independence ratified by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776

Two major revolutions occurred that century in the United States (1776) and  in France (1789). The United States Declaration of Independence includes concepts of natural rights and  famously states "that all men are  created equal, that they are  endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are  life, liberty and  the pursuit of happiness."

 and  of the Citizen approved by the National Assembly of France, August 26, 1789"> and  of the Citizen approved by the National Assembly of France, August 26, 1789" width="200" height="269" longdesc="../../../d/e/c/Image%7EDeclaration_of_Human_Rights.jpg_c08f.html" />

Declaration of the Rights of Man and  of the Citizen approved by the National Assembly of France, August 26, 1789

Similarly, the  and  of the Citizen">Declaration of the Rights of Man and  of the Citizen defines a set of individual and  collective rights of the people. These are  held to be universal - it  sets forth fundamental rights not only of French citizens but acknowledges these rights to all men without exception.

Philosophers such as Thomas Paine, John Stuart Mill and  Hegel expanded on the theme of universality during the 18th and  19th centuries. In 1831 William Lloyd Garrison wrote in a newspaper called The Liberator that he was trying to enlist his readers in "the great cause of human rights"^[2] so the term human rights probably came into use sometime between Paine's The Rights of Man and  Garrison's publication. In 1849 a contemporary, Henry David Thoreau, wrote about human rights in his treatise On the Duty of Civil Disobedience [7] which was later influential on human rights and  civil rights thinkers. United States Supreme Court Justice Davis Davis, in his 1867 opinion for Ex Parte Milligan, wrote "By the protection of the law, human rights are  secured; withdraw that protection and  they are  at the mercy of wicked rulers or  the clamor of an  excited people."^[3]

Many groups and  movements have  managed to achieve profound social changes over the course of the 20th century in the name of human rights. In Western Europe and  North America, labour unions brought about laws granting workers the right to strike, establishing minimum work conditions and  forbidding or  regulating child labour. The women's rights movement succeeded in gaining for many women the right to vote. National liberation movements in many countries succeeded in driving out colonial powers. One of the most influential was Mahatma Gandhi's movement to free his native India from British rule. Movements by long-oppressed racial and  religious minorities succeeded in many parts of the world, among them the civil rights movement in the United States.

[edit] Philosophy of human rights

[edit] Types of human rights

Human rights are  sometimes divided into  and  positive rights">negative and  positive rights. Negative human rights, which follow mainly from the Anglo-American legal tradition, denote actions that a government should not take. These are  codified in the United States Bill of Rights, the English Bill of Rights and  the  and  Freedoms">Canadian Charter of Rights and  Freedoms and  include right to life and  security of person; freedom from slavery; equality before the law and  due process under the rule of law; freedom of movement; and  freedoms of speech, religion and  assembly.

Positive human rights mainly follow from the Rousseauian Continental European legal tradition and  denote rights that the state is  obliged to protect and  provide. Examples of such rights include: the rights to education, to a livelihood, to legal equality. Positive rights have  been codified in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and  in many 20th-century constitutions.

Another categorization, offered by Karel Vasak, is  that there are  three generations of human rights: first-generation civil and  political rights (right to life and  political participation), second-generation economic, social and  cultural rights (right to subsistence) and  third-generation solidarity rights (right to peace, right to clean environment). Out of these generations, the third generation is  the most debated and  lacks both legal and  political recognition. Some theorists discredit these divisions by claiming that rights are  interconnected. Arguably, for example, basic education is  necessary for the right to political participation.

[edit] Justification of human rights

Several theoretical approaches have  been advanced to explain how human rights become part of social expectations. The biological theory considers the comparative reproductive advantage of human social behavior based on empathy and  altruism in the context of natural selection. Other theories hold that human rights codify moral behavior, which is  a human, social product developed by a process of biological and  social evolution (associated with Hume) or  as a sociological pattern of rule setting (as in the sociological theory of law and  the work of Weber). This approach includes the notion that individuals in a society accept rules from legitimate authority in exchange for security and  economic advantage (as in Rawls).

On the other hand, natural law theories base human rights on the “natural” moral order that derives from religious precepts such as common understandings of justice and  the belief that moral behavior is  a set of objectively valid prescriptions. Some have  used religious texts such as the Bible and  Qur'an to support human rights arguments. However, there are  also more  secular forms of natural law theory that understand human rights as derivative of the notion of universal human dignity.

Yet others have  attempted to construct an  "interests theory" defence of human rights. For example the philosopher John Finnis argues that human rights are  justifiable on the grounds of their instrumental value in creating the necessary conditions for human well-being. Some interest-theorists also justify the duty to respect the rights of other individuals on grounds of self-interest (rather than altruism or  benevolence). Reciprocal recognition and  respect of rights ensures that one's own will be protected.

Ultimately, the term "human rights" is  often itself an  appeal to a transcendent principle, not based on existing legal concepts. The term "humanism" refers to the developing doctrine of such universally applicable values. The term "human rights" has replaced the term "natural rights" in popularity, because the rights are  less and  less frequently seen as requiring natural law for their existence.^[4]

[edit] Criticism of human rights

One of the arguments made against the concept of human rights is  that it  suffers from cultural imperialism. In particular, the concept of human rights is  fundamentally rooted in a politically liberal outlook which, although generally accepted in Western Europe, Japan, India and  North America, is  not necessarily taken as standard elsewhere. an  appeal is  often made to the fact that influential human rights thinkers, such as John Locke and  John Stuart Mill, have  all been Western and  indeed that some were involved in the running of Empires themselves. The cultural imperialism argument achieves even greater potency when it  is made on the basis of religion. Some histories of human rights emphasise the Christian influence on the agenda and  then question whether this is  in keeping with the tenets of other world religions. For example, in 1981, the Iranian representative to the United Nations, Said Rajaie-Khorassani, articulated the position of his country regarding the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by saying that the UDHR was "a secular understanding of the Judeo-Christian tradition", which could not be implemented by Muslims without trespassing the Islamic law.^[5].

Yet, some feel that the cultural imperialism argument is  not entirely factual. While Western political philosophers like Locke, Hobbes and  Mill made important contributions to the development of modern notions of human rights, the concept of human rights itself has origins in many world cultures and  religions, including Christian, Jewish and  Islamic traditions. Additionally, this argument leads to absolute relativism if taken too far. If all viewpoints and  moral frameworks are  equally valid then one cannot condemn any behaviour, however outrageous or  horrific. In practice, human rights offer a basis to criticise such behavior or  conduct, including imperialism. As such, human rights can be a transformative tool for self-determination.

One way out of the cultural imperialism and  relativism debate is  to argue that the body of human rights exists in a hierarchy or  can undergo derogation. The relationship between different rights is  complex since it  can be argued that some are  mutually reinforcing or  supportive. For example, political rights, such as the right to hold office, cannot be fully exercised without other social and  cultural pre-requisites, such as a decent education. Whether the latter should therefore be included as a first-generation right is  a debated point.

Matthias Storme has stated that he sees little difference between the theocracy of Iran, and  the human rights of West Europe, because they interfere with personal freedom. He also stated that the right to discriminate is  a fundamental human right. ^[6]

Another important philosophical criticism of human rights is  their presumed basis in morality. If moral beliefs are  fundamentally expressions of individuals' personally held preferences then the objective morality upon which human rights are  founded is  rejected. Richard Rorty has argued that human rights are  not based upon the exercise of reason but a sentimental vision of humanity (even though he does support human rights in law on the basis of interests theory). Alasdair MacIntyre has written that a belief in rights is  on a par with "belief in witches and  unicorns"^[7]. But without care this criticism can become an  apology for all behaviour as it  aligns closely with moral relativism. it  offends some by claiming that moral beliefs are  personally held preferences and  that there are  no objective criterion to deduce valid moral beliefs from.

A final set of debating points revolves around the question of who has the duty to uphold human rights. Human rights have  historically arisen from the need to protect citizens from abuse by the state and  this might suggest that all mankind has a duty to intervene and  protect people wherever they are. Divisive national loyalties, which emphasise differences between people rather than their similarities, can thus be seen as a destructive influence on the human rights movement because they deny people's innately similar human qualities^[8]. But others argue that state sovereignty is  paramount, not least because it  is often the state that has signed up to human rights treaties in the first place. Commentators' positions in the argument for and  against intervention and  the use of force by states are  influenced by whether they believe human rights are  largely a legal or  moral duty and  whether they are  of more  cosmopolitan or  nationalist persuasion.

[edit] Violations of human rights

Human rights Violation is  abuse of people in a way that it  abuses any fundamental human rights. it  is a term used when a government violates national or  international law related to the protection of human rights.

According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, fundamental human rights are  violated when, among other things:

• A certain race, creed, or  group is  denied recognition as a "person". (Article 2)
• Men and  women are  not treated as equal. (Article 2)
• Different racial or  religious groups are  not treated as equal. (Article 2)
• Life, liberty or  security of person are  threatened. (Article 3)
• A person is  sold as or  used as a slave. (Article 4)
•  and  unusual punishment">Cruel, inhuman or  degrading punishment is  used on a person (such as torture or  execution). (Article 5) (See also Prisoners' rights)
• Punishments are  dealt arbitrarily or  unilaterally, without a proper and  fair trial. (Article 11)
• Arbitrary interference into personal, or  private lives by agents of the state. (Article 12)
• Citizens are  forbidden to leave or  return to their country. (Article 13)
• Freedom of speech or  religion are  denied. (Articles 18 & 19)
• The right to join a trade union is  denied. (Article 23)
• Education is  denied. (Article 26)

[edit] Monitoring

Human rights violations and  abuses include those documented by non-governmental organizations such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Freedom House, International Freedom of Expression Exchange and  Anti-Slavery International.

Only a very few countries do not commit significant human rights violations, according to Amnesty International. In their 2004 human rights report (covering 2003) the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Iceland and  Costa Rica are  the only (mappable) countries that did not violate at least some human rights significantly.^{[citation needed]}

Some people believe human rights abuses are  more common in dictatorships or  theocracies than in democracies because freedom of speech and  freedom of the press tend to uncover state orchestrated abuse and  expose it. Nonetheless human rights abuses do occur in democracies. For example, the Macpherson report found that the British police had been institutionally racist in the handling of the death of Stephen Lawrence. Also Amnesty International has called the running of Guantanamo Bay detainment camp by the United States "a human rights scandal" in a series of reports [8].

In over 90 countries National human rights institutions (NHRIs)^[9] have  been set up to protect, promote or  monitor human rights in a given country. There are  now over 90 such bodies. Not all of them are  compliant with the United Nations standards as set out in the 1993 Paris Principles, but the amount and  effect of these institutions is  increasing.

HURIDOCS has developed extensive methodologies for monitoring and  documenting human rights violations, and  more resources can be found at Human Rights Tools.

[ and  multilateral organizations">edit] Non-governmental and  multilateral organizations

• Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN)
• Amnesty International
• Ansar Burney Trust
• Bahrain Centre for Human Rights
• ARTICLE 19
• Carter Center
• Forum 18
• Freedom House
• Human Rights Watch
• Imagine-Life
• International Freedom of Expression Exchange
• International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights
• International Service for Human Rights
• Defenders of Human Rights Center
• Liberty (pressure group)
• Memorial
• Montagnard Foundation
• Network Against Prohibition
• Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
• Peace Brigades International
• Prisoners Overseas
• Southern Poverty Law Center
• US Human Rights Network
• Speak Truth to Power
• Robert F. Kennedy Memorial

[edit] Notes

AsiaRights Journal [9]

[edit] See also

• Human rights portal

[edit] References

• Steiner, Henry J. & Alston, Philip. (1996). International Human Rights in Context: Law, Politics, Morals. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-825437-X
• Donnelly, Jack. (2003). Universal Human Rights in Theory & Practice. 2nd ed. Ithaca & London: Cornell University Press.
• Forsythe, David P. (2000). Human Rights in International Relations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Ignatieff, Michael. Human Rights as Politics and  Idolatry. Princeton & Oxford: Princeton University Press.
• Landman, Todd (2006) Studying Human Rights, Oxford and  London: Routledge ISBN 0-415-32605-2
• Shute, Stephen & Hurley, Susan (eds.). (1993). On Human Rights: The Oxford Amnesty Lectures. New York: BasicBooks.
• Sunga, Lyal S. (1992) Individual Responsibility in International Law for Serious Human Rights Violations, Nijhoff Publishers.

[edit] External links

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• National Human Rights Institutions Forum - Official Portal for the Global network of National Human Rights Institutions.
• Human Rights Quarterly
• United Nations- Universal Declaration of Human Rights
• United Nations- Human Rights
• Better World Links Biggest Link List on Human Rights
• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy entry
• University of Minnesota Human Rights Library - Over 23,000 documents and  4,000 links
• University of Minnesota Human Rights Resource Center - Creating and  distributing Human Rights Education (HRE) resources, training activists, professionals, and  students & building advocacy networks
• International Freedom of Expression Exchange - Monitoring censorship around the world
• Human Rights Reports from the United Nations by Inner City Press, accredited media at the UN
• Human Rights News Headlines by NewsXS - Aggregated news and  RSS feed
• Survivor bashing - bias motivated hate crimes
• Human Rights Video Project - NVR's Program in Public Libraries
• Human Rights and  Peace Store
• This is  My Home: A Minnesota Human Rights Education Experience - Human rights curriculum and  activities
• The Human Rights in Mime
• Diplomacy Monitor - Human Rights
• Comparative Analysis of Human Rights
• Human Rights Issues
• Tamil human rights news portal
• Media Helping Media Discussion forum for international media in transition and  post-conflict states.
• IPS Inter Press Service News on human rights from around the world
• Human Rights Tribune - A critical and  independent reporting resource on human rights in the world.

[edit] Human rights organizations

• Derechos
• Pastoral dos Direitos Humanos da Igreja Pentecostal e Apostólica Missão Jesus

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