-An article by Lavanya Goinka
“All human rights for all” and “the world is one family” are two concepts that rely on a broader understanding of human rights to provide human dignity for every individual in the global community.
Since the rudimentary form of human society was established, the topic of fundamental human rights has been relevant. “All human rights for all” and “the world is one family” are two concepts that rely on a broader understanding of human rights to provide human dignity for every individual in the global community.
Since the rudimentary form of human society was established, the topic of fundamental human rights has been relevant. Because it draws from ancient to contemporary ideologies in response to the horrible events of World War II, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a foundational document in the modern history of human rights.
What are human rights, exactly?
There is no scientific meaning for the word “human right.” These are inalienable moral claims that all human beings have just by virtue of their existence. These claims have been formalised and represented in what we now call human rights, which have been translated into constitutional/legal rights established through state/society law-making processes, both domestically and internationally.
“Inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled solely by virtue of being human,” is how human rights are frequently defined. As a result, human rights are regarded as universal (that is, they apply to everyone) and egalitarian (meaning they are the same for everyone). Human rights refers to both old civil and political rights as well as newly formed modern economic, social, and cultural rights.
Human dignity is inextricably tied to the concept of human rights. “All of the human rights are drawn from the essential concept of human dignity, worth inherited in the human being,” the World Conference on Human Rights, held in Vienna in 1993, noted in its Declaration. The human individual is at the centre of human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
Classification of human rights
Civil and political rights (human rights of 1st generation)
Human dignity is intimately associated with the concept of human rights. “All human rights are drawn from the essential concept of human dignity, worth inherited in the human being,” the World Conference on Human Rights, which took place in Vienna in 1993, noted in its Declaration. The human individual is at the heart of human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
Economic, social, and cultural rights (human rights of 2nd generation)
Western capitalist countries are associated with civil and political rights (eg. the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and France). Human rights, on the other hand, are defined by socialist nations as those that are based on the harmony of individual and community interests in a communist society. Economic and social rights were born as a result of the 1917 Russian Revolution and the 1919 Paris Peace Conference. These rights gained attention with the rise of socialism in the twentieth century.
These second-generation rights are beneficial in that they compel nations to take appropriate measures to protect them.
For example, the right to adequate food, clothing, and housing, as well as the right to a good quality of life, are all rights. The right to work, the right to social security, the right to decent physical and mental health, and the right to education are all part of it. Human life will be jeopardised without these rights.
The International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights recognises these rights.
Relationship between two generations of human rights: Despite the fact that the UN recognises the two sets of rights in two different Covenants, they have a close relationship. It has been rightly recognised that all types of rights are equally important, and that economic, social, and cultural rights cannot be completely realised without civil and political rights, and vice versa.
Global dynamics preceding the drafting of Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Despite the fact that theological, philosophical, and political underpinnings of human rights intersected early on, giving a varied range of opinions critical to the establishment of civil liberty as a concept, no global baseline for human rights was established until the end of World War I. In 1919, the Treaty of Versailles established the League of Nations and the International Labour Organization, two of the first international organisations dedicated to achieving peace and advancing social justice.
‘Fair and humane labour conditions,’ ‘just treatment,’ especially for persons from historically colonial countries and members of minority groups,’ and ‘freedom of conscience and religion,’ according to the League of Nations Covenant.
Despite efforts to include sections on racial equality and non-discrimination, the concept of international human rights protection was never thoroughly reviewed or recognised by the international community.
At its meeting in New York in 1929, the Institut de Droit International (Institute of International Law), a well-respected international law institution, wrote and adopted the Declaration of the International Rights of Man. This accord said that “every individual, regardless of ethnicity, gender, language, or religion, has equal rights to life, liberty, and property.”
Surprisingly, the outbreak of World War II and its countless casualties aroused more attention to the issue of human rights. Between 1939 and 1945, WWII killed about 60 million people, including both allied and axis soldiers and civilians, making it the bloodiest conflict in human history. Among the horrors performed during and after the Holocaust were sexual violence, forced labour, mass bombings, and human experimentation.
The world community pledged to strengthen international collaboration to avoid future crimes against humanity with the ‘Never Again’ promise. One of the first important humanitarian reactions to the terrible struggle was given by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. He introduced the Four Freedoms in January 1941, which recognise the fundamental liberties to which all people are entitled, including freedom of expression, religion, lack of want, and lack of fear, as well as the “supremacy of human rights worldwide.”
Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms had such an impact that they were included in the preambles to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other key human rights declarations.
In January 1942, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, China, and 22 other countries signed the United Nations Declaration. In April 1945, a group of countries, including Panama, Chile, South Africa, and Mexico, proposed including human rights provisions in the UN Charter, and as a result, the UN Charter now mentions the promotion of “respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms that are guaranteed to each and every individual in the world,” as well as the creation of a Commission on Human Rights under the Economic and Social Council.
About the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
As previously stated, the concept of inalienable rights and fundamental freedoms is not new; yet, the social and political environment of the mid-twentieth century was distinctive and had a lasting impact on the evolution of human rights. The concept of human rights was forced to alter at a period when society was undergoing substantial changes. Following WWII’s end, the Holocaust unavoidably brought human rights issues to the fore, bringing them to the fore in the postwar age.
The United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Statement of Human Rights (UDHR), which is an international declaration that establishes all human beings’ rights and freedoms. After being written by a UN committee led by Eleanor Roosevelt, it was adopted by the General Assembly on December 10, 1948, at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris, France. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a cornerstone text in the history of human and civil rights, with 30 articles. The rights are enshrined in the constitutions and national legislation of many countries, notwithstanding the fact that the declaration is not legally binding.
The International Bill of Human Rights is made up of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights with its two Optional Protocols, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights with its Optional Protocol.
Every year on December 10th, the anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, World Human Rights Day is commemorated.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ legality
The Universal Declaration does not impose any legal obligations on states because it is not a treaty. It is, however, a statement of universal values shared by all members of the international community, and it has influenced the development of international human rights law.
Furthermore, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights has spawned a slew of international treaties that bind countries who ratify them. These are some of them:
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)
The International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR)
Other legally binding agreements that expand on the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights include:
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, 1965
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, 1979
The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 1984
The Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, 2006
