Human

Rights
- The basic rights and
freedom for all

International
Union of
Socialist
Youth

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 PART 1 - Preface
He aha te mea nui o te ao?
Maku e ki ana: he tangata, he tangata, he tangata.
(If you were to ask me: What is the most important thing in the world?
I would reply it is the people, people, people.
- Maori proverb

As members of the International Union of Socialist Youth, we are joined

in our common belief in social justice and that a better world is not only
possible but also needed. We all have a part of making that change pos-
sible, like many social democrats before us were.

We recognize that the violations of human rights lead to conflicts both

nationally and internationally. And believe that people always prevail op-
pression in the end. Human rights of all mankind need to be protected
and respected regardless of economic benefits or political opinions. The
market is an excellent slave but a poor master and we carry that insight
of us as we struggle for solidarity, freedom and social justice all over the
world. We recognize that the United Nations is the most important glo-
bal political arena and that it needs to be reformed to better respond to
the needs of today. It is a necessary step in strengthening the role of the
Untied Nations and with that the respect for human rights in the world.

Understanding Human Rights

- A short presentation
The first question one might ask oneself is what is meant by human
rights?
And what is your personal definition of human right?
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 The short answer could be that they are universal legal guarantees pro-
tecting individuals and groups against action, which interfere with fun-
damental freedoms and human dignity. Human rights are designed to
protect human beings from atrocities. A way to distinguish a human right
is to look at the characteristics of the rule that is set up for a human right,
which are:

They are internationally guaranteed;

They are legally protected at the international or national level;
They focused on the dignity of the human being;
They protect individuals and groups;
They obligate States and State actors;
They cannot be waived or taken away;
They are equal and interdependent.

There are three most important characteristics of human rights:

1. Human rights are inalienable. This means that you cannot lose them,
because they are linked to the very fact of human existence. However,
they can be restricted.

2. They are indivisible. This means that different human rights connected
and cannot be viewed isolated from each other. The enjoyment of one
right depends on the enjoyment of many other rights and no right is
more important than the rest.

3. They are universal. This means that they apply equally to all people
everywhere in the world.

Human rights are like armour: they protect you; they are like rules, be-
cause they tell you how you can behave; and they are like judges, because
you can appeal to them. They are abstract - like emotions; they belong to
everyone and they exist no matter what happens.

They are like nature because they can be violated; and like the spirit be-
cause they cannot be destroyed. Like time, they treat us all in the same
way - rich and poor, old and young, white and black, tall and short. They
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 offer us respect, and they charge us to treat others with respect. Like
goodness, truth and justice, we disagree about their definition, but we
recognize them when we see them.

History
So, the next natural questions would be:
Why do we have human rights?
How were they decided upon?

Throughout history, states or groups have subjected individuals to atroci-

ties. After the latest world war the international community vowed to
never let the same atrocities happen again. Human dignity had to be
protected, against other states and within the state as well. These circum-
stances led to the establishment of the United Nations.

The most important accomplishment that the United Nations was the es-
tablishment of the United Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which
the United Nations General Assembly adopted on the 10th of December
1948. The document was the first of its kind to have a universal mean-
ing due to its broad international support. Regardless of the fact that
the 58 member states belonged to different ideologies and had different
economical situation, they still choose to agree on the same document.
And with that the same rights that had to be protected. The UDHR rec-
ognizes that the inherent dignity of all members of the human family
is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world.

In order to get the vast majority of countries to accept the UDHR they
had to make it a non-binding declaration. The implementation of it was
done through the name and shame method. And the method proved
successful. Later on two binding documents were created to legally bind
the states to the rights agreed upon in the UDHR:

The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

(1966)
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966)

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 The ICCPR and the ICESCR are legally binding on the states that have
signed them while the UDHR is only morally binding. The UDHR,
ICCPR and the ICESCR together constitute the International Bill of
Human Rights. The UDHR continued inspired a large number of sub-
sequent human rights instruments, which together constitute the interna-
tional law of human rights. Amongst the most important examples are
International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Dis-
crimination (1965) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
of Discrimination against Women (1979

The Development of Human Rights

Have the human rights developed over time?
What kind of human rights are there?

The First-generation human rights deal essentially with liberty and par-
ticipation in political life. They are fundamentally civil and political in
nature, and protect the individual from abuse of power from the state.
First-generation rights include the freedom of speech, the right to a fair
trial, freedom of religion, and voting rights. They were first written in the
UDHR and given status in international law in Articles 3 to 21 of the
declaration, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The Second-generation human rights are related to equality and social

justice and are fundamentally social, economic, and cultural in nature.
They ensure all human beings equal conditions and treatment. Rights
included are the right to be employed, rights to housing and health care,
as well as social security and unemployment benefits. They were also in-
cluded in the UDHR and later in the International Covenant on Eco-
nomic, Social, and Cultural Rights.

The third-generation human rights are those rights that go beyond the
mere civil and social, as expressed in many progressive documents of
international law, also referred to as solidarity laws. They concern politi-
cal issued that due to the present-day have been hard to enact in legally
binding documents such as the right to environment and peace.

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 Other examples of the third-generation rights are:

- Group and collective rights

- Right to self-determination
- Right to economic and social development
- Right to a healthy environment
- Right to natural resources
- Right to communicate and communication rights
- Right to participation in cultural heritage
- Rights to intergenerational equity and sustainability

The Hierarchy of Human Rights

Human rights have been established through different binding interna-
tional legislation and mainly from:

- Treaty law
- Customary international law.

Treaty law
Includes the human rights law that are written in different treaties (both
bilaterally or multilaterally) and signed by States, thus making them le-
gally binding. Amongst such treaties are ICCPR and ICESCR, which
have been mentioned before.

Customary international law

Is a part of international law that develops through a general and con-
sistent practice of States, followed because of a sense of legal obligation
when in fact it is more a moral obligation. Some are so important that
they can not be overruled by other laws and they are often called jus co-
gens. In other words, if over a period of time States perform in a certain
way because they all believe that they are required to do so, that behav-
iour comes to be recognized as a principle of international law, binding
on States, even if not written in a particular agreement. Thus, for exam-
ple, while the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is not, in itself, a
binding instrument, certain provisions of the Declaration are considered
to have the character of customary international law.
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 These instruments are not themselves legally binding on States. Never-
theless, they have moral force and provide practical guidance to States in
their conduct. The value of such instruments rests on their recognition
and acceptance by a large number of States and, even without binding
legal effect, they may be seen as declaratory of principles that are broadly
accepted by the international community.

What customary laws can you think of ?

What comes first, treaties or customary law?
Is customary law really binding?

THE UDHR- Preamble

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inal-
ienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of
freedom, justice and peace in the world,
Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in bar-
barous acts, which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the
advent of a world, in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech
and belief and freedom from fear and has been proclaimed as the highest
aspiration of the common people,
Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse,
as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human
rights should be protected by the rule of law,
Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations
between nations,
Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaf-
firmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth
of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and
have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life
in larger freedom,
Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-oper-
ation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and
observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,
Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the
greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,
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 Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNI-
VERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common
standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that
every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration con-
stantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote re-
spect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national
and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and
observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and
among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

Article 1: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards
one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2: Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in
this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex,
language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin,
property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made
on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the
country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independ-
ent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Article 3: Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

Article 4: No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the

slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

Article 5: No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or

degrading treatment or punishment.

Article 6: Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person

before the law.

Article 7: All are equal before the law and are entitled without any dis-
crimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal pro-
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 tection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and
against any incitement to such discrimination.

Article 8: Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent

national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him
by the constitution or by law.

Article 9: No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

Article 10: Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing
by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his
rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.

Article 11: (1) Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be
presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at
which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
(2) No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act
or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or
international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier
penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal
offence was committed.

Article 12: No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his

privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his hon-
our and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law
against such interference or attacks.

Article 13: (1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and resi-
dence within the borders of each state. (2) Everyone has the right to leave
any country, including his own, and to return to his country.

Article 14: (1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other coun-
tries asylum from persecution. (2) This right may not be invoked in the
case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from
acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.
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 Article 15: (1) Everyone has the right to a nationality. (2) No one shall be
arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his
nationality.

Article 16: (1) Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to
race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family.
They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at
its dissolution. (2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and
full consent of the intending spouses. (3) The family is the natural and
fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society
and the State.

Article 17: (1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as
in association with others. (2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his
property.

Article 18: Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and
religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and
freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or pri-
vate, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and
observance.

Article 19: Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression;
this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to
seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and
regardless of frontiers.

Article 20: (1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly
and association. (2) No one may be compelled to belong to an association.

Article 21: (1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of
his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives. (2) Every-
one has the right of equal access to public service in his country. (3) The
will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this
will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by
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 universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equiva-
lent free voting procedures.

Article 22: Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social secu-
rity and is entitled to realization, through national effort and internation-
al co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of
each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for
his dignity and the free development of his personality.

Article 23: Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment,
to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against un-
employment. (2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to
equal pay for equal work. (3) Everyone who works has the right to just and
favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an exist-
ence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other
means of social protection. (4) Everyone has the right to form and to join
trade unions for the protection of his interests.

Article 24: Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reason-
able limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

Article 25: (1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for
the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food,
clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the
right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, wid-
owhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his
control. (2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and
assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy
the same social protection.

Article 26: (1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be
free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary edu-
cation shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall
be made generally available and higher education shall be equally ac-
cessible to all on the basis of merit. (2) Education shall be directed to the
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 full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of
respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote
understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or reli-
gious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the
maintenance of peace. (3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of
education that shall be given to their children.

Article 27: (1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural
life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advance-
ment and its benefits. (2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the
moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artis-
tic production of which he is the author.

Article 28: Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which

the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

Article 29: (1) Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the
free and full development of his personality is possible. (2) In the exercise
of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limita-
tions as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due rec-
ognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting
the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare
in a democratic society. (3) These rights and freedoms may in no case be
exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 30: Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for

any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to per-
form any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms
set forth herein.

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 Summary:
The UDHR was first established as a non-binding document, which has
become legally binding through other documents.

Human rights are rules that are inalienable, indivisible and universal
and that are designed to protect everyone against atrocities.

Topics for Discussion:

There are three generations of human rights.

Which generation of rights do you find the most important? Prioritize
amongst them.

Why do you think there are generations of rights?

Can you think of third-generation rights not mentioned?

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 PART 2 -
Implementing Human Rights
The most effective way of implementing human rights is making sure
that the states are monitored and to complain when human rights are
being violated.

The main mechanisms used are:

1. Complaints (brought by individuals, groups or states)
2. Court cases
3. Reporting procedures.

Complaints
Complaints against a state are brought before a commission or committee
that has the right to monitor that states compliance with human rights.
The supervisory body then takes a decision and States are expected to
comply with it, though no legal enforcement procedure exists. Often a
state needs to give an additional declaration or ratification of an optional
protocol to signify its acceptance of the complaints system. The Human
Rights Committee and the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Dis-
crimination (within the United Nations system) are examples of bodies
dealing with complaints.

Legal cases
There are only two permanent courts which exist as supervisory bodies
specifically for the implementation of human rights: the European Court
of Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
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 However, a new international court is due to be established, once the
Statute has been ratified by 60 countries. This court, the International
Criminal Court (ICC), will exist to try individuals accused of crimes
against humanity, genocide and war crimes. In this respect, it is different
from, and complementary to, the European and Inter-American Courts,
which consider complaints against states.

Reports and reviews

The majority of human rights instruments require states to submit re-
ports. These are compiled by states themselves, following the directions
of the supervisory body, and contain general information on how rights
operate at national level. The reports are publicly examined and NGOs
usually play an active role at this stage, developing shadow reports along-
side the states reports. The ICCPR, ICESCR, and the Convention on the
Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)
are examples of instruments requiring the submission of reports.

Topics for Discussion:

What way of implementing human rights do you think is the most ef-
fective?

Should there be a legal mechanism for enforcing compliance with hu-

man rights standards? What sanctions could exist?

What major human rights documents has your country ratified?

http://www.eycb.coe.int/compass/en/chapter_6/6_1.html

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 PART 3 -
Discussion Points
Fighting terrorism
After the terrorist attacks of September 11th 2001 in the United States of
America, many governments are restricting certain basic liberties in order
to combat the threat of terrorism. Many countries have arrested people
without granting them their full rights or giving them a trial. Guantan-
amo base held people locked up for years without granting them their
human rights.
Is it permissible to restrict the rights of minorities in the name of na-
tional security? If so, should there be any limits?

Cultural traditions
Arranged marriages are common practice in many cultures, where a girl
is obliged to marry a man who has been chosen by her family, often at
a very young age. Should such a practice be banned in order to protect
the young girls? Or would that be failing to respect a different cultural
tradition? Other examples can be found in the continued practice of fe-
male circumcision in many countries, or the honour killings of girls and
women. Thousands of people suffer the consequences of such practices
and most people would certainly regard them as a serious violation of
rights. Is the acceptance of female circumcision an inter-cultural differ-
ence that should be tolerated?

Should cultural values ever be able to override the universality of hu-

man rights?
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 What cultural practices are acceptable?

Sanction- For a good cause

Sanctions are sometimes used by the international community to penalise
regimes that are considered to be systematically violating human rights.
Sanctions forbid trade with the violator country, in order to put pressure
on the government to modify their actions. Some countries have been
completely isolated by the international community: South Africa was
isolated for years because of its system of apartheid. There is no doubt
that the effects of such sanctions are felt by normal people, but they are
felt particularly by the most vulnerable sectors of society. Is this an ac-
ceptable means of putting an end to human rights violations by another
government?

Bombing for peace

After the resent democratization-wave in North Africa one country has
been subjected to bombings by the international community: Libya. In
order to target the dictator Gaddafi, French foreign minister Alain Ju-
pp issued this argument for airstrikes in a blog post titled Our Honour
[roughly translated]:
It is not enough to proclaim, as did almost all the major democracies
that Gaddafi must go. We must give ourselves the means to effectively
assist those who took up arms against his dictatorship.

Can such actions be justified in terms of their end results if they cause
large numbers of casualties?
Can the defence of human rights be used to justify a military campaign?

FURTHER READING
The UDHR is seen as such an important document that there are cur-
rently 379 translations of it available at:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/UDHR/Pages/SearchByLang.aspx
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 The Swedish Social Democratic Youth League
The olof palme international center

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