Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Rights: (noun)
Things to which you are entitled or allowed; freedoms that are guaranteed.
CHR is anti-military/police
• Universality
• Indivisibility
According to Source:
• Natural Rights
• Constitutional Rights
• Statutory Rights
According to Recipient:
• Individual Rights
• Collective Rights
According to Derogability
• Derogable Rights (Relative)
• Non-Derogable Rights (Absolute)
Some rights can never be suspended (Absolute):
• right to life
• right to freedom from torture
• right to freedom from slavery
• non discrimination
• freedom of thought, conscience and religion
• right to recognition as a person before the law
• all economic, social and cultural rights
• everything in the Convention on the Rights of the Child
States can suspend/restrict some rights (Relative)
only if:
• restrictions are temporary
• there really is an exceptional threat to life of the
nation
• official proclamation is made & UN is informed
• every restriction is “strictly necessary” and
reasonable to meet the threat
• other obligations under international law are
respected
• restrictions do not discriminate
[Interpret above very strictly. State must prove a
restriction is justified in each case]
EVOLUTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
- A right is a child of the law; from real law comes real rights, but
from imaginary laws (Law of Nature) come imaginary rights. HR
could not be derived from natural law, HR should be written not
imaginary.
- All authority emanates from the State, & the source of rights can
only be found in the laws promulgated & enforced by the State.
Where the law does not provide for a particular right, such right
does not exist.
Cultural Relativist
International level:
“Declarations”
“Principles”
“Guidelines”
WHERE ARE HUMAN RIGHTS WRITTEN DOWN?
Domestic level:
HUMAN RIGHTS (UDHR)
1. All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
4. No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade
shall be prohibited in all their forms.
7. All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination
to equal protection of the law.
13. Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the
borders of each State.
14. Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum
from persecution.
16. Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality
or religion, have the right to marry and to have a family.
17. Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association
with others. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.
18. Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.
21. Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country,
directly or through freely chosen representatives. The will of the people
shall be the basis of the authority of government.
22. Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is
entitled to realization, through national effort and international 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.
23. Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and
favorable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
24. Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation
of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.
25. 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, widowhood,
old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances.
26. Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in
the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be
compulsory.
beyond his control.
27. Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the
community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and
its benefits.
29. Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full
development of his personality is possible. In the exercise of his rights
and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as
determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition 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.
30. No state, group or person must engage in any activity or perform any act
aimed at the destruction of any of the universally recognized rights and
freedoms.
Human Rights may also be seen as FREEDOMS or DEMANDS
(IMMEDIATE) (PROGRESSIVE
REALIZATION)
33 injured as demolition turns violent in San Juan
MANILA, Philippines—Some 400 policemen and members of a demolition team who descended on Barangay (village)
Corazon de Jesus in San Juan City Wednesday morning were met with molotov bombs, fist-sized rocks and empty
bottles by defiant residents.
From 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., residents hurled projectiles as the police and demolition crew hid behind shields. From time to
time, explosions caused by molotov bombs would drive the authorities farther back while fire trucks moved in to put
out small fires.
At one point, the fire trucks and a bulldozer tried to break up the residents’ ranks but they proved useless.
What finally sent the residents fleeing were tear gas canisters hurled into their midst.
After the tension died down, 33 people were reported to have suffered injuries. Of the total, only seven were from the
residents’ side while the rest were policemen and members of the demolition crew. One policeman had to be treated
for burns after his right arm was hit by burning shards which came from a molotov bomb.
The police later rounded up 18 residents who allegedly took part in the violent clash and took them to the San Juan
Police headquarters. Six protesters who held a rally in front of the police station to demand the release of the 18 were
also held by authorities.
QUESTION:
1) Identify who are the Duty Bearers in this news item?
2) Who are the Rights Holders in this news item?
As predicted, Typhoon Ruby hit the Philippines hard, particularly the north of the island of Samar. An NGO, SOLIDARITÉS
INTERNATIONAL's teams have already been deployed to help those affected.
In response to the urgency of the situation, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL has mobilized those staff members already present in the
Philippines. "When Typhoon Ruby was identified and predicted to hit the Philippines, our teams were still working to help the communities
affected by Typhoon Yolanda 13 months ago. They then went into disaster preparation and emergency response mode in order to deal with
what appeared to be a new threat to these very same populations," Christophe Vavasseur, head of our Asia Desk, explains.
Since last week, the logistics team at head office of SOLIDARITES INTERNATIONAL- headed by Fabrice Perrot, and in collaboration with the
Asia Desk - have been preparing for Typhoon Ruby. Emergency supplies are now ready to go if needed. At the same time, SOLIDARITÉS
INTERNATIONAL’s Myanmar mission has volunteered to assist the team in the Philippines. "Four members of our team
in Myanmar contacted us straight away last week, to tell us that they were ready to leave if we needed their support," explains Christophe
Vavasseur. "They should arrive in the region in the next few days to provide essential extra support to the local population."
QUESTION:
1) Who is/are the Duty Bearer(s) in this news item?
2) Who are the Claimholders in this news item? Why?
Rights holders:
Duty bearer:
Ex. - private armed forces or rebel groups, which under international law have a
negative obligation to refrain from human rights violations.
- individuals (e.g. parents), local organizations, private companies, aid donors
and international institutions can also be duty-bearers.
State’s Obligation to
Obligation to Protect:
States must take measures to ensure that enterprises or individuals do not
deprive people of access to adequate food (e.g., by storing food for speculative
purposes)
Obligation to Fulfill:
States must take positive measures to promote access and use of food (e.g.,
farm-to-market roads, price regulations, etc.)
Nature of human rights violations (HRV) by the State:
Violation by Omission – the non-interference of the State in
any situation that requires action to respect, protect,
or fulfill the human rights of its citizens.
Violation by Commission – any act by the government in
violation of any covenant or instrument on human
rights which the State is committed to uphold.
Civil and Political Rights Key Human Rights Issues