HUMAN RIGHTS

What are human rights?

Human rights are moral principles of specific standards of human behaviours protected by both municipal and international law inherent to all human beings regardless of race, ethnicity, origin, language, religion, location or any other status.

Origin

Initially, people had their rights confined to the membership of specific groups such as family. In 539 BC, Cyrus freed the slaves after declaring that everyone had the right to choose their religion and established racial equality after conquering Babylon.

This idea of human rights has had essential advances since then;

• The Magna Carta (1215)- The kings were made subject to the law, and their people were given new rights
• The Petition of Right of 1628- The rights of people was set out
• The United States Declaration of Independence (1776)- the proclamation of the right of life and freedom
• The Declaration of the Rights of Man and the citizen (1789)- statement that all citizens are equal under the law
• The Universal Declaration of Human rights (1948) – It was the first document which listed the thirty rights in which every citizen is entitled to.

Importance of human rights

Human rights are of great importance to society and its people. Some of the primary reasons include:

1. It’s essential in the relationship that exists between the government and individuals.
2. It makes sure that one can use their power and rights as expected
3. It ensures people get to have their basic needs
4. It encourages the right to freedom of expression

Examples of human rights

After establishing the universal declaration of human rights in 1948, the prominent world leaders agreed that human rights were universal. They include;

1. Right to life –This proper safeguards human life such that no one, including the individual and the government, can kill you. Nobody shall be deprived of the right of life intentionally except as authorized by the constitution of any country or any written law.
2. Right to freedom of torture and inhumane treatment –No one should be subject to torture, cruelty or degrading treatment or punishment. A person should not be held in slavery or servitude and shall not be required to perform forced labour.
3. Right to equal treatment against the law – Every person is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection and benefit of the law. Equality includes the full and equal enjoyment of all rights and fundamental freedoms.
4. Right to privacy– This right protects citizens from government or corporate overreach and surveillance without their consent. Their property ought not to be searched, their possession seized, or their information relating to their family or private affairs unnecessary revealed.
5. Right to asylum– Protects people fleeing from their home country because of whatever reasons.
6. Right to marry and have a family – Anyone who is of legal age has the right to get married and start a family without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion.
7. Right to freedom of thought, expression, opinion and religion– Everyone has the right to hold opinions, follow a religion, and change their belief. The right to seek, receive or impart information or ideas as long as it does not extend to propaganda for war, incitement to violence and hate speech.
8. Right to work – This encompasses the right to a variety of work-related concerns and also the right to favourable working conditions and protection against unemployment. Every worker also has the right to fair payment, join or participating in trade union’s activities and programmes, and go on a strike.
9. Right to education– Every child has a right to get a free and compulsory primary education.
10. Right to social services– This ensures everyone has access to clothing, housing, food, medical care and security.

Protection of human rights

Human rights are at the moment protected by Human Rights Act 1998. The protected rights include fundamental rights such as life, liberty and freedom from slavery and inhumane treatment. These human rights apply to all public authorities, including the central government departments and other bodies, whether public or private, performing functions.

It is essential for these rights to be protected since;

• To protect human rights is to ensure that all human beings receive a degree of humane, decent treatment regardless of their age, race, social status, religion and ethnicity.
• Protection of these rights is perpetual as it reduces the threats of world conflict and attempts to limit the state’s unstrained power.
• There is the preservation of humanity and protection against anything that puts a strain on the health, social and political stability, the economic well-being of its citizens.
• Prevents devastating effects from abuse of power by political leaders such as genocide and war crimes
• Protection of human rights ensures that marginalized and vulnerable groups are protected from abuse.
• Human rights have allowed people to defends societal corruption as it will enable people to speak up when they experience any abuse.
• Protection of human rights ensures and encourages equal work opportunities, make a living and flourish in their society.
• Protection of human rights is the protection of the environment.
• The protection of these rights provides a universal standard that holds the government accountable for their actions.

Violation of human rights and its consequences

To ‘violate human rights’ is to deny a person of their basic moral entitlements, treating them as less of a human with undeserving respect and dignity. Human rights perpetrators use numerous tactics of repression both physically and psychologically through inhumane acts like killing, abduction, torture and severe ill-treatment.

They also include mass crimes such as genocide, the decimation of a single race, ethnic or religious congregation—war crime whereby civilians are attacked by the use of weapons that cause unnecessary long term environmental damage.

To curb such violations, there are a set of rules and laws to control such violations. They include:

• The international humanitarian law enaction was to ensure that humanity was preserved among people in all circumstances.
• Calls for dialogue and other alternative dispute resolution to create peace during the conflict to prevent the massacre of citizens
• Different international councils are in place to report human rights violations and coordinate compliance with human rights standards.
• There are international tribunals and courts and war crimes tribunals in place that deal with human rights breaches.
• There is the reestablishment of the rule of law and rebuilding trust in public authorities to regain control of organized violence.

Conclusion

The above article clearly shows how the development of human rights has had a significant impact on the world today. It has enlightened the considerable importance of human rights embodying the critical issues in our society: fairness, dignity, and equality. It also lists a detailed process of dealing with the violation of these rights.