The issue of human rights concerns all of us. In all parts of the world, people and governments continue to commit acts such as torture, arbitrary detention, extra-judicial killing, and other human rights abuses against individuals. It is important to have an understanding of basic human rights and freedoms in order to prevent abuses from taking place. Some governments attempt to define human rights on the basis of cultural differences. This distinction ignores the universal nature of human rights which recognizes that all human beings everywhere have common basic needs and should be treated with equal human dignity.

Individuals and governments which fail to uphold human rights standards are accountable to their people and to the world community. By understanding human rights, one can develop a sense of responsibility toward defending and advocating respect for human rights as well as expressing concern for those people whose human rights have been or are being violated. Human rights violations can only be remedied if one realises his or her basic ‘ rights and is willing to work for the promotion and protection of the human rights of oneself and of others.

Human rights education enables individuals and groups to become aware of the universal standards set forth in internationally recognised human rights instruments and increases understanding of both the personal and communal nature of human rights. Human rights thus become relevant to people’s relationships with each other as well as with the state and other entities. It is only through the realisation of human rights that social justice and human freedom can be achieved.

Introduction

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, drafted in the wake of the second world war, aims to ensure respect for human rights in all pans of the world. Since then, substantial efforts have been made to promote and protect human dignity and human rights. However, many people and governments continue to violate human rights resulting in barbarous acts against mankind.

Governments are obliged, under international law, to act as the protectors of universal human rights.

The history of human rights is a long one with its roots in many individual struggles for freedom and equality in different parts of the world. Its principles can also be found in most of the world’s religions and philosophies. The idea of human rights, therefore, pre-dates the United Nations, yet the creation of this international body represented the formal recognition of the importance of human rights in the world.

The area of human rights does not refer merely to violations. Human rights are becoming incorporated into many aspects of life; a type of social contract that fulfils people’s aspirations to live in dignity and freedom. Human Rights are also about the prevention of the misuse of power. The real protection of civil society can only come from its own creators: the people. People want to know that they are in full control of their lives and that they are recognized as unique individuals within society.

As the 20th century draws to a close, human rights in the world are confronted with many serious challenges and threats. Despite the many legal instruments and international mechanisms set up to ensure respect for human rights, shocking violations continue to take place in all parts of the world. Human rights are not a kind of miraculous cure for all the world’s ills; it is dependent on the people themselves to respect human dignity and work actively to end human suffering.

Human rights can be defined generally as those rights which are inherent in our nature and without which we cannot live as human brings. They are rights which every human being is entitled to enjoy and to have protected. Human rights and fundamental freedoms allow us to develop fully and use our human qualities and to satisfy our spiritual and other needs.

Human rights are a human creation. They grow out of the feeling of injustice which human beings experience when their humanity is abused or denied. They are based on mankind’s increasing demand for a life in which the inherent dignity and worth of each human being will receive respect and protection. Human rights introduce the idea of justice in the natural order of the world, thereby giving human existence a higher sense and purpose.

Human rights are universal moral rights that should be respected in the treatment of all men, women, and children. These are also called natural rights and they belong to people simply because they are human. They do not have to be earned, bought or inherited. People are equally entitled to them regardless of their race, sex, color, language, national origin, age, class or religious or political beliefs. The underlying idea of such rights exists in some form in all cultures and societies. People still have human rights even when the laws of their own countries do not recognize or protect them.

Human rights affect society as a whole. The denial of human rights creates conditions of social and political unrest, sowing the seeds of violence and conflict within and between societies and nations. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights opens with the declaration that recognition of the equal rights of all members of the human family ‘is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world’.

Human rights are enshrined in internationally recognised laws such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Universal Declaration and various other covenants, conventions and declarations are created by international bodies such as the United Nations and they make up a body of “law” that has moral and sometimes binding force on nations.