DOCSLIB.ORG

The Negative Impact of TRIPS on Gender Rights in Access to Health and Food in India: a Study of the Dynamics of Knowledge Economy and Neo-Medieval Governance

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Negative Impact of TRIPS on Gender Rights in Access to Health and Food in India: a Study of the Dynamics of Knowledge Economy and Neo-Medieval Governance University of Denver Digital Commons @ DU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies 1-1-2014 The Negative Impact of TRIPS on Gender Rights in Access to Health and Food in India: A Study of the Dynamics of Knowledge Economy and Neo-Medieval Governance Kausiki Mukhopadhyay University of Denver Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd Part of the Asian Studies Commons, and the Economic Policy Commons Recommended Citation Mukhopadhyay, Kausiki, "The Negative Impact of TRIPS on Gender Rights in Access to Health and Food in India: A Study of the Dynamics of Knowledge Economy and Neo-Medieval Governance" (2014). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 460. https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/460 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Studies at Digital Commons @ DU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ DU. For more information, please contact [email protected],[email protected]. THE NEGATIVE IMPACT OF TRIPS ON GENDER RIGHTS IN ACCESS TO HEALTH AND FOOD IN INDIA: A STUDY OF THE DYNAMICS OF KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY AND NEO-MEDIEVAL GOVERNANCE __________ A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Josef Korbel School of International Studies University of Denver __________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy __________ by Kausiki Mukhopadhyay June 2014 Advisor: Jack Donnelly ©Copyright by Kausiki Mukhopadhyay 2014 All Rights Reserved Author: Kausiki Mukhopadhyay Title: THE NEGATIVE IMPACT OF TRIPS ON GENDER RIGHTS IN ACCESS TO HEALTH AND FOOD IN INDIA: A STUDY OF THE DYNAMICS OF KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY AND NEO-MEDIEVAL GOVERNANCE Advisor: Jack Donnelly Degree Date: June 2014 ABSTRACT Southern developing nations are increasingly emulating the knowledge economy followed by the developed nations of the North. This paradigm is characterized by the signature feature of the regime of TRIPS or individualized legal patents, particularly bio- patents developed through biotechnology in pharmaceutical and agriculture. It is also characterized by corporate social responsibility as a market mode of governance of development and increasing state retrenchment from delivery of public welfare. This form of economy is embedded in multilayered governance of neo-medieval governance where states and corporations tussle for the right to define growth and equity. This thesis argues that such a mode of economy and governance has failed to deliver equity for the marginalized poor women in India. This is explicated through four critical factors. First, there is increasing biopiracy of tribal women’s traditional knowledge and denuding of uncodified knowledge of tribal women due to land deprivation which in turn severely affects their health. Second, a thriving pharmaceutical sector has failed to deliver health equity for poor women, particularly by being engaged in creation of medicines that do not have relevance for the main disease profile of the poor – communicable diseases. Third, there is rise of non-communicable diseases of the poor. Patents act as legal barriers to access to medicine and severely impact the health of the poor. Fourth, the rise of Bt ii seeds in cash crop agriculture has meant that traditionally saved and used food crop seeds are being marginalized and there is a growing agrarian crisis for women who do not have control over land, seeds and seed technology. Fifth, poverty is on the rise which is a sure sign that equity has not trickled down. If the international society of states provides for customized patents for women’s traditional knowledge, women’s knowledge, health and food security would be better secured. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I thank my advisor Professor Jack Donnelly for mentoring me throughout the dissertation process. I also thank my committee members, Professors Haider Khan and Dale Rothman, for their helpful comments and Susan Rivera for putting up with me. Finally, I express my gratitude to my husband Professor Pallab Paul for being there while I worked on my dissertation. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ..............................................................................1 The Rationale for Figure 1 and 2......................................................................................2 Figure 1 ..........................................................................................................................11 Figure 2 ..........................................................................................................................12 The Model (Figure 3) .....................................................................................................13 Natural and Social Capital ..........................................................................................13 Macro ..........................................................................................................................14 Mezzo .........................................................................................................................15 Micro ..........................................................................................................................17 Figure 3 ..........................................................................................................................24 Gender Issues in the Context of India ............................................................................25 Knowledge Economy .....................................................................................................29 Neo-medieval Governance .............................................................................................33 So What Kind of State is the Indian State? ...................................................................37 Corporate Social Responsibility .....................................................................................43 Biotechnology: The Contested Realm of Investment, Patents and Human Rights ........44 Feminist Critique of IPR ................................................................................................46 How to Proceed in Executing the Study .........................................................................50 Figure 4 – Map of India ..................................................................................................58 Structures of Following Chapters ...................................................................................59 CHAPTER TWO: FOLK VERSION OF TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE ............61 Introduction ....................................................................................................................61 Store of Health Knowledge in Maharashtra ...................................................................69 Store of Health Knowledge in West Bengal ..................................................................73 Neo-medieval Governance of Biology and Biopiracy in India ......................................79 Neo-medieval Governance of Forest Land ....................................................................84 Health Welfare of Tribes in India.................................................................................101 Health Welfare of Tribes in Maharashtra .....................................................................106 Health Welfare of Tribes in West Bengal ....................................................................111 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................115 CHAPTER THREE: CODIFIED KNOWLEDGE ABOUT TRADITIONAL AND MODERN MEDICINE AND HEALTH IN INDIA ..........................................117 Introduction ..................................................................................................................117 Growth of the Indian System of Medicine ...................................................................122 v Growth in Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Sectors ................................................130 Health Costs of the Poor ...............................................................................................142 Women’s Health in India .............................................................................................149 Neo-medieval Governance of Neglected and Neglected Tropical Diseases ................160 Governance of Neglected Diseases ..........................................................................161 Governance of Neglected Tropical Diseases ............................................................169 Problematic Behavior of Corporations and States ....................................................175 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................179 Appendix ......................................................................................................................186 CHAPTER FOUR: TRADITIONAL AND MODERN KNOWLEDGE OF SEEDS IN AGRICULTURE ......................................................................................................205 Introduction ..................................................................................................................205 Women, Land, Seeds and Technology .........................................................................206 Land ..........................................................................................................................208
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Violation of Women Human Rights in India
    International Journal of Academic Research and Development ISSN: 2455-4197 Impact Factor: RJIF 5.22 www.academicsjournal.com Volume 2; Issue 5; September 2017; Page No. 817-822 Violation of women human rights in India Suman Resource Person, HIRD, Nillokheri, Karnal, Haryana, India Abstract We can seen that each day all over paper News, T V channels and Electronic devices aree presenting to the violation of Human Rights of Women in India. Human rights aree those minimum rights that are obligatorily accessible by each individual as she could be a member of human family. The constitution of India conjointly guarantees the equality of rights of men and Women. However, within the sphere of women’s human rights in India, there exists a good gap between theory and observe. In our society could be a male dominated society wherever men are continuously assumed to be superior to society. The India women’s need to face to discrimination, injustice and dishonor. The' women’s in India are given a lot of rights as compared to men, even then the condition of Women in India is miserable. This paper can throw lightweight on the human rights of Women in India. Which however all the elemental rights given to the Women aree being profaned in India, by that specialize in the varied crimes done against them. Keywords: human rights, violation, women human rights, crime against women Introduction phenomenon of Human Rights Violation is increasing day by “Freedom means the supremacy of human rights everywhere. day in India. Our support goes to those who struggle to gain those rights and keep them.
    [Show full text]
  • Whole Genome Sequencing Identifies Novel Structural Variant in a Large Indian Family Affected with X - Linked Agammaglobulinemia
    medRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.10.05.20200949; this version posted October 6, 2020. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder, who has granted medRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-ND 4.0 International license . Whole Genome Sequencing identifies novel structural variant in a large Indian family affected with X - linked agammaglobulinemia 1,2,# 3,5,#,$ 3,4 3 Abhinav Jain ,​ Geeta Madathil Govindaraj ,​ Athulya Edavazhippurath ,​ Nabeel Faisal ,​ Rahul C ​ ​ ​ ​ 1 1,2 6 3 1 1 Bhoyar ,​ Vishu Gupta ,​ Ramya Uppuluri ,​ Shiny Padinjare Manakkad ,​ Atul Kashyap ,​ Anoop Kumar ,​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ 1,2 1,2 7 7 3 Mohit Kumar Divakar ,​ Mohamed Imran ,​ Sneha Sawant ,​ Aparna Dalvi ,​ Krishnan Chakyar ,​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ 7 6 1,2,$ 1,2,$ Manisha Madkaikar ,​ Revathi Raj ,​ Sridhar Sivasubbu ,​ Vinod Scaria ​ ​ ​ ​ 1 CSIR-Institute​ of Genomics and Integrative Biology, Mathura Road, New Delhi, Delhi, India 2 Academy​ of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Mathura Road, New Delhi, Delhi, India 3 Department​ of Pediatrics, Government Medical College Kozhikode, Kozhikode, Kerala, India 4 Multidisciplinary​ Research Unit, Government College Kozhikode, Kozhikode, Kerala, India 5 FPID​ Regional Diagnostic Centre, Government Medical College Kozhikode, Kozhikode, Kerala India 6 Department​ of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Apollo Hospitals, 320, Padma complex, Anna salai, Teynampet, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India 7 Department​ of Pediatric Immunology and Leukocyte Biology, ICMR-National Institute of Immunohaematology, KEM Hospital, Parel, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. # Joint first authors $ Corresponding author Vinod Scaria: [email protected] ​ Sridhar Sivasubbu: [email protected] ​ Geeta Madathil Govindaraj: [email protected] ​ NOTE: This preprint reports new research that has not been certified by peer review and should not be used to guide clinical practice.
    [Show full text]
  • Compounding Injustice: India
    INDIA 350 Fifth Ave 34 th Floor New York, N.Y. 10118-3299 http://www.hrw.org (212) 290-4700 Vol. 15, No. 3 (C) – July 2003 Afsara, a Muslim woman in her forties, clutches a photo of family members killed in the February-March 2002 communal violence in Gujarat. Five of her close family members were murdered, including her daughter. Afsara’s two remaining children survived but suffered serious burn injuries. Afsara filed a complaint with the police but believes that the police released those that she identified, along with many others. Like thousands of others in Gujarat she has little faith in getting justice and has few resources with which to rebuild her life. ©2003 Smita Narula/Human Rights Watch COMPOUNDING INJUSTICE: THE GOVERNMENT’S FAILURE TO REDRESS MASSACRES IN GUJARAT 1630 Connecticut Ave, N.W., Suite 500 2nd Floor, 2-12 Pentonville Road 15 Rue Van Campenhout Washington, DC 20009 London N1 9HF, UK 1000 Brussels, Belgium TEL (202) 612-4321 TEL: (44 20) 7713 1995 TEL (32 2) 732-2009 FAX (202) 612-4333 FAX: (44 20) 7713 1800 FAX (32 2) 732-0471 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] July 2003 Vol. 15, No. 3 (C) COMPOUNDING INJUSTICE: The Government's Failure to Redress Massacres in Gujarat Table of Contents I. Summary............................................................................................................................................................. 4 Impunity for Attacks Against Muslims...............................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Amaravati Calendar 08
    2008 2551 PHOTO AND TEXT CREDITS This 2008 calendar features pictures by a variety of photographers. © Wat Pah Nanachat (Feb, Mar, May, Aug, Oct, Dec); © Amaravati Publications (Apr); © Aruna Publications (Jan, June, Sept); © Khun Tu (July, Nov). Scriptural quotes on each page are English renderings of texts from the Pali Canon. The translations draw on the works from: “A Dhammapada for Contemplation” © Aruna Publications 2006; and texts from Itivuttaka 3.50; Theragatha 1.3 from Thanissaro Bhikkhu © Access to Insight 2005 edition, www.accesstoinsight.org For free distribution. This work may be republished, reformatted, reprinted, and redistributed in any medium. It is the author's wish, however, that any such republication and redistribution be made available to the public on a free and unrestricted basis and that translations and other derivative works be clearly marked as such. Appreciation is expressed to all who have offered assistance with this production. LUNAR OBSERVANCE DAYS These days are devoted to quiet reflection at the monastery. Visitors may come and take the Precepts for the day and join in all or part of the extended evening meditation. The dates for the lunar calendar are determined by traditional methods of calculation, and are not always the same as the precise astronomical occurrences. THE MAJOR FULL-MOON DAYS OF 2008 – 2551/52 Magha Puja March 21 (‘Sangha Day’) Commemorates the spontaneous gathering of 1,250 arahants, to whom the Buddha gave the exhortation on the basis of the discipline (Ovada Patimokkha). Vesakha Puja (Wesak) May 19 (‘Buddha Day’) Commemorates the birth, enlightenment and passing away of the Buddha.
    [Show full text]
  • SMITA NARULA 78 North Broadway, White Plains, New York 10603, [email protected]
    SMITA NARULA 78 North Broadway, White Plains, New York 10603, [email protected] ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS ELISABETH HAUB SCHOOL OF LAW AT PACE UNIVERSITY White Plains, NY Haub Distinguished Professor of International Law Sept. 2018 - present ▪ Appointed in 2018 as the inaugural Distinguished Haub Chair in International Law to teach in the law school’s internationally renowned and top-ranked environmental law program. ▪ Courses: International Environmental Law; Environmental Justice; Human Rights & the Environment; Property Law. Committees: Appointments Committee; Admissions Committee; Nominating Committee; Environmental Law Program. Research interests: International Human Rights Law; Food Sovereignty & the Right to Food; Indigenous Peoples’ Rights; Environmental Movements; Sustainable Development Goals. Faculty Advisor: Pace International Law Review. ▪ Appointed Co-Director of the Global Center for Environmental Legal Studies in July 2019. Coordinate and supervise Haub Law students’ efforts to draft, submit, appeal and negotiate motions on international environmental law subjects for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s World Conservation Congress. HUNTER COLLEGE – CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK New York, NY Distinguished Lecturer & Interim Director 2017 – 2018 Human Rights Program, Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute ▪ Directed interdisciplinary program in human rights for undergraduate students and provided strategic direction for relevant academic, public outreach, and programming efforts. Fostered human rights
    [Show full text]
  • Most Precious Gift
    THE MOST PRECIOUS GIFT HONOURING THE LIFE AND WORK OF AJAHN SUCITTO The Most Precious Gift HONOURING THE LIFE AND WORK OF AJAHN SUCITTO RECOLLECTIONS OF AJAHN SUCITTO AND A COLLECTION OF HIS DHAMMA REFLECTIONS FROM 1985 TO 2017 WITH GRATITUDE TO AJAHN SUCITTO ON THE OCCASION OF HIS SEVENTIETH BIRTHDAY ‘THE GIFT OF DHAMMA IS THE MOST PRECIOUS GIFT; THE TASTE OF DHAMMA IS THE SWEETEST TASTE; THE JOY OF DHAMMA IS THE GREATEST JOY; THE EXTINCTION OF CRAVING IS THE END OF ALL SUFFERING.’ Dhammapada, verse 354 A Handful of Leaves The Blessed One was once living at Kosambi in a wood of siṁsapā trees. He picked up a few leaves in his hand and asked the bhikkhus, ‘How do you conceive this, bhikkhus? Which is more, the few leaves that I have picked up in my hand or those on the trees in the wood?’ ‘The leaves that the Blessed One has picked up in his hand are few, Lord; those in the wood are far more.’ ‘So too, bhikkhus, the things I have known by direct knowledge are more; the things that I have told you are only a few. ‘Why have I not told them? Because they bring no benefit, no advancement in the holy life, and because they do not lead to dispassion, to fading, to ceasing, to stilling, to direct knowledge, to enlightenment, to nibbāna. That is why I have not told them. ‘And what have I told you? This is suffering; this is the origin of suffering; this is the cessation of suffering; this is the way leading to the cessation of suffering.
    [Show full text]
  • Contemplations on the Seven Factors of Awakening Contemplations on the Seven Factors of Awakening by Ajahn Tiradhammo
    CONTEMPLATIONS ON THE SEVEN FACTORS OF AWAKENING Contemplations on the Seven Factors of Awakening by Ajahn Tiradhammo Published by: Aruna Publications, Aruna Ratanagiri Buddhist Monastery, 2 Harnham Hall Cottages, Belsay, Northumberland NE20 0HF, UK Contact Aruna Publications at www.ratanagiri.org This book is available for free download at www.forestsanghapublications.org ISBN 978-1-908444-22-6 Copyright © 2012 ARUNA PUBLICATIONS Cover photo by Gary Morrison Cover design by Nicholas Halliday If you are interested in translating this text into another language, contact us for formatting guidelines, text material, and help with copyright issues. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ See page 156 for more details on your rights and restrictions under this licence. Produced with the LaTeX typesetting system. The body-text is typeset in Gentium, distributed with the SIL Open Font Licence by SIL International. First Edition, 10,000 copies, printed in Malaysia – 2012 Printed in Malaysia by Bolden Trade ([email protected]). DEDICATION I wish to express gratitude to all my Teachers, my parents and all those who have helped in this work; especially to the Kataññutā group of Malaysia, Singapore and Australia, for bringing it into production. v CONTENTS I ntroduction ix General Instructions for Meditation xi Mindfulness 15 Investigation of Dhamma 39 Energy 51 Joy 67 Tranquillity 81 Concentration 93 Equanimity 117 The Seven Factors Together 127 Awakening 131 Bibliography 151 About the Author 155 vii INTRODUCTION This book is based on a series of talks on the Seven Factors of Awakening given at Bodhinyanarama Monastery in New Zealand during the Rains Retreat in 2007.
    [Show full text]
  • Building Buddhism in England: the Flourishing of a Minority Faith Heritage
    This is a repository copy of Building Buddhism in England: The Flourishing of a Minority Faith Heritage. White Rose Research Online URL for this paper: http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/103739/ Version: Accepted Version Article: Starkey, C orcid.org/0000-0002-7807-6617 and Tomalin, E orcid.org/0000-0001-7722-1192 (2016) Building Buddhism in England: The Flourishing of a Minority Faith Heritage. Contemporary Buddhism, 17 (2). pp. 326-356. ISSN 1463-9947 https://doi.org/10.1080/14639947.2016.1228330 © 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Contemporary Buddhism on 26th September 2016, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/14639947.2016.1228330 Reuse Unless indicated otherwise, fulltext items are protected by copyright with all rights reserved. The copyright exception in section 29 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 allows the making of a single copy solely for the purpose of non-commercial research or private study within the limits of fair dealing. The publisher or other rights-holder may allow further reproduction and re-use of this version - refer to the White Rose Research Online record for this item. Where records identify the publisher as the copyright holder, users can verify any specific terms of use on the publisher’s website. Takedown If you consider content in White Rose Research Online to be in breach of UK law, please notify us by emailing [email protected] including the URL of the record and the reason for the withdrawal request.
    [Show full text]
  • Forest Sangha Calendar
    Forest Sangha Calendar 2013 - 2556 This 2013 calendar features photographs from a variety of contributors. We are grateful for their generosity and skill. We would like to acknowledge the support of many people in the preparation of this calendar, especially to the Kataññnutā group of Malaysia, Singapore and Australia, for bringing it into production. Monthly Dhamma quotes are adapted from translated teachings given by Venerable Ajahn Chah. For further teachings, see www.fsbooks.org/ajahn-chah-teachings LUNAR OBSERVANCE DAYS These days are devoted to quiet reflection at the monastery. G# # VisitorsH# may come and take the Precepts for the day and join in all or part of the extended evening meditation. The dates for the lunar calendar are determined by traditional methods of calculation, and are not always the same as the precise astronomical occurrences. THE MAJOR FULL-MOON DAYS FOR 2013-2556 Māgha Pūjā: February 25 (‘Sangha Day’) Commemorates the spontaneous gathering of 1250 arahants to whom the Buddha gave an exhortation on the basis of the Discipline (Ovāda Pāṭimokkha). Vesākha Pūjā: May 24 (‘Buddha Day’) Commemorates the birth, enlightenment and passing away of the Buddha. Āsāḷhā Pūjā: July 22 (‘Dhamma Day’) Commemorates the Buddha’s first discourse, given to the five samaṇas in the Deer Park at Sarnath, near Varanasi. The traditional Rainy-Season Retreat (Vassa) begins on the next day. Pavāraṇā Day: October 19 This marks the end of the three-month Vassa retreat. During the following month, lay people may offer the Kaṭhina robe as part of a general alms-giving ceremony. www.forestsangha.org www.forestsanghapublications.org Calendar production by Aruna Publications, Aruna Ratanagiri Buddhist Monastery, www.ratanagiri.org.uk © Aruna Publications 2012 ‘‘There is no end to what can be said about meditation.
    [Show full text]
  • Women-Empowerment a Bibliography
    Women’s Studies Resources; 5 Women-Empowerment A Bibliography Complied by Meena Usmani & Akhlaq Ahmed March 2015 CENTRE FOR WOMEN’S DEVELOPMENT STUDIES 25, Bhai Vir Singh Marg (Gole Market) New Delhi-110 001 Ph. 91-11-32226930, 322266931 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.cwds.ac.in/library/library.htm 1 PREFACE The “Women’s Studies Resources Series” is an attempt to highlight the various aspect of our specialized library collection relating to women and development studies. The documents available in the library are in the forms of books and monographs, reports, reprints, conferences Papers/ proceedings, journals/ newsletters and newspaper clippings. The present bibliography on "Women-Empowerment ” especially focuses on women’s political, social or economic aspects. It covers the documents which have empowerment in the title. To highlight these aspects, terms have been categorically given in the Subject Keywords Index. The bibliography covers the documents upto 2014 and contains a total of 1541 entries. It is divided into two parts. The first part contains 800 entries from books, analytics (chapters from the edited books), reports and institutional papers while second part contains over 741 entries from periodicals and newspapers articles. The list of periodicals both Indian and foreign is given as Appendix I. The entries are arranged alphabetically under personal author, corporate body and title as the case may be. For easy and quick retrieval three indexes viz. Author Index containing personal and institutional names, Subject Keywords Index and Geographical Area Index have been provided at the end. We would like to acknowledge the support of our colleagues at Library.
    [Show full text]
  • PROTECTION of HUMAN RIGHTS in INDIA: a REVIEW Amartish Kaur* 1
    Vol. 2 Jamia Law Journal 2017 PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN INDIA: A REVIEW Amartish Kaur* 1. Introduction The State maintains the framework of social order by implementation of various laws without which well ordered social life would not be possible. Various philosophers of social contract theory are of the view that object of the creation of state is to maintain and protect the rights of individuals. According to Aristotle, State came into existence out of base necessities of life and continues for the sake of good life.1 Prof. Laski expressed that State is known by the rights it maintains.2 Similarly Locke was of the view that end of state is to remove the obstacles that hinder the development of an individual.3Thus, the existence of the state is recognized with the protection of rights and liberties of individual which is the main object of state. Protection of the dignity of an individual is essential for harmony in the society, as its violation can have grave impact on individual in particular and on society in general. Each individual is entitled to some rights which are inherent to human existence. Such rights should not be violated on the grounds of gender, race, caste, ethnicity, religion etc. these are called human rights. Human rights are also known as basic rights, fundamental rights, natural rights or inherent rights. The concept of human right is not a new phenomenon, ‘Human Rights’ is a twentieth century term but its notion is as old as humanity. It has gone through various stages of development and has taken long time to become the concept of present day.
    [Show full text]
  • 9. Human Rights and Democracy: India’S Experience
    Page no.114 9. Human Rights and Democracy: India’s Experience Aynul Haque* Abstract During the last six decades, human rights have become a live and vibrant issue in the free world. Human rights as the recognition of inherent and basic individual worth and dignity are as old as human civilization. An individual attains by birth some rights as human being. Thus the idea of human rights is civilization as it is a political idea with moral base. The concern for and of human rights has been institutionalized after General Assembly of UN adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in the mid twentieth century. The expression “human rights” suggests rights of all human beings. The moral foundation of human rights to universality has not been questioned yet at least in principle, though there are some instances of rejection to this aspect of universality, either manifest or disguised, are fairly large in all parts of the world. The idea of democracy has led to great expectations to the people. It has become a key point of political legitimacy. In fact it is producing thth e greatest disillusionment and frustration recently. From the late 19 Century democracy and capitalism th appear to have moved along independent yet parallel paths. During the 20 Century they gained in strength, interacting mutually and establishing an interface. The result of which the concept of welfare state emerges, defines the role of the state in an interventionist manner. On representative democracy Benjamin Barber says, ‘Representations destroys participation and citizenship even as it serves accountability and private rights.’ Indian Constitution, the most right-based Constitution of the world, provides ethical foundation of human rights in its Preamble, while the legal expression of these found in Part-III and part-IV of the Constitution.
    [Show full text]