VIRUDHUNAGAR HINDU NADARS‘ SENTHIKUMARA NADAR COLLEGE (An Autonomous Institution Affiliated to Madurai Kamaraj University) [Re-accredited with ‗A‘ Grade by NAAC] Virudhunagar – 626 001. HUMAN RIGHTS: ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS INTRODUCTION Human Rights are commonly understood as ―inalienable fundamental rights‖ to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being. Human Rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian. At the international level human rights have become a movement. It can be studied through many ways which is called as the constituents of Human Rights. They may be civil rights, political, economic, cultural, social rights. They are also called Fundamental Rights. and rights of freedom to everyone irrespective of caste, creed, sex, region, colour, profession, etc. CONCEPT OF HUMAN RIGHTS Human Rights is a 20th century term traditionally known as ―Natural Rights‖ or the ―Rights of Man‖. Broadly speaking, ―Human Right‖ means right to life, liberty, equality and the dignity of an individual irrespective of caste, creed or sex. It envisages that all human beings are born free, equal in dignity and rights and are entitled to enjoy all rights. Evolution of Human Rights: The roots of human rights can be traced to the Babylonian laws. The Babylonian King Hammurabi issued a set of laws to his people called ―Hammurabi‘s Codes‖, which contained fair wages, protection of property and charges against them to be proved at trial. Greek philosopher Plato, Aristotle and Roman philosopher Cicero advocated the natural law, natural rights and human rights. The origin of human rights also can be credited to era of Renaissance Humanism in the early modern period. Prior to this habeas corpus had been explained in the Magna Carta of 1215 A.D. The European wars of religion and the civil wars of 17th century England gave rise to the philosophy of liberalism and belief in human rights became a significant concern of European intellectual culture during 18th century ―Age of Enlightenment‖. The idea of human rights lay at the core of the American and French revolutions which paved the way for the advent of universal suffrage. The World Wars of the 20thcentury led to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Magna Carta (1215) The Magna Carta was issued on 15 June, 1215 also called Magna Carta Liberate or the Great Charter of the Liberties of England. The 1215 charter required King John of England to proclaim certain liberties and accept that his will was not arbitrary. For example by explicitly accepting that no ―freeman‖ (non-serf) could be punished except through the law of the land, a right which is still in existence in England. VIRUDHUNAGAR HINDU NADARS‘ SENTHIKUMARA NADAR COLLEGE (An Autonomous Institution Affiliated to Madurai Kamaraj University) [Re-accredited with ‗A‘ Grade by NAAC] Virudhunagar – 626 001. The Bill of Rights (1689) The Bill of Rights 1688 is an Act of the Parliament of England passed on 16 December 1689. This lays down limits on the powers of sovereign and sets out the rights of Parliament and rules for freedom of speech in Parliament, the requirement to regular elections to Parliament and the right to petition the monarch without fear of retribution. US Declaration of Independence (1776) The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the continental Congress on 4July 1776 which announce that the 13 American Colonies, then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states and no longer a part of the British Empire. It contained that all men are created equal are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. This view was notably promoted by Abraham Lincoln, who considered the Declaration to be the foundation of his political philosophy. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen( 1793) It is a fundamental document of the French Revolution defining the individual and collective rights of all the Estates of the realm as universal. It was adopted during the French Revolution in 1789, but after modifications it w as adopted in 1793. According to this, ―Men are born and remain free and equal in rights.‖ Therefore, the role of government is to recognize and secure the rights of liberty, property, security and resistance to oppression of the human beings. Factors under which Human Rights is Violated Racism Racism is a doctrine of hatred of people based on the belief that citrine people are superior to others who are deemed to be inferior because of their identity, ethnic origin, nationality and national discussed. Language Linguistic discrimination is the unfair treatment of an individual based solely on his of her use of language. Colour Discrimination based on skin colour is a form of prejudice or discrimination in which people are treated differently based on the social meanings attached to skin colour Gender based Violence Violence against women is often known as ‗gender -based‘ violence. The primary cause to gender-based violence is the power inequality between women and men. The majority of perpetrators of gender-based violence are men. However, despite the fact that no society is free from it, male violence against women varies in degree and intensity according to the specific circumstances. VIRUDHUNAGAR HINDU NADARS‘ SENTHIKUMARA NADAR COLLEGE (An Autonomous Institution Affiliated to Madurai Kamaraj University) [Re-accredited with ‗A‘ Grade by NAAC] Virudhunagar – 626 001. Religious Discrimination Religious discrimination is treating individuals differently because of their religion, religious beliefs and practices, Education Discrimination in education is the act of discriminating people belonging to certain categories in enjoying full right to education. It is considered a violation of enunciated human rights. Education discrimination can be on the basis of ethnicity, nationality, age,gender, race, economic condition, disability and religion. Urban, Non-Urban: Rural areas are cut off from technological development and suffers Poor infrastructure. This results in social isolation. But the urban society has well developed nodes, technical development and a seed infrastructure. Economy: Constitution says ―all are equal before law‖ but in reality, rich people lead a sophisticated life, with special privileges because of their wealthiness. The poor people could not get good education, home, sanitation and dress. This led them to accept rich people as their masters. Human Rights Definition: Each individual must have some rights not only to survive in the community, but also to make their life better. In this sense, rights are basic freedom that all people should have - human rights are concerned with the dignity of the individual—the level of self-esteem that secure personal identity and promotes human community. Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever be the nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status. All are equally entitled to human rights without discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible. Kinds of Human Rights Natural Rights: Natural Rights are, rights that are just, fair and reasonable. It enables people to lead their life through common rules and regulations framed either by them or their representatives. At the same time, they accept a set of legal and moral duties to live in peace and security without any violence. Social Welfare Rights Legal Rights: Legal Rights are rights that are guaranteed to citizens of a country by law to enjoy certain freedom without any fear or favour. Legal rights are also referred to as statutory rights, bestowed by a particular government to the governed. These rights may differ from country to country VIRUDHUNAGAR HINDU NADARS‘ SENTHIKUMARA NADAR COLLEGE (An Autonomous Institution Affiliated to Madurai Kamaraj University) [Re-accredited with ‗A‘ Grade by NAAC] Virudhunagar – 626 001. depending upon the constitution and culture that they adopted. Nevertheless, at the same time legal rights impose an obligation on people not to exceed the prescribed limits of law. Social Welfare rights: Welfare rights means the rights of people to be aware of and receive their maximum entitlement to state welfare benefits, and to be treated reasonably well by the welfare system Economic Rights: Economic, social and cultural rights (ESCR) include the rights to decent work, an adequate standard of living, housing, food, water and sanitation, social security, health, and education. ESCR are thus essential for ensuring human dignity. Political Rights: Civil and Political Rights are rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the society and state without discrimination or repression. UNIT II UNO and Human Rights Commission: The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) was a functional commission within the overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006. It was a subsidiary body of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), and was also assisted in its work by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR). It was the UN's principal mechanism and international forum concerned with the promotion and protection of human rights History: The UNCHR was established in 1946. It met for the first time in January 1947 and established a drafting committee for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the United Nations on December 10, 1948. The body went through two distinct phases. From 1947 to 1967, it followed the policy of absenteeism, which meant that the Commission would concentrate on promoting human rights and helping states elaborate treaties, but not on investigating or condemning violators. It was a period of strict observance of the sovereignty principle.