Concept of Human Rights

Human Rights

Concept of human rights

The concept of human rights: Defining human rights

Human rights are rights that no government can deny, by virtue of a citizen being 'human.' Yet what constitutes a human right has varied greatly, depending upon the sentiments of the international community. There have always been basic, general rules of etiquette in terms of how to treat enemy soldiers during wartime and the actions of certain governments have been deemed outside of community norms throughout history, but standards of 'universal' human rights shift and change with history. The first formal declaration of human rights was made in 1948 by the UN. The definition of human rights today places limits on what governments can do to citizens -- examples of commonly-accepted human rights include the right to be free of the threat of genocide, slavery, and have the right to due process.

Although the words 'human rights' sound as if the rights in question derive from one's essential humanity, the fact that human rights are rooted in political systems and international and national norms underline their socially-constructed nature. In the ancient world, sacking entire cities and destroying entire populations was 'the norm.' In some relatively recent contexts, denying education to women was acceptable. Today, this is considered a violation of human rights, and even in some contemporary regions (such in Taliban-led Afghanistan) women have been denied the right to education. There seems an inherent contradiction in notions of human rights, which are phrased as eternal and unchanging constructs, but which change based upon common, social evolution of norms.

The division between human rights and social rights is usually phrased as a distinction between basic rights 'from' or to certain things. Human rights include freedom 'from' torture, rape, and imprisonment without cause. Social rights tend to be viewed as the right 'to' certain things, such as higher education, healthcare, and the right to better one's self in an economically just society. Social rights are far more controversial as 'rights' and the extent to which different citizens possess such rights vary considerably in the major Western democracies, in contrast to human rights, where there is generally far more agreement. However, separating human from social rights can be challenging. If someone technically has freedom of speech in a society, how valuable is it if he or she does not have economic mobility? If someone has the freedom to choose his or her work, how free is he or she really, if that work must be chosen relative to his or her need for healthcare? "Without adequate access to these goods, interests in life, health, and liberty are endangered and serious illness and death are probable" (Nickel 2010

Trying to construct a definition of human rights is a frustrating exercise. Even when two nations concede the existence of 'human rights,' they may deny their violations of one another's 'human rights.' For example, in the current Israeli-Palestinian situation, the Palestinians allege that their human rights to self-determination, education, and basic standards of living have been taken away by the Israelis, while the Israelis cite terrorist attacks by Palestinians as a violation of Israeli citizens' human rights.