HUMAN RIGHTS

 MB 105 Posted by:  Group 7

                                Kefilwe Patience Malete        1000921482

                                    Thandeka Zodwa Gambule     1000921526 

                                     Tlhalefo Dudu Ntereke            1000921485

                                        

Human rights are the basic rights and freedoms entitled to any person, regardless of economic status, nationality, jurisdiction, age, ability, ethnicity, sex, and sexuality. These basic rights are the right to life, freedom, equality, justice, and freedom of thought and expression. The modern conception of human rights was developed in the aftermath of the second world war, and it was adopted by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nation General Assembly in 1948.Human Rights can be understood as a set of acknowledged principles of international law (such as the prohibition of genocide), as well as a broader set of endorsed values whose implications remain contested or ambiguous (the right to self-determination, the right to culture, the rights of indigenous peoples, the right to development). The field of human rights involves an evolving transnational project to define an ethical baseline for the governance of human society.

The true for runner of human rights discourse was the enlightenment concept of natural rights developed by figures such as John State and Emmanuel Kant and through the political realm in the United State Bill Rights of United State Bill Rights and the Declaration of the Rights of the Citizen. In their contemporary manifestation, human rights are a set of individual and collective rights that have been formally promoted and protected through international and domestic law since the UN Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. Arguments, theories, and protections of such rights have been in existence for a much longer period, but since the UN Declaration, the evolution of their express legal protection has grown rapidly. Today, there are numerous international treaties on human rights to which an increasingly large number of nation states are a party, while the language of human rights increasingly pervades our moral, legal, and political vocabulary to such an extant that we are now living in an age of rights.

The development of a human rights doctrine has changed the ways in which nation states act towards each other at the international and regional levels, and the ways which governments, individuals and groups interact at the domestic level. These new types of action and interaction cover a broad range of areas, including political rights, civil rights, social, economic, and cultural rights, as well as questions of poverty and the distribution of socio-economic resources. Politically and legally, both the sovereignty and pursuit of power-based national interest has become increasingly checked by the application of international, regional, and national human rights norms and practices.

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhoodUnited Nations charter was set out with the purpose for UN to achieve international cooperation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion. The rights espoused in the UN charter was codified in the International Bill Of Human Rights, composing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political and the International Covenant on Economic,Social and Cultural Rights.

                    THE UNIVERSAL DECLARATION HUMAN RIGHTS

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was found in 1948 and it was drafted by the UN Commission on Human Rights in 1947 and 1948. The Declaration was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 December 1948.Amongst other human rights, this declaration enunciates certain fundamental human rights of every human being which are of special interest in the study of the ethics of circumcision. They are rights to security of person, to freedom from torture and other cruel and unusual treatment, and to privacy. Motherhood and childhood have a right to special protection.

Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.

Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.

Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.

Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.

Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.

                                           COMMON HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES

                       The United Nations Study on Violence against Children

The study analyses violence against children in five settings: the home and family; schools and educational settings; care and justice institutions; the work-place; and the community. The study was guided by the Convention on the Rights of children,which emphasizes children's rights to physical and personal integrity, and outlines States parties obligations to protect them from "all forms of physical or mental violence", including sexual and other forms of exploitation, abduction, armed conflict, and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. It also obliges the State to enact preventive measures and ensure that all child victims of violence receive the support and assistance they require. The Study process was supported jointly by OHCHR, UNICEF and WHO.

                            Rule of Law - Democracy and Human Rights

 

Democracy is one of the universal core values and principles of the United Nations. Respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and the principle of holding periodic and genuine elections by universal suffrage are essential elements of democracy. These values are embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and further developed in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which enshrines a host of political rights and civil liberties underpinning meaningful democracies.The Rule of Law and Democracy Unit stands as OHCHR focal point for democracy activities. The Unit works to develop concepts and operational strategies to enhance democracy and provide guidance and support to democratic institutions through technical cooperation activities and partnership with the relevant parts of the UN, notably the UN Democracy Fund, the Department of Political Affairs and the newly established UN Working Group on Democracy. Legal and expert advice are provided as required to OHCHR field operations on relevant issues such as respect for participatory rights in the context of free and fair elections, draft legislation on national referenda and training activities.

HIV AND AIDS

                                                    

                             Human rights education and training

Human rights can only be achieved through an informed and continued demand by people for their protection. Human rights education promotes values, beliefs and attitudes that encourage all individuals to uphold their own rights and those of others. It develops an understanding of everyone's common responsibility to make human rights a reality in each community. Human rights education constitutes an essential contribution to the long-term prevention of human rights abuses and represents an important investment in the endeavour to achieve a just society in which all human rights of all persons are valued and respected.

                             Examples of types of human Violations

Some of the gravest violations of the right to life are massacres, the starvation of entire populations, and genocide. Genocide is commonly understood as the intentional extermination of a single ethnic, racial, or religious group. Killing group members, causing them serious bodily or mental harm, imposing measures to prevent birth, or forcibly transferring children are all ways to bring about the destruction of a group. Genocide is often regarded as the most offensive crime against humanity. Women and girls are often raped by soldiers or forced into prostitution. For a long time, the international community has failed to address the problem of sexual violence during armed conflict.

However, sexual assaults, which often involve sexual mutilation, sexual humiliation, and forced pregnancy, are quite common. Such crimes are motivated in part by the long-held view that women are the "spoils" of war to which soldiers are entitled. Trafficking in women is a form of sexual slavery in which women are transported across national borders and marketed for prostitution. These so-called "comfort women" are another example of institutionalized sexual violence against women during wartime. Sexual violence is sometimes viewed as a way to destroy male and community pride or humiliate men who cannot "protect" their women. It is also used to silence women who are politically active, or simply inflict terror upon the population at large.

                                                        Solutions

International humanitarian law has been enacted to preserve humanity in all circumstances, even during conflicts. Such law creates areas of peace in the midst of conflict, imposes the principle of a common humanity, and calls for dialogue. It rules out unlimited force or total war and seeks to limit the use of violence in the hopes of maintaining the necessary conditions for a return to peace. Various international committees are in place to monitor compliance with human rights standards and report any violations. When breaches do occur, they are brought to the attention of international tribunals or tried in an international court or war crimes tribunal.

In response, public authorities must regain control of organized violence. This means a re-establishment of the rule of law and a rebuilding of trust in public authorities. In addition, more inclusive, democratic values are needed to defuse exclusivist ideals. In the face of such violations, leaders must champion international legal norms and human rights. These human rights norms are central to the maintenance of civil society, and necessary for grounding attitudes of tolerance and mutual respect within communities.Serious difficulties arise, however, when those in power are responsible for human rights violations. In this case, outside intervention is necessary to stop the abuse.

REFERENCES

Sexual Violence and Armed Conflict: United Nations Response." United Nations. Available at: http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/public/cover.htm; [Internet]. Accessed:[20 June 2010]

"Sexual Violence." Available at: http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/public/cover.htm; [Internet].Accessed:[22 July 2010]

htpp://www.un.org/ecosocdev/geninfo/afrec/sgreport/pressrel.htm; [Internet].Accessed:[29 July 2010]