Human rights refer to the "basic rights and freedoms to
which all humans are entitled." Examples of rights and freedoms which have
come to be commonly thought of as human rights include civil and political rights,
such as the right to life and liberty, freedom of expression, and equality before
the law; and economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to participate
in culture, the right to food, the right to work, and the right to education.
“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 brotherhood.”
—Article 1 of the United Nations
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
International norms
Humanitarian Law
The Geneva Conventions came into being between 1864 and 1949
as a result of efforts by Henry Dunant, the founder of the International Committee
of the Red Cross. The conventions safeguard the human rights of individuals
involved in armed conflict, and build on the 1899 and 1907 Hague Conventions,
the international community's first attempt to formalize the laws of war and
war crimes in the nascent body of secular international law. The conventions
were revised as a result of World War II and readopted by the international
community in 1949.
The Geneva Conventions define what is today referred to as
humanitarian law. The International Committee of the Red Cross is the controlling
body of the Geneva conventions.
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a non-binding
declaration adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, partly in
response to the atrocities of World War II. Although the UDHR is a non-binding
resolution, it is now considered to be a central component of international
customary law which may be invoked under appropriate circumstances by national
and other judiciaries. The UDHR urges member nations to promote a number of
human, civil, economic and social rights, asserting these rights are part of
the "foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world." The declaration
was the first international legal effort to limit the behaviour of states and
press upon them duties to their citizens following the model of the rights-duty
duality (for more, see page Universal Declaration of Human Rights).
Law
Human rights law is a system of laws, both domestic and international,
designed to promote human rights.
Treaties
In 1966, the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights (ICESCR) were adopted by the United Nations, between them making the
rights contained in the UDHR binding on all states that have signed this treaty,
creating human rights law.
Since then numerous other treaties (pieces of legislation)
have been offered at the international level. They are generally known as human
rights instruments. Some of the most significant are:
* Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
(CERD) (adopted 1966, entry into force: 1969)
* Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women
(CEDAW) (entry into force: 1981)
* United Nations Convention Against Torture (CAT) (adopted 1984, entry into
force: 1984)
* Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) (adopted 1989, entry into force:
1989)
* International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers
and Members of their Families (ICRMW) (adopted 1990, entry into force: 2003)
Enforcement of law
The enforcement of international human rights law is the responsibility
of the Nation State, and its the primary responsibility of the State to make
human rights a reality. There is currently no international court that upholds
human rights law (the International Criminal Court deals with crimes against
humanity, war crimes and genocide), although the Council of Europe is responsible
for both the European Convention on Human Rights, and the European Court of
Human Rights that acts as a court of last appeal for human rights issues in
member states.
In practice, many human rights are very difficult to legally
enforce due to the absence of consensus on the application of certain rights,
the lack of relevant national legislation or of bodies empowered to take legal
action to enforce them.
Universal Jurisdiction
Universal jurisdiction is a controversial principle in international
law whereby states claim criminal jurisdiction over persons whose alleged crimes
were committed outside the boundaries of the prosecuting state, regardless of
nationality, country of residence, or any other relation with the prosecuting
country. The state backs its claim on the grounds that the crime committed is
considered a crime against all, which any state is authorized to punish. The
concept of universal jurisdiction is therefore closely linked to the idea that
certain international norms are erga omnes, or owed to the entire world community,
as well as the concept of jus cogens.
The Human Rights Council in session
United Nations
Human Rights Council
The United Nations Human Rights Council, created at the 2005
World Summit to replace the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, has a
mandate to investigate violations of human rights.[18] The Human Rights Council
is a subsidiary body of the General Assembly and reports directly to it. It
ranks below the Security Council, which is the final authority for the interpretation
of the United Nations Charter. Forty-seven of the one hundred ninety-one member
states sit on the council, elected by simple majority in a secret ballot of
the United Nations General Assembly. Members serve a maximum of six years and
may have their membership suspended for gross human rights abuses. The Council
is based in Geneva, and meets three times a year; with additional meetings to
respond to urgent situations.
Independent experts (rapporteurs) are retained by the Council
to investigate alleged human rights abuses and to provide the Council with reports.
The Human Rights Council may request that the Security Council
take action when human rights violations occur. This action may be direct actions,
may involve sanctions, and the Security Council may also refer cases to the
International Criminal Court (ICC) even if the issue being referred is outside
the normal jurisdiction of the ICC.
Security Council
The United Nations Security Council has the primary responsibility
for maintaining international peace and security and is the only body of the
UN that can authorize the use of force (including in the context of peace-keeping
operations), or override member nations sovereignty by issuing binding Security
Council resolutions. Created by the UN Charter, it is classed as a Charter Body
of the United Nations. The UN Charter gives the Security Council the power to:
* Investigate any situation threatening international peace;
* Recommend procedures for peaceful resolution of a dispute;
* Call upon other member nations to completely or partially interrupt economic
relations as well as sea, air, postal, and radio communications, or to sever
diplomatic relations; and
* Enforce its decisions militarily, if necessary.
The Security Council hears reports from all organs of the United
Nations, and can take action over any issue which it feels threatens peace and
security, including human rights issues. It has at times been criticised for
failing to take action to prevent human rights abuses, including the Darfur
crisis, the Srebrenica massacre and the Rwandan Genocide.
The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court recognizes
the Security Council the power to refer cases to the Court, where the Court
could not otherwise exercise jurisdiction.
The session of the Security Council
Other UN Treaty Bodies
A modern interpretation of the original Declaration of Human
Rights was made in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action adopted by
the World Conference on Human Rights in 1993. The degree of unanimity over these
conventions, in terms of how many and which countries have ratified them varies,
as does the degree to which they are respected by various states. The UN has
set up a number of treaty-based bodies to monitor and study human rights, under
the leadership of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR). The bodies
are committees of independent experts that monitor implementation of the core
international human rights treaties. They are created by the treaty that they
monitor.
