Transcript Human Rights Training

Definition of Human Rights
Human rights are:
• universal legal guarantees
• protecting individuals and groups
• against actions and omissions
• that interfere with fundamental freedoms,
entitlements and human dignity.
• Human rights law obliges Governments and other
duty-bearers to do certain things and prevents
them from doing others.
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Core Principles of Human Rights
• Universal: All individuals are equal as human beings and by virtue
of the inherent dignity of each human person.
• Inalienable: All people everywhere in the world are entitled to
human rights. A person cannot voluntarily give them up. Nor can
others take them away from him or her.
• Indivisible and interrelated: Rights are completely interdependent
and depend on each other for their effectiveness.
• Non-discrimination: Everyone is entitled to human rights without
discrimination
• Empowerment/participation: These rights endow people the
power to claim them from their governments, as opposed to charity
which is an act of generosity. Human rights are owned by everyone.
• Accountability: Governments have certain duties and obligations to
respect, protect and fulfil human rights. (Individuals and non-state
actors also have duties to others)
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Non-discrimination – a dual obligation
• Negative: The state must not discriminate against
specific individuals or groups
• Positive: the state must take steps to identify
vulnerable individuals or groups in need of extra
attention to ensure their rights are guaranteed.
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When can rights be restricted?
It is not the norm for rights to be limited but the exception. They can only be
limited if the following 5 criteria are met:
1. The restriction must be allowed for in law
2. The restriction must respond to a pressing public or social
need
3. The restriction is strictly necessary in a democratic society to
achieve the public/social need
4. There are no less intrusive and restrictive means available to
reach the same objective; and
5. The restriction is based on scientific evidence and not drafted
or imposed arbitrarily — that is, in an unreasonable or
otherwise discriminatory manner.
Any restriction must be of a limited duration, respectful of human
dignity, and subject to review
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Rights Bearers and Duty Bearers
Right  Responsibility  Claim
Duty bearer
Fulfils
responsibility
towards
Claims
Right
from
Right holder
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Introduction to International
Human Rights Law
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Pre-World War II
• Various human rights principles - long history in many
traditions. e.g.:
– Hammurabi Code (Babylon, c. 1700 BCE)
– Plato, Aristotle (Greece, c. 350-360 BCE)
– Confucianism (c. China, 570 BCE - )
– Asoka “The Edicts” (India, c. 272-231 BCE)
– Kautilya, “The Arthashastra” (India, c. 200 BCE)
– Judaism, Islam, Christianity
– Liberalism (Milton, Locke, Mill, Paine, Voltaire, Kant)
– Communism (e.g. Marx)
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Post World War II
• In response to the atrocities of
the Second World War, human
rights come to the fore
• At the San Francisco
Conference, where the UN
Charter was adopted, some 40
non-governmental
organizations successfully
lobbied delegates on human
rights
• Human rights a core aim of the
UN and legal obligation under
the Charter
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‘Basic Rights and Freedoms’
• Between 1946 and 1948,
international delegations at the
Human Rights commission debated
every word in the drafting of the
Universal Declaration of Human
Rights.
• After 1,400 rounds of voting, the
UDHR was adopted by the General
Assembly on 10 December 1948 as
‘as a common standard of
achievement for all people and
nations’
Eleanor Roosevelt served as the first
Chairperson of the UN Human Rights
Commission and played a critical role in
drafting the UDHR.
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UDHR
• The UDHR outlines the individual rights and freedoms for
everyone based on the principle that human rights are based
‘on the inherent dignity of every person’
• It contains both civil and political as well as economic social
and cultural protections
• It is not legally binding, but nonetheless forms the bedrock of
international human rights law
• It is now available in over 350 languages – the most translated
documented in the world
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International Bill of Human Rights
• The International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights and the International Covenant on Economic
Social and Cultural Rights were adopted in 1966 and
entered into force in 1976
• These conventions put the rights and freedoms of
the UDHR into the form of binding treaties.
• The three documents are referred to as the
International Bill of Human rights
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Development of International Human
Rights Law
• Customary international law (ongoing process)
• Treaties (and monitoring mechanisms )on:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Racial discrimination 1965
Discrimination against women 1979
Torture 1984
Children (all but two states are parties to this treaty) 1989
Migrant workers 1990
Disabled persons 2006
Enforced disappearances 2006
• ‘Soft law’ dozens of declarations and guidelines on
issues such as indigenous people’s rights, HIV/AIDs
etc
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Introduction to the UN human rights
system
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Political/Inter-Governmental
• General Assembly (3rd Committee)
• ECOSOC
• Human Rights Council
– Regular sessions 3 times a year for 3 weeks
– Special sessions
– Universal Periodic Review
– Special Procedures
– 1503 complaint procedure (gross and systematic
violations)
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Programmatic/Secretariat
• Secretary General
– Special Representatives (e.g. Violence Against children)
• Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
–
–
–
–
–
–
Department of UN Secretariat (alongside UNODC)
Headed by UN High Commissioner for Human rights
Secretariat for Human Rights Council and Treaty Bodies
Technical assistance and capacity building to states
Mandate to mainstream human rights in UN system
Civil society Unit:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/AboutUs/Pages/CivilSociety.as
px
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Treaty Monitoring
• Each UN human rights treaty has a corresponding
independent committee (a Treaty Body)
–
–
–
–
Consideration of state reports
Complaints mechanisms (All but CRC)
Inquiry procedures (CAT, CEDAW)
General Comments (Provide more detail on specific
articles)
– Days of General Discussion
– NGOs central to all the work of Treaty Bodies
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Independent Expert
• Special Procedures
– Special Rapporteurs
• e.g. SR on Torture, SR on the right to health
– Independent Experts
• E.g. IE on
– Working Groups
• E.g. WG on Arbitrary Detention
• Country missions, complaints mechanisms, urgent
appeals, annual reports to GA and Human Rights Council
• NGOs frequently initiate complaints, urgent appeals etc
and are points of contact for country missions
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Learn the System!
Helpful guides:
• “A Brief Introduction to the UN Human Rights System” (Part of this
training package)
• “Working with the United Nations Human Rights Programme: A
Handbook for Civil Society”
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/AboutUs/CivilSociety/Documents/Handb
ook_en.pdf
• Open Society Institute Public Health Program, “Human Rights
Documentation and Advocacy: A Guide for Organizations of People
Who Use Drugs”
http://www.soros.org/initiatives/health/focus/ihrd/articles_publica
tions/publications/hrdoc_20090218/hrdoc_20090218.pdf
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Issue to be
solved
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State Obligations
• To Respect: States must refrain from interfering
directly or indirectly with the enjoyment of the right.
• To Protect: States must take measures that prevent
third parties from interfering with the enjoyment of
the right.
• To Fulfill: States must adopt appropriate legislative,
administrative, budgetary, judicial, promotional and
other measures towards the full realisation of the
right (facilitate) and directly provide assistance or
services for the realisation of these rights (provide)
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