People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria
Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research
University of Algiers 1 First year Master's
Public International Law Major
Module: Drafting Report and Complaints Under Human Rights Conventions
The Classification Of Human Rights
Prepared by:
- LOUNES Rania Ines.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
● INTRODUCTION
● PART 1: Scope of Application
1. Individual Rights
2. Collective Rights
● PART 2: Time of Application
1. Peacetime
2. Wartime
● PART 3: According to the Content
1. First Generation
2. Second Generation
3. Third Generation
● CONCLUSION
Introduction
Human rights have been described as those activities, conditions, and freedoms that
all human beings are entitled to enjoy by virtue of their humanity and regardless of
their status. (Alan S. Gutterman, 2022). The concept of human rights is closely
linked to the nature of human beings, who are regarded as rational and entitled to
certain basic rights from birth. Human beings are described as rational beings and
thus given certain basic rights since birth. These rights are inherent in all human
beings as they become operative at the birth of a person. These rights govern the
physical, moral, spiritual, and social welfare of a person. They are also known as
fundamental rights, basic rights, inherent rights, natural rights, and birth rights.
(Monesh Mehndiratta, 2022).
Given the broad scope of human rights, scholars and legal experts have developed
various ways to classify them to better understand their nature and application.
In this presentation, we will examine human rights according to three main criteria:
1. Scope of Application – whether rights belong to individuals or groups.
2. Time of Application – whether rights apply during peacetime or
wartime.
3. Content (Generations of Rights) – classifying rights into civil and
political, economic, social and cultural, and solidarity or collective
rights.
Part 1: Scope of Application
Human rights may be classified according to their scope of application, which refers
to who holds the rights and who is responsible for ensuring them. This approach
focuses on the subject of the rights—the rights holder—and examines whether a given
right is exercised by an individual or by a group acting collectively. The purpose of
this classification is to show the level at which human rights operate and how they
protect both individual interests and collective interests within society.
1. Individual Rights
Individual rights, also known as natural rights, are held by individuals simply by
virtue of being human. Some theists consider these rights to be God-given, while
others understand them as moral claims that protect a person’s freedom of action.
They are equal and inalienable, belonging to all human beings without distinction
and cannot be taken away. Individual rights protect the moral autonomy and
dignity of each person, ensuring that people remain free to make meaningful choices
about their lives. They also serve as essential limits on state power, preventing
governments from arbitrarily restricting personal freedoms. Rather than being
divinely ordained, these rights are social and political constructs developed to
safeguard human dignity, forming the core foundation of the modern international
human rights system.
Examples of individual rights:
● Freedom of speech – everyone has the right to have an opinion and express
it, without worrying about retaliation or censorship from the government.
● Freedom of religion – everyone is free to follow any religion they choose to
or not practice any religion at all, without fear of retaliation or pressure.
● Right to privacy – a person’s space and personal data are safeguarded under
this right, which protects these from being accessed or shared without
permission.
● Right to a fair trial – when indicted or convicted, everyone has the right to a
fair trial.
● Freedom of assembly – every person has the right to join others for
peaceful goals in a public or private setting. (Dandiil Filipenco,2024
Development aid org)
2.Collective Rights
Collective rights are held by groups or communities rather than by individuals.
“Group rights, in any strong sense of that term, are rights held by a
corporate entity that is not reducible to its individual members.” They
safeguard the identity, culture, and shared interests of the group and are not
reducible to the sum of individual rights. Examples include states, corporations,
trade unions, and NGOs. International human rights law explicitly recognises one
group human right: the right of peoples to self-determination. “The rights of
indigenous peoples and the right to cultural heritage are strong examples
of group rights, protecting shared traditions and identities.” Although
crucial for protecting communities, collective rights remain distinct from individual
human rights and must be considered carefully.
Examples of collective rights:
The right to preserve one’s culture, including the right to speak a native language and
teach one’s children in it.
● The right to maintain cultural identities unique to ethnic
minorities.
● The right to own land.
● The right of minorities to possess independent self-government.
● The right for a religious group to freely practice communal
religious expression. (Dandiil Filipenco,2024 Development aid org)
Part 2: Time of Application
The temporal application of human rights refers to the circumstances and stages of
life in which these rights are operative. While most human rights are universal and
apply from birth, certain rights, such as voting or employment, are contingent upon
specific conditions. In peacetime, human rights are fully protected under
international human rights conventions, whereas in wartime, fundamental
non-derogable rights, including the right to life and freedom from torture, remain
protected under international humanitarian law.
1. Peacetime
In peacetime, human rights are fully operative and protected under international
law, guaranteeing fundamental freedoms to all individuals within a state’s
jurisdiction. These rights encompass civil, political, economic, social, and cultural
protections, ensuring individual autonomy, equality, and human dignity. States are
legally obliged to respect, protect, and fulfil these rights under international treaties,
such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).
Examples of peacetime rights include freedom of expression, freedom of religion,
access to education, and the right to vote.
2.Wartime
During wartime, human rights continue to apply, though certain rights may be
temporarily limited under emergency derogations, as permitted by treaties like the
ICCPR and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Core
non-derogable rights—including the right to life, freedom from torture, and humane
treatment—remain fully protected. International humanitarian law complements
human rights law by regulating armed conflicts, safeguarding civilians, and ensuring
the proper treatment of combatants and prisoners of war. Jurisprudence from
international courts and tribunals confirms that both human rights law and
humanitarian law operate in parallel, providing overlapping and mutually
reinforcing protection even in situations of armed conflict.
Part 3: According to the content
Human rights have evolved to address the changing needs and challenges of
societies. Scholars often classify them into different “generations” to reflect their
historical development, underlying principles, and scope of protection. This
classification helps to understand how human rights have expanded from primarily
protecting individual civil and political freedoms to encompassing economic, social,
cultural, and collective rights.
1. First generation: Civil and Political Rights
Civil rights are those that protect the life, personal liberty, and dignity of individuals.
They include rights such as the right to life, liberty, and security, the right to privacy,
freedom of thought, religion, movement, and the right to own property. Political
rights, on the other hand, enable individuals to participate in the governance of their
state, including the right to vote and the right to be elected. Although civil and
political rights differ in nature, they are closely interrelated, as both aim to safeguard
individual freedoms and participation in society.
These rights are often referred to as first-generation rights and are enshrined in the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Historically,
they emerged from 17th- 18th-century liberal thought and revolutions in America,
France, and England. They are considered negative rights, as they require the state
to abstain from interfering with individual freedoms.
The following civil and political rights are recognised in the Declaration of Human
Rights by the United Nations:
● Right to life, liberty, and security (UDHR Art. 3)
● Freedom from slavery (Art. 4)
● Prohibition of torture and inhuman treatment (Art. 5)
● Equality before the law (Art. 7)
● Right to an effective remedy (Art. 8)
● Freedom from arbitrary arrest (Art. 9)
● Right to a fair trial (Art. 10)
● Freedom from ex post facto laws (Art. 11)
● Right to privacy (Art. 12)
● Right to nationality (Art. 15)
● Right to own property (Art. 17)
● Freedom of thought, conscience, and religion (Art. 18)
● Freedom of expression (Art. 19)
● Freedom of peaceful assembly (Art. 20)
● Right to take part in government (Art. 21)
2. Second generation: Economic, Social, and Cultural
Rights
Second-generation rights, also known as economic, social, and cultural rights, refer
to entitlements that guarantee individuals the basic conditions necessary for a
dignified life. They are closely associated with principles of social equality and
require active state involvement, as governments must implement policies, allocate
resources, and create supportive institutions for their realisation. These rights are
primarily protected under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and include obligations related to work, health, education,
and social welfare. Examples recognised in the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights include:
● Right to social security (Art. 22)
● Right to work and freely choose employment (Art. 23)
● Right to rest and leisure (Art. 24)
● Right to an adequate standard of living and health (Art. 25)
● Right to education (Art. 26)
● Right to participate in cultural life (Art. 27)
● Right to a social and international order in which rights can be fully
realised (Art. 28)
3.Third generation: Solidarity or Collective Rights
Third-generation, or solidarity rights, constitute a category of collective rights that
can only be realised through coordinated action among states and communities.
Grounded in the principle of solidarity, they emphasise shared responsibilities in
addressing challenges that transcend national boundaries. A human-rights–based
approach is essential to ensure that solidarity remains inclusive and does not serve to
undermine individual rights in the name of collective goals. These rights reflect an
evolution of the human rights framework, extending its focus toward global concerns
such as development, environmental protection, and the maintenance of peace, all of
which require collective commitment and cooperation.
Examples of Third-Generation Rights:
● Right to Development – Proclaimed in the 1986 Declaration on the Right to
Development, after earlier UN affirmations in the late 1970s.
● Right to a Healthy and Clean Environment – Recognised in the 1972
Stockholm Declaration and reaffirmed in the 1992 Rio Declaration.
● Right to Peace – Referenced in the 1976 UN Commission on Human Rights
Resolution, the 1978 Declaration on Preparing Societies for Life in Peace, and the
1984 Declaration on the Right of Peoples to Peace.
Conclusion
While classifying human rights may seem to contradict their universal, indivisible,
and interdependent nature, it remains a useful framework for analyzing how these
rights function and evolve. Such classifications help clarify the different levels at
which rights operate and how they respond to changing social and global needs.
Human rights theory, as Peter Jones argues, is rooted in moral individualism: it
affirms the equal standing of all persons while still recognizing that communities
may hold certain rights, so long as these do not overshadow the rights of individuals.
Overall, the various classifications examined—by scope, time of application, and
generational development—highlight the multidimensional character of human
rights and reinforce their core purpose: protecting human dignity.
References
● Gutterman, A. S. (2023, January 9). What are human rights? University of
California, Berkeley; Golden Gate University; University of Cambridge.
● Donnelly, J. (2013). Universal human rights in theory and practice (3rd ed.).
Cornell University Press.
● Mehndiratta, M. (2022). Classification of human rights. iPleaders.
[Link]
Human_Rights
● Mubangizi, J. C. (Year). Towards a new approach to the classification of
human rights with specific reference to the African context. African Human
Rights Law Journal.
● Jones, P. (2000). Individuals, communities and human rights. Review of
International Studies, 26, 199–215
● LegalClarity. (n.d.). What are collective rights vs. individual rights?
LegalClarity.
[Link]
m_source=[Link]
● Filipenco, D. (2024). Collective vs individual rights: What’s the difference
and why does it matter? DevelopmentAid.
[Link]
dividual-rights?utm_source=[Link]
● Minnerop, P., Roht‑Arriaza, N., & Aminzadeh, S. C. (2019). Solidarity rights
(development, peace, environment, humanitarian assistance). In P.
Minnerop, R. Wolfrum & F. Lachenmann (Eds.), International Law of
Development (Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law,
pp. 825‑836). Oxford University Press.
● Orakhelashvili, A. (2008). The interaction between human rights and
humanitarian law: Fragmentation, conflict, parallelism, or convergence?
European Journal of International Law, 19(1), 161‑182.
[Link]
● Jauslin, C. (2024, June 10). Solidarity and human rights: A difficult marriage
with great potential. ESIL Reflections, 13(10). European Society of
International Law.
[Link]
rriage-with-great-potential/