Introduction to

Human Rights
Meaning, Nature, Scope and Classification of Human Rights

What is your understanding of Human

Rights?
• Human Rights can broadly be defined as a number of basic
rights that all people are entitled to.
• These include the right to LIFE, LIBERTY and PROPERTY.
• Freedom to Expression & Equality before law:
• Economic
• Social
• Cultural Rights
• Right to Food
• Right to Work
• Right to Education (RTE-2009)
UDHR article 1 says
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 on a spirit of brotherhood.

Name some of the Human Rights activists

• Dr. B. R. Ambedkar
• Martin Luther King Jr
• Nelson Mandela
• Periyar
• Malala Yousafzai
• Medha Patkar
• Teesta Setalvad
• Bezwada Wilson
• Fr. Stan Swamy
• Ambdkar- movement against dalit discrimination
• Martin Luther King- Civil Rights movement
• Nelson Mandela- resistance movement against apartheid
(discrimination on grounds of race)
• Periyar- Self-respect movement / Dravidian movement
• Malala – Right to education
• Medha Patkar- Human Rights activist who fights issues raised
by tribals, Dalits, farmers, labourers and woman facing in
justice.
• Teesta – Human rights activist and journalist who advocated
for the victims of 2002 Gujarat riots.
• Bezwada Wilson- convenor of the Safai Karamachari Andholan
(eradication of manual scavenging)
• Fr. Stan Swamy- Tribal rights activist (worked on setting up of a
Tribes Advisory council with members solely of Adivasi
community for their protection and well being).
 Nature of Human Rights
How do you think one acquires Human Rights?
Human Rights are inalienable.
• Human Rights are conferred on an individual due to the very
nature of his/her existence. They are inherent in all individuals
irrespective of their CASTE, CREED, RELIGION, SEX &
NATIONALITY. Human Rights are conferred to an individual
even after his death.
• Inherent- natural, inborn in us, they are not granted by any
authority. They do not need any event for their existence.
• Fundamental- they are basic, essential, primary, without them
the life and dignity of man will be meaningless.
• Inalienable- HR belongs to all ppl regardless of their sex, race,
colour, language, national origin, age, class, religion or political
beliefs .
• Indivisible- they cannot be divided and cannot be denied even
when other rights have already been enjoyed.
• Inter- related & Interdependent- they become source of other
rights (eg. From right to life springs out right to clean air to
right to food to right to work etc)
• Imprescriptible – no time limit or lapse of time.
Classification of Human Rights
Human Rights can be broadly classified on 5 basis. They are:
 • Civil Rights- guarantees of equal social opportunities and equal
protection under the law, regardless of race, religion, or other
personal characteristics.
• Political Rights- Political rights give to the citizens the right to
equality before law and the right to participate in the political
process, such as the right to vote and elect representatives, the
right to contest elections, the right to form political parties or
join them.
• Economic Rights- Economic rights include the rights to work, to
receive a fair wage, safe working conditions, and to form and
join trade unions.
• Social & Cultural Rights- Social and cultural rights include the
rights to adequate food, to adequate housing, to education, to
health, to social security, to take part in cultural life, to water
and sanitation, and to work.
• Development Oriented Rights- The Right to development is
regarded as an inalienable human right which all peoples are
entitled to participate in, contribute to, and enjoy economic,
social, cultural and political development.
Civil Rights
Civil Rights are basically protection from discrimination against :
1. Gender
2. Sex
3. Race
4. Religion
5. National origin
6. Colour
7. Ethnicity
 8. Caste
9. Disability

First Generation Rights- CIVIL & POLITICAL RIGHTS

Also called as the ‘BLUE RIGHTS’
• Influenced by the ideas that were unthinkable to the previous political
societies.
• The government is representative rather than unilateral.
• Government became the representative of the people.
• The idea of power was re-conceptualized.
The first generation rights are influenced by the ideas that were
unthinkable to the previous political societies: that the political sovereignty
rests with the people instead of the monarch, that government is
representative rather than unilateral and absolute and that the government
is the result of a social contact and general will of the people. The idea of
power itself was re-conceptualized. It was defined not so much along the
lines of the monarch as it was along lines of the people. Civil and political
rights are today detailed in the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights (ICCPR, 1966) and the European Convention for the Protection of
Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
Second Generation Rights- ECONOMIC, SOCIAL & CULTURAL RIGHTS
• Equal conditions and treatment.
• The second-generation rights are also the positive rights because these
rights it is made possible only through the intervention of the state.
Firstly, unlike the civil and political rights, these rights are shaped by a
radically different context, which is the advent of industrialization and the
growth of capitalism.
For instance, the right to work applies only if the state is providing work to the
workers in the first place. Therefore, some kind of affirmative action such as
ensuring healthcare and education is needed on the part of the state.
Third Generation Human Rights- COLLECTIVE RIGHTS
• The third-generation human rights have moved away from the
approaches adopted by the first two generations.
• The collective rights that appeared at the forefront were the right to
peace, right to development, right to environment and the right to self-
determination.
• Rights such as peace and environment appeared in the context of the
emerging transnational threats such as cross border terrorism and
the climate change.
• Collective thinking equips us to cultivate and envision solidarity among
all human persons because then alone human rights will have evolved
into their highest heights.
Whereas the first and second generation embraced individual centered
approaches to understanding the evolution of Human Rights, the third
generation employed the collective one.
In the third-generation rights, the ‘collective’ has become immensely relevant
with the appearance of these threats that fashioned themselves as the
common enemy to humankind.
Fourth Generation- SUBJECTIVE RIGHTS
• Also known as welfare rights
• Liberty, Equality and Fraternity
• Rapid Technological Development
• Use of Technology is a threat to loss of jobs for Humans
• [Link] rights because it pertains to development of people
• 2. Over view of the fourth-generation rights being
• 3. Fraternity mutual support or friendship within a group
• 4. Reason for 4th generation rights – growing concerns that technology
may encroach or over power human rights.

UDHR
UDHR
Is a declaration adopted by United Nations General Assembly on 10th
December 1948 at Paris.
10 December is observed as National Human Rights Day.
It has served as a foundation for a growing number of national laws,
international laws and treaties.
It is an institution at protects and promotes Human Rights.
Articles of the UDHR
1. Free and Equal - All human beings are born free and equal and should be
treated the same way.
2. Freedom from Discrimination- Everyone can claim their rights regardless of
sex, race, language, religion, social standing, etc.
3. Right to Life- Everyone has the right to life and to live in freedom and
safety.
4. Freedom from Slavery - No one has the right to treat you as a slave nor
should you enslave anyone.
5. Freedom from Torture - No one has the right to treat you as a slave nor
should you enslave anyone.
6. Right to Recognition before Law- You should be legally protected in the
same way everywhere like anyone else.
7. Right to Equality before Law- The law is the same for everyone and should
be applied in the same manner to all.
8. Access to Justice- You have the right to obtain legal help and access the
justice system when your rights are not respected.
9. Freedom from Arbitrary Detention- No one can arrest or detain you
arbitrarily, or send you away from your country unjustly.
[Link] to Fair Trial -Trials should be public and tried in a fair manner by an
impartial and independent tribunal.
11. Presumption of Innocence- You are considered innocent until it can be
proved you are guilty according to law. If accused of a crime you have the
right to a defence.
12. Right to Privacy - You have the right to protection if someone tried to harm
your good name, enter your home without permission or interfere with
your correspondence.
[Link] of Movement - You have the right to leave or move within your
own country and you should be able to return.
[Link] to Asylum- If you are persecuted at home, you have the right to seek
protection in another country.
15. Right to Nationality- You have the right to belong to a country and have a
nationality.
16. Right to Marriage and found a Family - Men and women have the right to
marry when they are legally able without limits due to race, nationality or
religion. Families should be protected by the Government and the justice
system.
17. Right to own Property- You have the right to own things. No one has the
right to illegally take them from you.
[Link] of Religion or Belief-Everyone has the right to freely manifest their
religion, to change it and to practice it alone or with others.
[Link] of Expression- Everyone has the right to think and say what they
like and no one should forbid it.
[Link] of Assembly- You have the right to organize and participate in
peaceful meetings.

21. Right to partake in Public Affairs- Everyone has the right to take part in
their country’s political affairs and equal access to public service.
Governments should be voted for regularly.

[Link] to Social Security - Society should help individuals to freely develop

and make the most of all advantages offered in their country.

23. Right to Work - Everyone has the right to work in just and favourable
conditions and be free to choose your work with a salary that allows you to
live and support family. Everyone should receive equal pay for equal work.

[Link] to Leisure and Rest - Each work day should not be too long and
everyone has the right to rest and take regular paid holidays.

[Link] to adequate Standard of Living - You have the right to have what you
need so that you and your family do not go hungry, homeless or fall ill.

26. Right to Education - You have the right to go to school, continue your
studies as far as you wish and learn regardless of race, religion or country of
origin.

27. Right to take part in Cultural, Artistic and Scientific Life- You have the right
to share the benefits of your community’s culture, arts and sciences.

28. Right to Free and Fair World - To make sure your rights are respected,
there must be an order that can protect them. This order should be global.

29. Duty to your Community - You have duties toward the community within
which your personality can fully develop. The law should guarantee human
rights. It should allow everyone to respect others and to be respected
30. Rights are Inalienable - No one, institution nor individual, should act in any
way to destroy the rights enshrined in the UDHR.

How has the UDHR helped?

While Human Rights abuses did not end when the United Declaration was
adopted the declaration has helped countless people to gain greater
freedom and security.
It has helped to prevent violations, obtain justice for wrongs and strengthen
the national and international Human Rights laws and safeguards.

How did the Declaration of Human Rights impact the world?

The Declaration has spawned other important treaties against racial, gender
and ability discrimination. Now 198 countries allow women to vote ,
compared to 91 in 1948,
57 % of the countries have a Human Rights institution and 111 countries
have adopted press freedom laws.

What significant impacts can UDHR bring to us in this world?

It has inspired more than 80 international conventions and treaties, as well
as numerous regional conventions and domestic laws. It has been the
catalyst for improving Human Rights protection for groups such as disabled
people, indigenous people and women. It has been translated into more
than 360 languages.