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What are human rights?

Written by Ramaz Mitaishvili

Sunday, 25 November 2007

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 (principally)
and other duty-bearers to do certain things and prevents them from doing others.
Some of the most important characteristics of human rights are that they:

Are universal—the birthright of all human beings
Focus on the inherent dignity and equal worth of all human beings
Are equal, indivisible and interdependent
Cannot be waived or taken away
Impose obligations of action and omission, particularly on States and State actors
Have been internationally guaranteed
Are legally protected
Protect individuals and, to some extent, groups

Human rights standards have become increasingly well defi ned in recent years. Codifi ed in international, regional
and national legal systems, they constitute a set of performance standards against which duty-bearers at all levels
of society—but especially organs of the State—can be held accountable. The fulfi lment of commitments under international
human rights treaties (see annex I) is monitored by independent expert committees called “treaty bodies,” which
also help to clarify the meaning of particular human rights. Their meaning is also elaborated by individuals and expert
bodies appointed by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (a Geneva-based body composed of 53
United Nations Member States), known as “special procedures,” and of course through regional and national courts
and tribunals. There are other human rights legal systems as well. For example, the International Labour Organization
(ILO) conventions and standards specifi cally protect labour rights, and international humanitarian law applies to armed
confl icts, overlapping signifi cantly with human rights law. Among the rights guaranteed to all human beings under international
treaties, without any discrimination on grounds such as race, colour, sex, language, political or other opinion,
national or social origin, property, birth or other status, are:

The right to life, liberty and security of person
Freedom of association, expression, assembly and movement
The right to the highest attainable standard of health
Freedom from arbitrary arrest or detention
The right to a fair trial
The right to just and favourable working conditions
The right to adequate food, housing and social security
The right to education
The right to equal protection of the law
Freedom from arbitrary interference with privacy, family, home or correspondence
Freedom from torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
Freedom from slavery
The right to a nationality
Freedom of thought, conscience and religion
The right to vote and take part in the conduct of public affairs
The right to participate in cultural life