Human Rights

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 Human Rights
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 Rights that individuals can avail and enjoy, by virtue
of being born as a human being.
 Rights related to life, liberty, equality and dignity of
an individual guaranteed by the Constitution or
embodied in the international covenants and which
are enforceable by courts in India.
 UDHR defines ‘human rights’ as “Rights derived
from the inherent dignity of the human person.”
 Harold Laski: “Conditions of social life without which
no man can seek in general to be himself at his best.”
 Justice Durga Das Basu : “Human rights are those

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minimal rights, which every individual must have,
against the State or other public authority, by virtue of
his being a member of the human family, irrespective of
any other consideration.”
 Characteristic of Human Rights
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 Inherent  Connected to human
 Fundamental dignity
 Inalienable  Irrevocable
 Imprescriptible  Not absolute
 Universal  Dynamic
 Interdependent  Limits state power
Evolution of Human Rights

 Cyrus Cylinder (539 BC)
 "the heritage of Cyrus was the heritage of human
understanding, tolerance, courage, compassion and,
above all, human liberty."
 
 Natural Rights Theory: Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau
and Paine
 Natural Rights Theory

 Law is the body of rules of action or conduct
prescribed by authority having binding legal force.
Jurisprudence is the philosophy of law and how it is
developed.
 Natural law is a moral theory of jurisprudence- law
should be based on morality and ethics.
 Law is based on what is “correct.’
 Natural law is discovered by humans through the
use of reason and choosing between good and evil.
 History of Natural Law

 The Greeks – Socrates, Plato and Aristotle
distinguish between natural law, common law and
higher law.
 St. Thomas Aquinas
 History of Natural Law (St. Thomas
Aquinas)
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 Describes law as "a certain rule and measure of acts whereby man
is induced to act or is restrained from acting.“
 Four main kinds of law: the eternal, the natural, the human, and the
divine.
 Eternal law is identical to the mind of God as seen by God himself. 
 Divine law is derived from eternal law as it appears historically to
humans, especially through revelation, i.e., when it appears to
human beings as divine commands.
 Natural law is the rational creature’s participation of the eternal
law.
 Human law is created by humans for the purpose of implementing
natural law.
 First Principles of Natural Law:
Four Precepts of Natural Law
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 First – Good is to be done and pursued; evil,
avoided.
 Second – Preserve life and ward off obstacles.
 Third – Reproduce and raise your offspring.
 Fourth – Pursue knowledge and live together in
society.
Second Principles of Natural Law
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 Always binding and always known
 Always binding and not always known
 Not always binding (and by implication, not always
known)

How is human law derived from natural law?

 Hugo Grotius
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 Father of Natural Law
 Balance between self-love and love for others
through ‘right reason’- an intellectual act of
understanding.
 Should be used for common good.
 “Natural Law is so immutable that it cannot be
changed by God…natural law derived from the will
of God, now liberates itself from the dependence on
God.”
 Thomas Hobbes

 From Classical Natural Law to Modern Natural
Rights
 Rejected traditional view of law.
 Observed wars and anarchy.
 Encouraged people to accept the established laws
and customs of their nations
 Magna Carta

 Magna Carta Libertatum (Medieval Latin for "the
Great Charter of the Liberties") is commonly called
Magna Carta.
 Charter by King John. Signed in 1215.
 The Charter was presented to the kings by the barons
and lords. They drew 63 clauses that guaranteed
them basic civil and legal rights.
 Magna Carta
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 Implied that the law is above the King.
 The King is also subject to the law of the land.
 Although Magna Carta contained 63 clauses when it was first granted,
only three of those clauses remain part of English law.
 One defends the liberties and rights of the English Church.
 Another confirms the liberties and customs of London and other towns
 The third is the most famous:
No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions,
or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any other way, nor will we
proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful
judgement of his equals or by the law of the land. To no one will we sell, to no one
deny or delay right or justice.
Universal Declaration of
Human  Rights
 The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is
an historic document that was adopted by the United
Nations General Assembly at its third session on 10
December 1948 as Resolution 217 in Paris, France.
 Of the then 68 members of the United Nations, 48 voted
in favor, none against, eight abstained, and two did not
vote.
 The Declaration consists of 30 articles affirming an
individual's rights which, although not legally binding
in themselves
The Declaration consists of a preamble and thirty articles:
The preamble sets out the historical and social causes that led to the necessity of
drafting the Declaration.
Articles 1—2 established the basic concepts of dignity, liberty, equality, and
brotherhood.
Articles 3—11 established other individual rights, such as the right to life and the
prohibition of slavery.
Articles 6—11 refer to the fundamental legality of human rights with specific
remedies cited for their defence when violated.
Articles 12–17 established the rights of the individual towards the community
(including such things as freedom of movement).
Articles 18–21 sanctioned the so-called "constitutional liberties", and with spiritual,
public, and political freedoms, such as freedom of thought, opinion, religion and
conscience, word, and peaceful association of the individual.
Articles 22–27 sanctioned an individual's economic, social and cultural rights,
including healthcare. Article 25 states: "Everyone has the right to a standard of living
adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food,
clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services." It also makes
additional accommodations for security in case of physical debilitation or disability,
and makes special mention of care given to those in motherhood or childhood.
Articles 28—30 established the general ways of using these rights, the areas in which
these rights of the individual can not be applied, and that they can not be overcome
against the individual.
The preamble sets out the historical and social causes that led
to the necessity of drafting the Declaration.
 Fundamental Rights in
the Indian 
Constitution
 Aim at personal good of an individual as well as the
community.
 Aim at overturning inequalities due to history.
 Protect cultural and educational rights.
 Enshrined in Part III of the constitution.
 Guarantees civil liberties and individual rights.
 They are basic human freedoms.
 Enforceable by courts and subject to restrictions.
 Influences

 The Bill of Rights of British Parliament (1688).
 American Revolution, 1776.
 Declaration of Rights of Man, French Revolution,
1789.
 Bill of Rights of the American Constitution, 1791.
 Motilal Nehru Report, 1928 and
 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 (UN).
 Characteristics

 Preservation of Human Dignity
 Enforcement of Rights
 Protection against violation
 Applicability
 Enforceable against individuals
 Amendment to Rights
 Suspension of Rights
 From Article 12-35
 Fundamental Rights

 Right to Equality (14-18)
 Right to Freedoms (19-22)
 Right against Exploitation (23-24)
 Right to Freedom of Religion (25-28)
 Cultural and Educational Rights (29-30)
 Right to Property *(former fundamental right)
 Right to Constitutional Remedies (32)
Right to Equality (14-18)

 Article 14 – Equality before Law
 Article 15 – Prohibition of discrimination
 Article 16 – Equality in matters of Public
Environment
 Article 17 – Abolition of Untouchability
 Article 18 – Abolition of Titles
 Right to Freedoms
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 Article 19 – Fundamental Freedoms
 Article 20 – Protection against Convictions
 Article 21 – Protection of Life and Liberty
 Article 22 – Protection against Arrest and Detention
 Article 19 –
Fundamental
 Freedoms
 Article 19 (1) (a) Freedom of Speech and Expression
 Article 19 (1) (b) Freedom to Assemble Peaceably and
Without Arms
 Article 19 (1) (c) Freedom to form Associations and Unions
 Article 19 (1) (d) Freedom to Move Freely throughout the
Territory of India
 Article 19 (1) (e) Freedom to Reside and Settle in any part
of the territory of India
 Article 19 (1) (f) Freedom to acquire, hold and dispose off
property
 Article 19 (1) (g) Freedom to practice any Profession or t
carry any Occupation, Trade or Business
 Article 20 – Protection
against Convictions
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(1) No person shall be convicted of any offence except for
violation of a law in force at the time of the commission of
the Act charged as an offence, nor be subjected to a penalty
greater than that which might have been inflicted under the
law in force at the time of the commission of the offence.

(2) No person shall be prosecuted and punished for the

same offence more than once.

(3) No person accused of any offence shall be compelled to

be a witness against himself.
Article 21 – Protection of Life and Personal
Liberty
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No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty
except according to procedure established by law.

‘life’ includes right to live in a healthy environment, to

live with human dignity, right to livelihood, right to
education etc.

‘personal liberty’ includes right to travel abroad, to

privacy, to legal aid, to speed trial of court cases, right of
a prisoner to socialize with family and friends subject to
prison regulations.
Article 22 – Protection against
Arrest and Detention
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Article 22 is complementary to Article 21.
 No person can be arrested without being told the
grounds for arrest.
 If arrested, the person has the right to defend himself
by a lawyer of choice.
 An arrested citizen has to be brought before the
nearest magistrate within 24 hours.
 An arrested person cannot be detained in custody
beyond 24 hours, except by the order of the magistrate.
Right against Exploitation

 Article 23 – Prohibition of Human Trafficking and
Begar
 Article 24 – Prohibition of Child Labour
 Right to Freedom of Religion

 Article 25 - Freedom of conscience and free
profession, practice and propagation of religion.
 Article 26 - Freedom to manage religious affairs.
 Article 27 - Freedom as to payment of taxes for
promotion of any particular religion.
 Article 28 - Freedom as to attendance at religious
instruction or religious worship in certain education
institutions.
Cultural and Educational Rights

 Article 29 - Protection of interests of minorities.
 Article 30 - Right of minorities to establish and
administer educational institutions.
Right to Property – a former fundamental
right

 Article 31 provided that “no person shall be
deprived of his property save by authority of law.”
 It also provided that compensation would be paid to
a person whose property has been taken for public
purposes.

 It is no longer a fundamental right but a

constitutional right.
 Right to Constitutional Remedies

 Article 32 empowers citizens to move a court of law
in case of any denial of the fundamental rights.

 Writs:
 Habeas corpus
 Mandamus
 Prohibition
 Quo Warranto
 Certiorari
English Bill of Rights 1689

 King James II acted arbitrarily.
 The Glorious Revolution, 1688
 Succeeded by Mary II and William III, 1689
 Parliament put limitations on the monarch through
Bill of Rights.
 Established a responsible and limited government.
 American Declaration of Independence,
1776

 Migrant population – 13 colonies – controlled by
Britain – exploitative and discriminatory rule.
 George III- unpopular ruler of England.
 Revolution – democratic government.
 July 4th 1776 – American Declaration of
Independence was adopted by the Congress.
 Unalienable rights
 Equality
 American bill of rights 1791

 10 amendments to the Constitution.
 Was referred to by Franklin D. Roosevelt as “Great
American Charter for Liberty and Human Dignity”.
 Keystone of a free society.
 The Bill has been since amended 17 times and there
are 27 articles today.
French Revolution & Rights of Man, 1789

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 1789 – Feudalism abolished.
 1791 – French Revolutionaries adopted a
Constitution.
Emancipation Proclamation, 1863 &
Thirteenth Amendment 1865

 Slavery was legal
 Civil War 1861
 Ratification to the Thirteenth Amendment, December
18, 1985.
Emerging Issues in the Rights Discourse

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 Right to Development
 Right to Environment
 Right to Rehabilitation