The Idea of Human Rights

1. International bill of human rights

*United Nations Charter (1945): Preamble; Articles 1, 55, 56

*Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948): Preamble and 30 Articles

*International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (adopted 1966; in force 1976)

*International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (adopted 1966; in force 1976)

+First Optional Protocol (individual petitions)

+Second Optional Protocol (abolition of death penalty)

2. Activities of the United Nations

*Promotion and protection by international organizations *Human Rights Commission of the Economic and Social Council

*1503 Procedure

*World Conference on Human Rights (Vienna Declaration and Plan of Action, June 1993)

*Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (1994)

*Establishment of the United Nations Human Rights Council (2006)

3.    Human rights diplomacy *The Helsinki Process

*Foreign policy of President Carter *Tied aid

*Charter of Paris for a New Europe (1990)

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4.    International protection of human rights *International law: particular treaties *Regional international organizations

+Europe: European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (signed 1950; in force 1953); European Commission of Human Rights; European Court of Human Rights

+The Americas: American Convention on Human Rights (adopted 1969; in force 1978); Inter-American Commission of Human Rights; Inter-American Court of Human Rights

+Africa: African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Banjul Charter; adopted 1981; in force 1986); African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights

*The role of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)

5.    Universality and particularity of human rights

*Can there be “Asian human rights”?

*Islam and human rights

*Can there be a moratorium on human rights? (dictatorial regimes for economic growth and other reasons)

*Rights and responsibilities

6.    Human rights and human security (statement of the problem): Humans beings always seek security. Until now, states

guaranteed the security of their people through military actions. Defense and war prevention were thought to be a principal role for the state. But after the Cold War, threats to security are thought to arise from civil (internal or domestic) wars, terrorism, violations of human rights, economic instability, and problems of identity and other matters, rather than from classic inter-state (international) wars. We see human beings rather than states as the center of security theory. Human rights are an important concept of this new worldview.