Human Rights: Foundations, Evolution, and Contemporary Issues
The Evolution of Human Rights Ethics
In the aftermath of the disasters of World War II and the impact of the Jewish Holocaust by the Nazis, new ethics based on dialogue and communication emerged. Notably, Jürgen Habermas raised the ethics of duty, in which, unlike Kant, universality is achieved through dialogue. These rules acquire universal validity when their creation is achieved through this process based on communication, or if all those affected participate in the dialogue. Habermas’ ethics establish shared moral notions between speaker and listener, based on consensus and the foundations of just and proper behavior.
From this, some philosophers, like the Spanish Muguerza, propose advancing towards a society increasingly willing to show dissatisfaction with the current situation. It is precisely dissent, and not consensus, that allows moral and social progress. The American philosopher Rawls published his theory of justice, which posed a morally acceptable behavior when in compliance with certain values called principles of justice. The two principles of justice are basic to the maximum freedom of expression and social justice.
Freedoms and Rights: Guarantees and Privileges
Freedoms guarantee the rights and privileges that people have. They may or may not be guaranteed by law, and aim to provide protection and security for all citizens. These are the rules that govern our life together in society, and we are obliged to comply. Fundamental rights are those conditions that every human being possesses simply by virtue of being human, and whose realization is indispensable for their integral development and affect all men and women.
Individual vs. Social Rights
Individual rights: These are fundamental requirements of the person, historically focused on freedom, voting privileges, life, and freedom of expression.
Social rights: These encompass equality and solidarity.
Three Generations of Rights
The evolution of rights has been categorized into three generations:
- First Generation: Covered the civil and political rights of the individual.
- Second Generation: Included economic, social, and cultural rights.
- Third Generation: Encompasses similar rights and solidarity.
Historical Declarations and the United Nations
The Declaration of Virginia: Emerged in the context of the war of independence from the U.S. and England. It referred to the rights of citizens but excluded those without this category, fundamentally slaves.
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen: Written by the French Assembly, it is an improvement over the previous due to its universal character that fights for equality of human rights.
The United Nations (UN): Arose from the conference in San Francisco at the end of World War II. It is an international organization whose principles are the rights of the person, the maintenance of peace, the right of self-determination of peoples, and the promotion of cooperation among countries.
Key Characteristics of Universal Rights
- Universal: Valid for all persons.
- Inalienable: Individually held and cannot be transferred.
- Non-negotiable: All are important.
International Frameworks and Bodies
- Covenants: Examples include the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
- Bodies: Numerous bodies exist, some created within the UN from the charter or under different treaties.
- Forums: One example is the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
- International Tribunals: Justice, International, or Special (created on the occasion of a flagrant violation of human rights).