SECTION VI: RIGHTS/ENTITLEMENTS
VI-a. Definition
All of us have broad interests (having physical security, good friends, good jobs, etc.), but only a limited subset of those things are–or should be–formally recognized as human rights. Some good things, such as having friends, are things we do not feel ought to be claimed as rights. The key distinction is that human rights are about matters essential to human dignity. As stated in the preamble of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, "recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world" (UDHR).
Thus, human rights can be understood as
. . . fundamental entitlements of persons, constituting means to the end of minimal human dignity or social justice. If persons have human rights they are entitled to a fundamental claim that others must do, or refrain from doing, something. Since governments speaking for states are primarily responsible for order and social justice in their jurisdictions, governments are the primary targets of these personal and fundamental claims (Weiss 1994, p. 105).
Or, more simply, if one has a human right, one can make a fundamental claim that a government authority or some other part of society must do–or refrain from doing–something that significantly affects one’s human dignity (Forsythe 1991, p. 1). At its core, a human right is a claim against government, a claim that the government must do or desist from doing specific things to further human dignity.
Human rights are those rights held by all individuals simply by virtue of their being human, by definition. They are universal. They are international. It is redundant to speak of international human rights; they are international by definition. They are different from what may be described as local rights, rights that apply only in particular jurisdictions. For example, there is a right to polygamy in some countries but not in others. The hospital near where I live has a patients' Bill of Rights. These are rights, but they are not human rights. The term human rights is reserved for those rights that are universal.
The regional human rights bodies (Subsection III-e) are concerned with the realization of the universal human rights, not with rights that are particular to their regions. The rights are universal, but the means for assuring their realization are tailored to regional and cultural considerations. In much the same way, the concretization of human rights within countries varies according to local circumstances. As explained in Subsection VI-f, their application takes different form in different places.
As we discuss in Subsection VII-e, the question of what should be recognized as a human right is closely linked to the question of good governance. What should all governments be responsible for, and what should they not be responsible for? Human rights refer to important things relating to human dignity that should concern all governments.
Continue to VI-b. Moral vs. Legal Rights
Subsection VI-a last updated on October 18, 1999