HUMAN RIGHTS IN BHARAT

What are human rights?
In order to live with dignity certain basic rights and freedoms are necessary, which all Human beings are entitled to, these basic rights are called Human Rights

Human rights demand recognition and respect for the inherent dignity to ensure that everyone is protected against abuses which undermine their dignity, and give the opportunities they need to realize their full potential, free from discrimination.

Human rights include civil and political rights, such as:

• The right to freedom of expression
• The right to freedom of religion or conscience
• The right to property
• The right to freedom of assembly
• The right to privacy
• The right to vote.

Human rights also cover economic and social rights, such as:

• The right to an adequate standard of living
• The right to adequate food, housing, water and sanitation
• The rights you have at work
• The right to education.

Human rights belong to everyone, everywhere, regardless of nationality, sexuality, gender, race, religion or age. The foundation of modern human rights is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The 30 articles of the Declaration were adopted in 1948 by the United Nations General Assembly, and over time these have been integrated into national laws and international treaties. The core values of the UDHR – human dignity, fairness, equality, non-discrimination – apply to everyone, everywhere.

A Legal framework about Child Prostitution: The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1990: It defines ‘child prostitution’ as sexual exploitation of a child below the age of 18 for remuneration in cash or kind.

Administration of Laws Against Trafficking In India:
the Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill 2017 was drafted in order to bring new reforms and additions to the currently existing measures against trafficking. The bill is to identify various “aggravated forms” of trafficking and bestows a 10 year imprisonment penalty for those indulging in such practices.

Historical Development of Human Rights
Human rights are the rights a person has simply because he or she is a human being. Human rights are held by all persons equally, universally, and forever. All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Kant said that human beings have an intrinsic value absent in inanimate objects. To violate a human right would therefore be a failure to recognize the worth of human life. Human right is a concept that has been constantly evolving throughout human history. They have been intricately tied to the laws, customs and religions throughout the ages. Most societies have had traditions similar to the “golden rule” of “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” The Hindu Vedas, the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi, the Bible, the Quran (Koran), and the Analects of Confucius are five of the oldest written sources which address questions of people’s duties, rights, and responsibilities.

Human rights are fundamental to the stability and development of countries all around the world. Great emphasis has been placed on international conventions and their implementation in order to ensure adherence to a universal standard of acceptability. With the advent of globalization and the introduction of new technology, these principles gain importance not only in protecting human beings from the ill-effects of change but also in ensuring that all are allowed a share of the benefits. The impact of several changes in the world today on human rights has been both negative and positive. In particular, the risks posed by advancements in science and technology may severely hinder the implementation of human rights if not handled carefully. In the field of biotechnology and medicine especially there is strong need for human rights to be absorbed into ethical codes and for all professionals to ensure that basic human dignity is protected under all circumstances. For instance, with the possibility of transplanting organs from both the living and dead, a number of issues arise such as consent to donation, the definition of death to prevent premature harvesting, an equal chance at transplantation etc. Genetic engineering also brings with it the dangers of gene mutation and all the problems associated with cloning. In order to deal with these issues, the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Dignity of the Human Being with Regard to the Application and Medicine puts the welfare of the human being above society or science.

However the efficacy of the mechanisms in place today has been questioned in the light of blatant human rights violations and disregard for basic human dignity in nearly all countries in one or more forms. In many cases, those who are to blame cannot be brought to book because of political considerations, power equations etc. When such violations are allowed to go unchecked, they often increase in frequency and intensity usually because perpetrators feel that they enjoy immunity from punishment.

Women Rights are Human Rights: Is it a rhetoric?
The world has never yet seen a truly great and virtuous nation because in the degradation of woman the very fountains of life are poisoned at their source. ~Lucretia Mott

The Past:
As a gender and an integral part of Humanity, women have suffered much and without any fault of their own. They have toiled and contributed ceaselessly, they have laboured and produced continuously and they have been discriminated, invariably.

The history of this discrimination is as old as the history of civilization itself. The women have suffered so much, for merely being women, from all recognized social institutions that have existed so far that if we dare write a book on the tortures and cruelty and biases they have faced, it may run in thousand volumes. If we try to trace the origin of this sorry state of affairs we will find that the discrimination has already started when the society was in its nascent stage. Patriarchal societies have a long history of treating women as inferior being though matriarchal societies have generally been found to treat women with a little bit more respect.

Primary reasons and instrument of implementing this bias has been the deprivation from the property and violence. At the dusk of tribal societies when the man first started to understand the nuances of private property, Man because of his stronger physique and because he had not to recluse himself from the production due to maternity became the prime bread earner of the family. From this point of time started the formation and consolidation of the male dominated society as we see it. This consolidation continued till the dark ages and first rays of light in the dungeon of solitude and bereavement of the women begin to fall with renaissance. The industrialization with its craving for cheaper and abundant labour helped in making women more economically and socially powerful. It can not, however, be denied that all this progress would still have left women as the inferior sex had they not tenuously and vehemently fought for their own rights.

Gender inequality, which remains pervasive worldwide, tends to lower the productivity of labour and the efficiency of labour allocation in households and the economy, intensifying the unequal distribution of resources. It also contributes to the non-monetary aspects of poverty lack of security, opportunity and empowerment that lower the quality of life for both men and women. While women and girls bear the largest and most direct costs of these inequalities, the costs cut broadly across society, ultimately hindering development and poverty reduction, ~ Gender and Development Group -World Bank, from the report “Gender Equality and the Millennium Development Goals” (2003).

Anti-Terrorism Laws: The Reality
what exactly is terrorism? Terrorism has often been understood variously as both a tactic and a strategy; a heinous crime and a holy duty; a reasonable response to oppression and an inexcusable abomination. Different organizations have different definitions to offer when it comes to explaining this term. The Code of Federal Bureau of Investigation (the FBI) in U.S.A defines it as “the illegal use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.” The FBI further explains terrorism as either domestic or international, depending on the origin, base, and objectives of the terrorists. On the other hand, the European Union defines “terrorism” as the aim of “destabilising or destroying the fundamental, political, constitutional, economic or social structures of a country.” But ordinarily, it’s understood as ‘an act of terror which influences an audience beyond the immediate victim’. A terrorist attack is not only an attack on innocent individuals but it is an attack on our sovereignty, unity and integrity and our feeling of nationalism.
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967:

Some laws enacted due to Terrorism

• Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987:
• Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act, 1999
• Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002
• Two years from the enactment of the POTA, a number of issues as to the possibilities of misuse of the provisions of the anti-terror law including the targeting of minorities and using it against political opponents had arisen. In Gujarat, all except one of the POTA detainees are from the Muslim community and in Tamil Nadu and UP too, the superficial anti-terror law has been abused to book, without lucidity and accountability, political opponents and underprivileged communities respectively – – Kritika

Right to Clean Environment: A basic Human Right
At present, all of us all over the globe face grave environmental problems. The continuing deterioration of earth’s ecological reserves poses a serious threat to the pollution free environment. One of the most complex challenges facing our generation is to maintain a workable synergy between sustainable economic development and pollution free environment.

The factors which have contributed most directly to the excessive pressure on the environment and natural resources in India are:

1. A doubling of the region’s population over the past four decades.
2. A tripling of economic output, and
3. The persistence of poverty.

The movements are massive and legal maneuvers stupendous, but much appears to be yet in store. The children and the layman have all become endowed with the consciousness for a halcyonic environment. However, positive results are not forthcoming. The prospects are murky and future is unsafe but pessimism is no cult to advocate and human dedication to combat pollution has to march ahead undaunted.

In this scenario, India needs a global war on environmental degradation that is as aggressive and well – funded as the war on terrorism. More than ever we need to take necessary steps to ensure that the environment remains at the top of our agenda. – – Aditi singh