INTRODUCTION

The division of human rights into three generations was initially proposed in
1979 by the Czech jurist Karel Vasak at the International Institute of Human
Rights in Strasbourg. He used the term at least as early as November
1977.[1] Vasak's theories have primarily taken root in European law.

First-generation human rights

First-generation human rights, sometimes called "blue" rights, deal essentially with
liberty and participation in political life. They are fundamentally civil and political in
nature: They serve negatively to protect the individual from excesses of the state.
First-generation rights include, among other things, the right to life, equality before
the law, freedom of speech, the right to a fair trial, freedom of religion, and voting
rights. They were pioneered by the United States Bill of Rights and in France by
the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen in the 18th century, although
some of these rights and the right to due process date back to the Magna Carta of
1215 and the Rights of Englishmen, which were expressed in the English Bill of
Rights in 1689.
They were enshrined at the global level and given status in international law first by
Articles 3 to 21 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and later in the
1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In Europe, they were
enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights in 1953

*Civil and political rights

Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from
infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They
ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the society
and state without discriminationor repression.
Civil rights include the ensuring of peoples' physical and mental integrity, life,
and safety; protection from discrimination on grounds such as race, gender, sexual
orientation, gender identity, national origin, color, age, political
affiliation, ethnicity, religion, and disability;[1][2][3] and individual rights such
as privacy and the freedoms of thought, speech, religion, press, assembly,
and movement.
 Political rights include natural justice (procedural fairness) in law, such as the rights of
the accused, including the right to a fair trial; due process; the right to seek redress or
a legal remedy; and rights of participation in civil society and politics such as freedom of
association, the right to assemble, the right to petition, the right of self-defense, and
the right to vote.
Civil and political rights form the original and main part of international human
rights.[4] They comprise the first portion of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human
Rights (with economic, social, and cultural rights comprising the second portion).
The theory of three generations of human rights considers this group of rights to be
"first-generation rights", and the theory of negative and positive rightsconsiders them
to be generally negative rights.

*Right to life
The right to life is a moral principle based on the belief that a human being has the
right to live and, in particular, should not be killed by another human being. The
concept of a right to life arises in debates on issues of capital
punishment, war, abortion, euthanasia, justifiable homicide, and public health care.
Various individuals who identify with pro-life views may disagree on which areas this
principle applies, such as issues previously listed.
In human history, there has not been a general acceptance of the concept of a right
to life that is innate to individuals[citation needed] rather than granted as a privilege by
those holding social and political power. The evolution of human rights as a concept
took place slowly in multiple areas in many different ways, with the right to life being
no exception to this trend, and the past millennium in particular has seen a large set
of national and international law or legal documents (examples being the Magna
Carta and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights) codifying the general ideal
into specifically worded principles

Contents

 1Capital punishment
 2Killings by Law Enforcement
 3Euthanasia
 4Abortion
 5Ethics and right to life
 6Juridical statements
 7See also
 8References
 9External links
*Equality before the law

Equality before the law, also known as equality under the law, equality in the
eyes of the law, legal equality, or legal egalitarianism, is the principle that each
independent being must be treated equally by the law (principle of isonomy) and that
all are subject to the same laws of justice (due process).[1] Therefore, the law must
guarantee that no individual nor group of individuals should be privileged or
discriminated against by the government. Equality before the law is one of the basic
principles of liberalism.[2][3] This principle arises from various important and complex
questions concerning equality, fairness, and justice. The principle of equality before
the law is incompatible and ceases to exist with legal systems such
as slavery, servitude, colonialism, or monarchy.[

Article 7
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a historic document that
was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly at its third session on 10
December 1948 as Resolution 217 at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris, France. Of the
then 58 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, have been elaborated in subsequent
international treaties, economic transfers, regional human rights instruments,
national constitutions, and other laws. The Declaration was the first step in the
process of formulating the International Bill of Human Rights, which was completed
in 1966, and came into force in 1976, after a sufficient number of countries had
ratified them.

Structure and content[edit]

The underlying structure of the Universal Declaration was introduced in its second
draft, which was prepared by René Cassin. Cassin worked from a first draft, which
was prepared by John Peters Humphrey. The structure was influenced by the Code
Napoléon, including a preamble and introductory general principles.[4] Cassin
compared the Declaration to the portico of a Greek temple, with a foundation, steps,
four columns, and a pediment
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.[5]
 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.
*Freedom of speech
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a
community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of
retaliation, censorship, or sanction.[2][3][4][5] The term "freedom of expression" is
sometimes used synonymously but includes any act of seeking, receiving, and
imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used.
Freedom of expression is recognized as a human right under article 19 of
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and recognized in international
human rights law in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
Article 19 of the UDHR states that "everyone shall have the right to hold opinions
without interference" and "everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression;
this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of
all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art,
or through any other media of his choice". The version of Article 19 in the ICCPR
later amends this by stating that the exercise of these rights carries "special duties
and responsibilities" and may "therefore be subject to certain restrictions" when
necessary "[f]or respect of the rights or reputation of others" or "[f]or the protection of
national security or of public order (order public), or of public health or morals
*Right to a fair trial
A trial which is observed by trial judge or by jury without being partial is a fair trial.
Various rights associated with a fair trial are explicitly proclaimed in Article 10 of
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Sixth Amendment to the United
States Constitution, and Article 6 of the European Convention of Human Rights, as
well as numerous other constitutions and declarations throughout the world. There is
no binding international law that defines what is not a fair trial; for example, the right
to a jury trial and other important procedures vary from nation to nation.

*Freedom of religion

Freedom of religion is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or

community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching,
practice, worship, and observance without government influence or intervention. It
also includes the freedom to change one's religion or belief.[1]
Freedom of religion is considered by many people and most of the nations to be
a fundamental human right.[2][3] In a country with a state religion, freedom of religion
is generally considered to mean that the government permits religious practices of
other sects besides the state religion, and does not persecute believers in other
faiths. Freedom of belief is different. It allows the right to believe what a person,
group or religion wishes, but it does not necessarily allow the right to practice the
religion or belief openly and outwardly in a public manner.

*Suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise is the right to vote in public,
political elections (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote).[1][2][3] In
some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to vote is called active
suffrage, as distinct from passive suffrage, which is the right to stand for
election.[4] The combination of active and passive suffrage is sometimes called full
suffrage.[5]
Suffrage is often conceived in terms of elections for representatives. However,
suffrage applies equally to referenda and initiatives. Suffrage describes not only the
legal right to vote, but also the practical question of whether a question will be put to
a vote. The utility of suffrage is reduced when important questions are decided
unilaterally without extensive, conscientious, full disclosure and public review.
In most democracies, eligible voters can vote in elections of representatives. Voting
on issues by referendum may also be available.
*Second-generation human rights]
Second-generation human rights are related to equality and began to be recognized
by governments after World War II. They are fundamentally economic, social, and
cultural in nature. They guarantee different members of the citizenry equal
conditions and treatment. Secondary rights would include a right to be
employed in just and favorable condition, rights to food, housing and health care, as
well as social security and unemployment benefits. Like first-generation rights, they
were also covered by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and further
embodied in Articles 22 to 28 of the Universal Declaration, and the International
Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights.
In the United States of America, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed a Second
Bill of Rights, covering much the same grounds, during his State of the Union
Address on January 11, 1944. Today, many nations, states, or groups of nations
have developed legally binding declarations guaranteeing comprehensive sets of
human rights, e.g. the European Social Charter.
Some states have enacted some of these economic rights, e.g. the state of New
York has enshrined the right to a free education,[2][3] as well as "the right
to organize and to bargain collectively",[4] and workers' compensation,[5] in
its constitutional law.
These rights are sometimes referred to as "red" rights. They impose upon the
government the duty to respect and promote and fulfill them, but this depends on the
availability of resources. The duty is imposed on the state because it controls its own
resources. No one has the direct right to housing and right to education. (In South
Africa, for instance, the right is not, per se, to housing, but rather "to have access to
adequate housing",[6] realised on a progressive basis.[7])
The duty of government is in the realization of these positive rights.

*Right to work
The right to work is the concept that people have a human right to work, or engage
in productive employment, and may not be prevented from doing so. The right to
work is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and recognized
in international human rights law through its inclusion in the International Covenant
on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, where the right to work emphasizes
economic, social and cultural development.
* Definition
Article 23.1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states:[1]
(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and
favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
— Universal Declaration of Human Rights, United Nations General Assembly

* Decent work
The United Nations Economic and Social Council has given a General
Comment[1] that defines "decent work" and requires satisfaction of Article 7 of
the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: decent work
is employment that "respects the fundamental rights of the human person as well as
the rights of workers in terms of conditions of work safety and remuneration. ...
respect for the physical and mental integrity of the worker in the exercise of his/her
employment."
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), decent work involves
opportunities for work that are productive and deliver a fair income, security in the
workplace and social protection for families, better prospects for personal
development and social integration, freedom for people to express their concerns,
organize and participate in the decisions that affect their lives and equality of
opportunity and treatment for all women and men.

*Social security
This article is about the general concept of social wellbeing and the systems that
ensure this. For specific systems named "SSocial security is "any government
system that provides monetary assistance to people with an inadequate or no
income."[1]
Social security is asserted in Article 22 of the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, which states:
ocial Security" and other uses, see Social Security
*Unemployment benefits
Unemployment benefits (depending on the jurisdiction also called unemployment
insurance or unemployment compensation) are payments made by back
authorized bodies to unemployed people. In the United States, benefits are funded
by a compulsory governmental insurance system, not taxes on individual citizens.
Depending on the jurisdiction and the status of the person, those sums may be
small, covering only basic needs, or may compensate the lost time proportionally to
the previous earned salary.
Unemployment benefits are generally given only to those registering as
unemployed, and often on conditions ensuring that they seek work and do not
currently have a job, and are validated as being laid off and not fired for cause
in most states

*Third-generation human rights

Third-generation human rights are those rights that go beyond the mere civil
and social, as expressed in many progressive documents of international law,
including the 1972 Stockholm Declaration of the United Nations Conference
on the Human Environment, the 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and
Development, and other pieces of generally aspirational "soft law". Because of
the present-day tilting toward national sovereignty and the preponderance of
would-be offender nations, these rights have been hard to enact in legally
binding documents.

The term "third-generation human rights" remains largely unofficial, just as the
also-used moniker of "green" rights, and thus houses an extremely broad
spectrum of rights, including:

 Group and collective rights

 Right to self-determination
 Right to economic and social development
 Right to a healthy environment
 Right to natural resources
 Right to communicate and communication rights
 Right to participation in cultural heritage
 Rights to intergenerational equity and sustainability
*Individual and group rights
Group rights, also known as collective rights, are rights held by a

group qua group rather than by its members severally;[1] in contrast, individual

rights are rights held by individual people; even if they are group-
differentiated, which most rights are, they remain individual rights if the right-

holders are the individuals themselves.[2] Group rights have historically been
used both to infringe upon and to facilitate individual rights, and the concept

remains controversial.

*Right to self-determination
This article is about self-determination in international law. For other
uses, see Self-determination (disambiguation).

The right of a people to self-determination is a cardinal principle in

modern international law (commonly regarded as a jus cogens rule),
binding, as such, on the United Nations as authoritative interpretation of
the Charter's norms.[1][2] It states that a people, based on respect for the
principle of equal rights and fair equality of opportunity, have the right to
freely choose their sovereignty and international political status with no
interference.[3]
The concept was first expressed in the 1860s, and spread rapidly
thereafter.[4][5] During and after World War I, the principle was
encouraged by both Vladimir Lenin and United States
President Woodrow Wilson.[4][5] Having announced his Fourteen
Points on 8 January 1918, on 11 February 1918 Wilson stated: "National
aspirations must be respected; people may now be dominated and
governed only by their own consent. 'Self determination' is not a mere
phrase; it is an imperative principle of action."[6]
During World War II, the principle was included in the Atlantic Charter,
signed on 14 August 1941, by Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the
United States, and Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of the United
Kingdom, who pledged The Eight Principal points of the Charter.[7] It was
recognized as an international legal right after it was explicitly listed as a
right in the UN Charter.[8]
The principle does not state how the decision is to be made, nor what
the outcome should be, whether it
be independence, federation, protection, some form of autonomy or
full assimilation.[9] Neither does it state what the delimitation between
peoples should be—nor what constitutes a people. There are conflicting
definitions and legal criteria for determining which groups may
legitimately claim the right to self-determination.[10]
By extension the term self-determination has come to mean the free
choice of one's own acts without external compulsion

*Right to economic and social development

The right to development was first recognized in 1981 in Article 22 of
the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights as a definitive individual
and collective right. Article 22(1) provides that: "All peoples shall have the
right to their economic, social and cultural development with due regard to
their freedom and identity and in the equal enjoyment of the common heritage
of mankind."
The right to development was subsequently proclaimed by the United
Nations in 1986 in the "Declaration on the Right to Development," which was
adopted by the United Nations General Assembly resolution 41/128. The
Right to development is a group right of peoples as opposed to an individual
right, and was reaffirmed by the 1993 Vienna Declaration and Programme of
Action.

*Right to a healthy environment

Environmental protection is practiced for protecting the natural
environment on individual, organization controlled by governmental levels, for
the benefit of both the environment and humans. Due to the pressures
of overconsumption, population and technology, the biophysical
environment is being degraded, sometimes permanently. This has been
recognized, and governments have begun placing restraints on activities that
cause environmental degradation. Since the 1960s, activity of environmental
movements has created awareness of the various environmental problems.
There is no agreement on the extent of the environmental impact of human
activity and even scientific dishonesty occurs, so protection measures are
occasionally debated.Also government has banned plastics

* Right to natural resources

Natural resources are resources that exist without actions of humankind.
This includes all valued characteristics such as magnetic, gravitational,
electrical properties and forces etc. On earth it
includes: sunlight, atmosphere, water, land (includes all minerals) along with
all vegetation, crops and animal life that naturally subsists upon or within the
heretofore identified characteristics and substances.[1][2][3][4]
Particular areas such as the rainforest in Fatu-Hiva are often characterized by
the biodiversity and geodiversity existent in their ecosystems. Natural
resources may be further classified in different ways. Natural resources are
materials and components (something that can be used) that can be found
within the environment. Every man-made product is composed of natural
resources (at its fundamental level). A natural resource may exist as a
separate entity such as fresh water, air, and as well as a living organism such
as a fish, or it may exist in an alternate form that must be processed to obtain
the resource such as metal ores, rare earth metals, petroleum, and most
forms of energy

*Right to communicate and communication rights

Communication (from Latin commūnicāre, meaning "to share"[1]) is the act of
conveying meanings from one entity or group to another through the use of
mutually understood signs and semiotic rules.
The main steps inherent to all communication are:[2]

1. The formation of communicative motivation or reason.

2. Message composition (further internal or technical elaboration on what
exactly to express).
3. Message encoding (for example, into digital data, written
text, speech, pictures, gestures and so on).
4. Transmission of the encoded message as a sequence of signals using a
specific channel or medium.
5. Noise sources such as natural forces and in some cases human activity
(both intentional and accidental) begin influencing the quality of signals
propagating from the sender to one or more receivers.
 6. Reception of signals and reassembling of the encoded message from a
sequence of received signals.
7. Decoding of the reassembled encoded message.
8. Interpretation and making sense of the presumed original message.

Communication rights inlove freedom of

opinion and expression, democratic media governance, media
ownership and media control, participation in one's own
culture, linguistic rights, rights to education, privacy, assemble, and self-
determination. They are also related inclusion and exclusion, quality
and accessibility to means of communication.[1]
A "right to communicate" and "communication rights" are closely related,
but not identical. The former is more associated with the New World
Information and Communication Orderdebate, and points to the need for a
formal legal acknowledgment of such a right, as an overall framework for
more effective implementation. The latter emphasizes the fact that an array
of international rights underpinning communication already exists, but
many are often ignored and require active mobilization and assertion

 * Right to participation in cultural heritage

Cultural heritage is the legacy of physical artifacts and intangible attributes of
a group or society that are inherited from past generations, maintained in the
present and preserved for the benefit of future generations. Cultural heritage
includes tangible culture (such as buildings, monuments, landscapes, books,
works of art, and artifacts), intangible culture (such as folklore, traditions,
language, and knowledge), and natural heritage (including culturally
significant landscapes, and biodiversity).[1]
The deliberate act of keeping cultural heritage from the present for the future
is known as preservation (American English) or conservation (British English),
though these terms may have more specific or technical meaning in the same
contexts in the other dialect.