National Service Training Program- Civic Welfare Training Service

Module Two: Citizenship Training

Human Rights: The Basics

Guide Questions:

1. Apart from those cited in the module, identify other rights falling under the different
categories/classification of rights found in the Philippine Constitution. Explain your answer.

Answer: Here are the following uncategorized rights, with their respective categories according
to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights:

1ST GENERATION RIGHTS (CIVIL AND POLITICAL)

 Section 1: The right against unreasonable searches and seizures. This right belongs to
the 1st Generation Rights since it is directly related to the right of due process, which
was classified in the UDHR’s Three Generations of Rights as a 1st Generation Right. It
highlights those rights intended for the enjoyment and protection of persons accused of
any infraction of the law, as stated in the articles 2-21 of the UDHR.
 Section 6: The right to abode and of changing the same. It is a civil right to create
change community and citizenship. This law exemplifies that principle, by providing us
the authority to be set changes to his/her citizenship relative to its importance. That’s
why it is a 1st Generation Right.
 Section 7: The right to information on matters of public concern. This right belongs to
this category because freedom to access information on public concerns is a civil liberty
everyone must attain to be able to contribute and come up with solutions. Relatively,
civil liberty is connected, if not synonymous, to civil rights, which belongs to the 1 st
Generation Rights.
 Section 9: The right to just compensation when private property is taken for public
use. This right belongs in this category since it is an extension to our civil right to
acquire property. The right to own a property is a civil right we enjoy, and by
circumstances which we need to give up those, just compensation must be given to us in
return, especially if it is for public use. Thus, as an extension to the right to own
property, Section 9 shall be addressed as one of the 1 st Generation Rights.
 Section 11: The right to have free access to courts and quasi-judicial bodies. This
section qualifies to be a 1st Generation Rights. It is an imperative to access judicial
support and sustenance to be protected and regulated by laws, and the right grants us
the freedom to do so. Therefore, as a freedom, it can be considered a civil right and can
also be a form of protection to the accused and the innocent. Thus, Section 11 shall be
considered as 1st Generation Rights.
 Section 15: The right to the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus. Habeas corpus, in
the Philippine Constitution, is a recourse in law where a person can report unlawful
detention or imprisonment to a court. Thus, as it exhibits its purpose to protect the
 people from abuse, it is a right that belongs to the rights for the protection of the
people, most importantly, the people accused of any infraction of the law.
 Section 17: The right against self-incrimination. This right provides that “no person shall
be compelled to be a witness against himself”, meaning one be must not attest against
himself” to maintain unbiased judgements. As a right involved in judicial process and
protection towards accused, it is considered to be a 1 st Generation Right.
 Section 19: The right against excessive fines and cruel, degrading, inhuman
punishment. In connections to Section 15, this right protects people from abusive
punishments, but more expanded. While the right to the writ of habeas corpus on
Section 15 only covers the protection of an accused individual from inappropriate
sanctions, this right protects everyone from abusive punishments/sanctions. Honoring
the connection between the two section makes this section a 1 st Generation Right.
 Section 21: The right against double jeopardy. The right essentially prohibits one
accused person from being prosecuted twice in the same charges after acquittal. It is a
right that protects the integrity of the accused, as well as preventing abuse of power
towards the accused. Heavily connected to the rights of the accused person, this right
shall be considered as a 1st Generation Right.
 Section 22: The right against ex post facto law and bill of attainder. Ex post facto law is
a law that retroactively makes a criminal conduct that was not criminal when
performed, putting the accused into a disadvantage. Thus, it led to formulating this
right, which prevents those injustices from happening towards the accused and accuser.
Therefore, the Section 22, deeply related to the right of the accused person, is a 1 st
Generation Right.
 Section 20: Non imprisonment due to non-payment of debt or poll tax. This right says
none should be imprisoned due to unpaid debt or poll tax, since it can be settled
without the matter of imprisoning the accused. As a right that is deeply connected to
debts and taxes, which is our civil responsibility, should belong to the 1 st Generation
Right.

2ND GENERATION RIGHTS (ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL)

 Section 3: The right to privacy of communication and correspondence. This right

provides every individual the power to reject a calling to correspond to a certain prompt
in the society, and also the power to conduct private communication. As much as we
care to have the freedom to express, it is also important for us to have privacy and the
choice to say nothing when asked. This right serves as a control in the community to
give others space to say no to a question. Likewise, as it is concerned with social right to
refrain from communicating in public, it shall be a socio-cultural right. That’s why it is a
2nd Generation Right.
 Section 10: The right to enter into contracts. Contracts are an important economic
activity, as it drives the movement and settlement of workers to a job. We are given the
right to enter contracts as it is a necessity for our workforce and labor. Since it is an
economic need, it is a 2nd Generation Right.
 3RD GENERATION RIGHTS (SOLIDARITY RIGHTS)

 Section 4: Freedom of expression and assembly. This right gives the power to be heard
and speak yourself in a community. Therefore, it also allows is to connects to people,
and eventually create bonds and groups with those people. Since this right foster
collaboration in a community, it shall belong to the 3 rd Generation Rights.
 Section 5: The freedom of religious worship. Worship and other religious activities, are
great avenues of uniting people. As an aspect of a society, it is very important to us that
we have the freedom to be religious and join/organize religious events. It is the way of
putting people in a group. That’s why it is a 3 rd Generation Right.
 Section 8: The right to form unions and associations. Union and associations play a
great part of the establishment of solidarity among individual people. As it sustains
connections, this right is a 3rd Generation Right.

2. Can a right have multiple classifications i.e. political, civil, socio-economic and cultural? Support
your answer.

Answer: Yes, a right can have multiple classifications. For example, the right to religious worship
is both a solidarity and a cultural right, in a sense that it is an avenue to unite with people of the
same beliefs and values, but also be a right that protects the beliefs and values of the religion
itself. It only depends on what perspective are you/we going to use in examining these rights.

3. Why is it in our interest to know our human rights?

Answer: Human rights serves as basis for conflict resolution and the promotion of the collective
social welfare. Thus, it is our responsibility to be aware and raise awareness of our own rights,
for us to be able to utilize its power that protects us and the freedoms we enjoy now. It is the
foundation we need to be familiar with in order to be understanding, tolerable for difference,
tackle prejudice and exist as a law-abiding citizen.

4. Distinguish the first- and second-generation rights on the basis of their philosophical
underpinnings.

Answer: First- and Second-Generation Rights differ what field or aspect of a society they are
dealing with. First-Generation Rights focuses on the liberty and participation of citizens in the
political life, and are individualistic in nature. On the other hand, Second-Generation Rights
covers the rights that maintain fair and equal treatment within the society and beyond. It is
more conformist and socialistic in nature. But despite these differences, both exists to be our
protection against abuses.

5. Do women in our society enjoy equality with men? Substantively support your answer.

Answer: Philippines is doing well in terms of cultivating the country to be more gender-equal.
However, even if the status quo does seem to tell that our society is now changing, our society is
 still majorly patriarchal and there are still a lot of challenges that hinders us from being a
gender-equal society. Women still feel unsecured due to threats and issues that dangers them,
such as rape, sexual harassments, victim-blaming, etc. There are still unequal opportunities for
women in the economic, political, and social aspects in our society, which ultimately leads to
lack of power for women to voice out and be heard. As much as we boast to be a country
leading in Asia in terms of gender equality, it is still not enough for us to say that our society is
fair and equal for both genders, as we speak. Therefore, in our society, women, still, do not
enjoy equality with men, as experiencing incomplete equality is still inequality.

6. Why are third generation rights considered solidarity or group rights?

Answer: These rights are considered to be solidarity or group rights because they are meant to
be shared others. Rights that belong in this generation cannot exist for a single person itself. For
example, the right to religious worship cannot be enjoyed without the participation of other
individuals sharing the same beliefs as you are. That’s why they are called the solidarity rights
because they require collective appreciation and understanding from a group of people.

7. What do you think are the rights most commonly violated in the Philippines? What can you
possibly do about it.?

Answer: I think the most violated right in the Philippines is the right to expression and assembly.
We are a conservative country. So, there are things we consider to be a taboo, when in fact isn’t
really one. These taboos frequently fall under our sense of fashion, actions, and the way we
express ourselves, like how people instantly think you are a prostitute when women wear
shorts, or when people think guys are addicts just because we have tattoos. These things may
seem to be too small, but they are the roots of the inequality and social issues we are seeing
today. That’s why, as much as I can, I foster an open mind to other, and tries to understand that
their way of showing themselves are a part of their self-expression.

8. Looking at the Bill of Rights in the Constitution, would you consider it heavily leaning on political
rights, civil rights, rights of the accused or socio-economic cultural rights? What do you prefer?

Answer: I would prefer the Constitution to focus more on the civil and socio-economic rights.
These rights are the key to attaining fairness to all individuals in our society. Civil rights protect
our individual freedoms, while the socio-economic rights handle our safety from abuses in our
society. Although all rights are equal and should be equal, these two for me are the most abused
rights compared to others, since this concerns individuals. That’s why we need to have these
two, to be able to attain fairness, even if not absolute.