History of human rights

The idea of universal human rights has been derived from the foundations of the
concepts of dignity and respect in civilizations around the world over centuries.
Thus, the idea that this respect should be enshrined in law took many generations
to develop, and we often rely on it to legitimize the concept of rights from
historical experiences. .
The idea that people have inherent rights is rooted in many cultures and traditions,
and we can see that the values embodied in human rights are neither a “Western
creation” nor an invention of the twentieth century. They are a response to
universal human needs and the search for justice. All human societies had ideals
and systems for ensuring justice, whether in their oral or written traditions,
although not all of these traditions have survived.
Ancient History
Human rights in ancient Egypt
The Pharaonic civilization is known to be one of the oldest civilizations, if not the
oldest, to embody this idea. The first law established to protect human rights was a
heavenly law called (Maat), from about 3300 years BC. This is according to what
historians mentioned in that Time, where they went to be the beginning of written
human history. It was in the lands of the Nile Valley in Pharaonic Egypt. The
Pharaonic civilization of Egypt summarized the concept of human rights in the
word “Maat,” which means justice, honesty, and right, as a system that governs the
relationship between the ruler and the ruled and each other.
It was also reported from the Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt in 2000 (BC) that he gave
instructions to his followers, “When a petition arrives from Upper or Lower
Egypt... make sure that it is dealt with in accordance with the law, that you
preserve customs, and that you respect the rights of every person.”
Among the manifestations of human rights in ancient Egypt:
• One of the most important principles that came to establish Egyptian human
rights in ancient times was the right to life. The ancient Egyptians were the first to
recognize this right to humans in a practical manner. They did not slaughter their
children or bury them. The ancient Egyptians sanctified human life and the right of
the child, whether male or female, to He is raised in a healthy captive atmosphere.
Although the idea of sacrificing souls was widespread in ancient times, namely that
a man or woman be sacrificed in order to please the gods, Egypt did not actually
implement it on the ground, and it was happening in Greek civilization and
elsewhere.
• The ancient Pharaonic civilization sent the principle of equality between
everyone, especially between men and women, and this appeared clearly in the
murals found in various temples, in which the woman was found next to the man
without giving priority to one person over the other, considering the woman a
private part that must be hidden.
• The papyri also showed that ancient Egypt had a strong judicial system from its
first era. This system used to appoint the king or the minister on his behalf, with
the aim of adjudicating disputes between subjects, and punishing those who
disturbed peace and security, which confirms the Egyptian civilization’s respect for
the dignity and rights of rulers and citizens. And working to establish the rule of
law, and the modern world knew all of this from the inscriptions and drawings
found on the walls of temples, which included images of trials, judicial settlement
sessions, and others.
• Pharaonic Egypt established work charters in order to organize it as the largest
working society, and met workers’ demands by specifying fixed times for work,
granting them leave at the end of each work week, and also paying attention to the
humanitarian aspects of workers by allowing workers to be absent from work to
celebrate the birth of their wives or the birthday of their son.
• For the first time in history, the idea of comprehensive health insurance for
workers began during the era of the Pharaohs, which was established by most
countries of the world in the modern era. This was known through the records of
workers in Deir el-Medina in Luxor, which was the place that was allocated in the
past to accommodate workers working in digging the royal tombs during the reign
of the king. "Amenhotep I", and it is clear from the murals that they had a two-day
sick leave system that could be renewed according to the worker's health condition.
• The Pharaohs were interested in education and transmitting information and news
from one place to another and from one civilization to another. The Pharaonic era
was interested in honoring scholars to the point that they raised them to the rank of
saints.

The Code of Hammurabi in Babylon (Iraq 2000 BC) was the first written legal
code. The law pledged “to rule justice in the kingdom, to exterminate the evil and
the violent, to prevent the strong from oppressing the weak... to enlighten the
country, and to promote the good of the people.”
The Cyrus Covenant (Iran 935 BC) was drawn up by the King of Persia for the
people of his kingdom, and the rights recognized were many, such as freedom,
security, religious tolerance, freedom of movement, freedom from slavery, and
some social and economic rights.
The teachings of Confucius (500 BC) contain the concept of compassion and love
for others as core themes. Confucius said: “What you do not wish for yourself, do
not do to others.”
Greek civilization:
This civilization was advanced; However, it did not recognize political rights
because Greek society was based on class, authority, force, and violence. Human
rights were violated, slavery was common among them, and its population was
divided into three classes:
— The noble class, who were knights and were the pillars of the armies, including
rulers, judges, and priests.
- The professional class, to whom citizenship rights were recognized.
- The peasant and poor class: This is the class deprived of everything, and it was
getting poorer until it came to the point that the nobility and middle class had to
sell these people as a result of their inability to pay their debts.
The philosophy of Aristotle (384-322 BC) emphasized the distinction between
“nature” on the one hand and “law” or “custom” on the other. What the law
commands varies from place to place, but what was “by nature” should be the
same in all place.
Between the thirteenth and eighteenth centuries
• In the year 1215, the English nobility and members of the clergy made the King
of England agree to abide by the law by drawing up the Great Charter of Freedoms
(Magna Carta). The Magna Carta protected the rights of the nobility only, and
therefore it was not about human rights as we know it now. But it became a widely
cited document defending freedoms because it limited the power of the king and
recognized the freedoms and rights of others.
• In the year 1689, the English Parliament passed the English Bill of Rights, which
stipulated that it could no longer tolerate royal interference in its affairs, prevented
the king from suspending the law without Parliament’s approval, specified free
elections for members of Parliament, and declared that freedom of expression in
Parliament was guaranteed and protected.
• In the year 1776, most of the British colonies in North America declared their
independence from the British Empire in the United States Declaration of
Independence. The Declaration helped advance some concepts such as inalienable
rights, protection of the rights of individuals, freedom of expression, press,
petition, assembly, privacy, necessary legal procedures, equality before the law,
and freedom of religion.
• In 1789, the French people overthrew the monarchy and established the First
French Republic. The revolution resulted in the French Declaration of the Rights of
Man and of the Citizen, which was enacted by the clergy, the nobility, and the
common people, embodying the Enlightenment ideas of figures such as Voltaire,
Montesquieu, and Rousseau. The Declaration attacked the political and legal
system of property, such as freedom, property, security, and the right to resist
injustice. It defined the natural rights of people. The Declaration replaced the
system of aristocratic privileges that prevailed under the monarchy with the
principle of equality before the law.
• In 1789, the French people overthrew the monarchy and established the First
French Republic. The revolution resulted in the French Declaration of the Rights of
Man and of the Citizen, which was enacted by the clergy, the nobility, and the
common people, embodying the Enlightenment ideas of figures such as Voltaire,
Montesquieu, and Rousseau. The Declaration attacked the political and legal
system of property, such as freedom, property, security, and the right to resist
injustice. It defined the natural rights of people. The Declaration replaced the
system of aristocratic privileges that prevailed under the monarchy with the
principle of equality before the law.
The first international agreements:
Slavery and work
In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, many human rights issues emerged and
began to be addressed at the international level, starting with issues such as
slavery, servitude, brutal working conditions, and child labour. This time saw the
adoption of the first international treaties relating to human rights. Although they
provided useful protection, the basis of these agreements were mutual obligations
between states. This is a major contrast to modern human rights conventions,
where obligations are given directly to individual rights holders.
• Slavery became illegal in England and France at the beginning of the nineteenth
century, and the British and French governments signed the Treaty of Paris with
the aim of cooperating in eliminating the slave trade.
• The Anti-Slavery Law was signed at the Brussels Conference of 1890, which was
later ratified by eighteen countries. However, the law did not address forced labor
and the continuing brutal working conditions.
The 1926 Anti-Slavery Charter - which aimed to abolish slavery in all its forms -
had no impact on the common practice of forced labor until well into the 1940s.
• The founding of the International Labor Organization in 1919 reflected the belief
that comprehensive and lasting peace could only be achieved if it was based on
social justice. The International Labor Organization has developed a system of
international labor standards that supports decent and productive work, freedom,
equality, security and dignity. One of the areas of work of the International Labor
Organization is to work to combat child labour. The organization works on many
lines of work in this area to this day, including its promotion of international
treaties on child labour; Such as Convention No. 182 on the worst forms of child
labor and the International Labor Organization Charter on the Minimum Age for
Work.
• The League of Nations (: League of Nations) is an international organization that
was established after World War I and as a result of the Treaty of Versailles. Its
goal was to resolve disputes and differences between countries through peaceful
means and to create an atmosphere of trust and understanding among member
states. It took Geneva, Switzerland as its headquarters. The League of Nations
failed to confront the powers and failed to prevent the outbreak of World War II.
After World War II, it turned into the United Nations.
Modern history
• Modern human rights concepts crystallized in the aftermath of World War II
(1939-1945 AD). After the war ended, the independent countries formed the
United Nations. This organization issued its charter, which became one of the first
international human rights documents.
• Agreements and charters have continued to confirm and defend human rights
globally, regionally and locally, which will be studied through the course.
• The subject of human rights has become the main concern of global and regional
international forums. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO) has recommended that human rights be taught as an
independent subject at all levels of teaching. As a result, it was decided to
introduce a special course among the university graduation requirements in all
colleges in a number of Arab Universities It is also taught within the scope of
national culture or constitutional and international law in other universities. The
intention of all of this is to confirm the saying that the principle is to establish the
idea in people’s minds so that they can contribute to its development from a dream
or theoretical goal to a reality supported by reward and punishment.