Human rights are a set of rules that all humans must follow. These rules are meant to protect people from those who would abuse their power and give them a way to get along with each other. Most people know about some of their rights, like the right to a job and a place to live. Other rights are more obscure, like the right to freedom of speech and religion or the right not to be tortured.
In 1948, after the horrors of World War II and the ravages of poverty and hunger that had consumed much of the world, a group of nations agreed on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). This magnificent document declared that all humans are born free and equal in dignity and worth and have the right to life, liberty and security of person. It was the first time that these principles had been put down in writing and, as such, it provided a basis for international law and a shared understanding of what people are entitled to simply by being human.
Since its creation, the UDHR has been used to guide national laws and international treaties in many parts of the world. While there are still human rights violations in the world today, there has been a tremendous amount of progress that has taken place over the last six decades.
Some people have looked for ways to make human rights more secure. One common view is that human rights are innate or God-given. This view provides a strong normative status for these rights, but it makes them subject to social and political decisions that can make or break their availability.
Legal enactment is the other major source of security for human rights. It ensures that these rights are available in a legally binding manner and provides a powerful means to enforce them. But enactment also requires people to believe in the existence of these rights and accept their legitimacy. Many people around the world are not convinced that these rights exist, let alone that they should be protected by the law. It is therefore important to find ways to persuade these people that human rights are a good thing and that they are in their best interests.
Funding is also vital for those working to advance the human rights agenda. NGOs, such as Amnesty International and smaller national and local organizations, need to have the resources to do their work. Unfortunately, out of the three pillars that make up the UN, the human rights pillar receives the least funding and is often under threat from those who believe that it should not be given top priority.
In 2015, for example, Amnesty International documented that governments continued to deprive people of their fundamental rights by forcibly transferring them or returning them from countries where they faced serious harm. They also failed to protect people from indiscriminate attacks during armed conflicts and prevented the safe return of internally displaced people.