The issue of human rights is said to have started thousands of years ago (Fasih, 2010), even as back as 539 B.C ("A Brief History of Human Rights", 2016. Human rights can be seen to feature in philosophical, cultural, legal, and religious aspects. This paper traces human rights, analyzing its concept from the ancient times to the present; focusing in how it has evolved over the years beginning from World War II. Of major interest are war crimes, which feature prominently in recent cases of human rights violation.
A conscious effort to adopt and observe human rights emerged after World War II (“A Brief History of Human Rights”, 2016). This period was preceded by a dark period in history of mankind that consisted of the Holocaust by German Nazi that saw the death of millions of Jews, the genocide on Gypsies, hate crimes on persons with disability and persons engaged in same sex relationships. These events led to the push to punish offenders who violate human rights and/ or commit crimes against humanity (“A Brief History of Human Rights”, 2016). This followed with active human rights advocacy and development of human rights into what it is today.
Formation of the United Nations and Declaration of Universal Human Rights
Following the world war, in an attempt to prevent the occurrence of another war, nations met and formed The United Nations. This was the greatest turning point in the cause for human rights. Lead by Eleanor Roosevelt, the committee came up with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which conferred rights to all mankind in 1948(“A Brief History of Human Rights”, 2016). During this period the international laws that govern human rights were created; these laws were later to be amended over a period of time. These laws overtime have been adopted by many countries including those that were not members of the United Nations (“A Brief History of Human Rights”, 2016). Among the interventions created for adherence to human rights includes the Rome Statute that saw the creation of International Criminal Court that tries perpetrators of Genocide, war crimes and gross violence of human rights (“A Brief History of Human Rights”, 2016). There have been several conventions that have attempted to define and guard different aspects of human rights including:
The Geneva Convention(1949)- Human rights in conflict(“A Brief History of Human Rights”, 2016)
The Second Geneva Convention 1949- Rights of injured armed forces officers at sea. (“A Brief History of Human Rights”, 2016)
Third Geneva Convention – Details rights and treatment of prisoners war(“A Brief History of Human Rights”, 2016)
The Geneva conventions have since had amendments to the original. Apart from the universal declaration of Human Rights, the other notable addition is the Helsinki Accords, Which was signed by 35 states to try and improve relations between the communist countries and western nations (Ishey, 2004). This act, though non-binding, contributed to the improvement in relations between nations that were experiencing cold war. Human rights observation s also furthered by countries like the US that peg their foreign policy around observation of human rights (Ishey, 2004).
Violations of Human Rights
Even after major progress in human rights and the Universal Declaration Human Rights, the world is yet to achieve an ideal adherence to human rights laws. These violations range from torture, restriction in freedom of speech, unfair trials, denial of a chance for education among others (Ishey, 2004). Of significant mention are the human rights violations occasioned b the recent conflicts witnessed in many places in the world, especially in the Middle East and Africa.
The human rights violations include denial of a right to life and freedom. Examples include the war in Afghanistan in 2007 in which around 6,500 people were, majority being unarmed women and children (The Story of Human Rights, n.d.). The Vietnamese government put prostitutes and drug-addicts in an enclosed area to prevent the spread of AIDS/ HIV (The Story of Human Rights, n.d.).
Slavery is another common violation of human rights. Even though slave- trade officially ended, there are many instances when people are held against their wish. In areas of conflict, children are often held to be used as child soldiers, some are held as laborers while some women captured to serve as sex slaves. The Lord’s Resistance Army in Uganda is said to have captured over 20,000 children to use as slaves and soldiers (The Story of Human Rights, n.d.). Guinea- Bissau reports children forced to work as laborers in cotton fields (The Story of Human Rights, n.d.). Asia has also seen a large number of sex workers trafficking (The Story of Human Rights, n.d.).
Other rights like freedom of movement, freedom of thought and freedom of association occur in many places across the world. These freedoms are especially restricted in countries like China, Middle Eastern countries (Ishey, 2004), and war torn countries in Africa. Due to the existing conflicts, violations have also occurred through restriction of refugee movements, war crimes and other acts of torture and abuse.
In conclusion, the journey towards the achievement of universal human rights has been long and has lasted many years. There have been significant gains made over the years and advocacy has seen more awareness on this issue. The period after the World War II saw the biggest gains made in human rights and many legislation that govern the issue were constituted at that point. There have been gains in the observation of human rights, however, many nations still violate human rights in different ways, as seen I the statistics from different human rights watch bodies.
References
A Brief History of Human Rights. (2016). Humanrights.com. Retrieved 14 March 2016, from http://www.humanrights.com/what-are-human-rights/brief-history/cyrus-cylinder.html
Fasih, F. (2010). Historical Development of Human Rights. Legalservicesindia.com. Retrieved 14 March 2016, from http://www.legalservicesindia.com/article/article/historical development-of-human-rights-138-1.html
Ishey, M. (2004). The History of Human Rights. UIS.edu. Retrieved 14 March 2016, from https://edocs.uis.edu/Departments/LIS/Course_Pages/LIS411/readings/Ishay_History_ man_Rights.pdf
The Story of Human Rights. Los Angelos. Retrieved from http://www.humanrights.com/what are-human-rights/brief-history/cyrus-cylinder.html
