First of all it is important to define what human security is in order to understand the concept of security. Recent research (James, Steve and Patricia, 2011) shows that human security means an individual is free from threats or violence within his surroundings. The term human security has gained wide usage in recent years and there are number of concepts that relate to this term. According to Richard and Deepayan Basu (2006) human security can be defined as; ‘human security represents and effort to re-conceptualize security in a fundamental manner. It is primarily an analytical tool that focuses on ensuring security for the individual, not the state’.
James, Steve and Patricia (2011) have added the definition of human security by Arnold wolfers who says that ‘ security, in any objective sense, measures the absence of threats to acquired values and in a subjective sense, the absence of fear that such values will be attacked’. Individuals are threatened by multiple situations and conditions surrounding them these situations range from being environmental in nature to psychological ones. They are threatened by unforeseen contingencies that are beyond their personal control, they are threatened by financial crisis, health crisis, violence, terror attacks, chronic illnesses, robbery and much more. Some of these threats are minor in nature whereas others are major and they constitute of very destructive results.
Some writers argue that there is no one single definition that can define human security. Various literatures constitute of various definitions of this single term. Some writers advocate that human security is the divergence of state-centered security approach to human-centered security approach. In simplest terms it can be referred to as freedom of an individual from both fear and want. Fear can be related to violence, crime, physical or mental abuse, diseases, illnesses and much more. On the other hand wants may comprise of employment, food, shelter, health, etc. To deal with human security, it is important to identify the threats that may pose risk to humans and then analyze to what degree they can affect an individual’s life and what can be possibly done to avoid them and if they do occur how they can be dealt with.
It is wrongly assumed that human security is mere physical security of an individual. In fact, it is a much broader and wider term then just providing physical security to humans. The emergence and concept of human security was established after the post cold war period when individuals as well as states were immensely affected by insecurities like; physical, social, cultural, psychological and economical. Everyone was faced by insecurities leading to their well being and existence. According to Human Development Report (UNDP, 1994) Dr. Mahbub ul Haq was the first individual who highlighted the concept of human security. The report highlights security of people all across the globe instead of territories, development of individuals rather than arms and ammunitions. It was for the first time when security was expanded from borders to individuals. The report deals with concerns and issues related to human development and how co-operation can be developed among global organizations and institutions in order to deal with all the relevant issues. The report developed definition of human security on the basis of seven factors affecting safety of individuals these factors include; food security, health security, personal security, political security, environmental security, community and economic security.
A recent research (Taylor, 2004) shows that there is a lot of difference when it comes to traditional security and human security. Traditional security refers to security measures taken to protect the integrity and values of the state and possible threats that a country or state may egt affected from comprise of interstate wars, revolution, nuclear threats and other threats related to state affairs. On the other hand human security refers to security measures taken to protect the integrity of individuals who are threatened by things like; diseases, poverty, natural disaster, violence, landmines and human right abuses. The main objective behind human security is to make sure that human lives are well protected from all critical threats that they face in a long term environment. If these critical threats are not dealt carefully and precisely they may further destruct an individual’s life and margin of improvements may also deteriorate with time.
Moreover, human security also aims to provide individuals the right to live freely without compromising their ability to achieve basic goals in life by creating environmental condition that is suitable in every way. There are several different types of threats that invade an individual’s freedom and safety and it is important to deal with those threats in order to make sure human security is not invaded in political, social, economical, environmental or cultural sense. As the name suggests, human security is centered around people it focuses on human lives constituting around the world irrespective of their country, race, gender, religion, ethnicity, culture and other characteristics. It is important to distinguish between human security and state security because both terms have obvious different meanings. Human security is completely different from state security and it does not imitate any security agenda laid down on state level.
Human security is challenged by critical threats that can be either deliberate in nature or sudden or unplanned and all of these threats cost a huge loss to human life. It is important to provide security to human lives in order to protect them from getting affected by these threats. If suitable measures are not taken to deal with relevant insecurities then it may lead to unimaginable and unfortunate results. The protection provided should be in a manner that it remains consistent for a long period of time so that no further safety issue is being posed. But in certain situations even if security is provided it becomes uncontrollable to protect human lives. For instance, if someone suffers from a chronic illness and there is no cure for such illness then it can be said that such individual is prone to human security provided to him. Furthermore, in case of natural disasters, although it is possible to take preventive measures but still there is no guarantee that human security is not jeopardized.
Humans have always faced certain insecurities; previously these insecurities were different and with the changed time and world environment the type of insecurities faced by humans have changed as well as the methods to deal with them. According to a report (King and Murray, 2000) ‘ we conducted informal off the record interviews with politicians and officials responsible for the foreign policy in several countries that describe their policy as in some way based on human security. Virtually every person we spoke with was concerned that there existed no widely accepted or coherent definition of human security’.
There are certain security threats that human lives are endangered from and in this period of technological advancement and globalization the threats are different than what they were previously. But still some ancient and historic threats remain persistent to human security. One has to take into account the increased number of threats that are being faced and methods or ways to encounter these threats in an effective way. Technology has played a vital role in expanding knowledge and resources with regards to addressing security threats that jeopardize human life. Advancement of technology has given way to the development of new ways to tackle with human security. It is necessary to have a clear coordination between a specific security threat and its response mechanism any mismatch would result in even more destructions to imposed threat on human security.
Threats imposed on security of humans range from natural disasters to manmade destructions. Natural disasters like earthquakes, tsunami, floods, storms, etc pose high amount of risk to human life. If any country is struck by a natural disaster it is prone to get increased number of civilian casualties. Other than natural insecurities, people are faced to deal with environmental insecurities like; increased population, increased consumerism, increased immigration, increased terrorism, etc. Economic crisis is another situation that possessed high risk to human security because economic downturn would result in unemployment and poverty and this would cause distress, dissatisfaction and financial loss to an individual. Spread of virus or chronic disease could cost grief, pain and sometimes one may have to bear loss of human life.
International terrorism is another major threat that has hit the whole world community very badly since 9/11. Other threats that can affect human security include; increased rate of crime, financial downturn, ecological changes and other conflicts with regards to religion, culture, gender and class. The above mentioned are just some of the threats a human life may get affected from. It is important to measure the depth of any particular threat in order to analyze and assess how destructive or non-destructive it could be. Certain qualitative, quantitative and theoretical methods are used to analyze the size and depth of a particular threat and based on those analyses certain actions are recommended in order to counterfeit with those threats. The analysis conducted also helps one to identify whether the problem is urgent to deal with or not.
When it comes to the importance of human security it should be realized that human security is not an individual concern,. It is a universal concern and it is relevant and related to people everywhere all across the world irrespective of whether they are rich or poor, black or white, men or women. Human security is based around people, their concerns and issues with regards to their safety it is all about how people live freely without any danger or risks in a society. Moreover, all the components of human security are dependent on each other whether it is something to do with prevention of a threat or intervention to an existing threat, everything is interdependent. In all cases, it is recommendable to follow preventive measures if possible so that if there are any threats they can be undermined straightaway.
According to United Nation’s report (UNDP, 1994) human security is the process of safety from chronic threats like; disease, hunger and other environmental pressures. It provides humans protection against sudden disruptions in daily life patterns whether these disruptions are caused by natural disasters, changes in economic conditions or other home and community issues. The report argued that during certain crisis situations it becomes important to take urgent actions in order to provide human security and if certain actions are taken beforehand then insecurities that affect the life of an individual can be prevented before their emergence. But sometimes it can be the case where a threat or violence has occurred and only intervention methods can be used to deal with the situation. For example, international terrorism is regarded as a major threat to human security nowadays. Although governments and international organizations have taken multiple measures to tackle this problem but still it poses a great risk and insecurity to humans.
The importance of human security can be established from the fact that in it is broadest sense; it is much more than just a measure that one takes against violence, threat or conflict. It is a combination of actions incorporated together to provide a free environment where an individual can practice human rights, good healthcare, access to higher education, increased financial status and much more. In short, it provides an individual the opportunity to fulfill his goals according to his potential strength. Without the establishment of human security it may become difficult for an individual to fulfill his goals in a carefree environment because when one’s life is at risk it is hard to remain at peace and achieve what you want to achieve.
On a positive note, preventive measures that are taken to deal with human security embrace reduction in poverty, achievement with regards to social, economical and financial growth, hence reducing conflicts and providing a healthy environment to future generations. Although there are certain threats that are impossible to avoid like; natural disasters or chronic health issues but still certain preventive measures can be taken to minimize the damages caused by those threats. Human security provides a cushion to an individual on whom he can rely and enables him to deal with his insecurities without any fear or worry. In today’s world the establishment of human security has become essential because without proper measures taken against insecurities faced by humans no state or government can function properly. Human life is important and any threats associated with it would also threat the overall economic growth and development of a country.
In the presence of human security an individual is safe and protected against threats that risk his life and well being. For instance he is safe from economic insecurities that may lead a country to reach poverty line, he is safe from food insecurities that may lead to hunger, he is safe from health insecurities that may lead to life threatening illnesses or disease, he doesn’t have to face environmental insecurity caused by environmental pollution, he remains safe from violence and crime so no danger to his personal security and lastly he doesn’t have to worry about political or community insecurity. The main objective of human security is to protect individuals from pervasive as well as critical threats endangering their lives and well being. These threats sometimes affect the vital core of an individual’s life and when security is provided he or she is able to fulfill his life goals more effectively and efficiently. If threats are unacceptable but still no further actions are taken against those threats that means human security is breached extensively and an individual can be harmed in any way possible.
The importance of human security can be realized by the fact that it provides a broader picture of long-term objectives that an individual wants to achieve within a society. It is same for everyone irrespective of their cast, religion or culture. It remains consistent while providing long term results with regards to human progress and development and at the same time all human insecurities and threats are tackled efficiently. It is a fact that humans have always had insecurities since the beginning but as the time has progressed so has the level of insecurities. People face all types of insecurities nowadays some fear for losing their jobs while others fear for their life. No matter what people fear from the basic think is to make sure there are measures that can be take to address all these threats and fears.
REFERENCES
John Baylis, Steve Smith and Patricia Owens, 2011. The globalisation of world politics. New York: Oxford Press.
Taylor Owen, 2004. Challenges and opportunities for defining and measuring human security, [online] Available at: http://www.unidir.org/pdf/articles/pdf-art2138.pdf [Accessed 24 Feb 2012]
UNDP, 1994. Human development report 1994: new dimensions of human security. [online] Available through: http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/global/hdr1994/ [Accessed 24 Feb 2012
Acharya, Amitav., 2001. Human security: east versus west. International Journal.
Evans, Tony., 2001. The politics of human rights: a global perspective. London: Pluto Press
King, Gary and Christopher Murray, 2000. Rethinking human security. Working manuscript.
(The globalisation of world politics by John Baylis, Steve Smith, & Patricia Owens. Oxford Press 2011)
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