Bataan Heroes College

Balanga City, Bataan

Balanga City, Bataan

HUMAN RIGHTS
INTRODUCTION TO
EDUCATION
CRIMINOLOGY

NIÑA ALYANNA L. CERUDO

INSTRUCTOR
CRIMINAL JUSTICE DEPARTMENT

NIÑA ALYANNA L. CERUDO

INSTRUCTOR
CRIMINOLOGY DEPARTMENT
 BATAAN HEROES COLLEGE

This module or any portion thereof may not be reproduced, copied, transmitted, or
distributed in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the College or the
Author.

For Permission: Contact Bataan Heroes College, Roman Super Hi-way, Balanga City,
Bataan, Philippines
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LESSON 1: Concise History of Human Rights

Learning Objectives:

After studying this module, you should be able to:

1. Develop knowledge in concise of history of human rights;
2. Understand the history of human rights;

Course Schedule
Week Module No Module

1.2 1 Concise History of Human Rights

a. The Spread of Human Rights

b. The Magna Carta (1215)
c. Petition of Right (1628)
d. United States Declaration of Independence
e. The Constitution of the United States of America (1787) and Bill
Rights (1791)
f. Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (1789)
g. The First Geneva Convention (1864)
h. The United Nation (1945)
i. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)

Concise History of Human Rights

 Cyrus the Great, the first king of Persia, freed the slaves of Babylon, 539 B.C.
 In 539 B.C., the armies of Cyrus the Great, the first king of ancient Persia, conquered the
city of Babylon. But it was his next actions that marked a major advance for Man. He freed
the slaves, declared that all people had the right to choose their own religion, and
established racial equality. These and other decrees were recorded on a baked-clay cylinder
in the Akkadian language with cuneiform script.
 Known today as the Cyrus Cylinder, this ancient record has now been recognized as the
world's first charter of human rights.

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 It is translated into all six official languages of the United Nations and its provisions parallel
the first four Articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

A. The Spread of Human Rights

 From Babylon, the idea of human rights spread quickly to India, Greece and eventually
Rome. There the concept of "natural law' arose, in observation of the fact that people tended
to follow certain unwritten laws in the course of life, and Roman law was based on rational
ideas derived from the nature of things.
 Documents asserting individual rights, such as the Magna Carta (1215), the Petition of Right
(1628), the US Constitution (1787), the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of
the Citizen (1789), and the US Bill of Rights (1791) are the written precursors to many of
today's human rights documents.

B. The Magna Carta (1215)

 Magna Carta, or “Great Charter”, signed by the King of England in 1215, was a turning point
in human rights.
 The Magna Carta, or "Great Charter,” was arguably the most significant early influence on
the extensive historical process that led to the rule of constitutional law today in the
English-speaking world.
 In 1215, after King John of England violated a number of ancient laws and customs by which
England had been governed, his subjects forced him to sign the Magna Carta, which
enumerates what later came to be thought of as human rights. Among them was the right
of the church to be free from governmental interference, the rights of all free citizens to
own and inherit property and to be protected from excessive taxes. It established the right
of widows who owned property to choose not to remarry, and established principles of due
process and equality before the law. It also contained provisions forbidding bribery and
official misconduct.
 Widely viewed as one of the most important legal documents in the development of modern
democracy, the Magna Carta was: crucial turning point in the struggle to establish freedom.

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C. Petition of Right (1628)

 In 1628 the English Parliament sent this statement of ci liberties to King Charles I.
The next recorded milestone in the development of human rights was the Petition of Right,
produced in 1628 by the English Parliament and sent to Charles I as a statement of civil liberties.
Refusal by Parliament to finance the king's unpopular foreign policy had caused his government
to exact forced loans and to qui troops in subjects' houses as an economy measure. Arbitrary arrest
and imprisonment for opposing these policies had produced in Parliament a violent hostility to
Charles and to George Villier, the Duke of Buckingham. The Petition of Right, initiated by Sir
Edward Coke, was based upon earlier statutes and charters and asserted four principles:
1. No taxes may be levied without consent of Parliament;
2. No subject mat be imprisoned without cause shown (reaffirmation of the right of habeas
corpus);
3. No soldiers may be quartered upon the citizenry; and
4. Martial law may not be used in time of peace.

D. United States Declaration of Independence (1776)

 In 1776, Thomas Jefferson penned the American Declaration of Independence.
 On July 4, 1776, the United States Congress approved the Declaration of Independence. Its
primary author, Thomas Jefferson, wrote the Declaration as a formal explanation of why
Congress had voted on July 2 to declare independence from Great Britain, more than a year
after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and as a statement announcing that
the thirteen American Colonies were no longer a part of the British Empire. Congress
issued the Declaration of Independence in several forms. It was initially published as a
printed broadsheet that was widely distributed and read to the public.
 Philosophically, the Declaration stressed two themes: individual rights and the right of
revolution. These ideas became widely held by Americans and spread internationally as
well, influencing in particular the French Revolution.

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E. The Constitution of the United States of America (1787) and Bill of Rights (1791)
 The Bill of Rights of the US Constitution protects basic freedoms of United States citizens.
 Written during the summer of 1787 in Philadelphia, the Constitution of the United States of
America is the fundamental law of the US federal system of government and the landmark
document of the Western world. It is the oldest written national constitution in use and
defines the principal organs of government and their jurisdictions and the basic rights of
citizens.
 The first ten amendments to the Constitution - the Bill of Rights - came into effect on
December 15, 1791, limiting the powers of the federal government of the United States
and protecting the rights of all citizens, residents and visitors in American territory.
 The Bill of Rights protects freedom of speech, freedom of religion, the right to keep and bear
arms, the freedom of assembly and the freedom to petition. It also prohibits unreasonable
search and seizure, cruel and unusual punishment and compelled self-incrimination.
Among the legal protections it affords, the Bill of Rights prohibits Congress from making
any law respecting establishment of religion and prohibits the federal government from
depriving any person of life, liberty or property without due process of law. In federal
criminal cases it requires indictment by a grand jury for any capital offense, or infamous
crime, guarantees a speedy public trial with an impartial jury in the district in which the
crime occurred, and prohibits double jeopardy.

F. Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (1789)

 In 1789 the people of France brought about the abolishment of the absolute monarchy and
set the stage for the establishment of the first French Republic. Just six weeks after the
storming of the Bastille, and barely three weeks after the abolition of feudalism, the
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (French: La Déclaration des Droits de
l'Homme et du Citoyen) was adopted by the National Constituent Assembly as the first
step toward writing a constitution for the Republic of France.
 The Declaration proclaims that all citizens are to be guaranteed the rights of "liberty,
property, security, and resistance to oppression." It argues that the need for law derives
from the fact that " ...the exercise of the natural rights of each man has only those borders

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which assure other members of the society the enjoyment of these same rights." Thus, the
Declaration sees law as an "expression of the general will," intended to promote this
equally of rights and to forbid "only actions harmful to the society."

G. The First Geneva Convention (1004)

 The original document from the first Geneva Convention in 1864 provided for care to
wounded soldiers.
 In 1864, sixteen European countries and several American states attended a conference in
Geneva, at the invitation of the Swiss Federal Council, on the initiative of the Geneva
Committee. The diplomatic conference was held for the purpose of adopting a convention
for the treatment of wounded soldiers in combat.
 The main principles laid down in the Convention and maintained by the later Geneva
Conventions provided for the obligation to extend care without discrimination to wounded
and sick military personnel and respect for and marking of medical personnel transports
and equipment with the distinctive sign of the red cross on a white background.

H. The United Nations (1945)

 Fifty nations met in San Francisco in 1945 and formed the United Nations to protect and
promote peace.
 World War II had raged from 1939 to 1945, and as the end drew near, cities throughout
Europe and Asia lay in smoldering ruins. Millions of people were dead, millions more were
homeless or starving. Russian forces were closing in on the remnants of German resistance
in Germany's bombed-out capital of Berlin. In the Pacific, US Marines were still battling
entrenched Japanese forces on such islands as Okinawa.
 In April 1945, delegates from fifty countries met in San Francisco full of optimism and
hope. The goal of the United Nations Conference on International Organization was to
fashion an international body to promote peace and prevent future wars. The ideals of the
organization were stated in the preamble to its proposed charter: "We the peoples of the
United Nations are determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war,
which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind."

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 The Charter of the new United Nations organization went into effect on October 24, 1945,
a date that is celebrated each year as United Nations Day.

I. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)

 On October 24, 1945, in the aftermath of World War II, the United Nations came into being
as an intergovernmental organization, with the purpose of saving future generations from
the devastation of international conflict.
 United Nations representatives from all regions of the world formally adopted the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights on December 10, 1948.
 The Charter of the United Nations established six principal bodies, including the General
Assembly, the Security Council, the International Court of Justice, and in relation to human
rights, an Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
 The UN Charter empowered ECOSOC to establish "commissions in economic and social
fields and for the promotion of human rights...." One of these was the United Nations
Human Rights Commission, which, under the chairmanship of Eleanor Roosevelt, saw to
the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
 The Declaration was drafted by representatives of all regions of the world and encompassed
all legal traditions. Formally adopted by the United Nations on December 10, 1948, it is
the most universal human rights document in existence, delineating the thirty fundamental
rights that form the basis for a democratic society.
 Following this historic act, the Assembly called upon all Member Countries to publicize the
text of the Declaration and "to cause it to be disseminated, displayed, read and expounded
principally in schools and other educational institutions, without distinction based on the
political status of countries or territories."
 Today, the Declaration is a living document that has been accepted as a contract between a
government and its people throughout the world. According to the Guinness Book of World
Records, it is the most translated document in the world.
 The Universal Declaration of Human Rights has inspired a number of other human rights
laws and treaties throughout the world.
 By 1948, the United Nations' new Human Rights Commission had captured the world's

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attention. Under the dynamic chairmanship of Eleanor Roosevelt-President Franklin

Roosevelt's widow, a human rights champion in her own right and the United States
delegate to the UN—the Commission set out to draft the document that became the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Roosevelt, credited with its inspiration, referred
to the Declaration as the international Magna Carta for all mankind. It was adopted by the
United Nations on December 10, 1948.
 In its preamble and in Article 1, the Declaration unequivocally proclaims the inherent rights
of all human beings: "Disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous
acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which
human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want
has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people...All human beings
are born free and equal in dignity and rights."
 The Member States of the United Nations pledged to work together to promote the thirty
Articles of human rights that, for the first time in history, had been assembled and codified
into a single document. In consequence, many of these rights, in various forms, are today
part of the constitutional laws of democratic nations.

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References
a. Coquia, Jorge R., “Human Rights, An Introductory Course”, Central Professional Books,
Inc., 2000
b. De Leon, Hector S., De Leon, Jr., Hector M., “Constitution Made Simple” 2013 edition,
Rex Book Store, 2013
c. De Leon, Hector S., “Textbook on the Philippine Constitution, 1997 edition”, Rex Book
Store, 1997
d. Atty. Dela Cruz, Jacinto M., PSSUPT. Florendo, Adelene M., “Understanding Human
Rights & International Humanitarian Law”, Wiseman’s Books Trading, Inc., 2017
e. Tancangco, Danilo L., Orlain, Dioscoro C., “Human Rights Education”, Wiseman’s
Books Trading, Inc., 2022
f. Delizo, Darlito Bernard G., “Criminal Law, Jurisprudence and Procedue (Lecture and
Review Materials, 4th edition)”, Crimzone Enterprises
g. Laws on Rights of the Persons Arrested, Detained and Under Custodial Investigation (RA
7438) Anti-Torture Law (RA 9745); International Humanitarian Law (RA 9851) – Law on
9745); International Humanitarian Law (RA 9851) – Law on Armed Conflict; Legal and
Regulatory Framework; and Case Analysis/Studies, R.A. 9262- Anti Violence Against
Women and their Children Act, R.A. 9710- Magna Carta of Women, Indigenous Peoples’
Rights Acts of 1997, Magna Carta for Disabled Persons, Labor Code of the Philippines

h. Role of Forensics in Human Rights Investigation: Ensuring Accountability and Upholding

Justice – Atty. Aloi Renz P. Santos (seminar at Holy Angel University)

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