Introduction

The basic rights which are moral principles or norms set for standard
human behaviour, protected by municipal or international law are called
human rights. These are available to every human being irrespective of
their age, caste, creed, gender, religion, race, origin or location. These are
termed inalienable fundamental rights, inherent in by all human beings.
They also impose an obligation on other human beings not to infringe on
the human rights of any person. Also, according to John Locke’s theory of
inalienable rights, individuals are born equal and with some basic natural
rights which are inalienable and can never be taken away. These rights
include right to life, liberty and property which is also recognized in
fundamental rights guaranteed by a country to its citizens. The Universal
Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) deals with all the human rights
made available to a person from birth. It is a milestone document defining
every human right and was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1948
containing 30 articles. These are universally protected by the United
Nations Human Rights Council.

What are Human Rights

Human beings are described as rational beings and thus given certain
basic rights since birth. These rights are inherent in all human beings as
they become operative at the birth of a person. These rights govern the
physical, moral, spiritual, and social welfare of a person. They are also
known as fundamental rights, basic rights, inherent rights, natural rights,
and birth rights.

Chief Justice of India, J.S. Verma rightly stated that “human dignity is the
quintessence of human rights.” All rights which are essential for the
protection and dignity of an individual and help him to develop his
personality are termed human rights. (Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India,
1978) D.D. Basu defines human rights as the basic rights that every
individual must have against the state or any other authority, irrespective
of any consideration.

One of the achievements of contemporary international law is that it

recognises human dignity and honour. This has also been reflected
through various declarations and conventions adopted by the United
Nations on human rights. The conventions have tried to protect the rights
of individuals at a national level by incorporating provisions into the
constitutions of the countries. Many non-governmental, regional, national
and international level organisations work to bring cases of violation of
human rights to light and try to prevent such occurrences.

Characteristics of Human rights

1. Human rights are universal in nature which means that they are
given to every individual irrespective of his/her caste, creed,
race, religion, nationality and place of birth.
2. These are inalienable rights. Many philosophers believe that
these are natural rights given by God and cannot be taken away
or changed by anyone.
3. These are indivisible and interdependent rights. If a government
gives one right then it has to protect the other rights of its
citizens. For example, it is the duty of government to protect the
right of fair hearing and provide food, shelter and clean
environment to its citizens in order to protect the right to life of
its citizens.
4. They are inherent to each person and available since birth.
5. They are not lost if the man is not familiar with his rights or if he
does not use his rights. For example if a person is not aware of
his right to consult the advocate then it does not mean that his
right is finished. It is then the duty of authorities to provide him
with free legal aid or tell him his rights.
6. They protect the dignity and personality of humans. Rights like
right to life, right to liberty, right against arbitrary arrest and
punishment etc protect the dignity of a person.

Sources of Human Rights

International treaties
These are the most important sources of human rights. There are multiple
treaties on human rights which are binding on the states who are party to
such treaties. For example, the European Convention on Human Rights,
the American Convention, the African Charter on Human Rights,
and People’s Rights.

International customs
These rights have acquired the status of customary international law by
their practice and, thus, are binding on all the states irrespective of their
consent. Many of these rights are a part of customary international law
and thus known as a source of human rights.

International instruments
There are several declarations, resolutions, and recommendations related
to human rights that have been adopted by the United Nations as a
source of such rights. Some of these are the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights (1948), declarations adopted at the Tehran Conference
(1968) and the Vienna Conference (1993).

Judicial decisions
The International Court of Justice serves as another important source of
human rights by setting up precedents and decisions in various disputes
and case laws relating to violations of human rights.

Official documents
Documents and journals like Human Rights Law Journal, Human Rights
Review, European Law Review, and other collective official work under the
United Nations serve as the source of human rights.

Classification of Human Rights

Human rights are inherent and interdependent on each other and so
there are not many different kinds of human rights. All these rights are
equally important and inherent in all human beings, irrespective of their
age, sex, caste, creed, race, religion, location, or nationality. The
Universal Declaration of Human Rights did not precisely categorise human
rights but mentioned 2 kinds:

 Civil and political rights

 Economic, social, and cultural rights

Theoretical classification of human rights

1. Civil and political rights
The rights that protect the life and personal liberty of a person are called
civil rights. They are necessary to maintain the dignity of a person. These
include rights like the right to life, liberty and security of a person, the
right to privacy, the right to own property, freedom of thought, religion
and movement.

Political rights are such rights that allow a person to participate in

governmental activities. These include rights like the right to vote and the
right to be elected. The nature of such rights is different, but they are
interrelated to each other. Both these rights are covered in the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights .

These rights are also called first-generation rights and are derived from
17th and 18th-century theories related to the American, English, and
French Revolutions. These form a part of negative rights because the
government abstains from doing such activities or forming policies that
violate these rights. The following civil and political rights are recognised
in the declaration of human rights by the United Nations:

 Right to life, personal liberty, and security (Article 3)

 Freedom from slavery (Article 4)
 The prohibition against torture and inhuman treatment (Article 5)
 Equality before the law and equal protection (Article 7)
 Remedy before national tribunals (Article 8)
 Freedom from arrest, which is arbitrary in nature (Article 9)
  Right to a fair trial and public hearing by an impartial tribunal
(Article 10)
 Freedom from ex-post-facto laws (Article 11)
 Right to privacy (Article 12)
 Right to nationality (Article 15)
 Right to own property (Article 17)
 Right to freedom of religion and conscience (Article 18)
 Freedom of expression (Article 19)
 Freedom to conduct a peaceful assembly (Article 20)
 Take part in government activities (Article 21)

2. Fundamental rights
Some human rights are guaranteed to the citizens of the state through
constitutional provisions and cannot be infringed upon at any cost, even
by the state authorities. These are termed as fundamental rights. The
expression ‘fundamental rights’ is stated in declarations and
constitutional provisions of many states. The Virginia Declaration of
1776 states that men are free and independent and have certain inherent
rights. The French Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen, 1789 provides
that men are born free and have equal rights. The Indian Constitution
guarantees six fundamental rights to the citizens of the country. These
are:

 Right to Equality (Article14)

 Right to freedom (Article19-22)
 Right to religion (Article 25)
 Cultural and educational rights (Article 29–30)
 Right against exploitation (Article 23– 24)
 Right to constitutional remedies (Article 32)

3. Natural rights
The history of human rights is rooted in ancient times and the
philosophical concepts of natural law and thus, also termed natural rights.
Plato was one of the first writers to give a standard ethical code of
conduct. Aristotle opined that rights change as per the different kinds of
circumstances faced by society from time to time. Since human rights are
universally applicable to every person in the world it is similar to natural
rights. Natural rights have been derived from natural law which opines
that law must reflect moral reasoning and must be related with morals
imbibed in a person or set by the society. On the other hand, positivism
states that human rights are a result of enactments of statutes and orders
by law which comes with various sanctions attached to it.

4. Moral rights
Human rights that determine the spiritual and moral conduct of a person
are termed moral rights. They are primarily contained in moral rights as
they highlight various moral values that cannot be highlighted by any set
of institutional rights. They promote moral values like respect for
everyone, brotherhood, secularism, protection of life, peace in society,
etc. Human rights also put moral obligations on the state and people not
to violate and infringe on the rights of other people. If done so, it will be
punished as per the provisions of the set statute.

5. Legal rights
The rights that are recognised by the legal system of a country are called
legal rights. The two essential elements of these rights are:

 The holder of the right, and

 A person bound by duty.
Rights and duties are correlated to each other. A person cannot have a
right without any corresponding duty. A person having a right also has a
duty not to violate another person’s rights. Human rights are given to
every individual irrespective of any considerations, and the state has the
corresponding duty to protect the rights of its citizens. Article 2 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights lays down that it is the primary
duty of the state to promote, protect, and implement all human rights
through various measures and legislative provisions. The government of
any state should pass any such laws which infringe on the rights of the
people.
6. Economic rights, cultural Rights and social rights
These rights are also called freedoms and guarantee a person the
minimum necessities of life. These are also included in the International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. These form a part of
positive rights as the state is required to frame policies and provisions to
implement such rights. These rights are based on the concept of social
equality and are second-generation rights. These rights include the right
to work, social security, physical and mental health, and education. The
various economic, cultural, and social rights recognised by the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights are as follows:

 Right to social security (Article 22)

 Right to work and choice of employment (Article 23)
 Right to rest (Article 24)
 Right to standard living and health (Article 25)
 Right to education (Article 26)
 Freedom to participate in cultural life (Article 27)
 Right to social and international order (Article 28)
In addition to the above rights, there is yet another kind of right called
collective rights. These rights are enjoyed by individuals collectively and
include the right to self-determination, physical protection of the group,
and the prohibition of genocide.

Future of Human Rights

The roots to protect human rights can be traced back to the period
of Babylonian laws as the king issued a certain set of ethical codes of
conduct for its people called Hammurabi’s code. It included fair wages,
protection of property, and charges to be proved during the trial for the
person to be punished. Other such examples are Assyrian laws, Hittite
laws, and Dharma of the Vedic period. Many philosophers recognise
human rights as natural rights. Some of these are Plato, Aristotle, Cicero,
etc. While Plato was the first to write a universal standard of conduct,
Cicero, on the other hand, believed that these rights must be made
customary and civil. With these, there was the implementation of human
rights in various countries.
Greece gave its citizens freedom of speech, equality before the law, the
right to vote and get elected and the right to trade. The Magna Carta of
Great Britain was also implemented as a response to heavy taxes
imposed on people in the country. It is also famous for introducing jury
trials and their concept to the world. Like this, every country guaranteed
to its citizens a certain set of fundamental rights through the constitution
or legislative provisions.

With the advancement of technology, climate change, and developments

in science, can we say these rights are enough to protect the life and
liberty of individuals? These rights, though provided through legislative
provisions along with an obligation on the state not to infringe upon such
rights, are at times violated by various actions and steps of the
authorities. Various punishments to the accused like death, torture in
prison, harassment, use of third degree and scientific methods while
investigation are a threat to his/her right to life and are debtable issues.
The privacy of a person is violated by misuse of social media which also
helps a person to intrude into one’s personal life through various means.
Similarly, many other freedoms are violated by discrimination against
people belonging to other nationality in a country.

Some of the human rights are not directly guaranteed in the constitution
of a state as a fundamental but indirectly under the ambit of a particular
right. For example, the right to privacy in the Indian Constitution is not a
fundamental right purely but falls under the ambit of the right to life and
personal liberty under Article 21. This is the reason that it is not taken
seriously by the people and state and thus, is violated easily. Society is
dynamic and, thus, demands change. With the change in society, there’s
a need to change and refine human rights. Nowadays, there’s a need to
include the right to the internet in human rights as it has become a part
of everybody’s life. This right has also been recognized by the Indian
Judiciary in the case of Anuradha Bhasin v. Union of India (2020). With the
acceptance of the LGBTQ community in society, the focus should be made
to recognise their rights with all seriousness to protect them from
harassment and torture. All this shows that there is a way ahead and
human rights need to be refined to meet the demands and needs of
people in present society.

Conclusion
Human rights lay down the basis for fundamental rights which are
guaranteed to the citizens of every country. These are the basic rights a
person has from his birth till his death and are indivisible, universal and
interdependent rights. These are mainly provided by the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations. Every
country has a commission to protect the human rights of its citizens along
with fundamental rights under the constitution. For example, in India,
the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) at the national level and
the State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) at the state level work to
protect human rights and take on any dispute related to its infringement.
However, with the advancement in technology and science, there’s a
need to revise and refine these rights in order to meet the changes.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

What are human rights and where are they provided?

Human rights are defined as the minimum rights that every individual
must have against the state or any other authority, irrespective of any
consideration. These are provided in the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948 and contain 30 articles.

How many types of human rights are provided in the UDHR?

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights did not precisely categorise

human rights but mentioned 2 kinds:

 Civil and political rights

 Economic, social, and cultural rights
Human rights are inherent and interdependent on each other and so
there are not many different kinds of human rights. All these rights are
equally important and inherent in all human beings, irrespective of their
age, sex, caste, creed, race, religion, location or nationality.

What are the characteristics of human rights?

The characteristics of human rights are:

 Universal in nature.
 Inalienable rights.
 These are indivisible and interdependent rights.
 They are inherent to each person and available since birth.
 They are not lost if the man is not familiar with his rights or if he
does not use his rights.
 They protect the dignity and personality of humans.