Human Rights, Democracy and Development

Question 1

What is the definition of human rights ?

Answer 1

basic moral guarantees that people in all countries and cultures allegedly have simply because they are people

Question 2

What are the catalogs of human rights ?

Answer 2

1. 18th Century: Focused on securing individual freedoms during revolutionary movements in Europe and North America.
2. 19th and 20th Century: Addressed social justice and fought economic exploitation.
3. Late 20th Century: Established global responsibilities to promote public goods and shared benefits.

Question 3

Term : Humanism

Answer 3

an emphasis on the achievement and potential of human beings

Question 4

Term : Rationalism

Answer 4

an emphasis on reason and science rather than a belief or superstition of society

Question 5

Term : Individualism

Answer 5

focus on personal rather on group or classes as the fundamental constituents of society

Question 6

What did John Locke Argue ?

Answer 6

• Individuals possess natural rights, independence of the political recognition granted them by the state
• Natural rights are possessed independently of and prior to the formation of any political community

-Natural rights flowed from natural law, natural law originated from God, accurately discerning the will of God provided us with an ultimately authoritative moral code

Question 7

Where and how did human right develop?

Answer 7

Magna carta 1215
- Document which granted rights to individual and ensured that England’s King would be subjected to the law

• Model for later documents : Petition of Rights 1628, and the English Bill of Rights, United States Constitution’s - Bill of Rights, adopted in 1791, and theDeclaration of Man and the Citizens 1789
• Ideological roots : John Locke, Jean Jacque Rousseau, Kant and other enlightenment thinkers

Question 8

what is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights ?

Answer 8

turning point in human rights regimes and revolutions
- took shape after the holocaust and WW2
- the holocaust forced many world leaders to rethink the tradition of national sovereignty, holding the government is the ultimate legal authority

Question 9

What are the Nuremburg Trials ?

Answer 9

War victors charged Nazi leaders with …
- War crimes, crimes against humanity, and other offenses

• Trials showed that international standards could outweigh national sovereignty when human rights were violated on a massive scale

Question 10

What are the 4 types of global human rights politics ?

Answer 10

1. The abuse of individuals rights by government
2. Demands for autonomy or independence y various groups
3. Demands for equality and privacy by groups with unconventional lifestyles
4. Claims by governments to economic growth and protection from other nations and non state actors

Question 11

what are the contributing factors to global human rights ?

Answer 11

• creation of global institutions to protect human rights
• growing acceptance of the interdependence and indivisibility of rights. violations of rights in one country has implications for people in other countries
• promoting democracy
• view that human rights facilitated market based economic development
• the effectiveness of non state actors

Question 12

what is cultural relativism ?

Answer 12

criticizes the human rights doctrine for not being respectful of different cultural , religious and philopshical traditions

Question 13

What is human rights imperialism?

Answer 13

human rights is seen as a political tool used to promote and defend western interests

Question 14

what is cultural relativism ?

Answer 14

• Human rights are culture specific and there is no universal culture
• The community takes precedence over the individuals in non western cultures and societies
• Human rights are inspired by western individualism/liberalism
• Social and economic rights takes precedence over civil and political rights
• Rights are a matter of national sovereignty

Question 15

What is the Human Right to Development ?

Answer 15

Right to Development (RTD) : Keba M’baye
- A human rights th states that every nation has the opportunity to contribute, participate in and enjoy, economic, social, and cultural political development

• Civil and political rights conceived as freedom from state abuse
• Economic, civil rights and claims made against exploiters and oppressors
• Solidarity rights belonging to people and covering topics such as peace, humanitarian assistance, and common heritage