CHARACTERISTICS OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Human rights are inherent to every human being and they are universal; they are acquired at birth by every person.
They focus on the intrinsic dignity and the common value of all human beings
They are equal, indivisible and interdependent
They cannot be renounced; neither can an individual be deprived of them
They impose obligations, more importantly, on States and public authorities, in terms of action or omission
They are guaranteed at the international level
They are legally protected
They protect persons or groups of persons.
HUMAN RIGTS CHALLENGES AND CONSTRAINTS
Recurrent conflicts in the sub-region
Serious human rights violations in conflict situations
Lack of political will in terms of respect for and protection of human rights
Ignorance of the human rights instruments and texts
Low level of harmonisation of national legislation with regard to international standards
Poverty of the people and social inequalities
Some useful sources of information are listed below:
www.amnesty.org/fr : follow the link « Knowing human rights »
www.un.org/pubs/cyberschoolbus/ : this site is targeted at children and teenagers for purposes of appreciating human rights
www.ohchr.org/fr : follow the link « your human rights » to obtain information on international human rights instruments. Follow the link « Human rights bodies » « for information on Committees which monitor the implementation of human rights. You may also know which States have ratified the instruments and access the reports on the various countries.
HUMAN RIGHTS STANDARDS
Human rights standards are codified in the international, regional and
national legal systems. These are functional and behavioural standards which
State authorities and officials concerned must account for.
The
international commitments of States are monitored by independent Experts’
Committees called « Treaty and Convention Monitoring Bodies ».