Human Rights Under Democracy
- Part 1 -

Dr. Koijam Manihar Singh *

The concept of human rights is closely associated with such doctrines as democracy, liberalism and individualism. It is the specific product of the English, American and French revolutions of the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as well as the two great wars of the twentieth century.

It finds its first complete realisation in the philosophic doctrine which accompanied these upheavals. It is not possible, however, to exaggerate the contrast between the ancient and the modern world as individualistic in outlook.

Preservation of democracy and democratic values and protection and promotion of human rights are matters with which everyone of us is or should be concerned. It is a legitimate pride of every citizen that despite the trials, turmoils and tribulations which the nation has undergone, democracy, rule of law and respect for human rights are preserved and respected in our country.

For the protection of their own rights, it is very essential that each and every people know the rights thoroughly and are fully conscious of them. Ignorance of the people in this regard has often resulted in their suffering. Lack of awareness prevents them from timely protection of their own rights.

Cumbersome legal procedures add to the woes of the people. Victims are unable to get quick redressal of their violated rights. And legal procedures are often exploited by vested interests to create delays, which are all unexpected things in a democratic society.

Human rights are neither earned nor inherited. They are possessed by Everybody in the world because they are human. People are equally entitled to them regardless of their gender, race, colour, language, origin, age, class, religion or political creed/Human rights are universal in another way.

Not only do we all equally possess them, but we all have duties imposed upon us by them. We have a duty to recognise, respect and uphold the rights of our fellow human beings. The duties imposed on people by human rights are universal and in no way limited to specific persons or groups or to the citizens of one country only.

Today's world is made up of a tangled and intricate web of connections between lands and people. It is often referred to as the global village. Many of the major problems we face require international co-operation for solving them. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is one of the earliest trends towards international cooperation.

The United Nations Commission on Human Rights was set up under the United Nations Charter in 1945. The Commission was asked in 1946 to prepare an international bill of rights. By 1947, the Commission had decided that a Universal Declaration of Human Rights was needed first, to be followed by one or more human rights treaties (covenants), which would be legally binding on the nations that signed them.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the General Assembly of the UN on 10th December, 1948 as a common standard of achievement for all people and all nations.

Two treaties on human rights came after 18 years. On 16th December, 1966 the "Covenant on Civil and Political Rights" (liberty-oriented) and the "Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights" (security-oriented) were voted upon and adopted by the UN General Assembly.

The Universal Declaration and the two covenants make up the "International Bill of Rights". The two covenants are legally binding upon States ratifying (formally approving and signing) them.

Under the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,

• everyone has the right,
• to the enjoyment of just and favourable conditions of work,
• to social security,
• to an adequate standard of living,
• to education,
• to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health,
• to form trade unions,
• and to take part in cultural life and
• enjoy the benefits of scientific progress.

And under the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, everyone has the

• right to life (sentence of death may be imposed only for the most serious crimes),
• to liberty and security of person,
• to freedom of thought, conscience and religion,
• to equal treatment in the courts,
• to peaceful assembly,
• to freedom of association including the right to form trade unions,
• to take part in public affairs, and to be presumed innocent until proved guilty.

And no one shall be subject to torture, slavery, forced labour and arbitrary interference with his or her privacy, family, home or correspondence.

Human rights are universal and so it seems that all human beings of our world should be equal. But it is not so. There are various problems in this regard in all countries. Some of these stem from

1. Sex discrimination,
2. Racial discrimination or apartheid,
3. Disparity between nations and
4. Arms race.

Thus peace and harmony in this world is threatened with denying of human rights to many people.

In the existing democratic system, one of the most serious problems is to strike a balance between the rights of the majority and those of the minorities, between the rights of the present generation and those of the future. It is not unlikely that a present majority may by its actions jeopardize the fundamental rights of minorities and affect their future.

There is increasing human rights discourse in our country which is encouraging. But it is often overlooked that access to justice is a basic human right. Without easy and expeditious access to justice, enjoyment of other human rights becomes meaningless. Therefore the availability of the rules of democracy to defend the rights of all individuals is an indispensable aspect of the rule of law.

An individual whose human rights are violated can approach the National Human Rights Commission and the State Human Rights Commission for the redressal of his grievances. The National Human Rights Commission was set up by the Government of India under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993.

It has jurisdiction all over the country. The Commission is vested with all the powers of a civil court. Since India is a vast country, it is not easy for the affected person to move the National Human Rights Commission at Delhi without spending considerable time, energy and money.

Therefore, it is encouraged that Human Rights Commission be set up in every State. Human Rights courts are being set up all over India to deal expeditiously and effectively with the cases of violation of human rights.

In a democratic country every State has an obligation to respect the fundamental rights in all its actions-legislative, executive and judicial. The Government and Parliament of India and the Government and Legislature of each of the States and all other State agencies are required to act so as to give full play to these rights.

The Indian judiciary has entertained public interest litigation and has therefore contributed significantly to the growth of human rights jurisprudence. An independent judiciary is one of the pillars of our constitutional edifice and is indispensable to a democratic system.

It is a constitutional and moral imperative for the protection of human rights of the citizens, for maintenance of the rule of law and for preservation of democratic values.

Though there is a wrong belief that the concept of human rights originated in the West, actually this is not so. In our ancient scriptures, there are references to the basic human rights though they are not referred to by that name.

We feel proud that human rights had been identified and recognised in India from time immemorial. Rig Veda declares that all human beings have equal rights over food and water (and the natural resources). Arthasastra written by Kautilya elaborates on civil and legal rights formulated by Manu.

It will not be wrong to say that democracy recognises the rights and claims of each individual over the resources of the community, directs its efforts towards securing equality of opportunity. Economic policies and concentration of wealth in a few hands arc inconsistent with the object of democracy.

Economic disparities enable a few to capture seats of power by purchasing the votes with money. Such disparities are an insult and an impediment to democracy and to the rights of millions.

To be continued ....

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* Dr. Koijam Manihar Singh , M.Sc (Maths), M.A. (Econ.), LLB., P.G.D.C.A., Ph D,D.Sc. (th.s), FIMA(U.K, Ch. Maths, (Eng.), FAAAS (U.S.A), FRAS (London). He was the Principal (Retd.), for Ideal College, Imphal.
This was published by DIPR Manipur on the eve of Khongjom day 2009.
This article was webcasted at e-pao.net with due permission and courtesy from DIPR Manipur on 24th July 2009.

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