Universal Human Rights Day highlights the shared dignity of humanity and the vision of a world where all can flourish in freedom and justice. ANDY HAMILTON SJ reflects that our flourishing as individuals depends on the flourishing of all—a truth that calls for unyielding vigilance against the shadows of neglect and oppression.
Universal Human Rights day celebrates the acceptance by the United Nations of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. The Declaration came out of the experience of war and of massive disregard for human rights. It continues to set the standards for the relationship between human beings today.
It is honoured more in its neglect, however, than in its observance. The disregard by combatants and their supporters in the Gaza war for civilians’ right to life and security, the widespread practice of imprisoning children, the unequal treatment of minority peoples in society, and the subjugation of women, are only some examples of disrespect for human rights.
When thinking about what human rights involve, we should pay equal attention to both words. Human beings have rights because they are human, and human beings cannot live fully human lives unless their rights are respected. In the United Nations Declaration, Human Rights arise out of the ‘dignity and worth of the human person’.
Human dignity is central to understanding human rights. Rights name some of the conditions necessary if human beings are to flourish. These conditions can be spelled out roughly in terms of the human need for food and shelter, for security, for love and nurture, for education, for freedom of movement, of speech, of religion and of association, for freedom from discrimination on the grounds of race, gender, religion or wealth, for protection by the rule of law, for raising a family, for work and contributing to society, and for living in a sustainable environment.
These rights are not a disconnected or ungrounded list. They rest on an understanding of human life in which each human being is unique and is also bound to others. Our flourishing as individual persons depends on the flourishing of all. This condition is important, because the rights of one person or group will often stand in tension with the rights of others. If we see human beings as competitive individuals, we shall see such tensions as ‘winner takes all’. If we set rights within the contest of our shared humanity, however, we shall expect such tensions and resolve them by negotiation in such a way that respects the dignity of all people involved.
When judged by these standards, Australian public life will always display grounds for concern. People will always focus on the conflict between their own rights and the claims of others and will try to restrict others’ rights. Governments, too, will always be tempted to spend more effort on seeking to evade inconvenient appeals to human rights than to uphold them. The defense of human rights requires constant vigilance.
