Human Rights Education
HUMAN RIGHTS, defined.
Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings,
regardless of race, sex, nationality, ethnicity, language,
religion, or any other status. Human rights include the
right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery and
torture, freedom of opinion and expression, the right to
work and education, and many more. Everyone is
entitled to these rights, without discrimination.
HISTORY OF HUMAN RIGHTS
1760 BCE - In Babylon King Hammurabi draws up the
‘Code of Hammurabi’, an early legal document that
promises to ‘make justice reign in the Kingdom and
promote the good of the people’
539 B.C. - Armies of Cyrus the great conquered the city
of Babylon. He freed the slaves, declared that all people
had the right to choose their own religion, established
racial equality. Cyrus Cylinder was then made, a baked-
clay cylinder in Akkadian Languange.
Cyrus Cylinder - recognized as the world’s first
charter of human rights.
27 BCE - 476 CE - Roman Empire develops the concepts
of natural law and the rights of citizens.
26 - 33 CE - In Palestine, Jesus Christ preaches morality,
tolerance, justice, forgiveness and love. The Christian
New Testament teaches equality before God: 'In Christ
there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor
female'
1215 - Britain's King John is forced by his lords to sign
the Magna Carta, acknowledging that free men are
entitled to judgment by their peers and that even a King
is not above the law. It also stated that taxes could not
be demanded without first obtaining the consent of ‘the
realm’.
1583 – 1645 - Hugo Grotius, Dutch jurist credited with
the birth of international law, speaks of brotherhood of
humankind and the need to treat all people fairly.
1689 - In England, Parliament adopts the Bill of Rights
that curtails the power of the monarch and includes
“Ugaliing manghila pababa”
freedom from torture and from punishment without
trial. The Bill sets out that it is the job of government to
represent the people and their rights.
1945 - The United Nations is created ‘to affirm the
dignity and worth of every human person’
1948 - The United Nations adopts the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights.
SPREAD OF HUMAN RIGHTS
From Babylon, the idea of human rights spread
quickly to India, Greece and eventually Rome. There the
concept of “natural law” arose, in observation of the
fact that people tended to follow certain unwritten laws
in the course of life, and Roman law was based on
rational ideas derived from the nature of things.
Documents asserting individual rights, such as
the Magna Carta (1215), the Petition of Right (1628),
the US Constitution (1787), the French Declaration of
the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (1789), and the US
Bill of Rights (1791) are the written precursors to many
of today’s human rights documents.
GENERATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
First Generation - sometimes called "blue rights", deal
essentially with liberty and participation in political life.
They are fundamentally civil and political in nature.
They serve negatively to protect the individual from
excesses of the state. First-generation rights include,
among other things, the right to life, equality before the
law, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, property
rights, the right to a fair trial, and voting rights.
Second Generation – sometimes referred to as “red
rights”, are related to equality and began to be
recognized by governments after World War II. They are
fundamentally economic, social, and cultural in nature.
They guarantee different members of the citizenry
equal conditions and treatment. Secondary rights would
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include a right to be employed in just and favorable
condition, rights to food, housing and health care, as
well as social security and unemployment benefits. They
impose upon the government the duty to respect and
promote and fulfill them, but this depends on the
availability of resources. The duty is imposed on the
state because it controls its own resources.
Third Generation – Also known as “Solidarity Rights”.
Third-generation human rights are those rights that go
beyond the mere civil and social. They are rights that try
to go beyond the framework of individual rights to focus
on collective concepts, such as community or people.
Includes Right to Self-Determination, Right to Economic
and Healthy Social Development, Right to a Healthy
Environment, etc.
COMPONENTS OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Subject/Right Holders - individuals or social groups that
have particular entitlements in relation to specific duty-
bearers.
Duty Holder (State, Law Enforcement) -An entity,
normally a State that is obliged to respect, to ensure
and to protect the subject's rights or demands. In
human rights, States are considered a duty-holders
rather than subjects though in international law the role
of States as subjects is recognized as incontestable.
Object - the content of any given right and any duty of
the holder of the right and the holder of the obligation.
This right and this duty are the human values and needs
which are found in human rights rules and norms.
Implementation - a set of measures, approaches, and
initiatives designed to realize the right concerned. This
includes laws, administrative measures, legal writs and
mechanisms adapted by the three branches of the
government, namely, Congress, Executive, and
Judiciary.
“Bakit ka lalaban nang patas kung pwede ka namang manduga?”
STAGES OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Idealization – notions about human rights have started
in the realm of ideas that reflect a consciousness
against oppression, dehumanization or inadequate
performance by the State.
Positivization - support for the ideas became strong
and the stage is set to incorporate them into some legal
instruments, whether domestic law or international
law.
Realization - stage where these rights are enjoyed by
the citizens of the State by the transformation of the
social, economic, and political order.
OBLIGATIONS OF STATE ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Respect - State must refrain from interfering with or
curtailing the enjoyment of human rights.
Protect - requires State to protect individuals and
groups against human rights abuses.
Fulfill - State must take positive action to facilitate the
enjoyment of basic human rights.
KEY INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS INSTRUMENTS
UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
Article 1 – Right to Equality
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and
rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience
and should act towards one another in a spirit of
brotherhood.
Article 2 – Freedom from Discrimination
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set
forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind,
such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or
other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth
or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be
made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or
international status of the country or territory to which
a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust,
non-self-governing or under any other limitation of
sovereignty.
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Article 3 – Right to Life, Liberty and Personal Security
Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of
person.
Article 4 – Freedom from Slavery
No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and
the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.
Article 5 – Freedom from Torture and Degrading
Treatment
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel,
inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
Article 6 – Right to Recognition as a person before the
Law
Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a
person before the law.
Article 7 – Right to Equality Before the Law
All are equal before the law and are entitled without
any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All
are entitled to equal protection against any
discrimination in violation of this Declaration and
against any incitement to such discrimination.
Article 8 – Right to Remedy by Competent Tribunal
Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the
competent national tribunals for acts violating the
fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or
by law.
Article 9 – Freedom from Arbitrary Arrest and Exile
No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention
or exile.
Article 10 – Right to Fair Public Hearing
Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public
hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the
determination of his rights and obligations and of any
criminal charge against him.
Article 11 – Right to be Considered Innocent until
Proven Guilty
-Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to
be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to
law in a public trial at which he has had all the
guarantees necessary for his defence.
- No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on
account of any act or omission which did not constitute
a penal offence, under national or international law, at
“Bakit ka lalaban nang patas kung pwede ka namang manduga?”
the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier
penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at
the time the penal offence was committed.
Article 12 – Freedom from Interference with Privacy,
Family, Home and Correspondence
No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with
his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to
attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has
the right to the protection of the law against such
interference or attacks.
Article 13 - Right to Free Movement In and Out of the
Country
- Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and
residence within the borders of each state.
- Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and
residence within the borders of each state.
Article 14 – Right to Asylum in other Countries from
Persecution
- Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other
countries asylum from persecution.
- This right may not be invoked in the case of
prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes
or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of
the United Nations.
Article 15 – Right to a Nationality and the Freedom to
Change It
- Everyone has the right to a nationality.
- No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality
nor denied the right to change his nationality.
Article 16 – Right to Marriage and Family
- Men and women of full age, without any limitation
due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to
marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal
rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its
dissolution.
- Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and
full consent of the intending spouses.
- The family is the natural and fundamental group unit
of society and is entitled to protection by society and
the State.
Article 17 – Right to Own Property
- Everyone has the right to own property alone as well
as in association with others.
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- No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.
Article 18 – Freedom of Belief and Religion
Everyone has the right to freedom of thought,
conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to
change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone
or in community with others and in public or private, to
manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice,
worship and observance.
Article 19 – Freedom of Opinion and Information
Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and
expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions
without interference and to seek, receive and impart
information and ideas through any media and
regardless of frontiers.
Article 20 – Right of Peaceful Assembly and
Association
- Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful
assembly and association.
- No one may be compelled to belong to an association.
Article 21 – Right to Participate in Government and in
Free Elections
- Everyone has the right to take part in the government
of his country, directly or through freely chosen
representatives.
- Everyone has the right of equal access to public service
in his country.
- The will of the people shall be the basis of the
authority of government; this will shall be expressed in
periodic and genuine elections which shall be by
universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret
vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.
Article 22 – Right to Social Security
Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to
social security and is entitled to realization, through
national effort and international co-operation and in
accordance with the organization and resources of each
State, of the economic, social and cultural rights
indispensable for his dignity and the free development
of his personality.
Article 23 – Right to Desirable Work and to Join Trade
Unions
Article 27 – Right to Participate in the Cultural Life of
- Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of
Community
employment, to just and favourable conditions of work
“Bakit ka lalaban nang patas kung pwede ka namang manduga?”
and to protection against unemployment.
- Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to
equal pay for equal work.
- Everyone who works has the right to just and
favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his
family an existence worthy of human dignity, and
supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social
protection.
- Everyone has the right to form and to join trade
unions for the protection of his interests.
Article 24 – Right to Rest and Leisure
Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including
reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic
holidays with pay.
Article 25 – Right to Adequate Living Standard
- Everyone has the right to a standard of living
adequate for the health and well-being of himself and
of his family, including food, clothing, housing and
medical care and necessary social services, and the right
to security in the event of unemployment, sickness,
disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of
livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
- Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care
and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of
wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.
Article 26 – Right to Education
- Everyone has the right to education. Education shall
be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental
stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory.
Technical and professional education shall be made
generally available and higher education shall be
equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
- Education shall be directed to the full development of
the human personality and to the strengthening of
respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It
shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship
among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall
further the activities of the United Nations for the
maintenance of peace.
- Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of
education that shall be given to their children.
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- Everyone has the right freely to participate in the
cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to
share in scientific advancement and its benefits.
- Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral
and material interests resulting from any scientific,
literary or artistic production of which he is the author.
Article 28 – Right to a Social Order that Articulates this
Document
Everyone is entitled to a social and international order
in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this
Declaration can be fully realized.
Article 29 – Community Duties Essential to Free and
Full Development
- Everyone has duties to the community in which alone
the free and full development of his personality is
possible.
- In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone
shall be subject only to such limitations as are
determined by law solely for the purpose of securing
due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms
of others and of meeting the just requirements of
morality, public order and the general welfare in a
democratic society.
- These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised
contrary to the purposes and principles of the United
Nations.
Article 30 – Freedom from State or Personal
Interference in the above Rights
Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as
implying for any State, group or person any right to
engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at
the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set
forth herein.
INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON CIVIL AND POLITICAL
RIGHTS (ICCPR)
Included:
-Right to self-determination
- Freedom from discrimination
- Right to equality between men and women
“Bakit ka lalaban nang patas kung pwede ka namang manduga?”
- Right to life
- Freedom from torture
- Freedom from slavery
- Right to liberty and security of a person
- Right to be treated with humanity in detention
- Freedom of movement
- Freedom of non-citizens from arbitrary expulsion
- Right to fair trial
- Right to recognition before the law
- Right to privacy
- Freedom of thought, conscience and religion.
- Freedom of opinion and expression.
- Prohibition of propaganda advocating war or national,
racial or religious hatred
- Right to peaceful assembly
- Right to freedom of association
- Right to marry and found a family
- Rights for children
- Right to participate in the conduct of public affairs, to
vote and to be elected and access to public service.
- Right to equality before the law and equal protection
- Right, for members of religious, ethnic or linguistic
minorities, to enjoy their culture, practice their religion
and use their language
THE INTERNATIONAL BILL OF HUMAN RIGHTS:
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) - 1948
- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR) - 1966
- International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights (ICESCR) - 1966
- Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman
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or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
- Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of
Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules)
- Convention on the Rights of Child (CRC) - Article 37,
39, 40, and 42
- United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the
Administration of Juvenile Justice (Beijing Rules)
- United Nations Guidelines for the Prevention of
Juvenile Delinquency (Riyadh Guidelines)
- United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles
Deprived of their Liberty (Havana Rules)
- Vienna Guidelines for Action on Children in the
Criminal Justice System
HUMAN RIGHTS IN PHILIPPINE CONTEXT
State Policy - “the State values the dignity of every
Human person and guarantees full respect for human
rights.” Furthermore, Article 2, Section 15 of the
Constitution also mandates that “the State shall protect
and promote the right to health of the people and instill
consciousness among them.”
Philippine Commission on Human Rights – established
under Section 13, Article 17-19 of the 1987
Constitution.

Philippine Commission on Human Rights

-composed of a Chairman and four Members who must
HUMAN RIGHTS IN 1987 CONSTITUTION
be natural-born citizens of the Philippines and a
1987 Constitution - "The State values the dignity of
majority of whom shall be members of the Bar. The
every human person and guarantees full respect for
term of office and other qualifications and disabilities of
human rights." [Article II, Sec. 11]
the Members of the Commission shall be provided by
law.
ARTICLE II – DECLARATION OF PRINCIPLES AND STATE
-Until this Commission is constituted, the existing
POLICIES
Presidential Committee on Human Rights shall continue
Section 2 - The Philippines renounces war as an
to exercise its present functions and powers.
instrument of national policy, adopts the generally
-The approved annual appropriations of the
accepted principles of international law as part of the
Commission shall be automatically and regularly
law of the land and adheres to the policy of peace,
released.
equality, justice, freedom, cooperation, and amity with
all nations.
Powers/Duty/Function
-Investigate all forms of human rights violations
ARTICLE III – BILL OF RIGHTS
involving civil and political rights;
Section 1 - No person shall be deprived of life, liberty,
-Adopt its operational guidelines and rules of
or property without due process of law, nor shall any
procedure, and cite for contempt for violations thereof
person be denied the equal protection of the laws.
in accordance with the Rules of Court
“Bakit ka lalaban nang patas kung pwede ka namang manduga?”
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-Provide appropriate legal measures for the protection
of human rights of all persons within the Philippines, as
well as Filipinos residing abroad, and provide for
preventive measures and legal aid services to the
underprivileged whose human rights have been violated
or need protection.
-Exercise visitorial powers over jails, prisons, or
detention facilities.
-Establish a continuing program of research, education,
and information to enhance respect for the primacy of
human rights.
-Recommend to Congress effective measures to
promote human rights and to provide for compensation
to victims of violations of human rights, or their
families.
-Monitor the Philippine Government’s compliance with
international treaty obligations on human rights
-Grant immunity from prosecution to any person
whose testimony or whose possession of documents or
other evidence is necessary or convenient to determine
the truth in any investigation conducted by it or under
its authority.
-Request the assistance of any department, bureau,
office, or agency in the performance of its functions.
-appoint its officers and employees in accordance with
law
Sec 17 Article 20 - the Commission of Human Rights is
mandated to investigate all forms of human rights
violation involving Civil and Political rights.
BILL OF RIGHTS - is a list of the most important rights to
the citizens of a country. The purpose is to protect
“Bakit ka lalaban nang patas kung pwede ka namang manduga?”
those rights against infringement from public officials
and private citizens. Bills of rights may be entrenched or
unentrenched.
BILL OF RIGHTS
Section 1. No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or
property without due process of law, nor shall any
person be denied the equal protection of the laws.
Section 2. The right of the people to be secure in their
persons, houses, papers, and effects against
unreasonable searches and seizures of whatever nature
and for any purpose shall be inviolable, and no search
warrant or warrant of arrest shall issue except upon
probable cause to be determined personally by the
judge after examination under oath or affirmation of
the complainant and the witnesses he may produce,
and particularly describing the place to be searched and
the persons or things to be seized.
Section 3. (1) The privacy of communication and
correspondence shall be inviolable except upon lawful
order of the court, or when public safety or order
requires otherwise, as prescribed by law.
(2) Any evidence obtained in violation of this or
the preceding section shall be inadmissible for any
purpose in any proceeding.
Section 4. No law shall be passed abridging the freedom
of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of
the people peaceably to assemble and petition the
government for redress of grievances.
Section 5. No law shall be made respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof. The free exercise and enjoyment of
religious profession and worship, without discrimination
or preference, shall forever be allowed. No religious test
shall be required for the exercise of civil or political
rights.
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Section 6. The liberty of abode and of changing the
same within the limits prescribed by law shall not be
impaired except upon lawful order of the court. Neither
shall the right to travel be impaired except in the
interest of national security, public safety, or public
health, as may be provided by law.
Section 7. The right of the people to information on
matters of public concern shall be recognized. Access to
official records, and to documents and papers
pertaining to official acts, transactions, or decisions, as
well as to government research data used as basis for
policy development, shall be afforded the citizen,
subject to such limitations as may be provided by law.
Section 8. The right of the people, including those
employed in the public and private sectors, to form
unions, associations, or societies for purposes not
contrary to law shall not be abridged.
Section 9. Private property shall not be taken for public
use without just compensation.
Section 10. No law impairing the obligation of contracts
shall be passed.
Section 11. Free access to the courts and quasi-judicial
bodies and adequate legal assistance shall not be
denied to any person by reason of poverty.
Section 12. (1) Any person under investigation for the
commission of an offense shall have the right to be
informed of his right to remain silent and to have
competent and independent counsel preferably of his
own choice. If the person cannot afford the services of
counsel, he must be provided with one. These rights
cannot be waived except in writing and in the presence
of counsel.
“Bakit ka lalaban nang patas kung pwede ka namang manduga?”
(2) No torture, force, violence, threat,
intimidation, or any other means which vitiate the free
will shall be used against him. Secret detention places,
solitary, incommunicado, or other similar forms of
detention are prohibited.
(3) Any confession or admission obtained in
violation of this or Section 17 hereof shall be
inadmissible in evidence against him.
(4) The law shall provide for penal and civil
sanctions for violations of this section as well as
compensation to and rehabilitation of victims of torture
or similar practices, and their families.
Section 13. All persons, except those charged with
offenses punishable by reclusion perpetua when
evidence of guilt is strong, shall, before conviction, be
bailable by sufficient sureties, or be released on
recognizance as may be provided by law. The right to
bail shall not be impaired even when the privilege of the
writ of habeas corpus is suspended. Excessive bail shall
not be required.
Section 14. (1) No person shall be held to answer for a
criminal offense without due process of law.
(2) In all criminal prosecutions, the accused
shall be presumed innocent until the contrary is proved,
and shall enjoy the right to be heard by himself and
counsel, to be informed of the nature and cause of the
accusation against him, to have a speedy, impartial, and
public trial, to meet the witnesses face to face, and to
have compulsory process to secure the attendance of
witnesses and the production of evidence in his behalf.
However, after arraignment, trial may proceed
notwithstanding the absence of the accused provided
that he has been duly notified and his failure to appear
is unjustifiable.
Section 15. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus
shall not be suspended except in cases of invasion or
rebellion when the public safety requires it.
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Section 16. All persons shall have the right to a speedy
disposition of their cases before all judicial, quasi-
judicial, or administrative bodies.

Section 17. No person shall be compelled to be a

witness against himself.

Section 18. (1) No person shall be detained solely by

reason of his political beliefs and aspirations.

(2) No involuntary servitude in any form shall

exist except as a punishment for a crime whereof the
party shall have been duly convicted.

Section 19. (1) Excessive fines shall not be imposed, nor

cruel, degrading or inhuman punishment inflicted.
Neither shall the death penalty be imposed, unless, for
compelling reasons involving heinous crimes, the
Congress hereafter provides for it. Any death penalty
already imposed shall be reduced to reclusion perpetua.

(2) The employment of physical, psychological,

or degrading punishment against any prisoner or
detainee or the use of substandard or inadequate penal
facilities under subhuman conditions shall be dealt with
by law.

Section 20. No person shall be imprisoned for debt or

non-payment of a poll tax.

Section 21. No person shall be twice put in jeopardy of

punishment for the same offense. If an act is punished
by a law and an ordinance, conviction or acquittal under
either shall constitute a bar to another prosecution for
the same act.

Section 22. No ex post facto law or bill of attainder shall

be enacted.

“Bakit ka lalaban nang patas kung pwede ka namang manduga?”