World Human Rights Day creates an opportunity to reaffirm the significance of human rights in rebuilding the world with global solidarity and shared humanity.
Humanity has no boundaries. Humanity possesses the peaceful coexistence of human beings as well as the entire ecology. We each possess some inner light that always looks for peace. And that light has the power to bring the whole world free of boundaries where people can share, contribute what they have and assist each other. For the protection of human beings, human rights are very essential and World Human Rights Day refreshes the sense of proper rights distribution.
Human rights
“Human rights are some basic rights and freedoms that belong to every person around the world from birth until death. These rights are based on shared values like dignity, equality, fairness, respect, and independence.”
The idea of basic rights and freedoms has deep roots from Britain. The landmark development of the “Magna Carta of 1215, the Habeas Corpus Act of 1679, the Bill of Rights of 1689, and lastly through the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948, the fundamental rights and freedoms are set out at global level.”
“Human Rights need to navigate this crisis in a way to focus on gaining equitable and sustainable development as well as peace”
World Human Rights Day creates an opportunity to reaffirm the significance of human rights in rebuilding the world with global solidarity and shared humanity. Every year the world observed Human Rights Day on the 10th December. The day was chosen to honour the United Nations General Assembly’s adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) on 10th December 1948, the first global enunciation of human rights.
The aim of the UDHR is to establish a common standard of living for all people across the world. When the UN General Assembly adopted the Declaration, it was proclaimed as a “Common standard of achievement for all people and all nations, towards which individuals and societies should strive by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance.”
Human Rights Day amid COVID-19
The spread of novel Coronavirus has affected not only people’s health but also their freedoms and livelihood that provokes a global human rights crisis. This year the theme of World Human Rights Day is about the COVID-19 pandemic which ponders upon the imperative need of building a better world by ensuring Human Rights. “With this notion, this year, the theme of World Human Rights Day-2020 is ‘Recover Better- Stand Up for Human Rights’.”
“Recover Better- Stand Up for Human Rights”
The rise of COVID-19 pandemic has become a great threat to public health which puts restrictions on certain rights by imposing quarantine or isolation that limits some basic freedom of human beings.
If we observe the pandemic crisis through the human rights lens, its impact on people, particularly the vulnerable people, can’t be described. In the present time, ensuring human rights for everyone and every country around the world has become a great challenge. The economic and social crisis as well as insufficient health and social protection systems require crucial attention.
In the present situation, Human Rights need to navigate this crisis in a way to focus on gaining equitable and sustainable development as well as peace. In the fight against the current pandemic, some rights are at top priority, most importantly, right to life and duty to protect life, right to health and access to health care and challenge to freedom of movement. “Livelihoods, access to services including food, health, water, education and social services, safety at home, adequate standards of living and family life have been already affected broadly by this pandemic.”
However, now the main focus in this world is on saving a life. As the greatest assets of the human world are health, knowledge, love, freedom, solidarity and peace are now being threatened by the pandemic, the purpose of life, as well as normal human psychology, is also changing. To recover and strengthen our commitment to human rights we all need to stand together. On this Human Rights Day, let’s imagine a new and better world where the values of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights lead the way closer to recovery.
This article was also published in Orbital Affairs Op-Ed on 10 December 2020.