human rights essay in tamil

, all men our kin.
Life's good comes not from others' gift, nor ill
Man's pains and pains' relief are from within.
Thus have we seen !."
- , circa 500 B.C 

HEAD OFFICE:
Tamil Centre for Human Rights - TCHR/CTDH
9, rue des Peupliers - 95140 Garge les Gonesse - FRANCE
Contact person : S. V. Kirubaharan � General Secretary
Tel/Fax: + 33 1 42 67 54 36 - Email:   /

TCHR-UK
Tamil Centre for Human Rights - TCHR/CTDH
PO Box 182, Manchester M16 8ED, UNITED KINGDOM
Contact person : Deirdre McConnell � Director International Programme
Fax: + 44 161 860 4609 - Email:   /

TCHR-NETHERLANDS
Tamil Centrum voor Mensenrechten- TCHR
Steelingmolen 43
1703 TE Heerhugowaard, THE NETHERLANDS
Contact person : Sinniah Indiran
Fax : + 31 - 72 - 57 15 801
Email :  

TCHR-SWITZERLAND
Tamilen Zentrum fur Mensenrechten - TCHR
P. o. Box : 319
8172 � Niederglatt, SWITZERLAND
Contact person : Thambirajah Genegatharan
Email :

nation - a nation without a state. Existing states do not readily surrender control of territory which they claim as their own - in addition, they often find common cause in securing each other's territorial boundaries. Unsurprisingly, the Tamil people, like many other peoples of the , have often turned to the growing body of and , and to organisations for support for their struggle against alien rule and for recognition as a people with their political status."

Open Access E - Resources

Un bill of human rights (tamil).

மனித நேயம் கட்டுரை | Manithaneyam Katturai in Tamil

மனித நேயம் காப்போம் கட்டுரை | Humanity Katturai in Tamil

மனிதநேயம் கட்டுரை: இந்த உலகில் தனியாக யாரும் வாழ முடியாது. ஒருவருக்கொருவர் உதவி செய்து மனிதநேயத்துடன் இருந்தால் தான் உந்த உலகத்தில் வாழ முடியும் . மனிதன் என்பது வெறும் வார்த்தையல்ல. இயற்கையினுடைய மிகப்பெரிய படைப்பு. மனிதநேயம் என்றாலே மக்கள் மனதில் முதலில் நினைவுக்கு வருவது அன்னை தெரசா, ஹெலன் கெல்லர், நெல்சன் மண்டேலா போன்ற பெண்மணிகள் தான். ஏன் இவர்களை மட்டும் கூறவேண்டுமென்றால் அவர்களுடைய வாழ்க்கை முழுவதையும் உலகத்திற்காக அர்பணித்தவர்கள். அந்த அளவிற்கு நம்மால் போகமுடியவில்லை என்றாலும் நமக்கு எதிரே நடக்கும் நிகழ்வுகளில் உதவி தேவைப்படுவோருக்கு நம்மால் முடிந்த உதவிகளை செய்து வந்தாலே அதுவே ஒரு மனித நேயம் தான். நமது உலகத்தில் மனித நேயம் என்பது ஒன்று இல்லாமல் இருந்திருந்தால் உலகம் எப்போதோ அழிந்திருக்கும். சரி வாங்க நண்பர்களே மனிதநேயம் குறித்து கட்டுரை (manithaneyam katturai in tamil) பார்க்கலாம்.

மனிதநேயம் கட்டுரை | மனிதநேயம் பற்றிய கட்டுரை:

குறிப்பு சட்டகம்:.

மனிதர்கள் என்பவர்கள் பிறப்பினால் அனைவரும் சமம் என்பதாகும். மற்றவர்கள் மீது உயர்வு தாழ்வுகள் இல்லாமல் அனைவரின் மீதும் அன்பு செலுத்துபவனே உண்மையான மனிதனாவான்.

மனிதநேயம் என்றால் என்ன:

மனிதநேயம் கட்டுரை: உலகில் வாழக்கூடிய முகம் தெரியாத நபர்கள் நம்மை பார்த்து சிரிப்பது கூட ஒரு மனிதநேயம் தான். மனிதநேயம் என்பது சக மனிதர்களின் மீது பாசம் வைப்பது, கருணை, இரக்கம் காட்டுவது போன்றதாகும். மனிதர்கள் என்றாலே அவர்களுக்கு பிரச்சனை இருப்பது இயல்புதான். அந்த பிரச்சனைகளை பார்த்துவிட்டு அவர்களுக்கு நம்மால் முடிந்த உதவியினை செய்யலாம், பசியால் வாடுபவர்களுக்கு உணவு வாங்கி கொடுக்கலாம், தாகத்தில் தவிப்பவர்களுக்கு நீர் கொடுத்தல், இது போன்ற மனிதநேயமிக்க செயல்களை செய்தால் மனிதருக்குள் ஒற்றுமை நிலை அதிகரிக்கும்.

தமிழர்கள் இருந்த வரலாற்றில் மனிதநேயம்:

சுயநலம் இல்லாமல் பிறர் நலத்தினை காக்க வேண்டும் என்பதில் நம் தமிழர்கள் முன்னோடியாக விளங்கியவர்கள். மனிதநேயத்திற்கு மிகவும் எடுத்துக்காட்டாக விளங்கிய நூல் திருக்குறள் . மேலும் மனுநீதி சோழன் ஒரு பசுவின் கன்றிற்காக தன் மகனையேதண்டித்தவன், சிபி சக்கரவர்த்தி புறாவுக்காக தன் உடலையே தானம் செய்ததும், பாரி மன்னன் முல்லைக்காக தேர் கொடுத்தமையும், பேக மன்னன் மயிலிற்காக போர்வை அளித்ததும் வரலாற்றில் மாறாது இருந்து வந்த தமிழர்களின் மனிதநேயம் ஆகும்.

வளர்ந்து வரும் மனிதநேயம்:

முன்னெல்லாம் பிறந்தநாள் விழாவினை தன் குடும்ப உறுப்பினர்களுடன் கொண்டாடுவதையே விரும்புவார்கள். இப்போதெல்லாம் அந்த நிலை மாறி ஆதரவற்றோர் விடுதிகளில் இருக்கும் குழந்தைகளோடு கொண்டாடவே பெரும்பாலானோர் விரும்புகிறாரக்ள். இந்த அளவிற்கு மனிதநேயமானது மாற்றம் அடைந்துள்ளது.

மனிதநேயம் உயர்வாக உள்ள மனிதர்கள் இதயத்தால் யோசித்து புத்தியினால் அதை உணரவும் செய்வார்கள். அடுத்தவர்களுடைய குடும்பத்தை மாசில்லாத மனதோடு பார்ப்பது கூடு மனிதநேயம் தான். இதுபோன்ற மனிதநேயத்தை பற்றி கூறினால் அளவிற்கு அதிகமாக சொல்லிக்கொண்டே போகலாம். மனிதநேயத்திற்கு இணையான பொருளோ, செல்வமோ இந்த உலகத்தில் வேறு எதுவும் இல்லை. அதனால் உலகில் பிறந்த ஒவ்வொருவரும் மனிதநேயத்தை காத்து மனிதநேயத்துடன் இருப்போம்..நன்றி வணக்கம்..!

கிருஷ்ண ஜெயந்தி பற்றிய பேச்சு போட்டி..!

சும்மா கிடைக்கவில்லை சுதந்திரம் கட்டுரை

கப்பலோட்டிய தமிழன் வ.உ.சிதம்பரனார் கட்டுரை

பாரதியார் பற்றிய 10 வரிகள் – 10 Lines About Bharathiyar in Tamil

ஜவஹர்லால் நேரு பற்றிய கட்டுரை | Jawaharlal Nehru Katturai in Tamil | ஜவகர்லால் நேரு பற்றி கட்டுரை

சுதந்திர தின பேச்சு போட்டி கட்டுரை 2024

In association with the International Commission of Jurists

Sri Lanka’s State Responsibility for Historical and Recent Tamil Genocides

24 Jul Sri Lanka’s State Responsibility for Historical and Recent Tamil Genocides

[ Tasha Manoranjan, Esq. is the Executive Director of People for Equality and Relief in Lanka (PEARL) and a Senior Policy Advisor at the Ontario Human Rights Commission. The views expressed here are PEARL’s and do not represent the Commission’s. Meruba Sivaselvachandran is a rising second-year student in the JD/MBA program at University of Toronto and a Legal Intern at PEARL. ]

Introduction

The period of July 24–29, 1983, known as “ Black July ” in Sri Lanka, is often considered the spark for the 26-year long armed liberation struggle by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) against the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL).

However, ethnic tensions had been rising on the island since Sri Lanka’s independence in 1948. The passage of the Sinhala Only Act in 1956 recognized Sinhalese as the only official language, effectively barring Tamils from holding GoSL positions. Tamils non-violently protested this structural violence, only to be met with GoSL-sponsored violence in Colombo and Gal Oya. Anti-Tamil pogroms in 1958 and 1977 and an act of cultural genocide—the destruction in 1981 of the Jaffna Library, a historic landmark and frequent meeting place for Tamils—fueled Tamil separatist sentiments.

A misconception as common as it is incorrect, is that the weeklong violence of Black July was retaliation for the LTTE’s killing of 13 soldiers. In fact, what took place was not a spontaneous outburst of mob violence; rather, it was a systematic and intentional GoSL-sponsored genocide.

Neither any individual nor the Sri Lankan state has been held accountable for the mass atrocities committed against Tamils during Black July or afterwards. In light of the message and impact that state responsibility can have, we argue that Black July was a genocide, which was followed by another in 2009 , and Sri Lanka is responsible. The first section of this article will outline the legal arguments supporting a finding that the events of Black July constituted genocide. The second section will discuss state responsibility for genocide and the importance of genocide recognition. The third and concluding sections focus on the Tamil people’s need for genocide recognition and its value in their specific context.

Evidence of the State-Sponsored Genocide During Black July

International criminal law and jurisprudence on genocide did not exist in its current form at the time of Black July, but it is worth analyzing under modern international law because it provides guidance on the elements of the crime of genocide. As we understand it today, the specific intent of genocide is “to destroy at least a substantial part of the protected group.”

• Intent to Destroy

Black July displayed the classic hallmarks of a genocide, including evidence of the GoSL’s dolus specialis (specific intent) of genocide, which can be discerned from the presidential statements beforehand and the systematic nature of attacks against Tamils.

On July 11, 1983, an interview with the London Daily Telegraph records then President J.R. Jayewardene as saying :

I am not worried about the opinion of the Jaffna [Tamil] people now… Now we can’t think of them. Not about their lives, or their opinion about us. Nothing will happen in our favour until the terrorists are wiped out. Just that. You can’t cure an appendicitis patient until you remove the appendix.

The more you put pressure in the North, the happier the Sinhala people will be here. Really, if I starve the Tamils out, the Sinhala people will be happy.

For context, “Jaffna people” is a common way of referring to all Eelam Tamil people (or Tamils from the island of Sri Lanka). And the state targeted Jaffna , a Tamil city in the North, with the organized Sinhalese mobs too.

Then-President Jayewardene’s interview expresses the state’s exclusionary ideology and implicitly dehumanizes the Tamil people while calling them “terrorists.” Such tactics are risk factors of genocide. This quote has been interpreted to, at best, condone mass violence against Tamils and, at worst, incite Sinhala-Buddhist nationalists to commit such anti-Tamil violence.

During Black July itself, the GoSL armed Sinhalese mobs with voter lists and transported them around Colombo in vehicles owned by the GoSL establishments to enable their anti-Tamil violence. The Sinhalese crowds committed horrific violence against Tamils. Due to strong anti-Tamil sentiment among the almost entirely Sinhalese police, military, and security forces, they stood idle and watched , sometimes even encouraging the violence. The killers stripped naked and beat other Tamils to death while hurling dehumanizing insults and words. In addition to the destruction of life, the Sinhalese mobs pillaged and razed Tamil shops and homes. Their incendiary war cry translates in English to: “To save the race and country, give a little petrol and oil,” and demonstrates an intent to commit and publicly incite genocide.

2. A Substantial Part

Genocide can occur in a geographically limited area ( Jelisić , Trial Chamber , para. 83; Bosnia v. Serbia , Judgment, 2007 , para. 199). “A substantial part” refers to the part’s numeric size and proportion of the whole group and its significance, including the presence of the protected group’s leadership within that part ( Krstić , Appeals Chamber , para. 12).

Numeric size and proportion: Only 2.9% of Bosnian Muslims in Bosnia and Herzegovina resided in Srebrenica at the time of the Srebrenica genocide (fn. 27). By contrast, the 187,456 Tamils in Colombo constituted 11% of Colombo’s total population and 6.7% of the Tamils in Sri Lanka. And as the violence spread throughout the island, more than 6.7% of Tamils became targets.

Significance: The elimination of the Tamils in the South was necessary to establish and maintain a Sinhala-Buddhist ethnocratic state. The violence occurred mainly in Colombo , where the worst affected areas were neighborhoods with large Tamil populations, and in towns in the South with large Tamil populations.

Presence of leadership: Colombo, as the capital and economic center, was replete with Tamil politicians and businesspeople whose lives and livelihoods were eradicated. Colombo’s Welikada Prison housed many Tamil visionaries and supporters of the liberation struggle who were imprisoned for their activism under maximum security. This placed them under the direct control of the state. And on two separate days, Sinhalese prison guards enabled Sinhalese prisoners to access and massacre at least 53 Tamil political prisoners.

3. Acts of Genocide

With the aforementioned specific intent, the Sinhalese state-sponsored mobs perpetrated three acts of genocide.

Killing: The state-sponsored Sinhalese crowds killed over 3000 Tamils , including through beatings, hackings with knives , or burning. They threw Tamil children into burning cauldrons of tar and set alight vans and buses filled with Tamil passengers . In hospitals, Sinhalese healthcare workers attacked and killed their Tamil patients.

Causing serious bodily or mental harm: The mass violence maimed many Tamils who did not die from the beatings or fire. At least 500 women were raped by the state-sponsored mobs. Serious mental harm naturally followed for the many Tamil witnesses to the genocidal killings mentioned above . Some Tamils were forced to watch the rape or gang rape of their female relatives.

Deliberately inflicting conditions of life to bring about the group’s physical destruction: State-sponsored mobs looted, burned, and destroyed 18,000 Tamil homes and Tamil 5,000 shops, resulting in 150,000 homeless Tamils and $300 million in economic losses (see ICC Elements of Crimes , Art. 6(c)(4), fn. 4). They even incinerated Tamil doctors’ dispensaries and homes, killing some Tamil doctors as well.

Notable, a relatively contemporary report of the International Commission of Jurists in December 1983 found “the evidence points clearly to the conclusion that the violence of the Sinhala rioters on the Tamils amounted to acts of genocide .”

State Responsibility for Genocide

State responsibility for genocide is an important form of legal accountability, especially if individual criminal responsibility for the same is unlikely due to a lack of political will to investigate and prosecute. Genocide recognition is multipurposed : it can mobilize international interventions, as well as provide a form of redress for victims and their descendants, the latter of which is also critical given the transgenerational cultural trauma transmitted by genocide survivors. Unfortunately, world leaders have continued to, more often than not, avoid recognizing a mass atrocity as genocide for political reasons or fear that their erga omnes obligations under the Genocide Convention will attach ( Bosnia v. Serbia , Judgment, 2007 , para. 183).

Legal genocide recognition has recently surfaced in international headlines when The Gambia filed a case against Myanmar under the Genocide Convention at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). This is the third case on state responsibility for breaches of the Genocide Convention. The first two were against Serbia: Bosnia v. Serbia (2007) recognized the mass atrocities in Srebrenica as a genocide, while Croatia v. Serbia (2015) did not recognize any genocides. Interestingly, even before The Gambia made headlines for bringing its case against Myanmar, Tamil diaspora organizations were sussing out potential state Applicants to file a case before the International Court of Justice. This could be the fourth case.

Tamil People’s Need for Genocide Recognition

For the Tamil people, genocide recognition is important because Black July was neither the first, not the last instance of genocide against the Tamil people in Sri Lanka. Even before the armed conflict, Sri Lanka organized anti-Tamil violence in 1956, 1958, and 1977 . And in May 2009, the armed conflict ended in still uninvestigated allegations of genocide , crimes against humanity, and war crimes. Different ruling parties and leaders were responsible for these mass atrocities over time, pointing to the responsibility of the Sri Lankan state—not just a particular individual or political party. Torture, sexual violence, the continuous crime of enforced disappearance, and ongoing militarization continue to seriously harm Tamils in the North-East. The international failures to secure criminal or state accountability for historical and recent mass atrocities has reinforced the impunity of the Sri Lankan state and Sri Lankan perpetrators for atrocity crimes against Tamils.

There is already documentation of state security forces destroying physical evidence . To that end, Tamil diaspora organizations have considered different options for protecting evidence. Regardless of a determination of genocide in an ICJ case, the Tamil people would immediately benefit from a provisional measure ordering Sri Lanka not to destroy evidence of alleged genocidal acts, as the Court directed Myanmar, because security forces have destroyed mass graves and other evidence. In the best case, such an order might result in evidence preservation; at minimum, it would be a form of redemption for the UN (via the UN’s judicial organ), which sorely needs to redress its systemic failure at the end of the armed conflict (para. 80). The first step is identifying a state to champion this cause. Unfortunately, while Canada and The Netherlands—the former, home to the most Eelam Tamils outside of South Asia; the latter, a colonizer of the island, including the North and parts of the East— expressed their intent to formally support The Gambia’s case against Myanmar, at present, no similarly strong support exists regarding the Tamil people’s call for justice for genocide.

Eelam Tamils have suffered at least two genocides: Black July of 1983 and the Mullivaikkal Massacre of 2009. It is important that these allegations of genocide are addressed and recognized. And the Tamil people, like the Rohingya people, require justice for the mass atrocities against them, over time, by the state. There has been no legal accountability for the crimes committed during Black July in 1983, and a side-by-side comparison illustrates the international community’s disparate treatment of allegations of mass atrocities:

Canada’s lower house and the Presidents of France, also home to sizeable Eelam Tamil populations, of Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Turkey as well as the Prime Minister of Malaysia have asserted that Myanmar committed genocide against the Rohingya people. The same level of courageous leadership is needed to end impunity for Sri Lanka’s decades of genocide and other mass atrocities against Tamils as individuals and as a people.

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Human Rights Essay for Students and Children

500+ words essay on human rights.

Human rights are a set of rights which every human is entitled to. Every human being is inherited with these rights no matter what caste, creed, gender, the economic status they belong to. Human rights are very important for making sure that all humans get treated equally. They are in fact essential for a good standard of living in the world.

Moreover, human rights safeguard the interests of the citizens of a country. You are liable to have human rights if you’re a human being. They will help in giving you a good life full of happiness and prosperity.

Human Rights Categories

Human rights are essentially divided into two categories of civil and political rights, and social rights. This classification is important because it clears the concept of human rights further. Plus, they also make humans realize their role in different spheres.

When we talk about civil and political rights , we refer to the classic rights of humans. These rights are responsible for limiting the government’s authority that may affect any individual’s independence. Furthermore, these rights allow humans to contribute to the involvement of the government. In addition to the determination of laws as well.

Next up, the social rights of people guide the government to encourage ways to plan various ways which will help in improving the life quality of citizens. All the governments of countries are responsible for ensuring the well-being of their citizens. Human rights help countries in doing so efficiently.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Importance of Human Rights

Human rights are extremely important for the overall development of a country and individuals on a personal level. If we take a look at the basic human rights, we see how there are right to life, the right to practice any religion, freedom of movement , freedom from movement and more. Each right plays a major role in the well-being of any human.

Right to life protects the lives of human beings. It ensures no one can kill you and thus safeguards your peace of mind. Subsequently, the freedom of thought and religion allows citizens to follow any religion they wish to. Moreover, it also means anyone can think freely.

Further, freedom of movement is helpful in people’s mobilization. It ensures no one is restricted from traveling and residing in any state of their choice. It allows you to grab opportunities wherever you wish to.

Next up, human rights also give you the right to a fair trial. Every human being has the right to move to the court where there will be impartial decision making . They can trust the court to give them justice when everything else fails.

Most importantly, humans are now free from any form of slavery. No other human being can indulge in slavery and make them their slaves. Further, humans are also free to speak and express their opinion.

In short, human rights are very essential for a happy living of human beings. However, these days they are violated endlessly and we need to come together to tackle this issue. The governments and citizens must take efforts to protect each other and progress for the better. In other words, this will ensure happiness and prosperity all over the world.

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Essay on Human Rights: Samples in 500 and 1500

• Updated on  
• Jun 20, 2024

Essay writing is an integral part of the school curriculum and various academic and competitive exams like IELTS , TOEFL , SAT , UPSC , etc. It is designed to test your command of the English language and how well you can gather your thoughts and present them in a structure with a flow. To master your ability to write an essay, you must read as much as possible and practise on any given topic. This blog brings you a detailed guide on how to write an essay on Human Rights , with useful essay samples on Human rights.

This Blog Includes:

The basic human rights, 200 words essay on human rights, 500 words essay on human rights, 500+ words essay on human rights in india, 1500 words essay on human rights, importance of human rights, essay on human rights pdf, what are human rights.

Human rights mark everyone as free and equal, irrespective of age, gender, caste, creed, religion and nationality. The United Nations adopted human rights in light of the atrocities people faced during the Second World War. On the 10th of December 1948, the UN General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Its adoption led to the recognition of human rights as the foundation for freedom, justice and peace for every individual. Although it’s not legally binding, most nations have incorporated these human rights into their constitutions and domestic legal frameworks. Human rights safeguard us from discrimination and guarantee that our most basic needs are protected.

Also Read: Essay on Yoga Day

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Before we move on to the essays on human rights, let’s check out the basics of what they are.

Also Read: What are Human Rights?

Also Read: 7 Impactful Human Rights Movies Everyone Must Watch!

Here is a 200-word short sample essay on basic Human Rights.

Human rights are a set of rights given to every human being regardless of their gender, caste, creed, religion, nation, location or economic status. These are said to be moral principles that illustrate certain standards of human behaviour. Protected by law , these rights are applicable everywhere and at any time. Basic human rights include the right to life, right to a fair trial, right to remedy by a competent tribunal, right to liberty and personal security, right to own property, right to education, right of peaceful assembly and association, right to marriage and family, right to nationality and freedom to change it, freedom of speech, freedom from discrimination, freedom from slavery, freedom of thought, conscience and religion, freedom of movement, right of opinion and information, right to adequate living standard and freedom from interference with privacy, family, home and correspondence.

Also Read: Law Courses

Check out this 500-word long essay on Human Rights.

Every person has dignity and value. One of the ways that we recognise the fundamental worth of every person is by acknowledging and respecting their human rights. Human rights are a set of principles concerned with equality and fairness. They recognise our freedom to make choices about our lives and develop our potential as human beings. They are about living a life free from fear, harassment or discrimination.

Human rights can broadly be defined as the basic rights that people worldwide have agreed are essential. These include the right to life, the right to a fair trial, freedom from torture and other cruel and inhuman treatment, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the right to health, education and an adequate standard of living. These human rights are the same for all people everywhere – men and women, young and old, rich and poor, regardless of our background, where we live, what we think or believe. This basic property is what makes human rights’ universal’.

Human rights connect us all through a shared set of rights and responsibilities. People’s ability to enjoy their human rights depends on other people respecting those rights. This means that human rights involve responsibility and duties towards other people and the community. Individuals have a responsibility to ensure that they exercise their rights with consideration for the rights of others. For example, when someone uses their right to freedom of speech, they should do so without interfering with someone else’s right to privacy.

Governments have a particular responsibility to ensure that people can enjoy their rights. They must establish and maintain laws and services that enable people to enjoy a life in which their rights are respected and protected. For example, the right to education says that everyone is entitled to a good education. Therefore, governments must provide good quality education facilities and services to their people. If the government fails to respect or protect their basic human rights, people can take it into account.

Values of tolerance, equality and respect can help reduce friction within society. Putting human rights ideas into practice can help us create the kind of society we want to live in. There has been tremendous growth in how we think about and apply human rights ideas in recent decades. This growth has had many positive results – knowledge about human rights can empower individuals and offer solutions for specific problems.

Human rights are an important part of how people interact with others at all levels of society – in the family, the community, school, workplace, politics and international relations. Therefore, people everywhere must strive to understand what human rights are. When people better understand human rights, it is easier for them to promote justice and the well-being of society. 

Also Read: Important Articles in Indian Constitution

Here is a human rights essay focused on India.

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. It has been rightly proclaimed in the American Declaration of Independence that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Created with certain unalienable rights….” Similarly, the Indian Constitution has ensured and enshrined Fundamental rights for all citizens irrespective of caste, creed, religion, colour, sex or nationality. These basic rights, commonly known as human rights, are recognised the world over as basic rights with which every individual is born.

In recognition of human rights, “The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was made on the 10th of December, 1948. This declaration is the basic instrument of human rights. Even though this declaration has no legal bindings and authority, it forms the basis of all laws on human rights. The necessity of formulating laws to protect human rights is now being felt all over the world. According to social thinkers, the issue of human rights became very important after World War II concluded. It is important for social stability both at the national and international levels. Wherever there is a breach of human rights, there is conflict at one level or the other.

Given the increasing importance of the subject, it becomes necessary that educational institutions recognise the subject of human rights as an independent discipline. The course contents and curriculum of the discipline of human rights may vary according to the nature and circumstances of a particular institution. Still, generally, it should include the rights of a child, rights of minorities, rights of the needy and the disabled, right to live, convention on women, trafficking of women and children for sexual exploitation etc.

Since the formation of the United Nations , the promotion and protection of human rights have been its main focus. The United Nations has created a wide range of mechanisms for monitoring human rights violations. The conventional mechanisms include treaties and organisations, U.N. special reporters, representatives and experts and working groups. Asian countries like China argue in favour of collective rights. According to Chinese thinkers, European countries lay stress upon individual rights and values while Asian countries esteem collective rights and obligations to the family and society as a whole.

With the freedom movement the world over after World War II, the end of colonisation also ended the policy of apartheid and thereby the most aggressive violation of human rights. With the spread of education, women are asserting their rights. Women’s movements play an important role in spreading the message of human rights. They are fighting for their rights and supporting the struggle for human rights of other weaker and deprived sections like bonded labour, child labour, landless labour, unemployed persons, Dalits and elderly people.

Unfortunately, violation of human rights continues in most parts of the world. Ethnic cleansing and genocide can still be seen in several parts of the world. Large sections of the world population are deprived of the necessities of life i.e. food, shelter and security of life. Right to minimum basic needs viz. Work, health care, education and shelter are denied to them. These deprivations amount to the negation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Also Read: Human Rights Courses

Check out this detailed 1500-word essay on human rights.

The human right to live and exist, the right to equality, including equality before the law, non-discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth, and equality of opportunity in matters of employment, the right to freedom of speech and expression, assembly, association, movement, residence, the right to practice any profession or occupation, the right against exploitation, prohibiting all forms of forced labour, child labour and trafficking in human beings, the right to freedom of conscience, practice and propagation of religion and the right to legal remedies for enforcement of the above are basic human rights. These rights and freedoms are the very foundations of democracy.

Obviously, in a democracy, the people enjoy the maximum number of freedoms and rights. Besides these are political rights, which include the right to contest an election and vote freely for a candidate of one’s choice. Human rights are a benchmark of a developed and civilised society. But rights cannot exist in a vacuum. They have their corresponding duties. Rights and duties are the two aspects of the same coin.

Liberty never means license. Rights presuppose the rule of law, where everyone in the society follows a code of conduct and behaviour for the good of all. It is the sense of duty and tolerance that gives meaning to rights. Rights have their basis in the ‘live and let live’ principle. For example, my right to speech and expression involves my duty to allow others to enjoy the same freedom of speech and expression. Rights and duties are inextricably interlinked and interdependent. A perfect balance is to be maintained between the two. Whenever there is an imbalance, there is chaos.

A sense of tolerance, propriety and adjustment is a must to enjoy rights and freedom. Human life sans basic freedom and rights is meaningless. Freedom is the most precious possession without which life would become intolerable, a mere abject and slavish existence. In this context, Milton’s famous and oft-quoted lines from his Paradise Lost come to mind: “To reign is worth ambition though in hell/Better to reign in hell, than serve in heaven.”

However, liberty cannot survive without its corresponding obligations and duties. An individual is a part of society in which he enjoys certain rights and freedom only because of the fulfilment of certain duties and obligations towards others. Thus, freedom is based on mutual respect’s rights. A fine balance must be maintained between the two, or there will be anarchy and bloodshed. Therefore, human rights can best be preserved and protected in a society steeped in morality, discipline and social order.

Violation of human rights is most common in totalitarian and despotic states. In the theocratic states, there is much persecution, and violation in the name of religion and the minorities suffer the most. Even in democracies, there is widespread violation and infringement of human rights and freedom. The women, children and the weaker sections of society are victims of these transgressions and violence.

The U.N. Commission on Human Rights’ main concern is to protect and promote human rights and freedom in the world’s nations. In its various sessions held from time to time in Geneva, it adopts various measures to encourage worldwide observations of these basic human rights and freedom. It calls on its member states to furnish information regarding measures that comply with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights whenever there is a complaint of a violation of these rights. In addition, it reviews human rights situations in various countries and initiates remedial measures when required.

The U.N. Commission was much concerned and dismayed at the apartheid being practised in South Africa till recently. The Secretary-General then declared, “The United Nations cannot tolerate apartheid. It is a legalised system of racial discrimination, violating the most basic human rights in South Africa. It contradicts the letter and spirit of the United Nations Charter. That is why over the last forty years, my predecessors and I have urged the Government of South Africa to dismantle it.”

Now, although apartheid is no longer practised in that country, other forms of apartheid are being blatantly practised worldwide. For example, sex apartheid is most rampant. Women are subject to abuse and exploitation. They are not treated equally and get less pay than their male counterparts for the same jobs. In employment, promotions, possession of property etc., they are most discriminated against. Similarly, the rights of children are not observed properly. They are forced to work hard in very dangerous situations, sexually assaulted and exploited, sold and bonded for labour.

The Commission found that religious persecution, torture, summary executions without judicial trials, intolerance, slavery-like practices, kidnapping, political disappearance, etc., are being practised even in the so-called advanced countries and societies. The continued acts of extreme violence, terrorism and extremism in various parts of the world like Pakistan, India, Iraq, Afghanistan, Israel, Somalia, Algeria, Lebanon, Chile, China, and Myanmar, etc., by the governments, terrorists, religious fundamentalists, and mafia outfits, etc., is a matter of grave concern for the entire human race.

Violation of freedom and rights by terrorist groups backed by states is one of the most difficult problems society faces. For example, Pakistan has been openly collaborating with various terrorist groups, indulging in extreme violence in India and other countries. In this regard the U.N. Human Rights Commission in Geneva adopted a significant resolution, which was co-sponsored by India, focusing on gross violation of human rights perpetrated by state-backed terrorist groups.

The resolution expressed its solidarity with the victims of terrorism and proposed that a U.N. Fund for victims of terrorism be established soon. The Indian delegation recalled that according to the Vienna Declaration, terrorism is nothing but the destruction of human rights. It shows total disregard for the lives of innocent men, women and children. The delegation further argued that terrorism cannot be treated as a mere crime because it is systematic and widespread in its killing of civilians.

Violation of human rights, whether by states, terrorists, separatist groups, armed fundamentalists or extremists, is condemnable. Regardless of the motivation, such acts should be condemned categorically in all forms and manifestations, wherever and by whomever they are committed, as acts of aggression aimed at destroying human rights, fundamental freedom and democracy. The Indian delegation also underlined concerns about the growing connection between terrorist groups and the consequent commission of serious crimes. These include rape, torture, arson, looting, murder, kidnappings, blasts, and extortion, etc.

Violation of human rights and freedom gives rise to alienation, dissatisfaction, frustration and acts of terrorism. Governments run by ambitious and self-seeking people often use repressive measures and find violence and terror an effective means of control. However, state terrorism, violence, and human freedom transgressions are very dangerous strategies. This has been the background of all revolutions in the world. Whenever there is systematic and widespread state persecution and violation of human rights, rebellion and revolution have taken place. The French, American, Russian and Chinese Revolutions are glowing examples of human history.

The first war of India’s Independence in 1857 resulted from long and systematic oppression of the Indian masses. The rapidly increasing discontent, frustration and alienation with British rule gave rise to strong national feelings and demand for political privileges and rights. Ultimately the Indian people, under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, made the British leave India, setting the country free and independent.

Human rights and freedom ought to be preserved at all costs. Their curtailment degrades human life. The political needs of a country may reshape Human rights, but they should not be completely distorted. Tyranny, regimentation, etc., are inimical of humanity and should be resisted effectively and united. The sanctity of human values, freedom and rights must be preserved and protected. Human Rights Commissions should be established in all countries to take care of human freedom and rights. In cases of violation of human rights, affected individuals should be properly compensated, and it should be ensured that these do not take place in future.

These commissions can become effective instruments in percolating the sensitivity to human rights down to the lowest levels of governments and administrations. The formation of the National Human Rights Commission in October 1993 in India is commendable and should be followed by other countries.

Also Read: Law Courses in India

Human rights are of utmost importance to seek basic equality and human dignity. Human rights ensure that the basic needs of every human are met. They protect vulnerable groups from discrimination and abuse, allow people to stand up for themselves, and follow any religion without fear and give them the freedom to express their thoughts freely. In addition, they grant people access to basic education and equal work opportunities. Thus implementing these rights is crucial to ensure freedom, peace and safety.

Human Rights Day is annually celebrated on the 10th of December.

Human Rights Day is celebrated to commemorate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the UNGA in 1948.

Some of the common Human Rights are the right to life and liberty, freedom of opinion and expression, freedom from slavery and torture and the right to work and education.

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The Relevance of Classical Tamil Literature to Humanity in the Third Millennium

The paper focuses on classical Tamil literary works that have secular attitude and universal appeal. Illustrations are provided from works such as PuraNaanuuRu, Tirukkural, Kuruntokai etc. The paper has relevance to the appeal often made to declare Tirukkural as the book of the Nation.

Related Papers

Natarajan Murugaiyan

The paper consists of a proposal for making the immortal Kural by Thiruvalluvar a book of the nation. It presents arguments that go in support of the claim made pointing to its unique criteria that would not only make it the book of the Indian Nation but also would enable to become a book of the universe till eternity.

International Journal of Emerging Knowledge Studies

Dr Kumar Sanjay Jha

Tirukkural; a classical Tamil text by Tiruvalluvar is one of the greatest works among ancient literature ever written on ethics and morality. It establishes the thread of continuity of Tamil Literary Tradition with Aram-Porul-Inbam concept. The text is chiefly a secular literature and is praised for its universality. Despite of claims and anti-claims made by scholars to identify Tirukkural with religious principles, the literature has not administered any religious belief or practice, thereby proclaiming secular. Though Tirukkural shares similarities with several ancient Indian literatures such as Manusmriti, Kautilya's Arthashastra and Vatsyayana's Kamasutra maintains its uniqueness with pragmatic idealism. The present article attempts to advocate the secular character of Tirukkural and its worth as 'Universal Veda'.

MADHUSUDANAN SUNDARESAN

No one can do away with human values and human values are indispensable in life. Human values are beacon that shows the right path and direction. Human values are the crux of all values. Gawande proposed seven human values namely truthfulness, constructivity, sacrifice, sincerity, self-control, altruism and scientific vision. Thirukural an ancient treatise written in classical language Tamil is eons old. Thirukural addresses the myriad aspects of life such as ethics and moral to name a few and it is touted as the universal scripture and Tamil Veda. This paper attempts to link the human values propounded by Gawande (2002) with that of ancient Tamil literature Thirukural. Valluvar calls fraud as black-knowledge which is linked to being truthfulness. Doing good to others is discussed under benevolence which is akin to constructive behaviour in human values. This paper also urges the policy makers to consider incorporating such ancient treatise which advocates human values in curriculum.

Rajesh Venkatasubramanian

Journal of Indian Philosophy

Srilata Raman

The writing of literary histories of Tamil literature coincided with the practice of history itself as a discipline starting in the late nineteenth century. The historiographical practices conflated Tamil literary history, religious history, as well as notions of the Tamil nation, which led to such works becoming vitally important legitimising narratives that established the claim of self-defining groups within a new Tamil modernity. The absence of such a narrative also meant the erasure of a particular group, identifying itself as a caste or religious unit, or both, from Tamil history. It is in the light of these cultural and political stakes that we must view the textual and hermeneutical strategies of an old, Tamil, religious group, the Śrīvaiṣṇavas, to position themselves anew in the mid-twentieth century, in what they saw with anxiety as a Tamil, Ṡaiva Age.

in: Ganguly, Debjani (ed.). The Cambridge History of World Literature. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2021

Sascha Ebeling

This chapter examines the unique case of the emergence of a new world literature (in the sense of a literary system operating on a global scale), a case that has so far been absent from the recent project of rethinking world literature in the Anglo-American academy and beyond. This new world literature is what I will call "global Tamil literature." The Tamil language, the oldest member of the Dravidian family of languages historically located primarily in the South of India, is one of the longest-surviving classical languages in the world whose literary tradition reaches back over two millennia. 1 Until about the last decade of the twentieth century, "Tamil literature" was generally used to refer to literature produced by the Tamil people of India and Sri Lanka, as well as Tamil speakers in Singapore and Malaysia. Today, at the beginning of the twenty-first century, Tamil literature has transcended this earlier geography. When we consider the different places where Tamil literature is produced and circulated today, it becomes clear that we are no longer dealing with a South Indian or even Asian phenomenon.

Nandhi Varman

Central Institute of Classical Tamil can make it available to download by anyone, anywhere in the scholarly world. The book titled :SAINT VALLUVAR and HIS KURAL should be brought out by CICT to reach all parts of India and English speaking world. Kavi Yogi Maharishi , great divine visionary and wise poet Dr. Shuddhananda Bharati when asked about his age answered: " My age is Courage! " The Yogi wrote several hundred works in English, French, Tamil, Hindi, Telugu and Sanskrit; five thousand songs, and fifteen hundred poems in French. The magnum opus of the man conscious of the presence of God in him, Bharata Shakti, (in 50,000 verses) described his ideal: only One Humanity living in communion with only One God in a transformed world! Bharata Shakti is a monumental and unique work. The Yogi depicts the essence of all the religions, of all the prophets and saints, all the approaches of Yoga and all the cultures on an allegorical fabric. It is a book for any age which all spiritual researchers and all nations should read and meditate on.

Vasu Renganathan

Besides excavations, evidence of Tamil antiquity is preserved in written records, such as literature, inscriptions, and palm leaf manuscripts in one form or the other. Efforts were made constantly to alter the perceptions of the past into new forms while contesting to foreign influences of many kinds. To synthesize the indigenous past from these textual sources, however, one must first have a deep understanding of them and apply appropriate inter-textual research methods. This often involves sifting through many pieces of evidence and distinguishing between foreign and native Tamil elements. In most cases, one can find a trajectory from one point in history to the other through changes that might have taken place gradually to change the indigenous perceptions to foreign. Without a sense of historiography and efforts to record history in the past, one is obligated to read in between lines and make connections where necessary. To cite an example, indigenous Tamil rituals have always been one of the significant pieces of evidence to trace Tamils' history and we find many forms of them through various means, including archeological, inscriptional, and literary. The term tiruppatiyam viṇṇappañceytal (cf. SII2 No. 65), is recorded in many Tamil inscriptions to denote Tamil's indigenous form of ritual in parallel to Sanskrit rituals during the medieval period. Subsequently, this term leads one to other related terms such as kaḻañcu poṉ, taḷiccērip peṇṭir, ōtuvār, paṇṭāram, pūcāri and so on and so forth to attribute to the dialogues of Tamils' antiquity. In Sangam literary texts we attest evidence of Tamil's rituals in the form of folk deities with special connotations of vēlan veṟiyayar, veṟiyāṭṭam (cf. Kuruntokai 53, 360), vēlan ēttum veṟi (Paripāṭal 5-15) and others. Thus, one is tempted to trace the trajectory and analyze the dialogues over the change of perceptions belonging to the ancient past to a newly introduced form of tiruppatiyam viṇṇappañceytal or tiruppatiyam pāṭutal. (see Renganathan 2021 for a detailed account of these terms and the later development of the concept of Tamil Arccanai). Thus, these terms and the cultural nuances associated with them become the cultural clue to trace the history of the Tamils. What is significant to note is that such terms form the consolidated pieces of evidence to be correlated with other evidence from literary and archeological evidence. Along these lines, this paper aims at capturing both cultural and literary evidence that can be treated as the base for tracing the history of the Tamils through change in perceptions. As for literary sources, it will be attempted how the imageries and artifacts as employed in Sangam period transitioned through the medieval and modern periods. Specifically, it examines the literary sources from the Sangam and medieval periods to explore how the use of the objects such as Āḷi and ñāḻaṛ pū reflect a shift from a secular to a religious perspective. By using these inscriptional and literary evidence to track historical trajectories and the change in perceptions that occurred throughout, one can contribute to parallel research in the fields of archeology, numismatics, and other relevant fields by shedding light on the historical changes of the ancient past.

in: Wilden, Eva and Suganya Anandakichenin (eds.), Colophons, Prefaces, Satellite Stanzas. Paratextual Elements and Their Role in the Transmission of Indian Texts. Hamburg: Department of Indian and Tibetan Studies, Hamburg University, 2020. pp. 139–180

The paper focuses on the shift in emphasis in the value system of Tamils and It contrasts in a way the values cherished in the age of sangam literature with those inculcated in the post-sangam period from the sixth century AD to tenth century AD with a special reference to the Bhakthi Movement that dawned and developed .

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Deserted: The U.S. Military's Sexual Assault Crisis as a Cost of War

Over the past decade, the U.S. military has implemented policies to promote gender equality, notably lifting the ban on women in combat roles in 2013 and opening all military jobs to women by 2016. Yet, even as U.S. military policy reforms during the “War on Terror” appear to reflect greater equality, violent patterns of abuse and misogyny continued within military workplaces.

This author of this report found that sexual assault prevalence in the military is likely two to four times higher than official government estimations. Based on a comparison of available data collected by the U.S. Department of Defense to independent data, the research estimates there were 75,569 cases of sexual assault in 2021 and 73,695 cases in 2023. On average, over the course of the war in Afghanistan, 24 percent of active-duty women and 1.9 percent of active-duty men experienced sexual assault. The report highlights how experiences of gender inequality are most pronounced for women of color, who experience intersecting forms of racism and sexism and are one of the fastest-growing populations within the military. Independent data also confirm queer and trans service members’ disproportionately greater risk for sexual assault.

The report notes that during the post-9/11 wars, the prioritization of force readiness above all else allowed the problem of sexual assault to fester, papering over internal violence and gender inequalities within military institutions.

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Univ. Declaration of (Post)Human Rights: (R)evolution of the Clones, Robots & AIs

Martha Zornow (Old Dominion University) Cynthia Shin (Indiana University-Bloomington)

Speculative fiction creators regularly interrogate the question of who/what is entitled to human rights. As the created, grown, augmented, and manufactured beings of imagination become more sentient, is it ethical to maintain them as labor-saving devices or will they start to become entitled to, or even demand, rights? Is there a Posthuman Rights Movement in our future or a post “human rights” movement? How will this movement accommodate already-existing arguments for the rights of non-human beings, such as the rights of animals, corporations, and even fetuses, while accounting for humans who are not entitled to human rights? Does one need a human-ish form to deserve rights including around one’s labor? Panelists are invited to propose papers that investigate what the relationships between womb-grown biological humans and human-adjacent characters like Klara from Ishiguro’s  Klara and the Sun , Kathy H. from  Never Let Me Go , young Matt in Nancy Farmer’s  House of the Scorpion , AVA from the film  Ex Machina,  or myriad other embodied or virtual characters tell us about the competing impetuses toward power and control versus companionship. If we demand too much and give too little to these sentient products of human ingenuity, will they fight back? How much of this “fight” embodies the existing struggle for recognition? To what extent does speculative fiction also challenge the need for fight itself?

We invite 300-word abstract and brief bios to be submitted by September 30, 2024, through the NeMLA portal:  https://cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/20993