Unit VII human rights

Task 1. Make sure you know the meaning of the words and their definitions below

right	something that you are morally, legally or officially allowed to do; demand equal rights;
human right	one of the basic rights which many societies think every person should have, to be treated in a fair equal way without cruelty;
civil rights	the rights that every person should have whatever their sex, race or religion;
abuse |э’bju:s|	cruel or violent treatment of someone;
asylum	protection given to sb by a government because s/he escaped from fighting or political struggle in their own country;
inherent	a right, power, etc. that cannot be taken from smb.
cornerstone	smth that is very/extremely important because everything else depends on it;
set forth	to explain ideas, facts or opinions in a clearly organized way in writing or speech;
spell out	explain in the clearest and most detailed way
refugee	a person who has fled from some danger or problem, esp. political persecution
violation	an action that breaks a law, agreement, principle, etc.
vulnerable	someone who is vulnerable can be easily harmed or hurt

Task 2. Read and translate the text

The second half of the 20^th century has been described as the “Age of Rights”. With the end of the Second World War the idea of human rights has become a universal political ideology.

Human rights are fundamental rights of all human beings such as the right to life, the right to freedom of thought, the right to work, etc., which are generally protected by law. These rights exist in morality and in law at the national and international levels.

They are legal guarantees against actions, which interfere with fundamental freedoms and human dignity.

Human Rights are international moral and legal norms that aspire to protect all people everywhere from severe political, legal and social abuses.

Some of the important characteristics of the human rights are:

• they are internationally guaranteed;

• they are legally protected;

• they focus on the dignity of human beings;

• they protect individuals and groups;

• they oblige States and State actors;

• they cannot be wave (taken away);

• they are equal and interdependent;

• they are universal.

The principal human rights were set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the General Assembly in 1948.

The General Assembly proclaimed the Declaration of Human Rights to be “a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations”. Women, children, disabled persons, minorities, migrant workers and other vulnerable groups now possess rights that protect them from discriminatory practices that had long been common in many societies.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights sets out a list of specific human rights that countries should respect and protect. These rights may be grouped into six or more families:

• security rights that protect people against crimes such as murder, massacre, torture and rape;

• liberty rights that protect freedoms in areas such as belief, expression, association, assembly and movement;

• political rights that protect the liberty to participate in politics through actions such as communicating, assembling, protesting, voting, etc.;

• due process rights that protect against abuses of the legal system such as imprisonment without trial, secret trials, and excessive punishments;

• equality rights that guarantee equality before the law and nondiscrimination;

• welfare rights (or economic and social rights) that require provision of education to all children and protection against severe poverty and starvation.

The Universal Declaration has inspired more than 80 conventions and declarations to be concluded within the United Nations. The broadest legally binding agreements are the two International Covenants – one on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the other – on Civil and Political Rights with two optional Protocols. These agreements take the provisions of the UDHR a step further translating these rights into legally binding commitments. A large majority of the world’s countries are parties to the Covenants. The UDHR for the first time in history, provides us with a universal and internationally protected code of human rights to which all nations can subscribe and all people can aspire.

The UN has taken many steps to strengthen the protection of human rights. It cooperates with governments, responds to human rights abuses and takes actions to prevent violations.

The UN established mechanisms with which to promote and protect these rights, first of all, the UN Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) which was set up in 1946 and the office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The UNCHR provides overall policy guidance, studies human rights problems, develops new international norms and monitors the observance of human rights around the world. The office of the High Commissioner assists in all these efforts.

Besides the UN, there are other organizations, which also promote and protect human rights. Groups like Amnesty International protest to the government on moral and legal grounds when the laws of the country violate human rights. Amnesty International is the largest of many organizations in the world, which put pressure on governments to observe human rights. By gathering information, creating publicity and writing letters Amnesty has helped to speed up the release of prisoners of conscience all over the world. It also campaigns for fair trials for political prisoners, for an end to torture and inhuman treatment and the abolition of the death penalty. Amnesty and other groups have helped to make more and more people aware of the concept of human rights – rights that go beyond the laws of one country.

But despite the development of a number of legally binding national and international conventions on human rights and functioning of international organizations that protect them, millions of people in the world still don’t fully enjoy human rights or their rights are severely violated.

One of the forms of human rights violations is torture – deliberate and systematic infliction of physical and mental suffering. Sometimes it is used to extract information from prisoners and sometimes for other reasons than to hurt and frighten them. The use of torture violates international human rights law no matter what crime a prisoner has committed.

A very large area of human rights violations is concerned with refugees. Over 15 mln people have left their countries because of human rights violations, political pressure or economic hardship. Many are looking for political asylum – the right to live in a new country. They need international guarantees that they will be treated fairly and humanly in foreign countries.

Another hotly debated issue of human rights violations is capital punishment, which deprives human beings of the most inherent right – the right to life. Several international organizations have made the abolition of the death penalty a requirement of membership, most notably the European Union and the Council of Europe. As a result, Europe is a continent free of death penalty in practice, with the sole exception of Belarus, which is not a member of the Council of Europe.

Human rights are mostly regulated by international law. Still not all governments have incorporated them to the national legislations. So the problem of enforcing and promoting human rights still exists in the world.

Task 3. Answer the following questions using the information of the text

1. What are human rights?

2. What are the most important characteristics of human rights?

3. Where were the principal human rights set forth?

4. What organization adopted the UDHR?

5. What is the list of the specific human rights set out by the Universal Declaration?

6. What did the UDHR inspire?

7. What are the two broadest legally binding international agreements?

8. What actions does the UN undertake to strengthen the protection of human rights?

9. What mechanisms did the UN establish to promote and protect human rights?

10. What does the UN Commission on Human Rights provide?

11. What is Amnesty International?

12. What does Amnesty International campaign for?

13. Do people of the world nowadays fully enjoy human rights?

14. What are the forms of human rights violations connected with?

15. Why is torture used in relation to other people?

16. Who are refugees, and why is a large area of human rights violations concerned with them?

17. What is capital punishment, and why does it become a hotly debated issue of human rights violations?

18. Does the problem of enforcing and promoting human rights still exist in some countries of the world?

Task 4. Match the words and word combinations with their Russian equivalents

1	human dignity		обязательство, имеющее юридическую силу
2	interfere with		нищета и голод
3	disabled persons		подписываться, присоединяться
4	vulnerable group		стремиться
5	massacre		узники совести
6	excessive punishment		противоречить
7	poverty and starvation		чрезмерное наказание
8	legally binding commitment		человеческое достоинство
9	subscribe		лишать
10	aspire		незащищенная группа граждан
11	prisoners of conscience		высшая мера наказания
12	speed up		отмена
13	hardship		неотъемлемое право
14	capital punishment		бойня, резня
15	inherent right		лишения, трудности
16	deprive		нетрудоспособные люди
17	abolition		ускорять

Task 5. Fill in the table with the appropriate nouns:

	abolish v.	abolishment, abolition n.
	aspire v.
	commit v.
	connect v.
	deprive v.
	enforce v.
	explain v.
	imprison v.
	inflict v.
	interfere (with) v.
	observe v.
	press v.
	promote v.
	punish v.
	require v.
	starve v.
	subscribe v.
	treat v.

Task 6. Fill in the blanks with the words from the box

abuses sets out legally binding commitments to promote aspire code dignity interfere with vulnerable groups disabled persons speed up subscribe prisoners of conscience political prisoners

deprives torture infliction refugees asylum capital punishment inherent right abolition requirement aspire

1. Human Rights are international moral and legal norms that _______ to protect all people everywhere from severe political, legal and social ________.

1. They are legal guarantees against actions, which _____ fundamental freedoms and human _____.

2. Women, children, _________, minorities, migrant workers and other _____ now possess rights that protect them from discriminatory practices.

3. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights _______a list of specific human rights that countries should respect and protect.

4. The UDHR for the first time in history, provides us with a universal and internationally protected ________ of human rights to which all nations can ______ and all people can _____.

5. The two International Covenants with optional Protocols take the provisions of the UDHR a step further translating these rights into________.

6. The UN established mechanisms with which _________ and protect these rights.

7. By gathering information, creating publicity and writing letters Amnesty has helped to _______ the release of ________ all over the world.

8. Amnesty also campaigns for fair trials for __________.

9. One of the forms of human rights violations is ________ – deliberate and systematic _______of physical and mental suffering.

10. A very large area of human rights violations is concerned with ________.

11. Many refugees are looking for political _______.

12. Another hotly debated issue of human rights violations is _______, which _______ human beings of the most ________ the right to life.

13. Several international organizations have made the _______of the death penalty a _______ of membership.

Task 7. Mark the sentences as True or False

1. The second half of the 20^th century has been described as the “Age of Civil Rights”.

2. Human rights exist in morality and in law at the national level.

3. Human rights are moral guarantees against actions, which interfere with fundamental freedoms and human dignity.

4. The principal human rights were set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the General Assembly in 1956.

5. The UN cooperates with governments, responds to human rights abuses and takes actions to prevent violations.

6. The UN Commission on Human Rights established mechanisms with which to promote and protect these rights.

7. Groups like Amnesty International protest to the government on moral and legal grounds when human rights violate the laws of the country.

8. Amnesty International has helped to speed up the release of prisoners of conscience all over the world.

9. Amnesty and other groups have helped to make more and more people aware of the concept of human rights – rights that go beyond the laws of one country.

10. Human rights are mostly regulated by Common law.

Task 8. Choose the proper human rights from the list below and fill in the table

due process rights welfare rights political rights

security rights equality rights liberty rights

Rights	Objectives/functions	Actions /states
	protect against	crimes (murder, massacre, torture, rape);
	protect	belief, expression, association, assembly;
	protect	the liberty to participate in politics
	protect against	imprisonment without trial, secret trials, excessive punishments
	guarantee	equality before the law and nondiscrimination
	require provision of………. and protection against …….	education to all children severe poverty and starvation.

Task 9. Indicate some of the main characteristics of human rights:

I nternationally guaranteed

Task 10. Translate the following:

Abuse, interfere with, человеческое достоинство, legally protected, взаимозависимые, нетрудоспособные лица, vulnerable groups, объяснять (толковать), massacre, rape, голосовать, imprisonment, excessive punishment, положение (договора), severe poverty and starvation, to reach, inspiration, legally binding agreement, предпринять шаги, commitment, subscribe, aspire, to promote, to monitor the observance, оказывать давление на кого-либо, to speed up, освобождение, prisoners of concience, inhuman treatment, отмена (аннулирование), death penalty, to be aware of, пытка, deliberate, infliction, to commit a crime, political pressure, economic hardship, беженец, political asylum, высшая мера наказания, deprive, неотъемлемое право, national legislation, enforce.

Task 11. Complete the sentences with the endings from the text

1. Human rights are fundamental rights of all human beings such as the right to life, the right to freedom of thought, the right to work, etc., which are generally…

2. Human rights are legal guarantees against actions, which interfere with fundamental …

3. Human Rights are international moral and legal norms that aspire to protect all people everywhere from …

4. The principal human rights were set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by …

5. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights sets out a list of specific human rights that …

6. The broadest legally binding agreements are the two International Covenants – one on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the other…

7. These agreements take the provisions of the UDHR a step further translating these rights into …

8. The UN has taken many steps to strengthen the protection of …

9. The UN cooperates with governments, responds to human rights abuses and takes actions to …

10. The UNCHR provides overall policy guidance, studies human rights problems, develops new international norms and …

11. Amnesty International is the largest of many organizations in the world, which puts pressure on …

12. Amnesty has helped to speed up the release of …

Amnesty also campaigns for fair trials for political prisoners, for an end …

13. Despite the development of a number of legally binding national and international conventions on human rights and functioning of international organizations that protect them, millions of people in the world still …

The use of torture violates international human rights law no matter what…

14. A very large area of human rights violations is concerned with…

15. Many are looking for political asylum – the right to …

16. Another hotly debated issue of human rights violations is capital punishment, which deprives human beings of the most inherent …

Task 12. Match the words and word combinations with their definitions

1.	right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion	a) право на справедливое и публичное разбирательство дела компетентным, независимым и беспристрастным судом
2.	right to liberty and security of person	b) право не подвергаться произвольному аресту и не содержаться под стражей
3.	right to freedom of association with others	c) право на свободу мысли, совести и религии
4.	right not to be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention	d) право на свободу и личную неприкосновенность
5.	right to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal	e) право на социальное обеспечение, включая социальное страхование
6.	right to freedom of expression	f) право на свободное выражение своего мнения
7.	right to peaceful assembly	g) право исповедовать свою религию и исполнять обряды
8.	right not to be held in servitude	h) право не содержаться в неволе
9.	right to profess and practise one’s own religion	i) право на мирные собрания
10.	right to social security including social insurance	j) право на свободу ассоциации с другими

Task 13. Translate into English:

Все права человека универсальны, неделимы, взаимозависимы и взаимосвязаны. Международное сообщество должно относиться к правам человека глобально, на справедливой и равной основе, с одинаковым подходом и вниманием. Хотя значение национальной и региональной специфики и различных исторических, культурных и религиозных особенностей необходимо иметь в виду, государства, независимо от их политических, экономических и культурных систем, несут обязанность поощрять и защищать все права человека и основные свободы.

Права человека в целом могут быть определены как права, присущие нам от рождения и без которых мы не можем жить как человеческие существа. Права человека отличаются от других прав в двух отношениях. Во-первых, каждый человек наделен правами человека уже в силу того, что он является человеческим существом. Права человека нельзя предоставить или приобрести. В рамках, определенных законом, права человека неотчуждаемы и в равной степени относятся ко всем людям. Во-вторых, обязанности по соблюдению прав человека лежат на государстве и его органах, а не на других индивидах. Другими словами, государство обязано не только воздерживаться от нарушений прав человека, но и защищать права одних индивидов от посягательств со стороны других. Права человека должны быть защищены законом (принцип верховенства закона). Кроме того, любые споры, связанные с нарушением прав человека, должны разбираться компетентным, беспристрастным и независимым судебным органом, процедуры которого являются равными для всех сторон и который принимает решения в соответствии с законом.

Термин "права человека" относится к очень широкому спектру прав: от права на жизнь до права свободно участвовать в культурной жизни общества. На международном уровне различие обычно проводится между гражданскими и политическим правами, с одной стороны, и экономическими, социальными и культурными правами, с другой. Термин "гражданские права" используется в отношении прав, касающихся неприкосновенности личности (право на жизнь, свободу, личную неприкосновенность, на свободу от пыток и бесчеловечного обращения, произвольного ареста, задержания или ссылки, рабства, вмешательства в частную жизнь, право владеть имуществом, на свободу передвижения, свободу мысли, совести и религии). Другая группа гражданских прав – процессуальные права – включает право на равенство перед судами и трибуналами, право на справедливое и публичное разбирательство дела компетентным, независимым и беспристрастным судом, презумпцию невиновности, запрещение ретроактивного применения уголовного законодательства и др.

К политическим правам относятся такие права как, свобода выражения мнения, свобода мирных собраний и ассоциаций, право избирать и быть избранным в ходе периодических и нефальсифицированных выборов.

Экономические и социальные права включают в себя право на труд и его свободный выбор, на справедливые и благоприятные условия труда, справедливое вознаграждение и равную оплату за равный труд, разумное ограничение рабочего дня, право создавать профсоюзы и вступать в них, право на отдых, на достойный жизненный уровень, медицинский уход, социальное обслуживание и образование.

Культурные права: право на участие в культурной жизни общества, право пользоваться благами научного прогресса и право на защиту моральных и материальных интересов, являющихся результатом научных, литературных или художественных трудов.

Task 14. Speak on:

1. Human rights. Some of the important characteristics and examples.

2. The UN efforts to implement human rights.

3. How is it possible to protect human rights in domestic law; in international law?

4. How are human rights protected in your country?