CRIN - Child Rights Information Network
The philosophical, moral and ethical thinking behind the concept of human
rights dates back to the early civilisations. Struggles for fundamental
human freedoms have changed forever the way human beings relate to
each other, the relationship between the individual and the state, and
expectations for social justice, agreed international norms and a global
order.
Over the past 50 years, human rights have been recognised and codified
at an international level, starting with the creation of the United Nations
following the Second World War. During the next few decades, however,
human rights did not have a central role in development practice. Rather,
organisations striving to achieve improvements in human rights functioned
in parallel to development practitioners.
It is only since the late 1990s that the two have converged. For some,
improvements in development practice promoted working principles that
were increasingly close to human rights principles. Others, particularly
those fighting for civil and political rights of marginalised groups,
broadened their mission to seek improvements in social or economic
status. Whatever the motivation, human rights have now become a major
focus for the international development community.
A key turning point for many development agencies occured in 1997 when
the secretary–general of the United Nations, called for the mainstreaming
of human rights across the entire UN system. Since then, the integration of
human rights into development programming – the so–called rights–based
approach – has increasingly gained the attention of practitioners, whether
working in UN agencies (notably UNICEF and OHCHR), NGOs (both national
and international), or government donors (such as SIDA and DFID).
Many would argue that bringing human rights and development together
is leading to the creation of a new kind of development environment, in
which improvements in equality, respect and dignity become key factors in
judging progress. Indeed, some organisations, following the lead of
economist Professor Amartya Sen, have adopted the stance that the
realisation of human rights is the fundamental goal of development.
Others are less convinced that the rise of rights represents such a marked
departure from existing development practice because rights have always
been a fundamental part of their work. However, what is clear is that
development agencies are increasingly looking to formalise the role of
human rights in their work.
Startingpoints:
The following resources explain the background concepts and
thinking behind human rights, and help answer why development
organisations should invest in rights based programming.
UNDP Human Development Report 2000
particularly Chapter 1 and Chapter 2
The UN Sites for the origins of human rights. Specific treaties can be accessed from the page on key human rights documents
IDS briefing paper: The Rise of Rights
ODI Briefing paper. Economic Theory, Freedom and Human Rights: The Work of Amartya Sen
The Human Rights–Based Approach to Development Cooperation: Towards a Common Understanding among the UN Agencies
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