Debates surrounding human rights

2.4.1 Individual versus collective rights, 2.4.2 Universal rights versus cultural relativism, and 2.4.3 Politicization of human rights

For this section, we are going to focus on debating different perspectives. We have already covered lots of the knowledge needed to evidence the debates, and now we will spend time thinking of the arguments we can make.

It is common that Paper 2 essay questions are based on one of these debates and these lessons are directly created to prepare you for this type of essay question.

Task instructions.

In groups, you will give a short panel 'debate' to the class debating your question.
You will have time to prepare and one lesson we will have the presentations. https://youtu.be/RVnTYLDaw28
Imagine you are being on a TV panel show with each of you representing a different perspective. You can even give yourself name badges to show which group you represent.
You should include real-life examples and facts (dates, names, statistics etc.) to evidence your arguments.

Debate 1:

Which is more important: the rights of the individual or the rights of the community?

Are there specific situations where we should give up individual rights for collective good? Or are the rights of the individual always more important?

Debate 2:

Should human rights be adapted to local cultures or should all peoples everywhere have the same rights?

How does the current human right frameworks consider cultural relativism?
Would the framework of human rights be strengthened or weakened if it made greater recognition of different cultures?

Debate 3:

Are human rights inevitably political?

Will governments and organisations always use human rights for their own political gains?
Does it matter?

Possibly useful resources:

2.4.1 Individual versus collective rights

www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/human-rights-act/article-10-freedom-expression

Understanding Indigenous Peoples’ Rights: Collective or Individual?

Content Moderation & Freedom of ExpressionA call for social media companies to comply with international human rights law when moderating content.

Individual Rights vs. Social Responsibilities in a Pandemic - Humanities in Action

Balancing Individuals’ Rights and Responsibilities in the Age of COVID-19

Social media, content moderation and free speech: A tussle

A Human Rights-Based Approach to Social Media Platforms

2.4.1 Individual versus collective rights

www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/Documents/Issues/CulturalRights/Culturalrightsofwomen/SideEventHRC2011-WomenandCulture-FSpresentation.pdf

The Cairo Declaration of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation on Human Rights

Rights of the Individual

What balance between cultures and the promotion of human rights? - Grow Think Tank

Universal human rights, cultural relativism and the Asian values debate | East Asia Forum

Traditional values: Do they help or hinder human rights protection? | Human Rights First

2.4.3 Politicization of human rights

Politicization of human rights dialogue is not acceptableIt is only natural that the notion of human rights around the world is a topic of disagreement. The definition of human rights varies from one nation to another due to the plurality of languages, cultures, ethnicities, norms, and religions. There are, however, certain universal rights that can be agreed upon. In the Syrian context, with more than 500,000 civilians killed, 5 million refugees, and 6 million internally displaced people, no nation can disagree that it is a human rights crisis.

www.globaltimes.cn/page/202112/1243538.shtml

World Cup 2022: Should footballers take a stand on human rights in Qatar?Fans may have expected players to declare a stance on the emirate's human rights record, but this can be a challenge for young men under constant scrutiny.

Qataris Bristle at What They See as Double Standards Over Their World CupMany in the country say the barrage of criticism about its human rights record and the exploitation of migrant workers is laced with discrimination and hypocrisy.

Task: practicing source skills for Paper 1

Indonesia set to pass new criminal code that will ban sex outside marriage

Essay questions

Justify the claim that the debate between universal rights and cultural relativism is useful for codifying and protecting human rights.

The central problem with international human rights laws and treaties is that they are open to different interpretations. Discuss this view.

Discuss whether the politicization of human rights has hindered their universal application.

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