Aditi Indrani, Advocate, HC Of Delhi
Introduction
Human rights are those absolute fundamental rights to which a human being is innately entitled to. These rights are considered as universal and egalitarian and hence are applicable to everyone. As per Section 2(1) (d) of Protection of Human Rights Act 1993, human rights means “the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in the International Covenants and enforceable by courts in India”.1 Thus, the recognized inherent dignity and of the absolute as well as equal rights of all human beings is the core basis of freedom, justice and peace. As per the constitutions of various countries, the right to safe healthy, and ecologically balanced environment as an independent human right. The first Secretary General of the International Institute for Human Rights (IIHR) divided human rights into three generations in the year 1977. The first generation of human rights deals with traditional civil and political rights such right to freedom of speech, the right to freedom of religion, etc., which assumes a duty of non-interference on part of the government towards its citizens. On the other hand, the second generation of human right are the rights which require affirmative government action for their recognition. They are also known as collective rights as they relate to the well-being of whole societies.
The Human Rights of Third Generation (Collective Rights)- Individuals are also members of such units, groups or communities as a family, religious community, social club, trade union, professional association, and racial group, people, nation and the State. It is not strange, therefore, that international law not only recognizes absolute rights of individuals, but also identify certain collective rights exercised together by individuals who are grouped into larger communities, including nations. The third generation of human rights refers to the fraternity or brotherhood. This category of rights is totally based on the sense of harmony, which is necessary for the realization of the main concerns of the international community such as peace, development and environment. The exercise of collective rights is a prerequisite to the exercise of other rights, political or economic or both.
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