Introduction
Human rights are a burning issue around the world. Human rights is a broad term. It covers all the rights that human beings demand from society. Norms and moral principles are standards set by municipal and international law. Each state sets rules and policies for its people that give them fundamental rights. It is the right of every individual to live free from any pressure. There are many non-governmental organizations that work for human rights, and they are very influential (Stephens, 2017). These non-governmental organizations play a decisive role in human rights.
Human rights were more prominently highlighted after World War Two (WW2). After the end of World War II, the United Nations emerged and played an essential role in world politics and social issues. In 1948, the United Nations passed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In history, there have been many attempts to protect human rights, but the United Nations Universal Declaration on Human Rights plays an essential role in this regard (Hindman & Hindman, 2014). At the international level, the UNHRC plays a significant role in human rights and human rights issues. The UNHRC is an international body that works under the umbrella of the United Nations for human rights around the world.
Defining Human Rights
Human rights are all those rights that are the fundamental rights of every individual without any discrimination on any basis. Every human has their fundamental rights without bias based on religion, colour, sex, race, nationality or language. Human rights mean that we have freedom from any discrimination, and we have a right to live life of our own will. No one else can pressure us or infringe upon fundamental rights. Certain bodies work to protect fundamental human rights. There are many governmental and non-governmental organizations that work on human rights. These organizations play a positive role in this regard.
Human Rights And International Organizations
There is a close relationship between human rights and international organizations. International bodies or organizations such as the United Nations play a significant role in this regard. The United Nations has lawmaking, law-implementing and law-enforcing bodies. The United Nations General Assembly is a law-making body; for membership of any other United Nations agency or organ, you must be a member of the United Nations General Assembly. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) is a platform for the whole world to sit together and resolve global issues, whether bilateral, trilateral, or multilateral. UNGA provides a platform where problems can be solved peacefully (Fussler, Cramer & Van, 2017).
UNGA plays a vital role in maintaining peace and resolving humanitarian issues. The UNGA has 193 member countries. Heads of state or heads of government of member states meet once a year, where all the problems faced by the globe are discussed, along with policies through which issues will be resolved through peaceful means (Fussler, Cramer & Van, 2017).
Universal Declaration Of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a great piece of human rights legislation, and it is considered one of the most significant achievements in human rights. UDHR is a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly that was passed on December 10, 1948, in the capital of France. It is a comprehensive resolution which plays an essential role in human rights around the world. This excellent document on human rights has been translated into almost five hundred languages around the globe. It gives fundamental principles in the field of human rights.
UDHR is a comprehensive document that discusses all human rights issues and sets the necessary standards for all fields of life. UDHR discusses the economic rights of people, political rights, civil rights and also social rights conferred. It sets primary standards regarding all the human rights issues that we face in our daily lives, which are essential for humans, and it is the responsibility of the government to ensure these fundamental rights for every individual.
Human Rights Council
The Human Rights Council is a new body of the United Nations that was established in March 2006 by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). The Human Rights Council (HRC) replaced the old organ, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, which worked in the field of human rights before the Human Rights Council (Stephens, 2017). Now, the Human Rights Council plays an essential role in protecting human rights and related issues. This council plays a vital role in this regard.
Economic, Social And Cultural Rights
In 1976, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of the people of the whole globe entered into force, and at the end of 2016, this international covenant had one hundred and sixty-four states. That covenant also seeks to promote global issues and protect human rights.
- The right to work in favourable conditions that suit you according to international standards.
- It is the fundamental right of every individual to get an education and freedom of culture.
- Protection of the social rights of every individual without any discrimination and international living standards for everyone.
Civil And Political Rights
The Political and Civil Rights Covenant is an optional protocol that entered into force in 1976. At the end of 2011, sixty-seven states were parties to this international covenant.
In 1989, the Second Optional Protocol was adopted.
This international covenant deals with civil rights and freedom of speech; it includes the right to freedom of movement, equality before the law, the right to a free and fair trial, freedom of thought and freedom of expression, freedom of opinion and participation in the electoral system (Dahl, 2017). There is no discrimination in any sphere of life, and all people are equal.
According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, primary education is the fundamental right of every individual; if the government cannot provide the necessary education to every individual, it is a violation of human rights (Forsythe, 2017). The government may not be able to give free primary education to all members of society. Individuals who do not have the ability to get an education cannot provide the necessary education for themselves. It is the responsibility of the government to support them (Fussler, Cramer & Van, 2017). Due to weak economic conditions, children cannot go to school, and as a result, they move towards child labour to support their family’s financial condition.
Child Labour
Child labour means that a child who works in different workplaces under the age of fifteen is considered a child labourer, or a worker who is less than fifteen is considered a child labourer.
Child labour is a serious issue that has received attention from both governmental and non-governmental organizations. There is proper legislation and laws that protect children from labour, but due to the high rate of poverty and unemployment, child labour cannot end.
Child labour is a major issue around the world; the ratio is higher in developing nations than in the developed world (Hindman & Hindman, 2014). The leading causes of child labour are unemployment, poverty, and inadequate education facilities. In third-world states, the education system is weak, primary education is not entirely free, and the economic situation of the people is not so sound. Due to that, the ratio of child labour is high in the third world as compared to the developed world.
Economic factors make a more significant contribution to child labour. Due to poor economic conditions, parents cannot provide primary education to their children, and the government does not have the proper procedures to facilitate these low-income families. As a result, due to a lack of economic resources, these children work at different workplaces such as hotels, auto workshops, and homes (Hindman & Hindman, 2014). In these places, the ratio of child labour is high. If the economic condition of the family is better, the rate of child labour is low.
Primary education and necessities are the fundamental rights of the individual, and the government needs to provide basic education to every individual in society (Holgado et al. 2014). Primary education must be free. If the government gives free essential education, it helps reduce child labour.
The government needs to give free primary education and also fulfil all the requirements that help to reduce child labour. The government should take strict action against child labour and implement these laws (Holgado et al. 2014). Along with the government, other social groups and non-governmental organizations play a useful role in reducing the child labour ratio. Non-governmental organizations play an active role in this regard.
Civil society also plays a useful role in reducing child labour. Civil society needs to pressure the government to take strict action against child labour and make proper policies that are ground-oriented to help reduce child labour. Civil society should take active and practical steps to minimize child labour (Dahl, 2017). Civil society has the potential to change the incidence of child labour.
International organizations and INGOs (international non-governmental organizations) play a significant role in child labour issues (Forsythe, 2017). The ratio of child labour is high in the developing world, where the economic conditions of the people are poor. It is a fact that economic factors play a vital role in the development of children (Smith, 2018). The time demands that international organizations give more funds to the third world for education projects that help to reduce the rate of poverty.
An international organization like the United Nations plays a vital role in reducing the high ratio of child labour in third-world states (Forsythe, 2017). It is an alarming condition, and we need to take joint action to remove this evil; child labour is a social evil that hits the basis of society. If this evil cannot be removed at this time, it will badly affect the globe. It is an era of globalization, and an issue or incident occurring in one part of the world can disturb the whole world (Smith, 2018). Child labour is a social illness and creates many other social problems, such as poverty, low literacy rates and unemployment. All these social evils are interconnected, and the basis of these social problems lies in economic factors or poverty.
If a society has sound economic conditions, low poverty, a low unemployment rate, and high literacy, there is a minimum rate of child labour in that society (Hindman & Hindman, 2014). Financial status and education play remarkable roles in this regard. Economic conditions and educational facilities are very closely related. If the financial condition of the people is better and they are economically sound, they do not send their children to work in different workplaces. On the other hand, if there is an excellent education network and primary education is free of cost, it will also help to reduce the rate of child labour. Child labour is high in countries where education facilities and the economic conditions of the people are not excellent (Hindman & Hindman, 2014). These two factors play remarkable roles in reducing child labour.
Government and non-governmental organizations need to focus more on education and the economic condition of the people. If people’s financial conditions are better and there is free education, it positively affects the reduction of the ratio of child labour in society (Holgado et al. 2014).
You cannot ignore the role of society in reducing the ratio of child labour. Society has played a significant role in this regard. If there is a trend in the community to give children primary education and not send them to work, it helps to reduce child labour. The role of society cannot be dismissed; social campaigns need to be started against child labour. Societal pressure helps motivate parents to give primary education to their children and not send them to workplaces. Highlighting the needs and importance of education is essential; if people have proper awareness of education, they will not send their children to work before giving them an education. Learning is a way to reduce the ratio of child labour.
Conclusion
Human rights are the fundamental rights of every individual, and they are equal among all the people of the world. Human rights include civil, political, economic and social rights. It is the right of every individual to get primary education, and it is the responsibility of the government to give primary education free without any discrimination. School education is one of the fundamental human rights; countries with high literacy rates have fewer social issues and problems. States with low literacy rates and poor economic conditions have a high ratio of child labour. Child labour causes many other issues, and it is an important issue that we need to resolve.
Many actors play a vital role in this regard. Government and non-governmental organizations play an essential role in this issue. The government needs to make strict policies and laws about child labour. The government needs to use direct and indirect means to achieve this goal. Non-governmental organizations and other major groups, such as civil society, pressure the government to make policies and laws that help to reduce child labour. International organizations also play an important role in reducing the child labour ratio. The rate of child labour is high in third-world states, and international organizations need to focus more on the third world and give maximum aid and assistance to these developing states to reduce child labour. Child labour cannot be mitigated by adopting a single solution. It is necessary to take all the possible actions that are needed to reduce the rate of child labour.
References
Dahl, R. A. (2017). Decision-making in a democracy: The Supreme Court as a national policy-maker. In Constitutionalism and Democracy (pp. 137-154). Routledge
Forsythe, D. P. (2017). Human rights in international relations. Cambridge University Press.
Fussler, C., Cramer, A., & Van der Vegt, S. (2017). Raising the bar: creating value with the UN Global Compact. Routledge.
Holgado, D., Maya-Jariego, I., Ramos, I., Palacio, J., Oviedo-Trespalacios, O., Romero-Mendoza, V., & Amar, J. (2014). Impact of child labor on academic performance: Evidence from the program “Edúcame Primero Colombia”. International Journal of Educational Development, 34, 58-66.
Hindman, H. D., & Hindman, H. (2014). The world of child labor: An historical and regional survey. Routledge.
Smith, R. (2018). International Human Rights Law. Oxford University Press
Stephens, B. (2017). The amorality of profit: transnational corporations and human rights. In Human rights and corporations (pp. 21-66). Routledge.
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