The principles of human rights are a central focus of international relations and legal frameworks worldwide. While there are many areas of disagreement and debate – for example, whether the right to freedom of speech should be allowed to be curtailed in order to protect family privacy or if female genital mutilation can be justified as a cultural practice – the idea that all people everywhere are entitled to certain fundamental civil and political rights is almost universally accepted.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a core statement of international law. It and a number of other treaties and declarations are designed to ensure that all countries, and individuals within those states, respect the same basic rights. They have been endorsed by governments, the United Nations and many other organisations, including non-governmental organisations, which advocate for human rights.
Some human rights apply to everyone, such as the right to freedom of expression or to a fair trial; others, however, are specific to groups of people, such as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ collective rights to their ancestral lands (known as native title rights). Some rights can only be exercised in conjunction with other rights, for example the right to equality requires that all individuals be treated equally.
Governments recognise that they have an important responsibility for the protection of their citizens’ rights. They must enact laws that reflect these principles and ensure that their agencies and officials are trained to uphold human rights standards. They must also cooperate with international bodies that are dedicated to promoting and monitoring human rights standards. These include international courts and tribunals, human rights treaty bodies and a range of thematic and country-specific expert committees.