Human RightsHuman Rights

What are Human Rights?

Human Rights are basic needs that all human beings have. Our Basic needs never change; it is a need that all human beings everywhere have and so it represents a genuine human right. Genuine human rights can not apply in one country but not another.

Some basic human rights are

•The right to a home

•The right to a decent amount of food

•The right to clean water

•The right to an education

•The right to medical care

Some countries disagree with this. In countries the idea of religious freedom is rejected or couples are only allowed one child.

What are Human Rights?What are Human Rights?

1.1. How would you define Human Rights?How would you define Human Rights?2.2. List 5 things which you think are essential List 5 things which you think are essential

to life.to life.3.3. Write down as many Rights as you can Write down as many Rights as you can

think of.think of.4.4. Can you place these Rights in order of Can you place these Rights in order of

importance (1= most important / 5= less)importance (1= most important / 5= less)5.5. Select one of your Rights. Describe a way Select one of your Rights. Describe a way

it must be limited to work with other it must be limited to work with other people.people.

(you have 10 minutes to complete this task)(you have 10 minutes to complete this task)

The Universal Declaration Of Human Rights, 1948

The Second World War saw many people mistreated and abused. Military prisoners were tortured and civilians were imprisoned or murdered. The international community wanted a ser of principles to set out basic human needs and establish MINIMUM ENTITLEMENT.

On 10th December 1948 the United Nations (UN) produced the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)

Who has the power?Who has the power?

The Queen

The voters

The Prime Minister

The role of an MPYou might have heard the term MP, but what does your MP do?An MP has a number of things to do, the first is to represent their constituency and to listen to their views. If a constituent has a problem they can raise it with their MP who will offer them advice or try to help.The Houses of ParliamentEvery MP will hold surgeries to meet with their Constituents and find out what their opinions or problems are.

An MP also has a job to do in Parliament. MPs have to go to Parliament where they all met in the House of Commons where they will debate new laws and how they will affect people in the UK,Some MPs will belong to committees which will have extra responsibilities, such as looking at how to improve education.Some MPs will also be Government Ministers. This is when an MP has a big responsibility as well as representing their constituency (a bit like a how Headteacher has a big responsibility to run a school and also a responsibility to teach like other teachers).

This person……

Has more power than this person…..

Because……. Although they have to listen to each other because….

E.g. The Prime Minister

An MP (Member of Parliament)

The PM has the power to make bigger decisions than an MP

Part of the job of the of an MP is to make sure that the Prime Minister doesn’t get everything their own way. They can ask the PM questions to check that they are doing the best for the country

YOU HAVE 25 MINS TO DO THIS TASK!!

Scenario 1: Human Rights Abuses

In Guantanamo Bay, people are being put in prison without being put on trial. Some of them have not been charged with a crime, but are being questioned and held for over 2 years. Some people have been released after being cleared of having done anything wrong. Lots of people have

condemned this, saying it is an abuse of human rights, but what would you do to stop this?

YOU HAVE 10 MINUTES TO COMPLETE THIS TASK.

Scenario 2: Closure of a local hospital

A local hospital is being planned for closure. If the hospital is closed then it will take ambulances over 45 minutes to get to Accidents

and Emergencies – risking peoples lives in an emergency. But what could you do to stop this from happening.

YOU HAVE 10 MINUTES TO COMPLETE THIS TASK

Scenario 3: Animal Testing

Huntingdon Life Sciences is one of the world’s biggest research centres for new drugs. It also tests on animals. Many people consider the testing on animals to be cruel,

and it is true to say that many animals do suffer incredibly in the process. Whether or not you agree with it, what would you do if you wanted to stop people testing on

animals.

YOU HAVE 10 MINUTES TO COMPLETE THIS TASK.

Scenario 4: Environmental Issues

There is a big business which is dumping toxic waste in a nearby river. This is having a terrible effect on the local wildlife, and could pose a real danger to the people living in the local area. The business is incredibly successful and the government has repeatedly failed to do anything about them. How do you convince the government to act? And if the government doesn’t help – who could you go to?

YOU HAVE 10 MINUTES TO COMPLETE THIS TASK.

What makes a good democracy?

1) There is more than one political party to vote for

2) Everyone can vote

3) There are regular and fair elections

4) The media is free to say what it wants without the government stopping it.

YOU HAVE 5-10 MINUTES TO COMPLETE THIS TASK.

Burma

In 1990 the people voted for a democratic government – but the military prevented it from taking power.Recently there have been demonstrations in Burma from people who are angry at the lack of democracy. Hundreds of people were beaten up or imprisoned. Aung San Suu Kyi is the pro-democracy leader in Burma but she is under house arrest for protesting against the government.

Sweden

Everyone over the age of 18 can voteThere are regular elections for the Swedish parliament (called the Riksdag).Sweden is also a monarchy, meaning that the head of state is not elected.However, like the UK, the monarch does not have much power.Unlike the UK, Sweden has proportional representation (this means that if 25% of the people vote for a party they get 25% of the power). This is a much fairer way of electing the government.The media is free from the government and is able to say whatever it wants about the government.

Everyone over the age of 18 can vote.There are regular elections, and people can vote for both the President and the Parliament (called ‘Congress’)There are two main political parties in the USA (Republicans and Democrats) but you don’t have to be in either party to run for government.The media is free to say whatever it wants in the USA – meaning that some people are very critical, but some are also very supportive of the government too.

The government is made up of 3 parts to make sure that no one person or organization can become too powerful.

USA

UK

Everyone over the age of 18 is able to vote.There are regular elections, but the government

gets to choose when they are.The media is separate from the government and

so is able to criticize it without fear.There are hundreds of political parties

registered in the UK, but only 2 of them stand a chance of winning an election

The Queen is the head of state, and technically can dissolve (get rid of) the government in power. No one votes for the Queen as her

position is hereditary (i.e. it is passed down from parents to children)

Russia

Everyone is able to vote.There are regular elections – but a lot of people think that the elections are not fair, and may be rigged (i.e. the government has some control over the vote).The media is sometimes stopped from criticizing the government. The government has recently prevented the media from saying anything bad about the PresidentThere are few political parties. The party in power is controlled by the President and never criticizes him.

When this party became too powerful people complained. The President created a new political party – but this one doesn’t criticize him either!

North KoreaThere are no elections in North Korea. There is only one political party and it is controlled by the President. However, the president is dead! When the then president Kim Il-Sung died in 1994 he was declared Eternal President. His son took over, but refused to take the title president as a mark of respect. Technically, however, ‘the President’ is dead!The TV and newspapers are completely controlled by the government. Some people estimate that over 200,000 people have been arrested and put in prison for protesting against the government.

North Korea

Name of Country:________________________

Who Can Vote?

Who Can You Vote For?

Are Elections Free and Fair?

Can You Criticise the Government?

DRAW COUNTRY FLAG HERE

YOU HAVE 10 MINUTES TO COMPLETE THIS TASK!