Human Rights and Asia

Lindy Stirling

State Advisor, Studies of Asia

What are Human Rights?

• Interrelated, interdependent and indivisible

• Universal and inalienable

• Equal and non-discriminatory

• Both Rights and Obligations

• International Bill of Human Rights

What are Human Rights?

• Making it plain – with a little help from your friends

Who signed UDHR in 1948?Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Burma, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, France, Greece, Guatemala, Haiti, Iceland, India, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Liberia, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Thailand, Sweden, Syria, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay and Venezuela.

Is it binding? No…

• Human rights are set out as principles in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. A declaration is not legally binding. It lays out principles and objectives and carries moral weight.

Is it binding? …and yes!

• A covenant, convention or treaty, unlike a declaration, has the force of law.

• The broadest legally binding human rights agreements negotiated under UN auspices are the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

6 Treaty monitoring bodiesCommittees of:• Elimination of Racial Discrimination• Human Rights • Economic, Social and Cultural Rights• against Torture• the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women• the Rights of the ChildThe Articles of the Charter have the force of positive

international law because the Charter is a treaty and therefore a legally binding document.

Rate your School

• The school community

• Curriculum: what we learn and teach

• Connecting with other priorities

Teaching Human Rights

• Strategies

• Contentious issues

• Across the curriculum

Teaching Human RightsStrategies

– Mirror what you are teaching about (respect, responsibility, tolerance)• Experiential and activity-centered: involving the solicitation of learners’ prior

knowledge and offering activities that draw out learners’ experiences and knowledge• Problem-posing: challenging the learners’ prior knowledge• Participative: encouraging collective efforts in clarifying concepts, analyzing

themes and doing the activities• Dialectical: requiring learners to compare their knowledge with those from other

sources• Analytical: asking learners to think about why things are and how they came to be• Healing: promoting human rights in intra-personal and inter-personal relations• Strategic thinking-oriented: directing learners to set their own goals and to

think of strategic ways of achieving them• Goal and action-oriented: allowing learners to plan and organize actions in

relation to their goals

Teaching Human Rights• Contentious issues

– Balanced, critical appraisal including minority views

– Identify underlying reasons for different views– Formulate opinions from evidence, respond to

different views in constructive, balanced ways– Use open ended questions and strategies that

encourage discussion, respect and diversity

Agree or Disagree

• Those using child labour should be prosecuted

• Torture can be justified in some extreme situations

• Animal rights are less important than human rights

HR issues prominent in media

• Brainstorm issues you can recall from the recent media around Human Rights in Australia/Asia.

• Can you sort them by the 30 Articles?

Issues to consider

• What emphasis/perspective does the exploration of HR in a country give?

• How do we get a range of views about an issue?

Teaching Human Rights• What resources are available for Asia and

Human Rights?

• Pageflakes – Human Rights and Asia http://www.pageflakes.com/lindystirling/29760920

https://studiesofasia.wikispaces.com.au

Essential resources

Websites - from the online guide

• See the updated sheet

Websites - from AmnestyUnderstanding human rights• Tour of human rights - Amnesty International Ca

nada

• Human Rights Resources and Links – UN Cyberschoolbus

• “This is my home” - University of Minnesota Human Rights Center

• What are human rights? – HREOC • Understanding Human Rights - Compass • Glossary of human rights terms

Questions and answers about human rights• Frequently asked questions on human rights - H

REOC

• Questions and Answers: What are human rights? - Compass

• Questions and Answers: Protecting Human Rights - BBC

Origins of human rights• The origins of modern human rights laws –

HREOC • The evolution of human rights – Compass The Universal Declaration of Human Rights• Universal Declaration of Human Rights • Plain language version with notes on each

article – UN Cyberschoolbus • How the Universal Declaration developed Other International Human Rights Agreements• International Human Rights Agreements • Amnesty International's history and work• Amnesty International history: Amnesty Intern

ational Canada

Games• Wants & Needs game – UNICEF UK • Games and activities: Amnesty International

USA

Contact: Lindy Stirling

9637 3620

96372040

stirling.lindy.j@edumail.vic.gov.au