Human
rights can be fulfilled through the spirituality rooted in respect for
others lives.
Our world today faces unprecedented problems: the current environmental
and financial crises. Without global solidarity and a conscious
commitment to peaceful coexistence both within human society and with
the systems of life that support us, it is becoming clear that there is
no future for us. We have reached a point where we each need to strive
in our own unique way to make the greatest possible contribution to the
realisation of human rights.
“Human rights are the essence of the reason and spiritual values that
characterise humanity, the manifestation of the most noble qualities of
the human being.” These are the profound words of Austregesilo de
Athayde, president of the Brazilian Academy of Letters, one of the
active participants responsible for drafting of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
The principles voiced in the Declaration, adopted sixty years ago, have
since been codified in the form of various international human rights
instruments and have further been enshrined in the constitutions of
many countries. The Declaration stands as a powerful beacon in
humanity’s struggle for human rights.
However, the reality of today is that people in many places around the
world are deprived of their basic human rights and freedoms and
struggle under the heel of oppression. In addition to armed conflicts
in various regions, extreme poverty, and shortages of food, drinking
water, and medical supplies claim nearly 24,000 lives every day.
What is important now is to heighten people’s awareness of human
rights, to return once more to the spirit in which the UDHR was created
and ensure that people around the world deepen their commitment to
bringing human rights to life.
The core of the UDHR consists of “first-generation human rights” —
which are essentially related to civil and political rights, and
“second-generation human rights” — economic and social rights. Since
the UDHR was promulgated, and with the achievement of independence by
countries in Africa and Asia in the second half of the 20th century,
increasing attention has been given to “third-generation human rights”
-the so-called “solidarity rights”, which include the right to
development, to a safe and healthy environment, to peace, and to access
humanity’s common heritage.
Two trends become apparent as we review the history of human rights.
The first is a shift from a reactive approach of protecting people from
human rights abuses to a more proactive approach of engagement in
realising a better life and a better society. The second is a shift
from a focus on the rights of individuals in isolation to a broader,
more inclusive emphasis on human solidarity and creative coexistence
with the environment.
The promise of human rights can only be fulfilled through the
development of spirituality rooted in respect for the lives of others
and concern for the natural environment. It is by taking action for the
sake of others, for the sake of society, and for the sake of future
generations that human beings can grasp the significance of our having
been born in this world and can experience genuine fulfilment and
happiness. This is the true significance of Athayde’s statement.
According to the Buddhist understanding of interdependence, nothing in
this world can exist in isolation. We exist within a web of mutually
supporting and sustaining relationships. Any attempt to build personal
happiness or societal flourishing on the suffering of others cannot, in
the long term, succeed.
More than 100 years ago, the first president of the Soka Gakkai
(Value-creating Society) movement, Tsunesaburo Makiguchi — the founder
of Soka education who was imprisoned for his opposition to Japan’s
militarist regime and died in prison, surveyed the development of
international society and called for the world to move from military,
political, and economic forms of competition to an age of “humanitarian
competition”. This may be understood as a call for a change in our
sense of values, to a striving for the welfare and happiness of both
the self and others.
Contributing to others, working for the sake of others, is not a matter
of duty. It is not simply a matter of morality. It is the highest
pinnacle of our lives as humans. As can be strongly affirmed by mothers
around the world who cherish life, to be able to contribute to the
happiness of others is, indeed, a human right.
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