A discussion of human security inevitably brings into play questions of its relationship with human rights and human development. The international human rights regime is based upon the Universal Declaration of Human Rights sponsored by the US and accepted by the General Assembly of the UN in 1948. Human development has emerged, and continues to be reformulated, over many decades of development since the 1950s. It has grown from the disenchantment with Rostow’s “trickle down” theory of economic growth through the failure of structural adjustment and a realisation that greater attention to the basic needs of people and to their participation and empowerment in the processes of development was warranted.114
Definitions of human security in terms of people’s physical safety, their economic and social wellbeing, respect for their dignity and worth as human beings, and the protection of their rights and fundamental freedoms are expressed in terms little different from those which are to be found in human rights and human development literature. The relationship is in fact treated in a variety of ways, but the distinction is not always clear. They are, for example, described in pairs as two sides of the same coin, and it is said you can’t have one without the other.115 More specifically, human rights have been described as a “bridge between human security and human development.”116 It is argued here that human security, like freedom, represents a goal that can be achieved by application of the principles of human rights and the mechanisms of human development. A human security approach has the advantage that it is directly associated with state and global security, and captures the purpose
114 The basic needs approach was formulated by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in
1976. See International Labour Organisation (ILO), Employment, Growth and Basic Needs: A One World Problem (Geneva: ILO, 1976).
115 Commission on Human Security, "Human Security Now," 8-9.
116 Nicole Ball, "Report of a Conference Organised by the Programme for Strategic and
International Studies, Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva," (Geneva: 2001); and Nicole Ball, "Enhancing Security Sector Governance: A Conceptual Framework for UNDP," (2002).
of human rights and human development to achieve not only individual, but also global, security goals.
Nevertheless, human security is downplayed even by the UNDP in subsequent Human Development Reports which, from 1995, emphasise freedoms as the goal of human rights and human development. For example, the 2000 Report says that:
“Human rights and human development share a common vision and a common purpose – to secure the freedom, wellbeing and dignity of all people everywhere”
and that:
“Human development shares a common vision with human rights. The goal is human freedom. And in pursuing capabilities and realizing rights, this freedom is vital. …. Human development and human rights are mutually reinforcing, helping to secure the well- being and dignity of all people, building self-respect and the respect of others.”117
This goal-oriented view of human rights and human development and its association with freedom owes much to the influence of Amatya Sen as an adviser to the UNDP.118 It is also represented in conflict management studies. But it is significant that the goal of human rights is thus not only the protection of the individual from the state but includes also the responsibility of the state to provide a framework of opportunity for its citizens. This latter responsibility of states is spelled out in the Declaration of the Right to Development which was adopted by the General Assembly in 1986 and reconfirmed in the Vienna Declaration and subsequently by the General Assembly in 1993. Human development works towards the same goal by providing the techniques and processes which, in association with other national development strategies, enhance the capability of individuals and the opportunities necessary for people to achieve human security. Sen’s goal of freedom is somewhat similar to that of human security, but the latter draws the issues of individual welfare directly into the international security framework. It is not necessary in this thesis to attempt to argue for or against the primacy of human rights. However, it is important to note that there remains considerable debate on issues relating to the universality of rights, whether they concern natural or only legal rights, and the major issue of cultural relativity. It is adequate here to take the view that, pursuant to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the universality is accepted in principle by member states of the UN whether or not they are adopted into their law
117 UNDP, "Human Development Report 2000: Human Rights and Human Development,"
(United Nations Development Programme, 2000), 1, 28.
or constitutions.119 Moreover, human rights—economic, social, civil, and political— are in the end open to political debate or legislated depending on the approach in particular countries and guaranteed only to the extent that societies respect them and individual states and their institutions support and implement them. My human security approach and its focus at the local level helps to re-consider the contribution of human rights and human development in local practice, suggesting that together they may be the bridges to human security.
In summary, there is an awareness that human rights must be protected or enforced, and that societies must either struggle or be ever vigilant to ensure their rights are not ignored or taken away. To be meaningful, rights require positive and conscious actions—by civil society, by state institutions, by the international community or other “protectors.” Human development is one tool that can enhance awareness of individual and group rights and the opportunities to exercise them. It requires training in human rights; an improvement in the education and capacity of people to participate in their societies and in the economy; and an understanding of the benefits, in a democratic situation at least, of insisting on their own rights as well as respecting those of others. This presupposes the effective operation of certain government institutions, and in particular the justice system. The concept of human security enables a new perspective on how these elements come together to achieve their common objectives.