AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MAN

Transcription

1 APPENDIX AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MAN WHEREAS: The American peoples have acknowledged the dignity of the individual, and their national constitutions recognize that juridical and political institutions, which regulate life in human society, have as their principal aim the protection of the essential rights of man and the creation of circumstances that will permit him to achieve spiritual and material progress and attain happiness; The American states have on repeated occasions recognized that the essential rights of man are not derived from the fact that he is a national of a certain state, but are based upon attributes of his human personality; The international protection of the rights of man should be the principal guide of an evolving American law; The affirmation of essential human rights by the American states together with the guarantees given by the internal regimes of the states establish the initial system of protection considered by the American states as being suited to the present social and juridical conditions, not without a recognition on their part that they should increasingly strengthen that system in the international field as conditions become more favorable, The Ninth International Conference of American States AGREES: To adopt the following AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MAN Preamble All men are born free and equal, in dignity and in rights, and, being endowed by nature with reason and conscience, they should conduct themselves as brothers one to another. The fulfillment of duty by each individual is a prerequisite to the rights of all. Rights and duties are interrelated in every social and political activity of man. While rights exalt individual liberty, duties express the dignity of that liberty. Duties of a juridical nature presuppose others of a moral nature which support them in principle and constitute their basis. Inasmuch as spiritual development is the supreme end of human existence and the highest expression thereof, it is the duty of man to serve that end with all his strength and resources. Since culture is the highest social and historical expression of that spiritual

2 AMERICAN DECLARATION OF TIlE RIGID'S AND DUTIES OF MAN 173 development, it is the duty of man to preserve, practice and foster culture by every means within his power. And, since moral conduct constitutes the noblest flowering of culture, it is the duty of every man always to hold it in high respect. CHAPTER ONE Rights Article I. Every human being has the right to life, liberty and security of his person. Article II. All persons are equal before the law and have the rights and duties established in this Declaration, without distinction as to race, sex, language, creed or any other factor. Article Ill. Every person has the right freely to profess a religious faith, and to manifest and practice it both in public and in private. Article IV. Every person has the right to freedom of investigation, of opinion, and of the expression and dissemination of ideas, by any medium whatsoever. Article V. Every person has the right to the protection of the law against abusive attacks upon his honor, his reputation, and his private and family life. Article VI. Every person has the right to establish a family, the basic element of society, and to receive protection therefor. Article VII. All women, during pregnancy and the nursing period, and all children have the right to special protection, care and aid. Article VIII. Every person has the right to fix his residence within the territory of the state of which he is a national, to move about freely within such territory, and not to leave it except by his own will. Article IX. Every person has the right to the inviolability of his home. Article X. Every person has the right to the inviolability and transmission of his correspondence. A rticle XI. Every person has the right to the preservation of his health through sanitary and social measures relating to food, clothing, housing and medical care, to the extent permitted by public and community resources. Article XII. Every person has the right to an education, which should be based on the principles of liberty, morality and human solidarity. Likewise every person has the right to an education that will prepare him to attain a decent life, to raise his standard of living, and to be a useful member of society. The right to an education includes the right to equality of opportunity in every case, in accordance with natural talents, merit and the desire to utilize the resources that the state or the community is in a position to provide. Every person has the right to receive, free, at least a primary education. Article XIII. Every person has the right to take part in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts, and to participate in the benefits that result from intellectual progress, especially scientific discoveries. He likewise has the right to the protection of his moral and material interests as regards his inventions or any literary, scientific or artistic works of which he is the author. Article XIV. Every person has the right to work, under proper conditions, and to follow his vocation freely, in so far as existing conditions of employment permit. Every person who works has the right to receive such remuneration as will, in proportion to his capacity and skill, assure him a standard of living suitable for himself and for his family.

3 174 AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE R10HrS AND DunES OF MAN Article XV. Every person has the right to leisure time, to wholesome recreation, and to the opportunity for advantageous use of his free time to his spiritual, cultural and physical benefit. Article XVI. Every person has the right to social security which will protect him from the consequences of unemployment, old age, and any disabilities arising from causes beyond his control that make it physically or mentally impossible for him to earn a living. Article XVII. Every person has the right to be recognized everywhere as a person having rights and obligations, and to enjoy the basic civil rights. A rticle XVIII. Every person may resort to the courts to ensure respect for his legal rights. There should likewise be available to him a simple, brief procedure whereby the courts will protect him from acts of authority that, to his prejudice, violate any fundamental constitutional rights. A rticle XIX. Every person has the right to the nationality to which he is entitled by law and change it, if he so wishes, for the nationality of any other country that is willing to grant it to him. Article XX. Every person having legal capacity is entitled to participate in the government of his country, directly or through his representatives, and to take part in popular elections, which shall be by secret ballot, and shall be honest, periodic and free. Article XXI. Every person has the right to assemble peaceably with others in a formal public meeting or an informal gathering, in connection with matters of common interest of any nature. A rticle XXII. Every person has the right to associate with others to promote, exercise and protect his legitimate interests of a political, economic, religious, social, cultural, professional, labor union or other nature. Article XXIII. Every person has a right to own such private property as meets the essential needs of decent living and helps to maintain the dignity of the individual and of the home. Article XXIV. Every person has the right to submit respectful petitions to any competent authority, for reasons of either general or private interest, and the right to obtain a prompt decision thereon. Article XXV. No person may be deprived of his liberty except in the cases and according to the procedures established by pre-existing law. No person may be deprived of liberty for nonfulfillment of obligations of a purely civil character. Every individual who has been deprived of his liberty has the right to have the legality of his detention ascertained without delay by a court, and the right to be tried without undue delay or, otherwise, to be released. He also has the right to humane treatment during the time he is in custody. Article XXVI. Every accused person is presumed to be innocent until proved guilty. Every person accused of an offense has the right to be given an impartial and public hearing. and to be tried by courts previously established in accordance with preexisting laws. and not to receive cruel. infamous or unusual punishment. A rticle XXVII. Every person has the right, in case of pursuit not resulting from ordinary crimes. to seek and receive asylum in foreign territory. in accordance with the laws of each country and with international agreements. Article XXVIII. The rights of man arc limited by the rights of others, by the security of all. and by the just demands of the general welfare and the advancement of democracy.

4 AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MAN 175 CHAPTER TWO Duties Article XXIX. It is the duty of the individual so to conduct himself in relation to others that each and everyone may fully form and develop his personality. A rticle XXX. It is the duty of every person to aid, support, educate and protect his minor children, and it is the duty of children to honor their parents always and to aid. support and protect them when they need it. Article XXXI. It is the duty of every person to acquire at least an elementary education. Article XXXII. It is the duty of every person to vote in the popular elections of the country of which he is a national, when he is legally capable of doing so. A rticle X X X III. It is the duty of every person to obey the law and other legitimate commands of the authorities of his country and those of the country in which he may be. A rticle XXXIV. It is the duty of every able-bodied person to render whatever civil and military service his country may require for its defense and preservation, and. in case of public disaster, to render such services as may be in his power. It is likewise his duty to hold any public office to which he may be elected by popular vote in the state of which he is a national. A rticle X XXV. It is the duty of every person to cooperate with the state and the community with respect to social security and welfare, in accordance with his ability and with existing circumstances. Article XXXVI. It is the duty of every person to pay the taxes established by law for the support of public services. A rticle XXXVII. It is the duty of every person to work, as far as his capacity and possibilities permit, in order to obtain the means of livelihood or to benefit his community. Article XXXVIII. It is the duty of every person to refrain from taking part in political activities that, according to law, are reserved exclusively to the citizens of the state in which he is an alien.

5 INDEX Abranches, Carlos A. Dunshee de, 52-53, 85-86, ,129, ,140 A1ianza Federal de Mercedes, American Convention on Human Rights: origins, 18-19; drafting of, 19-20, 90; legal effect of ratification, 20-22; prospects, 22-24; suspension of guarantees, American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man: adoption, 13; as source of law, Arechaga, Justino Jimenez de, 61, 80, 84, 129,162 Balaguer, Joaquin, 117, 119 Bianchi, Manuel, 55, 56, 61, 109, 112, 121 Bilder, Richard, 34 Bosch, Juan, Brazil: on creation of IACHR, 47; human rights violations, 52-53; case study, Buergenthal, Thomas, Cabranes, Jose, 12, 76 Catrio, Genaro R., 61,132,137,162 Cassin, Rene, 20, 82 Chacon, Angela Acuna de, 61, 63, 77, 86, 126, 135 Chalmers, Rene, 112 Charter (OAS): and human rights, 6-11, 169; non-intervention, 11-13; amendments (Protocol of Buenos Aires), 6, 50; and American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, 16; and economic, social, and cultural rights, 38 Chile: on American Convention on Human Rights, 21; attacks on IACHR, 61; and right of petition, 75; case study, Civil and political rights. See Rights, civil and political Columbia: IACHR session, 66 Constitutional guarantees, suspension of. See Suspension of constitutional guarantees Consultative Commission on Human Rights, Costa Rica, 66, 72; and right of petition, 74-75; and national committees on human rights, 79, 81 Council for Defense of Human Rights, Cranston, Maurice, Cuba: exclusion from OAS, 11-12, ; creation of IACHR, 46-47; political prisoners in, 67, 95; case study, Domestic legal remedies, exhaustion of: definition of, ; in Brazilian cases, ; in United States cases, Dominican Republic, 11, 19,46; on creation of IACHR, 47, 48-49; and right of petition, 76; case study, Duvalier, Fran,<ois, 112 Economic, social, and cultural rights. See Rights, economic, social, and cultural Ecuador: and IACHR statute, 72 EI Salvador, 67, 72; case study, Escudero, Gonzalo, 63, 77, 78, 117 Exhaustion of domestic legal remedies. See Domestic legal remedies, exhaustion of

6 178 INDEX Fifth Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, 19,42,46--48,69, 116 Fox, Donald, 22 Fraga, Gabino, 55, 61, 83, 126, 134, 135, 142 Gallegos, Romulo, 55, 62, 83, 117 Genocide, charges of, 164 Haiti, 96; case study, Hansen, Olavo, 127, 128, 132 Honduras, 67; case study, Inter-American Charter of Social Guarantees,38,39 Inter-American Commission on Human Rights: and American Convention on Human Rights, 19,90; origins of,42-43; creation of, 46-50; as autonomous entity, 50-51; members elected as individuals, 51-53;amendingstatuteof,53-55,93-97; rules and regulations, 55, 97; election of officers, 55-56; secretariat, 56, 98, 100; budget, 56-57,64,82; size of, 57; eligibility for election to 57-59; nomination procedure, 59-60; election of members, 60-62; resignations, 61; conditions of service on, 62-63; sessions and meetings, 63-65; seat of, 66-67; competence, See also Promotion of Human Rights; Protection of Human Rights Inter-American Conference on Problems of War and Peace, 13, 42, 44, 169 Inter-American Council of Jurists: and American Convention on Human Rights, 19 Inter-American Court of Human Rights, 45-46,47 Inter-American Juridical Committee: on OAS Charter and human rights, 9-11; and American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, 13, 17, 42; Consultative Commission on Human Rights, 14, 43-44; on civil and political rights, 29-31; on economic, social. and cultural rights, 32, Inter-American Specialized Conference on Human Rights, Investigations, on-the-spot: problem of consent, 66-67; as fact-gathering method. 103; requests, 108, , , 118, 120, , Kennedy, President John F., 96 Kennedy, Senator Edward, 33 Martins, Daniel Hugo, 62 Mexico: IACHR session, 66 Ninth International Conference of American States, 6, 13, 44-45, 169 Non-intervention: in OAS Charter, 11-13; and human rights action, 71-72; Haitian case, ; and governmental communications, 163, 169 OAS Charter. See Charter (OAS) OAS Council: drafting IACHR statute, 48-50; amending IACHR statute, 53-55, 94 OAS General Assembly: reports from IACHR, OAS Permanent Council: election of commissioners, 59-60, 61 OAS Secretary General: and IACHR, Petition, right of, 70, 71; and IACHR's statute, 72-76; to take cognizance of, 77, 92-93; and national committees, 80; to examine, 92, Petitions, general cases, Petitions, governmental, ; and American Convention on Human Rights, 164 Petitions, individual: screening, ; fact-gathering, ; disposition of, 105; volume processed , ; review of decisions, , See also Cuba; Haiti; Dominican Republic; Brazil: United States; Chile Pope John xxm, 33 Promotion of human rights: definition of, 70-72; national committees and, 78-82; fellowships and scholarships, 82-84; radio and television programs, 84; seminars and symposia, 84-8S; contests ; publications, 86; reports, 87-89; cooperation of governments, 86-87, 89

7 INDEX 179 Protection of human rights: definition of, 70-71, 91. See also Petition, right of; Petitions, governmental; Petitions, individual Protocol of Buenos Aires. See Charter (OAS) Refugees, 112 Reports, annual: to OAS General Assembly, 86-89; and human rights violations, 105; on Cuba, III; on Haiti, 114; on Brazil, 137 Reports, special, 87-88; and human rights violations, ; on Cuba, III; on Haiti, 114; on Chile, 160; on Honduras EI Salvador, 166 Reque, Luis, 61, ,162 Rights, civil and political: philosophical basis, 25-26; in the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, 26; problem of priority, 27-28; problem of definition, 28-29; fundamental rights, 73; and right of petition, 97 Rights, economic, social, and cultural: philosophy of, 32-34; critique, 34-35; recommendations of IAlC, 35-37; in the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, 37-38; and duties, 35-38; right to work, 37; right to health care, 37 Roa, Raul, 109 Robertson, A. H., Sandifer, Durward, 61, 123, 124, 127, 129, 133 Schreiber, Anna, 116 Special Inter-American Conference (Second), 54-55, 56; and amendments of IACHR statute, 94-97,122 State of siege, See also Suspension of constitutional guarantees Suspension of constitutional guarantees: in Chile, , ; and American Convention on Human Rights, Thomas, Ann Van Wynen and A. l., 8-9 Trujillo, President Rafael, II, 46, 116 United States: and American Convention on Human Rights, 21; and economic, social, and cultural rights, 38-39; on creation of IACHR, 47, 49; on sessions of IACHR, 64; hearings in Miami, 67; and promotion of human rights, 70-72; and ;Jrotection of human rights, 70-72, 91; right of petition, 71,76; case study, Venezuela: and protection of human rights, 72; and national committees, 79 Woodward, Robert, 61; resignation, 162