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Universal Declaration Of Human Rights Essay

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Introduction
Human rights are rights that are entitled to every individual regardless of nationality and citizenship as it is inherent, inalienable, and universal. The presence of basic human rights are vital in upholding a civilized society. The idea of having individual rights and freedom is not a new concept in Britain, in fact it has very deep roots. History shows landmark advancements such as Magna Carta 1215, Habeas Corpus Act 1679, and Bill of Rights and Claim of Rights 1689 all had important roles in protecting citizen’s rights.
After World War II which ended in 1945, many nations realized that they had to prioritise the protection of human rights in order to avoid history from repeating itself (again). More than 50 nations joined forces in forming an organization called the United Nations which drafted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. This Declaration was the point of departure for the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (hereafter the ECHR) as its drafting was followed soon after by the newly formed Council of Europe in 1950. However, it was only ratified in 1953 under the enforcement of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg.
Contents of the ECHR consists of main rights and freedoms in the form of articles, rules of operation …show more content…
It changed the legal landscape by introducing a new approach to interpretation into UK legislation that is sometimes known as the “compatibility approach” or the “abstract purposive approach”. Interpretation of legislation is governed by s.3(1) of HRA . This provision applies to cases where any of the Convention rights are concerned. If an Act cannot be read compatibly with ECHR when the words are clear then s.4(2) of HRA states, “If the court is satisfied that the provision is incompatible with a Convention right, it may make a declaration of that incompatibility”

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