Human Rights and Responsibilities
Human rights are the basic freedoms and protections every person is entitled to simply because they are human, set out internationally in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and given legal force in the UK by the Human Rights Act 1998. Some rights are absolute and can never be restricted, such as freedom from torture, while others are qualified and can be lawfully limited in specific circumstances, such as freedom of expression. This topic explores religious and non-religious teaching on where rights come from and whether they always come paired with responsibilities.
Before you start
No specific prerequisites - this is a good place to start.
Method
- Learn the key definitions: human rights, responsibility and human dignity.
- Learn what the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and the Human Rights Act 1998 each actually do.
- Learn the difference between an absolute right (never lawfully restricted, such as freedom from torture) and a qualified right (lawfully restricted in some circumstances, such as freedom of expression).
- Learn one accurate Christian teaching and one accurate Muslim teaching on human worth and justice, each with a correct scripture reference.
- Practise building a two-contrasting-views paragraph on rights and responsibilities, citing UDHR Article 29 for the duties side.
- For 12-mark evaluate answers, plan a paragraph in support, a paragraph against, using a named source in each, and a justified conclusion.
Worked example
Build a fully developed explanation (point, religious source, development) of one reason religious believers give for supporting universal human rights, using Micah 6:8.
- State the point: some believers say human rights follow from a religious duty to treat everyone justly, not only members of their own group.
- Give the source accurately: Micah 6:8 teaches that God requires people 'to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly'.
- Explain what the verse asks for: it makes justice and mercy central religious duties, not optional extras or matters only between a believer and God.
- Develop the link to rights: since justice must be shown to everyone, this teaching is often used to support the idea that all people are entitled to fair and equal treatment, which is the basis of human rights.
- State the final developed answer, combining the point, the source and the explanation into one connected paragraph.
Practice questions
Try each question, then tap to reveal the answer.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE Religious Studies exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Compare the teaching of Micah 6:8 with the teaching of Qur'an 4:135 on how a person should treat others fairly.
A UK-based faith charity helped 15,000 people with human-rights related casework in one year: 9,000 with asylum and refugee support, and the rest with anti-trafficking support. Calculate the number helped with anti-trafficking support, calculate this as a percentage of the total helped, and explain one religious reason this charity might see its work as fulfilling both a right and a responsibility.
Evaluate the view that religious organisations, rather than the state, should take the lead in protecting human rights in the UK. In your answer, refer to religious teaching, refer to different points of view, and reach a justified conclusion.
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