Human security and human rights interaction

Abstract

This contribution analyses the interaction of human rights and human security. First, the author explains the emergence and conceptualisation of human security. By taking into account the actions on both research and policy levels and the human security initiatives by international organisations, such as UNESCO, by governments, NGOs and academia, the contribution sheds light on the potential of a multilayered and multi‐player approach to human security. In a second step the author identifies the interrelation and interdependence of human security and human rights. The results of this more theoretical part are then empirically tested in a case study on the interaction of human security and human rights, with a particular focus on the implementation of a human security approach to the right of education. Further, the contribution identifies human security‐related best practices. The conclusion argues that, in light of the interdependence of human rights and human security a more holistic and integrative approach is necessary. Their international dimension needs to be complemented by a local focus on human security and human rights. An important step towards this goal is the integration, by states, of human security in national human rights learning curricula.

Securitisation as the Work of Framing

“…The broader conceptualisation builds on a more nuanced understanding of well-being, often focusing on the quality of life, structural limitations and contexts that foster systemic patterns of discrimination and vulnerability (Gasper & Sinnati, 2016, p. 15). It should be noted that human security in its broader and narrow conceptualisations connects to the notion of protection of human rights and human dignity, which provide a conceptual and normative foundation for human security by firmly rooting it in international law (Benedek, 2008). Failures to ensure fulfilment of international human rights obligations, be it in the domain of humanitarian law or economic, cultural and social rights, can directly lead to rapid deterioration of human security.…”

Food and Nutrition Security as a Measure of Resilience in the Barents Region

“…Several studies have emphasized human security as more than the absence of conflicts at state levels but shifting the paradigm towards individual human beings [3][4][5]. This paradigm shift is mainly as a result of the 1994 United Nations approach to human security when it was defined as "safety from chronic threats such as hunger, disease, and repression as well as protection from sudden and harmful disruptions in the patterns of daily life-whether in homes, jobs or communities" [6].…”