Human Dignity and Fundamental Freedoms - Global Values of Human Rights: A Response to Cultural Relativism

Abstract

Sixty years ago, on this day of 10th December 1948 at Paris, the state members of the United Nations, for the noble purposes stated in the 1945 Charter, for peace and respecting for fundamental human rights, dignity and values, maintaining justice and promoting social progress, adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in order to solemnly affirm human values, which are inherent, inalienable, indivisible and interlinked, of each individual human being in the whole mankind community. Since then, the Declaration has become a common standard for all peoples, nations and states to pursue this noble course of humankind and to make their best efforts in order to guarantee, enforce and realise the fundamental human rights and freedom, as well as to promote and to strengthen tolerance and respect of human dignity and values. Despite the fact is that the formulation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was not reflected the full representation of diverse cultures and ideologies, as well as its historical shortcomings, its establishment is a great ever achievement of humankind in term of the progress of liberty, equality and human rights. The creation of the UDHR reflected the noble aspiration of human beings experiencing thousands of years of human history, especially at the time of the massive killings of people as a result of the most destructive wars (world wars 1 and 2), genocides, the ideology-based divided world, and the ignorance of human values, dignity and freedom spreading out all over the planet. Therefore, the need of a common international standard was more than ever before required and the establishment of a universal declaration of human rights was evitable. One of the reasons why this document is the world's most widely recognised international document because every culture and nation finds it as not only a highest aspiration, but also a common heritage of their cultures, religions and traditions of thoughts. Above of those the UDHR is a global language of our world of diverse cultures and ideologies; it is the foundation of peace, security, tolerance and human development. The recognition of universal human rights has been echoing the long-lasting aspiration of human beings on the fight for their dignity, fundamental freedoms and development. Although set out in the UDHR sixty years ago and there have been a lot of achievements in relation to the evolution and realization of human rights for all peoples, nations and individuals, many universal human rights have been deprived and seriously violated across the world. This requires greater, consistent efforts of the humankind community in bringing fully the noble implications of the UDHR into reality. During over the last two decades, the rise of cultural relativism has challenged the legacy of the UDHR as well as universalism of human rights. Lie in the front of cultural relativism is the 'Asian values' perspective that denied the universality of human rights and championed their partiularity. Inspired by Confucianism and Communialism, which have been heavily influential on East Asian countries, the 'Asian values' perspective is indeed a rivalry of universal human rights. This paper is to respond to cultural relativism in general, and the 'Asian values' perspective in particular, thereby it reasserts the global values of the UDHR and universal human rights rested upon human dignity and fundamental freedoms as a global value of human rights that can not be culturally challenged or practically denied. It also reminds that the return of fundamental principles enshrined in the UDHR in the global context of cultural and religous conflicts is more than ever a necessity.