Universal Human Rights, Indigenous Values and the Concept of Relativism

Abstract

One emerging issue in contemporary human rights is whether it is logically correct to accept new realm of human rights as universally binding upon cultural rights arising from the moral and religious mores of every society, without more, and whether application of human rights should be relativized, at least in isolated circumstances. Discussing relativism of human rights within the framework of indigenous values, the paper took the position that a holistic application of recent realm of human rights universally in radically different societies would be counterproductive. Accordingly, the paper recommends that first and second generation rights be relativized where they develop beyond the original text of Universal Declaration of Human Rights.