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1. Sufficient and Adequate for Men:
As far as ‘man and his family’ is concerned, the ideology of Human Rights appears sufficient and adequate. It takes all aspects of man as man in view and stands by him. It stops at human concerns, and does not attempt to propose restructuring state and UN systems. At levels above the concerns of man, they may adopt any ideology, prefer a form of structure suitable for them.
2. Dominance of State Sovereignty:
The concept of state sovereignty hangs heavily over UDHR. Human Rights cannot claim to override state sovereignty. Owing to their attitude, both China and United States were not voted onto the UN Human Rights Commission in 2002. US had refused to vote for the landmine restriction and withdrew from the Kyoto Protocol of global warming. China’s record of human rights was poor on the Thianamen Square massacre of 1989.
3. Lack of Universalism:
Human rights so far appear more on paper, and look more theoretical. Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) remains sacrosanct and a document of veneration. At many places, its articles are conflicting and lack precision. Genocide, ethnic conflicts, exploitation, casteism, child labour, atrocities on women etc. prevail that shows lack of universalism in the acceptance of human rights.
4. Arrogance of Religions:
Human rights are often challenged by religions like Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism and the like. They often mix up state and religion. State is subordinate to demands of religion. Maintaining their religion as ultimate Message of God, they subordinate human rights to their teachings.
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They stand for the otherworldly goals, and neglect the demands of present life. The individual is only a tool and an instrument of religion. Equality is applied only to their followers. Hardly do they permit liberty to the individual. Individual rights undercut Confucius ethics. In Asian societies, community, society and law and order are regarded superior to human rights.
5. Counter-ideologies of Ultra Nationalism and Fundamentalism:
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Human rights are often identified with Western cultural imperialism. It is challenged by ultra-nationalism emerging in many developing countries. It has so happened in Yugoslavia, Rawanda, Sri Lanka, Serbia, and others.
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There is rise of religious fundamentalism or Islamism, particularly, in Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, Sudan, Indonesia, etc. People there are segregated as damned and saved. The damned part of population is hated, tortured and killed. There is ethnic cleansing in many parts of the world.
Despite dubious, fuzzy and indeterminate status of UDHR, Human Rights is definitely a ‘move forward’ in the field of culture, political development, world peace and progress of mankind. It shall have a penetrating impact like that of the theory of natural rights.
Its realisation remains incomplete. But even in its incomplete form it would ‘revolutionise’ every walk of individual and community life. In due course of time, most of the bonds, inhuman laws and traditions, inequalities, disparities etc. would be done away with.
Man would become an end and instrument unto himself, as a result of gaining capacities at par with each other. Human Rights would bring about total democratic and liberal change in form of polities. Universality of Human Rights would rationalise the operations of Liberalisation, Privatisation, and Globalisation (LPG) ushered in the Twenty-first Century. It is expected that its understanding and application would incarnate new culture and civilisation of Humanity. For some applications of Human Rights, it would be a turning point towards humanism if a scale for measurement of Human Rights is devised.