Rights Vs Freedom

Download as docx, pdf, or txt
Download as docx, pdf, or txt
You are on page 1of 4

II.

FREEDOM VS HUMAN RIGHTS

Rights and the term freedom appear at various places in constitutions around the world. In fact,
Freedom is one of the core concepts of the American constitution (and the Philippines as well).
Frequently, the terms are interchangeable. In most scenarios, they mean the same thing. In fact,
taking away someone’s right means taking away their freedom as well.
The main difference between a right and freedom is a right is an entitlement of a given
thing. For example, a person working at a job has a right to receive their salary as per the
contract. However, freedom refers to the state in which a government cannot restrict a person
from performing a certain activity. However, this activity has to be within the bounds of the law.

Rights and freedom are two concepts that overlap to a certain extent. Rights are an individual’s
moral or legal entitlement to have or do something. Freedom is the absence of necessity,
coercion, or constraint in choice or action. It is our rights that ensure and protects our freedom. In
this sense, rights and freedom are always interrelated and inseparable. For example, the right to
vote ensures that everybody is entitled to vote in the election, this also automatically allows us
the freedom to vote. The main difference between rights and freedom is that right is a moral or
legal entitlement whereas freedom is a state or quality of being free.

Parameters
of
RIGHTS FREEDOM
compariso
n

A person or governing body cannot A person or governing body can take


Restrictions violate the rights of another person away person’s freedom to carry out
without facing legal consequences. an activity.

Society is legally obliged to uphold the


The advantage of freedom is that one
Advantages rights of its people. This decreases events
can be an independent individual.
of injustice that occur.

Rights may come at different times. The Freedom can be taken away or given
Duration rights a person receives also differ from to a someone at any time. It is not
other people. permanent like a right.

A person receives legal rights only after A person receives certain freedoms at
Method of
becoming a citizen or performing a birth itself. This implies that it is an
Receiving
certain duty. innate notion.
Rights Freedom
Definition Rights are legal and moral Freedom is the absence of
entitlements necessity, coercion, or
constraint in choice or
action
Protection Rights are protected by Freedom is protected by
rights
the law
Interrelation Rights entitle you to Freedom is granted by
freedom.
rights.

WHAT ARE RIGHTS?


A right is an entitlement that one receives when one becomes part of society. Human can get
different types of rights throughout their lives depending on various factors. A few factors are:
 ▪ Age
 ▪ Nationality
 ▪ Occupation
 ▪ Education
A right can be given based on the economic, social and political standing of an individual. A
country confers national rights to a citizen. These rights are a core component of a country’s
constitution. A few common rights that are given to a citizen by their government is:
 ▪ Right to Education
 ▪ Right to freedom of Thought
 ▪ Right to freedom of Religion
 ▪ Right to Life
 ▪ Right to freedom of Movement
 ▪ Right to freedom of Expression

An individual receives rights because they are human. These are known as human rights. Human
rights were the creation of the United Nations. The meeting wherein the outline of Human Rights
was given under the guidance of Eleanor Roosevelt. Human rights include:
 ▪ Right to freedom of life
 ▪ Right against slavery
 ▪ Right against inhuman treatment and torture
 ▪ Right to equality
 ▪ Right to a fair trial and many more.

WHAT IS FREEDOM?
Freedom is a state of being where a person can carry out different activities without interference
from other individuals or authority. This is an emotional entity. It is also objective. This means
that the term freedom can mean different things for different people. People can have a different
perception of freedom depending on different factors. They are:
 ▪ Upbringing
 ▪ Education
 ▪ Location
 ▪ Occupation
 ▪ Race
Freedom is a product of rights. This means that a person can receive freedom only when he or
she has been given rights.
Freedom is also an essential component of human society. Freedom allows one to live a happier
and a healthier life. It is a requirement for one to express themselves.

Freedom is the quality or state of being free, i.e., it is the absence of necessity, coercion, or
constraint in choice or action. Most rights ensure that their holders are entitled to freedom. In
other words, it is the rights that help us to achieve the state of freedom. For example, let’s
consider one of the most fundamental human rights – right to education. This right ensures that
all children are free to receive an education; depriving a child of this right is a crime. Thus, this
right ensures that the child is free from constraint and coercion. The liberty rights we discussed
earlier also come into play here. A person’s liberty right to something consists in his freedom to
do or have something. For example, a person’s right to free speech allows him the freedom to
speak freely. This means that no one has the right to force or coerce us to stop expressing
ourselves.

MAIN DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RIGHTS AND FREEDOM


 ▪ A right has a legal binding. It is a privilege that a country or an institution gives to an
individual for being a part of it. Freedom is a state of being.
 ▪ A right is an objective. However, Freedom is subjective. It differs from person to person.
 ▪ A right is an important component of the constitution. A person receives at different times.
Freedom is given to a person at the time of their birth.
 ▪ A right cannot be taken away from a person unlawfully. However, Freedom can be taken
away unlawfully as well as lawfully.

POLICE POWER
It is the capacity of the states to regulate behavior and enforce order within their territory for the
betterment of the health, safety, morals and general welfare of their inhabitants. Police power is
defined in each jurisdiction by the legislative body, which determines the public purposes the
need to be served by legislation.

STATE AND NON-STATE ACTORS ON HUMAN RIGHTS


Non -State Actors
Under traditional approaches to Human Rights, Non-State actors are beyond the direct reach of
international human rights law. They cannot be parties to the relevant treatise and so they are
only bound to the extent that obligations accepted by states can be applied to them by
governments. The result is that entities including non-governmental organizations, international
organizations such as the UN, private security contractors, and transnational corporations, along
with many others, are generally considered not to be bound directly by human rights law.

Source:

1. https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/philippine-college-of-criminology/introduction-to-
criminology/module-for-clj-2-udududuebeiisnsbshzhbsnznsjeje-hdhdudheb3hdhs-
jsusushshehue/20322455 https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/philippine-college-of-
criminology/introduction-to-criminology/module-for-clj-2-udududuebeiisnsbshzhbsnznsjeje-
hdhdudheb3hdhs-jsusushshehue/20322455

2. https://pediaa.com/difference-between-rights-and-freedom/

You might also like