Human Rights

The fundamental thesis of my book is that human rights are unequivocally Western and bear the imprint of the structure, culture, and, above all, the process (the US and France) that gave rise to these rights in the West. However, the fact that these rights are Western does not mean that they cannot be universal. Nevertheless, the criterion for whether these rights are universal cannot, by definition, be the equation Western = Universal. The measure of the universality of these rights should rather be their acceptability (and this acceptance must come from the people, not from individuals who have received Western education or are in elite positions in a region), and their compatibility with other cultures and structures. This book suggests that the inviolability of the human body and spirit, and equality before the law are three ideas that are Western but also universalizable, and that these three ideas constitute important parts of the International Bill of Human Rights. Furthermore, undoubtedly, other civilizations may also contain universal norms within them. These norms should be put forth as proposals; others, especially the arrogant West which has violated human rights more than any other civilization, must heed these proposals. These proposals need to become part of a global dialogue, their arguments need to be understood, and they need to mature before they can transform into human rights.