Poverty And Poverty Essay

While there is no clear definition for ‘human rights’, it is possible to describe them as basic moral and legal rights that all people have, simply in virtue of their humanity. Although human rights are traditionally associated with being civil and political rights, they also include socioeconomic rights. Focusing on a political conception of human rights, it is important to note that not every question of social justice is a human rights issue. Despite UN declarations, many do not consider poverty a violation of human rights. Severe poverty, traditionally defined in terms of low income, concerns insecurity caused by a lack of resources. By the UN dividing its human rights law into two separate treaties, countries are able to endorse civil

This is because interpretations of socioeconomic rights on an international level are regarded as too expansive, going further than what it means to be free from poverty. To be free from poverty, one would have basic subsistence necessary to lead a minimally good life. In this essay, I will argue that there is a human right to be free from poverty. I will focus primarily on the argument that poverty undermines human rights, therefore there is an implicit right to be free from poverty. An implicit right is still a right as some implied rights, depending on the legal precedent and statute, are protected by law and able override explicit rights. By considering the link between poverty and human rights intrinsic, the argument will be presented by questioning the capacity for freedom in relation to the right to liberty. I will also discuss limitations to the argument using the claimability objection to rights and how it is necessary for a right to be enforceable and have duty-bearers to be considered a right. My conclusion will be highlighted by showing that rights can be claimed as entitlements via a pre-existing social

She believes as the poor are unlikely participate in political activities, it is likely they would lose their capacity to act as moral agents since their freedoms have been undermined by their poverty. Similarly, famines are less likely to occur where individuals are able to exercise their political rights, such as the right to vote. People in poverty are not able to function; the lack of access to basic amenities has limited their ability to have a minimally good life, something which human rights wholly protects (Nickel 2005: 395). In any such case, the poor are then compelled to take risks which would be otherwise unnecessary if their basic socioeconomic needs were met. This can lead to a loss of personal integrity as social dependency can leave people vulnerable and unable to defend their civil and other legal rights effectively. Without access to essential basic goods in adequate conditions, lives are endangered. If there are rights to be free from the consequences of poverty, there is a right to be free from poverty