Security Essay: What Is Human Security?

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Security is what helps us, as individuals, to be individuals. It helps us sleep at night without a worry; it provides us food and keeps us healthy; it protects us from harm, be it internal, external or even Mother Nature’s wrath. It is something that gives us a sense of belonging and ownership. What is regarded as ‘security’ by each individual, translates to that of a community, a town, a city, a state, a nation and eventually the whole world.

The concept of security has evolved from that of a state to that of an individual. Formally known as Human Security, is the protection and provision of a safe environment to individuals from threats. Human Security is a concept which is concerned with the security of people and the individual rather …show more content…

Here, ‘survival’ relates to the security aspect and also means protection from threats to the physical integrity and provision of basic requirements; ‘daily life’ refers to that part of human security which relates to security issues with life in communities and families and extends security and safety to areas which haven’t been explored yet. Now, looking at ‘dignity’, which literally means “the state of being worthy of honour or respect”, we see a clear linkage between human rights and human security.

Human rights are rights that, in principle, all human beings are entitled to, merely by virtue of being biologically human and are universally accepted. They are individual rights, not tied to any particular social status or group, communal, national or any other membership. Human rights are inalienable; the state may not withdraw any individual’s human rights except under conditions prescribed by the rule of law or (for some rights only) in situations of national emergency. Human rights have evolved from political rights; to economic, social and cultural rights and now, to the right of …show more content…

One can see that human security is an overarching framework for human rights. The rights covered under human rights, essentially means security and protection of the individual’s civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights as well as the right to development. Human security is therefore a broader concept, comprising of fundamental rights as well as basic capabilities and absolute needs. Unlike human rights, it covers areas which may pose a probable threat to the human race, such as natural disasters, threats from state and non-state actors

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