Reread paragraph 1 and say about the origin of human rights. Find the answers to the following questions.

Who was the organizer of a campaign for prisoners of conscience?

How does Amnesty International carry out its work?

What are the four aims of Amnesty International?

Look through paragraph 2 and try to explain the difference between a constitutional right and human rights. Give your own examples to illustrate the fact.

On the basis of paragraphs 2,3 and 4 expand the following statements. Add information from the text.

1. A human right is one to which every human being is entitled.

2. Most of the law is made by individual governments.

3. Human rights go beyond human knowledge or political divisions.

4. Intervention against another country is justified by certain reasons.

5. Moral standards are products of different cultures.

Find in each paragraph sentences or parts of them carrying the most important information in a compressed form, join them together and make a short summary.

Written Practice

Translate the following text into Russian using a dictionary if necessary.

The European Court of Human Rights was established by the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and was set up in Strasbourg in 1959.The Convention, which was drawn up by the Council of Europe in 1950,was inspired by the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 and protects many essential rights such as the right to life, freedom from torture and slavery, freedom of thought, conscience and religion, the right to marry and found a family, freedom of peaceable assembly and association, and the right to a fair trial. Only states which are parties to the Convention and the European Commission of Human Rights have the right to bring a case before the Court. Some States have incorporated the Convention into domestic law, but Britain has not, so that it is not directly enforceable as British law. However, British cases have led to some changes in UK domestic law.

2. Translate the following into English.

1. Права человек - это социально-экономические, политические, культурные и другие возможности свободной жизнедеятельности человека.

2. Наиболее важным естественным правом каждого человека является право на жизнь, и это право охраняется законом.

3. Каждый человек имеет право на свободу мысли, совести и вероисповедания.

4. В четвертой статье Французской Декларации прав человека и гражданина свобода определяется “как возможность делать все, что не приносит вреда другому.”

5. Первым международным документом, провозгласившим перечень прав и свобод, явилась Всеобщая декларация прав человека, принятая 10 декабря 1948 года.

6. 12 июня 1776 года в Билле о правах, который явился введением к конституции американской колонии Виргинии, впервые были провозглашены права человека.

Discussion Points

1. Mention one argument for and against intervention against another country because of its human rights policy.

2. There are three international agreements on human rights. How do they work?

3. Give points for or against the statement that there is no human rights violence in your country.

Extra Activity

1. Read the two case histories below and decide which offences Jack and Annette have committed:

Two Cases

Jack Thatcher

Like his father, Jack Thatcher is a jailbird – at the age of 40 he has spent most of his life in prison for various offences of violence and theft. He comes from a broken home, has had no real education and has never had a job. The only way he knows how to make money is by stealing it. When he came out of prison last week, he decided to rob a village post office. During the robbery, the postmaster tried to ring the alarm, so Jack hit him on the head with his gun. At that moment a customer came into the post office. She screamed. In panic, Jack shouted at her to keep quiet. When she continued to scream, he shot her. Jack thought quickly. He took a box of matches from his pocket and set fire to the building, then escaped with the money.

Annette Forbes

Annette Forbes is head of the marketing division of GMS, the com­puter company. She went to university, has a good job and enjoys a happy family. She has always been a ''law-abiding citizen". One day she arrived a little late for work, and had to park her car in a no-parking zone. She took a client out for a business lunch and drank a gin and tonic, half a bottle of wine and a liqueur to celebrate an important new contract. When driving back to work, she was stopped by a policeman, who tested her breath for alco­hol. He told her she had drunk too much and would be disqualified from driving for a year. Annette (who needs her car for her job) suggested he might "forget" about the offence in return for a brand GMC home computer. That afternoon, Annette remembered that she had no more writing-paper at home. As usual, she took a new packet of paper from the office and a box of six pencils.

1. If they are charged and convicted of all their offences, what sentences do you think Jack and Annette will receive?

2. In your opinion, what is the most suitable punishment for Jack and Annette?

3. Do you think they will commit other offences in future?