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For the Spanish version
(Declaración Americana de Derechos y Deberes del Hombre)
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AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE
RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MAN
(Approved by the Ninth
International Conference of American States,
Bogotá, Colombia, 1948)
WHEREAS:
The
American peoples have acknowledged the dignity of the individual, and their
national constitutions recognize that juridical and political institutions,
which regulate life in human society, have as their principal aim the protection
of the essential rights of man and the creation of circumstances that will
permit him to achieve spiritual and material progress and attain happiness;
The
American States have on repeated occasions recognized that the essential rights
of man are not derived from the fact that he is a national of a certain state,
but are based upon attributes of his human personality;
The
international protection of the rights of man should be the principal guide of
an evolving American law;
The
affirmation of essential human rights by the American States together with the
guarantees given by the internal regimes of the states establish the initial
system of protection considered by the American States as being suited to the
present social and juridical conditions, not without a recognition on their part
that they should increasingly strengthen that system in the international field
as conditions become more favorable,
The Ninth
International Conference of American States
AGREES:
To adopt the
following
AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE
RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MAN
Preamble
All
men are born free and equal, in dignity and in rights, and, being endowed by
nature with reason and conscience, they should conduct themselves as brothers
one to another.
The
fulfillment of duty by each individual is a prerequisite to the rights of all.
Rights and duties are interrelated in every social and political activity of man.
While rights exalt individual liberty, duties express the dignity of that
liberty.
Duties
of a juridical nature presuppose others of a moral nature which support them in
principle and constitute their basis.
Inasmuch
as spiritual development is the supreme end of human existence and the highest
expression thereof, it is the duty of man to serve that end with all his
strength and resources.
Since
culture is the highest social and historical expression of that spiritual
development, it is the duty of man to preserve, practice and foster culture by
every means within his power.
And,
since moral conduct constitutes the noblest flowering of culture, it is the duty
of every man always to hold it in high respect.
CHAPTER ONE
Rights
| Article I. Every human being
has the right to life, liberty and the security of his person. |
Right to life, liberty and
personal security. |
| Article II. All persons are
equal before the law and have the rights and duties established in this
Declaration, without distinction as to race, sex, language, creed or any
other factor. |
Right
to equality before law. |
| Article III. Every person has
the right freely to profess a religious faith, and to manifest and
practice it both in public and in private. |
Right to religious freedom and
worship. |
| Article IV. Every person has
the right to freedom of investigation, of opinion, and of the expression
and dissemination of ideas, by any medium whatsoever. |
Right
to freedom of investigation, opinion, expression and dissemination. |
| Article V. Every person has
the right to the protection of the law against abusive attacks upon his
honor, his reputation, and his private and family life. |
Right
to protection of honor, personal reputation, and private and family life. |
| Article VI. Every person has
the right to establish a family, the basic element of society, and to
receive protection therefor. |
Right
to a family and to protection thereof. |
| Article VII. All women, during
pregnancy and the nursing period, and all children have the right to
special protection, care and aid. |
Right to protection for
mothers and children. |
| Article VIII. Every person has
the right to fix his residence within the territory of the state of
which he is a national, to move about freely within such territory, and
not to leave it except by his own will. |
Right to
residence and movement. |
| Article IX. Every person has
the right to the inviolability of his home. |
Right to
inviolability of the home. |
| Article X. Every person has
the right to the inviolability and transmission of his correspondence. |
Right to the
inviolability and transmission of correspondence |
| Article XI. Every person has
the right to the preservation of his health through sanitary and social
measures relating to food, clothing, housing and medical care, to the
extent permitted by public and community resources. |
Right to the
preservation of health and to well-being. |
| Article XII. Every person has
the right to an education, which should be based on the principles of
liberty, morality and human solidarity. |
Right to
education. |
| Likewise every person has the
right to an education that will prepare him to attain a decent life, to
raise his standard of living, and to be a useful member of society. |
|
| The right to an education
includes the right to equality of opportunity in every case, in
accordance with natural talents, merit and the desire to utilize the
resources that the state or the community is in a position to provide. |
|
| Every person has the right to
receive, free, at least a primary education. |
|
| Article XIII. Every person has
the right to take part in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy
the arts, and to participate in the benefits that result from
intellectual progress, especially scientific discoveries. |
Right to the
benefits of culture. |
| He likewise has the right to
the protection of his moral and material interests as regards his
inventions or any literary, scientific or artistic works of which he is
the author. |
|
| Article XIV. Every person has
the right to work, under proper conditions, and to follow his vocation
freely, insofar as existing conditions of employment permit. |
Right to work and
to fair remuneration. |
| Every person who works has the
right to receive such remuneration as will, in proportion to his
capacity and skill, assure him a standard of living suitable for himself
and for his family. |
|
| Article XV. Every person has
the right to leisure time, to wholesome recreation, and to the
opportunity for advantageous use of his free time to his spiritual,
cultural and physical benefit. |
Right to leisure
time and to the use thereof. |
| Article XVI. Every person has
the right to social security which will protect him from the
consequences of unemployment, old age, and any disabilities arising from
causes beyond his control that make it physically or mentally impossible
for him to earn a living. |
Right to social
security. |
| Article XVII. Every person has
the right to be recognized everywhere as a person having rights and
obligations, and to enjoy the basic civil rights. |
Right to
recognition of juridical personality and civil rights. |
| Article XVIII. Every person
may resort to the courts to ensure respect for his legal rights. There
should likewise be available to him a simple, brief procedure whereby
the courts will protect him from acts of authority that, to his
prejudice, violate any fundamental constitutional rights. |
Right to a fair
trial. |
| Article XIX. Every person has
the right to the nationality to which he is entitled by law and to
change it, if he so wishes, for the nationality of any other country
that is willing to grant it to him. |
Right to
nationality. |
| Article XX. Every person
having legal capacity is entitled to participate in the government of
his country, directly or through his representatives, and to take part
in popular elections, which shall be by secret ballot, and shall be
honest, periodic and free. |
Right to vote and
to participate in government. |
| Article XXI. Every person has
the right to assemble peaceably with others in a formal public meeting
or an informal gathering, in connection with matters of common interest
of any nature. |
Right of assembly. |
| Article XXII. Every person has
the right to associate with others to promote, exercise and protect his
legitimate interests of a political, economic, religious, social,
cultural, professional, labor union or other nature. |
Right of association. |
| Article XXIII. Every person
has a right to own such private property as meets the essential needs of
decent living and helps to maintain the dignity of the individual and of
the home. |
Right to property. |
| Article XXIV. Every person has
the right to submit respectful petitions to any competent authority, for
reasons of either general or private interest, and the right to obtain a
prompt decision thereon. |
Right of petition. |
| Article XXV. No person may be
deprived of his liberty except in the cases and according to the
procedures established by pre-existing law. |
Right of protection from
arbitrary arrest. |
| No person may be deprived of
liberty for nonfulfillment of obligations of a purely civil character. |
|
| Every individual who has been
deprived of his liberty has the right to have the legality of his
detention ascertained without delay by a court, and the right to be
tried without undue delay or, otherwise, to be released. He also has the
right to humane treatment during the time he is in custody. |
|
| Article XXVI. Every accused
person is presumed to be innocent until proved guilty. |
Right to due
process of law. |
| Every person accused of an
offense has the right to be given an impartial and public hearing, and
to be tried by courts previously established in accordance with pre-existing
laws, and not to receive cruel, infamous or unusual punishment. |
|
| Article XXVII. Every person
has the right, in case of pursuit not resulting from ordinary crimes, to
seek and receive asylum in foreign territory, in accordance with the
laws of each country and with international agreements. |
Right of asylum. |
| Article XXVIII. The rights of
man are limited by the rights of others, by the security of all, and by
the just demands of the general welfare and the advancement of democracy. |
Scope of the
rights of man. |
CHAPTER TWO
Duties
| Article XXIX. It is the duty
of the individual so to conduct himself in relation to others that each
and every one may fully form and develop his personality. |
Duties to society. |
| Article XXX. It is the duty of
every person to aid, support, educate and protect his minor children,
and it is the duty of children to honor their parents always and to aid,
support and protect them when they need it. |
Duties toward
children and parents. |
| Article XXXI. It is the duty
of every person to acquire at least an elementary education. |
Duty to receive
instruction. |
| Article XXXII. It is the duty
of every person to vote in the popular elections of the country of which
he is a national, when he is legally capable of doing so. |
Duty to vote. |
| Article XXXIII. It is the duty
of every person to obey the law and other legitimate commands of the
authorities of his country and those of the country in which he may be. |
Duty to obey the
law |
| Article XXXIV. It is the duty
of every able-bodied person to render whatever civil and military
service his country may require for its defense and preservation, and,
in case of public disaster, to render such services as may be in his
power. |
Duty to serve the
community and the nation. |
| It is likewise his duty to
hold any public office to which he may be elected by popular vote in the
state of which he is a national. |
|
| Article XXXV. It is the duty
of every person to cooperate with the state and the community with
respect to social security and welfare, in accordance with his ability
and with existing circumstances. |
Duties with
respect to social security and welfare. |
| Article XXXVI. It is the duty
of every person to pay the taxes established by law for the support of
public services. |
Duty to pay taxes. |
| Article XXXVII. It is the duty
of every person to work, as far as his capacity and possibilities permit,
in order to obtain the means of livelihood or to benefit his community. |
Duty
to work. |
| Article XXXVIII. It is the
duty of every person to refrain from taking part in political activities
that, according to law, are reserved exclusively to the citizens of the
state in which he is an alien. |
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