The EU policy of international co-operation for development, the promotion of human rights and the respect of cultural identities

Abstract

The issue of the relationship between the promotion of Human Rights and the safeguarding of cultural identities involves considerations of not only juridical but also social, ethical and political nature. It might initially appear that there is an obvious conflict between them. In fact when we speak of Human Rights, we speak about something that should be given to all the men, independent of their race, social class, religion and nationality. The very idea that such a Unicum exists and may be applied independently from the national diversities, appears in contrast with the existence of considerable cultural differences between and among the populations. Not strangely, therefore, a comparative analysis of some of the formal acts with which Human Rights have been "declared" shows that even the so-called universal declarations have always substantially depended on the cultural, political and social contexts in which they have been promulgated.