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A bill of rights is a statement of certain rights that citizens and/or residents of a free and democratic society have (or ought to have) under the laws of that society. In some jurisdictions, the bill of rights is entrenched in the constitution or Basic Law of that nation-state. When embedded in the constitution, it can prescribe the limits of power the government has to intervene in the lives of its citizens. Usually such entrenched bills of rights have codicils that define the extent of limitation of rights in times of war or civil unrest.
In other jurisdictions, the definition of rights may be statutory. (In other words, it may be repealed just like any other law and does not necessarily hold greater weight than other laws). Not all jurisdictions enforce the protection of the rights articulated in their bill of rights.
A 'bill of rights' may also be an aspirational statement of the rights that citizens ought to have even though the defining body does not have the ability to enforce the protection of those rights. The United Nations's (UN) Universal Declaration of Human Rights is currently an example, though this may be perceived as a controversial example depending on one's opinion of the UN's current ability to effectively enforce its decision.
Diminishment of rights already granted in a bill of rights (such as by repeal of statutory rights or by statutory infringement of constitutionally granted rights) may cause civil unrest, civil disobedience or even revolution. A common concern of libertariansThis article deals with the libertarianism as defined in America and several other nations. For a discussion of the meaning of the term libertarian that is traditional in Europe, see libertarian socialism. For the use of the term "libertarianism" in the p is the gradual erosion of rights, especially those articulated in their respective bills of rights. This is a particular concern during times of war or crisis when certain of the rights may be perceived as a luxury compared to security concerns.
See also
- Bill of Rights 1689The Bill of Rights 1689 is an English Act of Parliament with the long title An Act Declaring the Rights and Liberties of the Subject and Settling the Succession of the Crown and known colloquially in the UK as the "Bill of Rights". It is one of the basic (England)
- Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the CitizenThe Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen ( French: La Declaration des Droits de l'Homme et du citoyen , was one of the fundamental documents of the French Revolution, defining a set of individual rights (and collective rights of the people (1789; France)
- United States Bill of RightsThe Bill of Rights is the name given to the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. When the Constitution was submitted to the state legislatures for ratification, many of its opponents claimed that the Constitution did not include a bill (1789/1791)
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
- European Convention on Human RightsThe European Convention on Human Rights ( 1950) was adopted under the auspices of the Council of Europe† to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms. Most Council of Europe member states are party to the Convention; those that are not are requ (1950)
- Canadian Charter of Rights and FreedomsThe Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is the bill of rights which forms part of the Constitution of Canada adopted in 1982. Its precursor, The Canadian Bill of Rights, 1960 introduced by the Diefenbaker government, applied only to Federal institutio (1982)
- Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European UnionThe Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union is a document containing human rights provisions, 'solemnly proclaimed' by the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, and the European Commission in December 2000. Origin After the E (2000)
Constitutional lawConstitutional law is the study of foundational laws that govern the scope of powers and authority of various bodies in relation to the creation and execution of other laws by a government. A constitution binds a government or governments, limiting the co
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