The Fight for Human Rights | Documentary

Human dignity is inviolable. But is it really? Do we not experience every day how somewhere in the world people are being degraded? This documentary shows both the hurdles in the struggle for human rights and the success stories that give us courage.

In their film, Angela Andersen and Claus Kleber explain the fundamental values of human civilization. After all, the 30 articles of the UN Declaration of Human Rights were intended to represent these values. They include more than most people could think of off the cuff, such as freedom of the press, opinion, and assembly, the right to free elections or the prohibition of torture and slavery. Yet human rights encompass much that is often forgotten in the pursuit of prosperity and security, such as the right to work or asylum. This international documentary analysis raises some uncomfortable questions for all of us.

In 1948, in the face of the horrors of the Second World War, the human rights that were believed to apply to all citizens of the world were formulated, but these represented a purely Western worldview. They failed to take into account the customs and values of the Islamic world and the social norms of Asia. Could this be the key to understanding today's conflicts and crises? How can we do better?

People from many parts of the world speak out - people working at grassroots level and those who understand the burden of political responsibility. Biographically, two protagonists stand out: former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who was born in Prague and endured the horrors of Nazi terror as a child, and former German President Joachim Gauck. Gauck fought for human rights in a variety of roles: as a pastor in the GDR, after the fall of communism as the federal commissioner for Stasi documents, and finally as the President of Germany.

The documentary demonstrates that 70 years after the UN Declaration, the global observance of human rights is an ideal still far from being achieved. But one that is worth fighting for.