As it is evident from his fame and greatness, the concept of human rights is not well-known among the general public. Although nowadays, with the advancement of global communication tools, group media, and virtual space of the internet, there are fewer people who have not at least heard or read about human rights, but human rights is a concept that requires understanding, possession, observance, and implementation, above all, education; just like a child’s need to learn a language and then expect them to speak. Because from people who have not been educated about human rights, who do not understand its essence and how it works, it may be unreasonable to expect them to respect human rights among themselves and demand its implementation from their rulers.

The education of human rights is in itself a part of human rights. In other words, the right to education of human rights is one of the human rights, as it is considered a fundamental right above all others. In Article 26, paragraph 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, it is stated: “Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.”

The right to education is one of the fundamental human rights, and governments are obligated to provide it free of charge, at least at the primary level, for the people of their society (Article 26, Paragraph 1 of the Declaration). This has been the case for all governments and is mentioned in the constitutions of many countries. For example, the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran states in Article 30: “The government is obligated to provide free education and training for all citizens until the end of secondary education, and to expand higher education opportunities to the extent of the country’s self-sufficiency.”

There is no doubt about the legitimacy or existence of the right to education in the human rights system, but the important question is what kind of education is considered in international documents? As mentioned in paragraph 2 of Article 26 of the Declaration, it is education that strengthens respect for human rights and freedoms. This means the right to education in human rights. This means that human rights and their content should be taught in educational environments for people, especially students.

The necessity of human rights education, beyond the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, has been included in many international treaties and declarations in order to oblige and encourage governments to respect and promote human rights in a targeted manner. These include: the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of 1966 (Article 13), the Convention against Discrimination in Education of 1960 (Article 5), the Declaration of the Rights of the Child of 1959 (Article 7), the Convention on the Rights of the Child of 1982 (Article 29), the World Program for Human Rights Education and Democracy (Montreal 1993), and the Vienna Declaration of 1993. Due to the importance and significance of this issue, the United Nations declared the years 1995-2004 as the Decade for Human Rights Education. In 2005, the members of the United Nations adopted a Global Action Plan for Education, which proposes concrete strategic actions and practical guidelines for

In Iran, the discussion of incorporating human rights units in schools, despite the government’s obligation to implement human rights commitments, has not yet become practical. However, the most fundamental step in fulfilling human rights commitments is to educate students in schools so that the culture of peace and human rights is instilled in the minds of the future generation of society from an early age. This not only aligns with the implementation of domestic and international legal obligations, but also has a practical and beneficial outcome for the growth of society, as the spread of respect for human rights in the relationship between people and the government, as well as between people themselves, has a direct and lasting impact on national and international development and peace. It is no secret that the root of most internal and international conflicts and wars has been the disregard for human rights. This concept has been emphasized in the preamble of the United Nations Charter and is considered one of the founding goals of the organization to promote and protect human rights to prevent the recurrence of other

A few days ago (5 Dey), the President of Iran, in a meeting with senior managers of the country’s education system in Niavaran, spoke about the necessity of teaching citizenship rights. This comes at a time when the draft of the Citizenship Rights Charter, recently published by the government’s legal deputy, does not include education on human or citizenship rights in schools. Neglecting this important aspect of human rights, namely education, in a document that claims to cover the latest developments in human rights, is an unforgivable mistake in this period of time. It is evident that not only does the Iranian education system currently lack the readiness to teach human rights, but it has also not developed any plans or mechanisms for it. Moreover, ideologically, the belief in the existence and importance of such a thing has not yet taken shape in their minds and expressions.

Currently, human rights are not taught in schools in Iran and only exist as a specialized field in a few universities; although there have been some discussions and talks about this field, many of its units are paradoxically Islamic. Teaching human rights as an independent university field began in the late 1980s as one of the branches of law in the master’s degree program and is only offered to a limited number of students in four universities (Tehran, Shahid Beheshti, Allameh Tabatabai, and Mofid Qom). In the bachelor’s degree program, human rights are only offered as an optional course in some universities for law students.

Iran is one of the signatories of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 1966 Covenants, and is legally bound to implement them. One of the obligations arising from these documents is the government’s duty to promote human rights through education. Article 13 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights states: “[The countries party to this Covenant] agree that the aim of education and training should be the full development of the human personality and the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. In addition, the countries party to this Covenant agree that education and training should prepare all individuals for useful roles in a free society and promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations and racial, ethnic or religious groups, and encourage the development of the United Nations’ activities for the maintenance of peace.”

It is necessary for civil society in Iran to take action in promoting human rights in the absence of serious government will. Along with pressuring the government to include human rights units in schools and even seminaries, and to train independent teachers in this field, they themselves should take steps towards educating the people, especially vulnerable groups such as women, children, minorities, and people with disabilities, throughout the country, particularly in underdeveloped areas. They should make it an essential part of civil life and engrain it in the minds and customs of the people. This is not a dream, but rather a task that has been initiated in many countries for decades, even in countries more deprived than Iran, such as Afghanistan.