Highlight four limitation on the right of a citizen

I feel violated – can human rights be limited?

John understands that he has all these different human rights that are protected in the Constitution. However, he struggles to understand whether it can be limited? For example, a police officer can still search his home if there is a search warrant to do so. According to John, this infringes his right to privacy.

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I feel violated – can human rights be limited?
What are the limitations to right of a citizen?
What are the 4 limitations to freedom of expression?
What are the 4 citizen rights?
What are the limitations to human rights in Nigeria?

The human rights contained in the Bill of Rights are not entirely set in stone and a person’s human rights can sometimes be limited. This means that a limitation of a human right may be considered lawful.
However, not every single limitation of a human right will be considered as lawful. A person’s human rights can be limited if:
- The limitation applies to all people and not just one or a group of people.
- There is a good reason to limit the right and the limitation can reasonably be justified in society.
The Constitution specifically provides that any limitation must be fair and reasonable, and that all relevant factors must be taken into account, such as:
- The nature of the right. For example, one of the purposes of the right to privacy is to repudiate the unfair practices in the past.
- The importance of the limitation of the right. For example, the police official’s duty is to protect the public. It is important for him/her to search a person’s home, limiting that person’s right to privacy, to obtain evidence that can be used in a court.
- How the limitation affects the right. For example, the seriousness of the limitation must be considered. If a police officer can search a person’s home at any time s/he wants to, that will highly affect a person’s right to privacy.
- If any less restrictive manners are available to get the same result. For example, by getting a warrant from court to search John’s home, the same result of obtaining evidence can be reached.
The limited human rights of a person will be weighed against the human rights of others and the values of the society. For example, if a person feels that his/her freedom of expression has been violated, the court weigh his/her right against societal values and every other person’s right to dignity when considering whether it is lawful to limit his/her freedom to say something in public.

John understands that it can be a difficult matter to prove that his human rights have been limited, but wants to know what he can do if he feels that someone limited his human rights.

Every person has the right to approach a court to resolve any dispute s/he may have with another person or entity (such as a company) through the application of law. This is known as the right to access to courts.
This right also includes to have the dispute resolved in a fair public hearing in court or other tribunal or forum, such as an Ombudsman.
A person who feels that his/her human rights have been violated can do the following:
- Contact the South African Human Rights Commission (“SAHRC”) to lodge a complaint. The SAHRC will resolve the complaint through negotiation, mediation or arbitration.
- Approach a court to enforce his/her right to claim compensation if the limitation caused damages. It is recommended to obtain the assistance of an attorney when approaching the court.
- Lodge a complaint with another institution, such as the Public Protector or a non-governmental organisation.

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Declaration of the Rights of Man - 1789

Approved by the National Assembly of France, August 26, 1789

The representatives of the French people, organized as a National Assembly, believing that the ignorance, neglect, or contempt of the rights of man are the sole cause of public calamities and of the corruption of governments, have determined to set forth in a solemn declaration the natural, unalienable, and sacred rights of man, in order that this declaration, being constantly before all the members of the Social body, shall remind them continually of their rights and duties; in order that the acts of the legislative power, as well as those of the executive power, may be compared at any moment with the objects and purposes of all political institutions and may thus be more respected, and, lastly, in order that the grievances of the citizens, based hereafter upon simple and incontestable principles, shall tend to the maintenance of the constitution and redound to the happiness of all. Therefore the National Assembly recognizes and proclaims, in the presence and under the auspices of the Supreme Being, the following rights of man and of the citizen:

Articles:

1. Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be founded only upon the general good.

2. The aim of all political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible rights of man. These rights are liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression.

3. The principle of all sovereignty resides essentially in the nation. No body nor individual may exercise any authority which does not proceed directly from the nation.

4. Liberty consists in the freedom to do everything which injures no one else; hence the exercise of the natural rights of each man has no limits except those which assure to the other members of the society the enjoyment of the same rights. These limits can only be determined by law.

5. Law can only prohibit such actions as are hurtful to society. Nothing may be prevented which is not forbidden by law, and no one may be forced to do anything not provided for by law.

6. Law is the expression of the general will. Every citizen has a right to participate personally, or through his representative, in its foundation. It must be the same for all, whether it protects or punishes. All citizens, being equal in the eyes of the law, are equally eligible to all dignities and to all public positions and occupations, according to their abilities, and without distinction except that of their virtues and talents.

7. No person shall be accused, arrested, or imprisoned except in the cases and according to the forms prescribed by law. Any one soliciting, transmitting, executing, or causing to be executed, any arbitrary order, shall be punished. But any citizen summoned or arrested in virtue of the law shall submit without delay, as resistance constitutes an offense.

8. The law shall provide for such punishments only as are strictly and obviously necessary, and no one shall suffer punishment except it be legally inflicted in virtue of a law passed and promulgated before the commission of the offense.

9. As all persons are held innocent until they shall have been declared guilty, if arrest shall be deemed indispensable, all harshness not essential to the securing of the prisoner's person shall be severely repressed by law.

10. No one shall be disquieted on account of his opinions, including his religious views, provided their manifestation does not disturb the public order established by law.

11. The free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the most precious of the rights of man. Every citizen may, accordingly, speak, write, and print with freedom, but shall be responsible for such abuses of this freedom as shall be defined by law.

12. The security of the rights of man and of the citizen requires public military forces. These forces are, therefore, established for the good of all and not for the personal advantage of those to whom they shall be intrusted.

13. A common contribution is essential for the maintenance of the public forces and for the cost of administration. This should be equitably distributed among all the citizens in proportion to their means.

14. All the citizens have a right to decide, either personally or by their representatives, as to the necessity of the public contribution; to grant this freely; to know to what uses it is put; and to fix the proportion, the mode of assessment and of collection and the duration of the taxes.

15. Society has the right to require of every public agent an account of his administration.

16. A society in which the observance of the law is not assured, nor the separation of powers defined, has no constitution at all.

17. Since property is an inviolable and sacred right, no one shall be deprived thereof except where public necessity, legally determined, shall clearly demand it, and then only on condition that the owner shall have been previously and equitably indemnified.

What are the limitations to right of a citizen?

Examples are, hate speech, libel, slanderous words body shaming etc. A citizen may be deprived of his rights if he is detained by law. In other words, limitation to the right of movement can also include, curfews, sit at home order, declaration of state of emergence.

What are the 4 limitations to freedom of expression?

The Court has typically applied a four-part test: the limitation must (1) be provided by law; (2) pursue a legitimate aim listed in the article; (3) be necessary in a democratic society; and (4) be proportionate stricto sensu.

What are the 4 citizen rights?

However, there are certain rights that are only granted to U.S. citizens, including the right to vote, to apply for federal employment, to run for elected office, to obtain a U.S. passport and to not be denied re-entry into this country.