ABSTRACT
For the purpose of this book, the author has merged values and principles, though they can be discussed separately. The four values and principles essential for community development practice are human rights, selfreliance, self-determination and participation. Human rights in essence encompass all the four values and principles as well as others. However, talking about human rights for community development practice in a composite way may not be of help, as a lot of controversy surrounds human rights, both in general and when it is used as a benchmark for approving trade and aid and applying sanctions. Thus it is important to examine each value and principle separately. In all the community development practice trends presented in the previous two chapters, the application of human rights, self-reliance, self-determination and participation may not be found or may be found in varying degrees. The discussion of these values and principles does not necessarily suggest that they emanate from or are linked to all community development practice areas already discussed. Rather the chapter argues that community development practice ought or needs to follow the four basic values and principles suggested. The reason for such an argument is the author’s value bias, albeit shared by many others, respect for people, and belief that these values provide ethical legitimacy for sustainable community development practice. Further, the following discussion will show how these values and principles are linked to each other and fl ow from one to another in the sequence they are presented.
