ABSTRACT

The transnational approach transcends the government structure and the barriers of nation-states to deal directly with the problems of human rights on the basis of universal values and international law. The truth of the matter is that governments frequently fail to protect human rights, and it is nongovernmental groups who then protest these failures and press for rectification of the injustice. The Algiers Declaration of Third World Peoples, adopted in Algiers on July 4, 1976, is a presentation of an anti-imperialist statement that attributes violations of human rights directly to the structures of the international economic system. Among the transnational groups there have been generally three types of nongovernmental organizations active in the continuing struggle for human rights. The first is the humanitarian group concerned with refugees, medical problems, and welfare aid. The second category contains the liberal groups involved in education and opposed to political repression. Social-change advocates employing peaceful or revolutionary means fall into a third category.