An Introduction to Human Rights and Security Sector Reform

Successful security sector reform (SSR) must be guided by the understanding of people as rights-holders and the state, including core security actors, as duty-bearers in providing security as a service to the people.

Human rights and security are closely linked. Human rights violations can be a cause of conflict, a result of conflict or an early warning of conflict.

This paper describes international human rights obligations, the concept of SSR, how human rights are relevant to successful SSR, what a human rights-based approach to SSR entails and provide practical examples of specific human rights.