Constitution and human rights

In 2024, the Summer Olympic Games will be held in Paris, France. This is one of the most important sporting events in the world, representing one of the most relevant human experiences in terms of competition, fair play, and the struggle for victory in multiple competitions. Similarly, it should or must convey some of the most important values for a democratic society, such as peace, tolerance, pluralism, diversity, among others.

We must not only talk about the social and economic impact they produce in the cities and countries that host each sporting event of this kind, but also everything that comes with it, even in cultural terms. Philanthropy, the flourishing of civil society, human rights in general, the rights of people with disabilities in particular, or citizen participation are, for example, some of the most specific aspects that we should observe in this regard.

Sometimes we might think that competitions of this kind become advertising events and commercial spectacles where the major television networks, marketing companies, sponsors, and, in general, economic elites are the ones who benefit the most not only in monetary terms but in other ways as well. And it may be so, but that’s why we need to link the Olympics with Olympism, which although they sound similar, are not the same thing.

Olympism is related to the possibility and the need to reclaim sport and physical culture as a fundamental right related to our health, our life, and our general well-being. Likewise, Olympism must protect the aforementioned values in order to achieve an ethics and a shared public morality based on sport. That’s why, besides 2024 being an Olympic year, it must lead to strengthening that Olympic world that is so necessary.

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“The right to the city is far more than the individual liberty to access urban resources: it is a right to change ourselves by changing the city”, David Harvey

The agenda for the right to the city unquestionably requires a broad exercise of citizenship for all its purposes to be fulfilled. Definitely, today’s cities need citizens committed to the rest of rights and obligations, otherwise there are no possibilities for the real effectiveness of normative expectations. Citizenship is also associated with the idea of political participation, inherent to any consolidated democracy, whereby each member of civil society actively engages in collective decisions. When these decisions affect cities as a whole, the need for rights and obligations to be exercised responsibly is magnified.

This is where the concept of social responsibility comes into play, understood as a contribution of individuals, groups, and governments to the improvement of society, the economy, and the environment. Social responsibility must be voluntary, active, determined, and convincing, without being assumed as a bargaining chip to achieve personal or group interests.

In the Mexican case, the Constitution states in Article 25 that national development will be achieved, with social responsibility, by the public sector, the social sector, and the private sector. It also adds that there can be no impairment of other forms of economic activity that contribute to the development of the nation. This is, then, the constitutional basis for social responsibility, clear evidence that it is an obligation even from a legal standpoint and not just from a political, cultural, moral, or social perspective.

21st-century cities require extensive social responsibility to become safe, conducive, and suitable environments for people to fulfill their life projects. It is clear that each individual must be socially responsible for their actions, as this is a task that cannot be exclusively assigned to the government. The proper functioning of cities, in this sense, as well as the materialization of human rights and public freedoms of individuals, is directly related to social responsibility and the need for everyone to contribute to the public space and take ownership of it with full awareness.

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All human rights are interconnected, but some of them have more direct points of contact with others. This is the case with sports, health, and nutrition as human rights, which are even related to another extremely important right such as the right to life since life has as prerequisites those that have already been mentioned. Everything is part of a formula that needs balance.

Now, both sports and health and nutrition require comprehensive public policies, as nowadays ailments such as overweight, obesity, and diabetes lead to many deaths worldwide, including Mexico, which speaks of their great practical relevance and the particular interest that institutions, authorities, and the State must have.

In such public policy, citizen participation is essential both in its design and in its execution. It is not just about legitimizing the decisions and actions of the rulers but about enabling citizens to truly engage in decision-making processes. This is amplified when we talk about such important issues related to quality of life, in an increasingly sedentary world with unhealthy eating habits.

The aforementioned ailments – overweight, obesity, diabetes – are often related to lifestyle, so there must be direct involvement of civil society from an early age, specifically from within the family, and although the State has a particular responsibility, each individual must contribute to improving the health situation both privately and publicly, without neglecting either.

Citizen participation, then, is crucial to better address the major challenges at national and international levels in seeking a healthy life. Each person must therefore express their opinion, engage with their community, demand and require authorities to respond to their requests for access to information, participate in mechanisms such as participatory budgets, in order to have a much more robust system in all terms.

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As is well known, from July 26 to August 11, 2024, the upcoming Olympics will take place in the city of Paris, France. In addition to what this sporting event represents in terms of sports, economics, social and cultural aspects, it is necessary from this moment to consider the environmental impact it will bring, specifically its ecological footprint.

The ecological footprint is the analysis of resource consumption patterns and waste generation that occur in a specific population. This allows us to understand the sustainability of human activities, which becomes increasingly important in significant sporting events like the Olympics, where there is a large concentration of people and extensive consumption.

For example, in the past Tokyo 2020 Olympics, there were calculations suggesting that the actual ecological footprint was close to 3 million tons of carbon dioxide. This was based on the transportation of athletes, journalists, and the general public, construction of infrastructure, food waste, electricity consumption, and waste generation.

Adding to this, Paris faces numerous environmental issues such as high air pollution and the loss of human lives, surpassing what occurs in other major European capitals. The result is that foresight, planning, and organization must be central when preparing for an event that expects to host more than 16 million people.

Large-scale sports events and the societal significance of the Olympics should not conflict with environmental protection. In fact, they should be permanent allies, so that every four years, the host city can demonstrate to the world how things should be done in terms of sustainability. Hopefully, Paris 2024 can be a starting point in this regard.

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Sportsmanship characterizes major competitions worldwide, at least in an ideal sense. Healthy competition, fair play, and adherence to the rules should be central elements in major sports leagues, as mentioned in a previous essay –bit.ly/48zGaSZ–. Fair play constitutes an attitudinal model for education with a human rights perspective.

Now, as stated in the previous paragraph, sportsmanship must adhere to the rules. Compliance with sports rules is crucial for the relationship between sportsmanship and the Rule of Law to unfold, as the Rule of Law precisely refers to the enforcement and respect of norms, ensuring that the best, whether in individual or team competition, emerges victorious.

The Rule of Law, integrated with sportsmanship, can be a fundamental tool for civic education, especially considering that many people are followers and enthusiasts of major sports events. In this sense, the social responsibility of sports leagues is significant, given the influence they can have on broad social sectors, starting with children and youth.

Without the Rule of Law, sports are seen merely as a spectacle aimed at making billions of dollars without any consideration for moral scruples, affecting the cultural and social environment. Globally influential athletes, major sports teams, and, of course, governments, must be clear about their obligations in this regard.

Therefore, sportsmanship and the Rule of Law are two tools that, if structured together appropriately, can ensure that sports as entertainment serve as a positive influence for the millions of people who follow soccer, basketball, baseball, American football, boxing, and others. In sports as well, the promotion of citizenship should be encouraged and fostered.

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The topic regarding the patrimonial responsibility of the State as part of Public Law has been in continuous development, which is gaining greater importance every day in the legal field of various Latin American countries, including Mexico. Thus, our Federal Constitution establishes the obligation of the State to prevent, investigate, punish and repair violations of human rights, in the terms established by law; for this reason, in the Mexican legal system there is an alternative for the claim for violation of human rights identified as the patrimonial responsibility of the State, also included in the Magna Carta, pointing out that the State has responsibility when, due to its irregular administrative activity, damages to the property or rights of individuals, for which they may demand the corresponding compensation.

The aforementioned alternative may be used when a citizen considers that his or her human rights have been violated by a public servant as a representative of the State, identifying such violations as damages caused by irregular compliance or, where appropriate, non-compliance with any of the obligations that must be carried out carried out by the State. We must clarify that the procedure followed to determine the patrimonial responsibility of the State seeks to prove that the State failed, through its government agents, to comply with any of its duties and that said failure created damage which must be compensated by the State indicated legal entity.

In the superior law there are only general provisions, so there are secondary laws that are: the Federal Law of State Patrimonial Responsibility, the Federal Law of Responsibilities of Public Servants, the Federal Law of Administrative Responsibilities of Public Servants and the Federal Law of Administrative Procedure, which constitutes the federal legal framework regulating the patrimonial responsibility of the State and public servants.

On the other hand, in Mexico, progressively, lately citizens have been demanding their right to have greater intervention in the decisions made related to the public aspect, likewise, they are not in a position to consent to the easy and authoritarian way that public servants resolve without consulting or at least justifying actions on matters of high impact for the population, in order to demand that representatives of public power make their actions transparent so that they are distributed and applied with due legality and opportunity to all and each of the public resources – human, financial, material and technological – so that they contribute significantly to achieving good public administration.

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Emotional intelligence is an epistemic and practical skill that gives access to the understanding of personal impressions and those of third parties in order to have the ability to manage them in favor of others. It is a virtue that most people generally have at different levels and which can be expanded consciously; that is, it lies in perceiving that impressions, or emotions, should not be considered unmanageable stimuli that take control of some human beings, and the reality is the opposite, since they are normal responses to people’s behavior and thinking facing life. Emotional intelligence is basically made up of five capabilities: self-control, empathy, relationship management, self-knowledge and self-motivation.

Those responsible for the administration of justice, that is, the judges, are human beings, therefore entities with emotions; However, their personal situation is particularly complex since their work requires them to live in conflict every day, facing litigation at every moment that requires them to make decisions about the highest values ​​of society such as life, freedom, property. , honor, security, family, among many others.

In their performance, judges need self-knowledge and self-control to maintain coherence in their work. Likewise, their performance demands that they conduct themselves with great empathy and extensive management of relationships, in order to determine the precise moment in which they need apply each of these abilities and, finally, self-motivation with the purpose of maintaining the will to act in this way permanently at all times of their responsibility to administer justice, which is why developing their emotional intelligence is a tool of considerable value, to optimize your jurisdictional prowess; These types of judges are typical of a constitutional democracy.

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“The right to development is the measure of the respect of all other human rights”, Kofi Annan

The right to development refers to the participation and contribution of all individuals to enjoy, precisely, development in a broad sense and a more specific sense, particularized in four areas: economic, social, cultural, and political. In broad terms, economic development refers to the state’s capacity in terms of income, wealth, and prosperity; social development aims to improve the living conditions of individuals as part of a group; cultural development involves the community’s participation in cultural and artistic life; and political development relates to citizens’ involvement in decision-making and the strengthening of democracy.

These development areas are relevant, and as stated by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Development (https://www.ohchr.org/en/topic/right-development), it is a right that should be exercised both individually and collectively. The latter dimension is particularly significant for the right of peoples to self-determination, i.e., the ability to determine their own destinies without interference from third parties.

Other notions of development should not be excluded from the equation, such as sustainable development, integral development, or the free development of personality. Therefore, when examining the structure of the right to development more deeply, there is a need to connect it with other conceptualizations mentioned.

Perhaps that is why the treatment this right has received has been that of a political guideline without much practical applicability or specific legal requirement, compared to other types of prerogatives that have received more attention in legislation, public policies, and constitutional court decisions. It would be appropriate to imbue it with both characteristics to reclaim it for the future.

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Fair play has consolidated itself in recent years as an important issue in sports competitions, specifically in soccer. It is about respecting the rules of the game but also its spirit, in such a way that there is justice, healthy competition, and even the promotion of social and human values such as respect, tolerance, or dignity.

When athletes become competitors, it is precisely the respect among themselves, the respect for the referee, and the respect for the audience that should guide their performance. Conducting oneself without cheating, without violence, without offensive language, without threats, and without generating pointless fights or discussions should be a fundamental condition of sports in general and soccer in particular.

Human rights education can have fair play as an ally. Living by human rights means living based on respect and solidarity, which also applies to the sportsmanship spirit that should always prevail. In the spectacle of sports like soccer, promoting family unity and social cohesion is essential, as well as knowing how to win and lose. If this is positively projected onto human rights, the culture of promoting them benefits greatly.

Fair play can be assumed as an attitudinal model when it is not only sought but also fulfilled on and off the field. Teams, organizations, leagues, and even sponsors and media should be promoters of fair play, given the massive impact that soccer has worldwide, given its status as the most popular sport.

If, on the contrary, fair play is only a slogan that is hardly fulfilled, its influence can be extremely negative on the behaviors of sports fans, especially among girls, boys, and adolescents who are very receptive to the media models they see on television, streaming, or on a soccer field. It is crucial to observe, then, the importance of ensuring that its effects are for the good of the audience

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According to the website www.worldatlas.com, the most popular sport globally is soccer, with 3.5 billion fans around the world. Considering that the current global population exceeds 8 billion people, the result is that almost half of the men and women inhabiting the world have an affinity for soccer.

Beyond what this means for the so-called sports-entertainment (and the hundreds of billions of dollars generated with each national and international competition, FIFA World Cups, advertising, and campaigns around media-renowned figures like Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappé, Neymar, etc.), the fact that almost half of the population considers itself a soccer fan leads us to think about the social and attitudinal models that this sport promotes or should promote.

If soccer is characterized by a proper application of rules, adherence to them, fair and impartial referees applying regulations objectively without considering the economic, political, or popularity level of the involved teams, then it exerts a positive influence among its millions of followers.

If, on the contrary, soccer involves match-fixing, questionable referee performances, pressures on executives, and, in general, a dominance of economic aspects over purely sporting ones, the influence on the audience can be very negative, especially among children and adolescents, as many of them even see it as a possible way of life.

Therefore, soccer impacts social responsibility, as well as human rights and basic social and democratic values such as respect, tolerance, compliance with laws, and adherence to justice. Hence, the need to analyze this aspect of the sport, which is so socially relevant.

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jrndr2015@gmail.com