<strong>Natural rights</strong> are those not contingent upon the laws,
customs,  or beliefs of any particular culture or government, and
therefore  universal and <a title="Alienation (property law)"
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alienation_%28property_law%29">inalienable</a>
(i.e., rights that cannot be repealed or restrained by human laws).<br
/><br />The idea of <a title="Human rights"
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights">human rights</a>  is also
closely related to that of natural rights: some acknowledge no  difference
between the two, regarding them as synonymous, while others  choose to
keep the terms separate to eliminate association with some  features
traditionally associated with natural rights.<sup class="reference"
id="cite_ref-3"><a
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_and_legal_rights#cite_note-3"><span>[</span>3<span>]</span></a></sup>
Natural rights, in particular, are considered beyond the authority of any
government or <a class="mw-redirect" title="Intergovernmental
organizations"
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intergovernmental_organizations">international
body</a> to dismiss. <br /><br />The 1948 <a title="United Nations"
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations">United Nations</a> <a
title="Universal Declaration of Human Rights"
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rights">Universal
Declaration of Human Rights</a> is an important <a title="Legal
instrument" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_instrument">legal
instrument</a> enshrining one conception of natural rights into
international <a title="Soft law"
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soft_law">soft law</a>. Natural rights
were traditionally viewed as exclusively <a class="mw-redirect"
title="Negative rights"
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Negative_rights">negative
rights</a>,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-4"><a
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_and_legal_rights#cite_note-4"><span>[</span>4<span>]</span></a></sup>
whereas human rights also comprise positive rights.<sup class="reference"
id="cite_ref-5"><a
href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_and_legal_rights#cite_note-5"><span>[</span>5<span>]</span></a></sup>
Even on a natural rights conception of human rights, the two terms may not
be synonymous.<br /><br
/>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_and_legal_rights<br /><br /><br
/>Also, I have tickets to the Diary of Anne Frank on March 15.&nbsp; Sorry
I won't be able to attend the big meeting.&nbsp; <br />Robin<br /><br
/><br />