Human rights are legal rights, guaranteed by international law, of persons vis-à-vis the state. They serve to protect human beings and their dignity in times of peace and war. There are fundamentally three distinct types of human rights:

• civil and political rights, for example the right to life, freedom of assembly and freedom of religion
• economic, social and cultural rights, for example the right to employment, education and social security
• "third-generation" rights, for example the right to a healthy environment and development.

It is the duty of the state to guarantee the rights of its citizens and to ensure stability within secure national borders. 

Humanitarian policy defines the framework conditions for humanitarian action in international forums such as the United Nations. The aim is to protect the lives, rights and dignity of individual human beings during and after a crisis -- which may be an armed conflict, a civil disturbance or a disaster of some kind.

Switzerland’s global humanitarian commitment has a long tradition. The international Red Cross/Red Crescent movement was founded in Geneva. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the UN’s most important humanitarian organizations and other humanitarian organizations have their headquarters in Geneva.