Declaration of the Rights of Man

Approved by the National Assembly of France, August 26, 1789

The representatives of the French people, as members of the National Assembly, believe that
ignoring the rights of man are the whole reason for public troubles and for dishonest governments,
and have determined to set out and solemnly declare the natural, unalienable, and sacred rights of
man, so that this declaration will always be at the front of society and will always remind them of
their rights and duties; so that the acts of the lawmakers and the president may be compared at any
time with the main goals of all governments and therefore be more respected, and, lastly, so that the
complaints of the citizens, based on simple and obvious ideas, should help make the constitution
better and result in happiness for everyone. So the National Assembly recognizes and proclaims, in
the presence and in the name of God, the following rights of man and of the citizen:

Articles:
1. Men are born and remain free and with equal rights. Social differences may be allowed only
for the general good.
2. The goal of government is to preserve the natural and unalienable rights of man. These rights
are liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression.
3. The basis of all power comes essentially from the people. No group, nor individual may
exercise any power that does not come directly from the people.
4. Liberty is the freedom to do everything that does not hurt anyone else; therefore the natural
rights of each man has no limits except to make sure the other members of society get the
enjoyment of the same rights. These limits can only be determined by law.
5. Law can only ban the things that are hurtful to society. Nothing may be stopped that is not
banned by law, and no one may be forced to do anything thats not stated in the law.
6. Law reflects what the people want. Every citizen has a right to participate personally, or
through his representative, in its creation. The law must be the same for everyone, whether it
protects or punishes. All citizens are allowed to hold government jobs and will be hired based on
their talent and ability.
7. No person should be accused, arrested, or put in jail other than the way the law says it should
be done. Anyone who does this in any other way will be punished. But any person charged with a
crime or arrested legally will give himself up immediately.
8. The law will determine which punishments are necessary and legal, and no one willbe
punished unless its done legally and for a particular crime.
9. People accused of crimes will be considered innocent until proven guilty, if an arrest seems
necessary, the prisoner will be treated as kindly as possible.

10. People will have the freedom of speech regarding their opinions and religious views as long
as they dont disrupt the peace and order of society.
11. The free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the most precious of the rights of
man. Every person will have the freedom to speak, write and print, but will be held responsible if
they lie.
12. To secure the rights of man, a military will be necessary. This military will be established for
the good of all and not for the personal advantage of the people that run it.
13. Taxes will be necessary for the military and for the government. Everyone will pay taxes
based on their income and no one will be exempt.
14. All the citizens have a right to decide, either personally or by their representatives, how badly
we need taxes, what to use them for, and how to decide how much each person pays, and how long
a tax should last.
15. The people have the right to know exactly what the government officials have done during
their term
16. A society that doesnt follow the law and the separation of powers are not defined ,has no
constitution at all.
17. Since property is an unbreakable and sacred right, no one will have their stuff taken from
them unless it absolutely necessary for the public good, and in that case the owner will be paid fairly
for their stuff.