All people should have certain rights regardless what country or state they live in. These are called human rights. They were set down on paper by the United Nations in 1948. This was intended as a way of encouraging all the nations of the world to respect them. Many countries, among them Germany, have included these rights in their constitutions as the so-called basic rights. They include, for example, the right to life, liberty and freedom from bodily harm. This means, for instance, that no one may be tortured. Everyone also has the right to express his or her opinion without being punished for it. All people should also be sure that they can believe in whatever they want; no one should be discriminated against because of his or her religion. The right to vote means that people can vote regularly in democratic elections; the right to education means that all people are allowed schooling, and the right to property means that everyone is allowed to possess something as their own property. These are only some of the basic rights. In many countries, these human rights are ignored by those in power. This shows that it is by no means to be taken for granted that human rights are recognised, and that everyone has to make sure that the state respects these rights.