Human Security
Alexander Betts, Matthew Eagleton-Pierce
The concept of ‘human security’ represents a challenge to the Cold War assumption that ‘security’ should be understood in purely state-centric and militaristic terms. Rather, it recognises, firstly, that the ultimate referent object of security should be the individual, whose well-being is not necessarily coterminous with the security of the state. Secondly, it highlights that the sources of threat to individuals go far beyond inter-state conflict to include, for example, internal conflict, human rights abuses, communicable disease, environmental disasters, poverty and malnutrition.1