Rights of Sentience

The Rights of Sentience was a clause of the Galactic Constitution. It spoke out against speciesism and set out the rights that all members of the Galactic Republic were entitled to, including these:

The formal outlawing of slavery. The declaration that all sentient lifeforms were equal, and should be treated as such. All Republic citizens were entitled to all rights enshrined in the Constitution, including suffrage, protection from undue hardships, etc.

When the Galactic Constitution was written in 25,053 BBY, the Rights of Sentience was one of its most radical sections. However, throughout its history, the Republic was hard-pressed to enforce the Rights, especially in its outlying regions. During the New Order, the Galactic Constitution was removed and replaced by the Imperial Charter which promoted Human High Culture, but the clause were still practiced by the Alliance to Restore the Republic in defiance of the Galactic Empire, and was reinstated it when the New Republic Common Charter was drafted, restoring the Galactic Constitution under the New Republic. Senate Resolution 54.325 helped enforce the Rights of Sentience.

The development of this clause stirred strong emotions among the founders, with one Corellian declaring that he would rather die than allow others to be subjected to slavery, citing the suffering it had inflicted on his ancestors during the era of the Infinite Empire and its near destruction of his bloodline.

It is not known how the Galactic Republic determined which species were sentient. Such proved a problem for the droid rights movement, as droid sentience was questionable at best.

Text and facts from the “Rights of Sentience” article on Wookieepedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0. Modified for this site.