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Protection of Human Rights

Categories: Civil Rights Violation Individual Rights

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Words: 616 |

Published: Jan 31, 2024

Words: 616 | Page: 1 | 4 min read

International instruments for human rights protection, national mechanisms for human rights protection, regional mechanisms for human rights protection, non-governmental organizations (ngos) and civil society, challenges and limitations in protecting human rights.

United Nations. (1948). Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Retrieved from https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. (1966). International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Retrieved from https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. (1966). International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Retrieved from https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/cescr.aspx
European Court of Human Rights. Retrieved from https://www.echr.coe.int/Pages/home.aspx?p=home
African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. Retrieved from https://www.achpr.org/
Amnesty International. Retrieved from https://www.amnesty.org/
Human Rights Watch. Retrieved from https://www.hrw.org/

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Essay on Human Rights: Samples in 500 and 1500

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Essay writing is an integral part of the school curriculum and various academic and competitive exams like IELTS , TOEFL , SAT , UPSC , etc. It is designed to test your command of the English language and how well you can gather your thoughts and present them in a structure with a flow. To master your ability to write an essay, you must read as much as possible and practise on any given topic. This blog brings you a detailed guide on how to write an essay on Human Rights , with useful essay samples on Human rights.

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The basic human rights, 200 words essay on human rights, 500 words essay on human rights, 500+ words essay on human rights in india, 1500 words essay on human rights, importance of human rights, essay on human rights pdf, what are human rights.

Human rights mark everyone as free and equal, irrespective of age, gender, caste, creed, religion and nationality. The United Nations adopted human rights in light of the atrocities people faced during the Second World War. On the 10th of December 1948, the UN General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Its adoption led to the recognition of human rights as the foundation for freedom, justice and peace for every individual. Although it’s not legally binding, most nations have incorporated these human rights into their constitutions and domestic legal frameworks. Human rights safeguard us from discrimination and guarantee that our most basic needs are protected.

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Beyond Intractability

The Hyper-Polarization Challenge to the Conflict Resolution Field We invite you to participate in an online exploration of what those with conflict and peacebuilding expertise can do to help defend liberal democracies and encourage them live up to their ideals.

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By Michelle Maiese

June 2004

What are Human Rights?

The 1993 World Conference on Human Rights affirmed the crucial connection between international peace and security and the rule of law and human rights, placing them all within the larger context of democratization and development.

The United Nations is increasingly combining efforts to prevent or end conflicts with measures aimed at reducing human rights abuses in situations of internal violence. Special emphasis is placed on ensuring the protection of minorities, strengthening democratic institutions, realizing the right to development and securing universal respect for human rights. --

Human rights are the basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are considered entitled: the right to life, liberty, freedom of thought and expression, and equal treatment before the law, among others. These rights represent entitlements of the individual or groups vis-B-vis the government, as well as responsibilities of the individual and the government authorities.

Such rights are ascribed "naturally," which means that they are not earned and cannot be denied on the basis of race, creed, ethnicity or gender.[1] These rights are often advanced as legal rights and protected by the rule of law. However, they are distinct from and prior to law, and can be used as standards for formulating or criticizing both local and international law . It is typically thought that the conduct of governments and military forces must comply with these standards.

Various "basic" rights that cannot be violated under any circumstances are set forth in international human rights documents such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights , the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights , and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights . The rights established by these documents include economic, social, cultural, political and civil rights.[2]

While human rights are not always interpreted similarly across societies, these norms nonetheless form a common human rights vocabulary in which the claims of various cultures can be articulated. The widespread ratification of international human rights agreements such as those listed above is taken as evidence that these are widely shared values.[3] Having human rights norms in place imposes certain requirements on governments and legitimizes the complaints of individuals in those cases where fundamental rights and freedoms are not respected.[4] Such norms constitute a standard for the conduct of government and the administration of force. They can be used as "universal, non-discriminatory standards" for formulating or criticizing law and act as guidelines for proper conduct.[5]

Many conflicts are sparked by a failure to protect human rights, and the trauma that results from severe human rights violations often leads to new human rights violations. As conflict intensifies, hatred accumulates and makes restoration of peace more difficult. In order to stop this cycle of violence, states must institute policies aimed at human rights protection. Many believe that the protection of human rights "is essential to the sustainable achievement of the three agreed global priorities of peace , development and democracy ."[6] Respect for human rights has therefore become an integral part of international law and foreign policy. The specific goal of expanding such rights is to "increase safeguards for the dignity of the person."[7]

Despite what resembles a widespread consensus on the importance of human rights and the expansion of international treaties on such matters, the protection of human rights still often leaves much to be desired. Although international organizations have been created or utilized to embody these values, there is little to enforce the commitments states have made to human rights. Military intervention is a rare occurrence. Sanctions have a spotty track record of effectiveness. Although not to be dismissed as insignificant, often the only consequence for failing to protect human rights is "naming and shaming."

Interventions to Protect Human Rights

"Numerous reports, compiled by the United Nations (UN) and various human rights organizations, have cited gross violations of human rights in Africa, especially within the context of internal armed conflicts. In light of this scenario, the question of whether or not a right to humanitarian intervention exists has become even more pertinent." - Kithure Kindiki, " "

To protect human rights is to ensure that people receive some degree of decent, humane treatment. Because political systems that protect human rights are thought to reduce the threat of world conflict, all nations have a stake in promoting worldwide respect for human rights.[8] International human rights law, humanitarian intervention law and refugee law all protect the right to life and physical integrity and attempt to limit the unrestrained power of the state. These laws aim to preserve humanity and protect against anything that challenges people's health, economic well-being, social stability and political peace. Underlying such laws is the principle of nondiscrimination, the notion that rights apply universally.[9]

Responsibility to protect human rights resides first and foremost with the states themselves. However, in many cases public authorities and government officials institute policies that violate basic human rights. Such abuses of power by political leaders and state authorities have devastating effects, including genocide , war crimes and crimes against humanity. What can be done to safeguard human rights when those in power are responsible for human rights violations ? Can outside forces intervene in order to protect human rights?

Humanitarian Intervention

In some cases, the perceived need to protect human rights and maintain peace has led to humanitarian intervention. There is evidence that internationally we are moving towards the notion that governments have not only a negative duty to respect human rights, but also a positive duty to safeguard these rights, preserve life and protect people from having their rights violated by others.[10] Many believe that states' duties to intervene should not be determined by proximity, but rather by the severity of the crisis.

There are two kinds of humanitarian intervention involving the military: unilateral interventions by a single state, and collective interventions by a group of states.[11] Because relatively few states have sufficient force and capacity to intervene on their own, most modern interventions are collective. Some also argue that there is a normative consensus that multilateral intervention is the only acceptable form at present.[12]

There is much disagreement about when and to what extent outside countries can engage in such interventions. More specifically, there is debate about the efficacy of using military force to protect the human rights of individuals in other nations. This sort of debate stems largely from a tension between state sovereignty and the rights of individuals.

Some defend the principles of state sovereignty and nonintervention, and argue that other states must be permitted to determine their own course. They point out that the principles of state sovereignty and the non-use of force are enshrined in the charter of the United Nations , which is regarded as an authoritative source on international legal order.[13]

This argument suggests that different states have different conceptions of justice, and international coexistence depends on a pluralist ethic whereby each state can uphold its own conception of the good.[14] Among this group, there is "a profound skepticism about the possibilities of realizing notions of universal justice."[15] States that presume to judge what counts as a violation of human rights in another nation interfere with that nation's right to self-determination. Suspicions are further raised by the inconsistent respect for sovereignty (or human rights for that matter); namely, the Permanent Members of the UN Security Council have tremendous say over application of international principles. In addition, requiring some country to respect human rights is liable to cause friction and can lead to far-reaching disagreements.[16] Thus, acts of intervention may disrupt interstate order and lead to further conflict.[17] Even greater human suffering might thereby result if states set aside the norm of nonintervention.

Others point out that humanitarian intervention does not, in principle, threaten the territorial integrity and political independence of states. Rather than aiming to destabilize a target state and meddle in its affairs, humanitarian intervention aims to restore rule of law and promote humane treatment of individuals.[18]

Furthermore, people who advocate this approach maintain that "only the vigilant eye of the international community can ensure the proper observance of international standards, in the interest not of one state or another but of the individuals themselves."[19] They maintain that massive violations of human rights, such as genocide and crimes against humanity, warrant intervention, even if it causes some tension or disagreement. Certain rights are inalienable and universal, and "taking basic rights seriously means taking responsibility for their protection everywhere."[20]

If, through its atrocious actions, a state destroys the lives and rights of its citizens, it temporarily forfeits its claims to legitimacy and sovereignty.[21] Outside governments then have a positive duty to take steps to protect human rights and preserve lives. In addition, it is thought that political systems that protect human rights reduce the threat of world conflict.[22] Thus, intervention might also be justified on the ground of preserving international security, promoting justice and maintaining international order.

Nevertheless, governments are often reluctant to commit military forces and resources to defend human rights in other states.[23] In addition, the use of violence to end human rights violations poses a moral dilemma insofar as such interventions may lead to further loss of innocent lives.[24] Therefore, it is imperative that the least amount of force necessary to achieve humanitarian objectives be used, and that intervention not do more harm than good. Lastly, there is a need to ensure that intervention is legitimate, and motivated by genuine humanitarian concerns. The purposes of intervention must be apolitical and disinterested. However, if risks and costs of intervention are high, it is unlikely that states will intervene unless their own interests are involved.[25] For this reason, some doubt whether interventions are ever driven by humanitarian concerns rather than self-interest.

Many note that in order to truly address human rights violations, we must strive to understand the underlying causes of these breaches. These causes have to do with underdevelopment, economic pressures, social problems and international conditions.[26] Indeed, the roots of repression, discrimination and other denials of human rights stem from deeper and more complex political, social and economic problems. It is only by understanding and ameliorating these root causes and strengthening both democracy and civil society that we can truly protect human rights.

Restoring Human Rights in the Peacebuilding Phase

In the aftermath of conflict, violence and suspicion often persist. Government institutions and the judiciary, which bear the main responsibility for the observation of human rights, are often severely weakened by the conflict or complicit in it. Yet, a general improvement in the human rights situation is essential for rehabilitation of war-torn societies. Many argue that healing the psychological scars caused by atrocities and reconciliation at the community level cannot take place if the truth about past crimes is not revealed and if human rights are not protected. To preserve political stability, human rights implementation must be managed effectively. Issues of mistrust and betrayal must be addressed, and the rule of law must be restored. In such an environment, the international community can often play an important supporting role in providing at least implicit guarantees that former opponents will not abandon the peace.[27] Because all international norms are subject to cultural interpretation, external agents that assist in the restoration of human rights in post-conflict societies must be careful to find local terms with which to express human rights norms. While human rights are in theory universal, ideas about which basic needs should be guaranteed vary according to cultural, political, economic and religious circumstances. Consequently, policies to promote and protect human rights must be culturally adapted to avoid distrust and perceptions of intrusion into internal affairs.

To promote human rights standards in post-conflict societies, many psychological issues must be addressed. Societies must either introduce new social norms or reestablish old moral standards. They must design programs that will both address past injustice and prevent future human rights violations . Human rights must not become just another compartmentalized aspect of recovery, but must be infused throughout all peacebuilding and reconstruction activities. Democratization implies the restoration of political and social rights. Government officials and members of security and police forces have to be trained to observe basic rights in the execution of their duties. Finally, being able to forgive past violations is central to society's reconciliation .

Rights Protection Methods

Various methods to advance and protect human rights are available:

During violent conflict, safe havens to protect refugees and war victims from any surrounding violence in their communities can sometimes help to safeguard human lives.
As violent conflict begins to subside, peacekeeping strategies to physically separate disputants and prevent further violence are crucial. These measures, together with violence prevention mechanisms, can help to safeguard human lives. Limiting the use of violence is crucial to ensuring groups' survival and creating the necessary conditions for a return to peace.
Education about human rights must become part of general public education. Technical and financial assistance should be provided to increase knowledge about human rights. Members of the police and security forces have to be trained to ensure the observation of human rights standards for law enforcement. Research institutes and universities should be strengthened to train lawyers and judges. To uphold human rights standards in the long-term, their values must permeate all levels of society.
Dialogue groups that assemble people from various ethnicities should be organized to overcome mistrust, fear and grief in society. Getting to know the feelings of ordinary people of each side might help to change the demonic image of the enemy group. Dialogue also helps parties at the grassroots level to discover the truth about what has happened, and may provide opportunities for apology and forgiveness.
External specialists can offer legislative assistance and provide guidance in drafting press freedom laws, minority legislation and laws securing gender equality. They can also assist in drafting a constitution, which guarantees fundamental political and economic rights.
Those who perpetrate human rights violations find it much easier to do so in cases where their activities can remain secret. International witnesses , observers and reporters can exert modest pressure to bring violations of human rights to public notice and discourage further violence. Monitors should not only expose violations, but also make the public aware of any progress made in the realization of human rights. In order to ensure that proper action is taken after the results of investigations have been made public, effective mechanisms to address injustice must be in place.
Truth commissions are sometimes established after a political transition. To distinguish them from other institutions established to deal with a legacy of human rights abuses, truth commissions can be understood as "bodies set up to investigate a past history of violations of human rights in a particular country -- which can include violations by the military or other government forces or armed opposition forces."[28] They are officially sanctioned temporary bodies that investigate a pattern of abuse in the past. Their goal is to uncover details of past abuses as a symbol of acknowledgment of past wrongs. They typically do not have the powers of courts, nor should they, since they do not have the same standards of evidence and protections for defendants. As such, they usually do not "name names" of those responsible for human rights abuses, but rather point to institutional failings that facilitated the crimes. Finally, they conclude with a report that contains recommendations to prevent a recurrence of the crimes and to provide reparations to victims.
International war crimes tribunals are established to hold individuals criminally responsible for violations of international human rights law in special courts. The international community rarely has the will to create them. As the experiences with the war tribunals for Rwanda and Yugoslavia indicate, even where they are created, they are imperfect. They cannot hold all perpetrators accountable and typically aim for the top leadership. However, it remains difficult to sentence the top-level decision-makers, who bear the ultimate responsibility for atrocities. They often enjoy political immunity as members of the post-conflict government. Incriminating a popular leader might lead to violent protests and sometimes even to relapse into conflict. Leaders may be necessary to negotiate and implement a peace agreement.
Various democratization measures can help to restore political and social rights. For sustainability and long-term viability of human rights standards, strong local enforcement mechanisms have to be established. An independent judiciary that provides impartial means and protects individuals against politically influenced persecution must be restored. Election monitors who help to guarantee fair voting procedures can help to ensure stable and peaceful elections. And various social structural changes , including reallocations of resources, increased political participation , and the strengthening of civil society can help to ensure that people's basic needs are met.
Humanitarian aid and development assistance seeks to ease the impact that violent conflict has on civilians. During conflict, the primary aim is to prevent human casualties and ensure access to basic survival needs. These basics include water, sanitation, food, shelter and health care. Aid can also assist those who have been displaced and support rehabilitation work. Once conflict has ended, development assistance helps to advance reconstruction programs that rebuild infrastructure, institutions and the economy. This assistance helps countries to undergo peaceful development rather than sliding back into conflict.

The expansion of international human rights law has often not been matched by practice. Yet, there is growing consensus that the protection of human rights is important for the resolution of conflict and to the rebuilding process afterward. To achieve these goals, the international community has identified a number of mechanisms both to bring an end to human rights abuses and to establish an environment in which they will be respected in the future. They are not alternatives, but each provides important benefits in dealing with the past and envisioning a brighter future.

[1] Little, David. "Universality of Human Rights," [available at: http://www.usip.org/research/rehr/universality.html ] (no longer available as of March 5th 2013)

[2] endnote goes here**

[3] At the same time, some would argue that the hegemonic power of the West, whether through normative pressure or economic, is responsible for widespread ratification.

[4] Antonio Cassese, Human Rights in a Changing World . (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1990), 2.

[5] Little, "The Nature and Basis of Human Rights," United States Institute of Peace.

[available at: http://www.usip.org/research/rehr/natbasis.html ] (no longer available as of March 5th 2013)

[6] "Human Rights Today: A United Nations Priority," The United Nations, 2000. [available at: http://www.un.org/rights/HRToday/ ]

[7] Cassese, 3.

[8] Cassese, 58.

[9] Don Hubert and Thomas G. Weiss et al. The Responsibility to Protect: Supplementary Volume to the Report of the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty. (Canada: International Development Research Centre, 2001), 144.

[10] Hubert and Weiss, et al., 147.

[11] Kithure Kindiki, "Gross Violations of Human Rights in Internal Armed Conflicts in Africa: Is There a Right of Humanitarian Intervention?" in Conflict Trends , no. 3, 2001. ACCORD.

[12] Martha Finnemore, The purpose of intervention: changing beliefs about the use of force . (Ithaca, Cornell University Press, 2003), chapter 3.

[13] Kithure Kindiki, "Gross Violations of Human Rights"

[14] Hubert and Weiss, et al., 132.

[15] Hubert and Weiss, et al., 133.

[16] Cassese, 58.

z[17] Hubert and Weiss, et al., 133.

[18] Kithure Kindiki, "Gross Violations of Human Rights"

[19] Cassese, 55-6.

[20] Hubert and Weiss, et al., 135.

[21] Hubert and Weiss, et al., 136.

[22] Cassese, 58.

[23] Hubert and Weiss, et al., 136.

[24] Hubert and Weiss, et al., 137.

[25] Hubert and Weiss, et al., 141.

[26] Cassese, 59.

[27] See for example, Barbara F. Walter, Committing to peace: the successful settlement of civil wars . (Princeton, N.J., Princeton University Press: 2002).

[28] Priscilla B. Hayner, (1994). "Fifteen Truth Commissions - 1974 to 1994: A Comparative Study." Human Rights Quarterly. 16(4): 604.

Use the following to cite this article: Maiese, Michelle. "Human Rights Protection." Beyond Intractability . Eds. Guy Burgess and Heidi Burgess. Conflict Information Consortium, University of Colorado, Boulder. Posted: June 2004 < http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/human-rights-protect >.

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Essay on Human Rights Protection

Students are often asked to write an essay on Human Rights Protection in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Human Rights Protection

What are human rights.

Human rights are the basic freedoms and protections that belong to every person in the world. They let us live with dignity, respect, and freedom. These rights include things like being safe, having food, and going to school. They are important because they ensure that everyone is treated fairly.

Why Protect Human Rights?

Protecting human rights is important because it helps to make sure that all people can live good lives. When rights are protected, people can speak their minds, practice any religion, and not be afraid of being hurt by others or by their government.

Who Protects Human Rights?

Many groups work to keep human rights safe. Governments have the biggest job because they make laws that protect rights. Also, organizations like the United Nations and other groups work hard to help people whose rights are in danger.

Challenges in Protection

Sometimes protecting human rights is hard. Some countries do not have strong laws to guard these rights. There are also places where people in charge ignore these rights. This means that some people might not get the fairness and safety they deserve.

Our Role in Protection

250 words essay on human rights protection.

Human rights are the basic freedoms and protections that every person in the world should have. They allow us to live with dignity, respect, and without fear. These rights include things like the right to speak freely, to learn, to live in safety, and to be treated fairly by others and by the law.

Protecting human rights is important because it ensures that everyone can live a good life. When rights are protected, people can speak their minds, practice their religion, and take part in their government. If we don’t protect these rights, some people might be hurt, treated unfairly, or not allowed to join in making decisions that affect them.

Many groups work to keep human rights safe. Governments have the biggest job because they make laws that should protect people’s rights. There are also groups, like the United Nations, that set rules for how countries should treat their people. Besides, there are many organizations and individuals who stand up for human rights by helping those in need and speaking out when rights are ignored.

What Can We Do?

Everyone can help protect human rights, even kids. Learning about your own rights and respecting others’ rights is a great start. You can also join activities that help people know more about rights and fight against unfair treatment. When everyone works together, it’s easier to make sure that human rights are respected all over the world.

500 Words Essay on Human Rights Protection

Human rights are like invisible shields that every person around the world has just because they are human. These rights allow people to live with dignity, respect, and freedom. They include things like the right to speak freely, to learn, and to live without fear. No one should take these rights away, no matter who you are, where you live, or how you choose to live your life.

Why Protecting Human Rights Is Important

Who is responsible for protecting rights.

Protecting human rights is a job for everyone. Governments have the big task of making sure their countries follow rules that keep people safe and respected. But it’s not just up to them. Schools teach students about their rights and how to respect others’. Even you, your friends, and your family have a role in making sure everyone’s rights are safe.

Challenges in Protecting Human Rights

Even though human rights are for everyone, sometimes they are not protected. Some people face tough situations where their rights are ignored. This can happen because of wars, unfair laws, or when people with power abuse it. It’s sad, but it happens in many places around the world.

How Can We Protect Human Rights?

Working together for rights.

When people come together, they can do amazing things. Groups that care about human rights work hard to make changes. They talk to leaders, share stories about people whose rights are not protected, and try to make new rules that will help everyone.

The Future of Human Rights

The future can be brighter when we all care about human rights. By teaching kids and adults about these rights, we can build a world where everyone is treated fairly. It’s like planting seeds for a garden of respect and kindness that will grow as we do.

If you’re looking for more, here are essays on other interesting topics:

Apart from these, you can look at all the essays by clicking here .

Article contents

What helps protect human rights: human rights theory and evidence.

Jessica Anderson Jessica Anderson Department of Political Science, University of Missouri
and Amanda Murdie Amanda Murdie Department of International Affairs, University of Georgia
https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190228637.013.513
Published online: 24 May 2017

Empirical international relations (IR) theory developed three generalized statements regarding why human rights abuses occur. First, human rights abuses are a way for an unrestrained state, especially the executive branch and its agents, to try to control individuals and hold on to power. Second, respect for human rights is an international norm, and international socialization and pressure about this norm can, in certain situations, affect behavior. Third, the codification of human rights norms into international treaties may influence behavior but, similar to our understanding of the effect of other treaties on state behavior, states only bind themselves weakly, and certain conditions are necessary for treaties to affect human rights.

Human rights
norm life cycle
human rights treaties
international nongovernmental organizations (INGOs)
empirical international relations theory

Introduction

Amnesty International, a leading organization specializing in advocacy to end human rights abuses, recently released accounts of horrendous abuses to political prisoners in Vietnam (Amnesty International, 2016 ). Peaceful demonstrators and outspoken minorities had been imprisoned, tortured, and “disappeared” for their beliefs and the supposed threat that they posed to the regime. Even though Vietnam ratified the United Nation’s Convention Against Torture (CAT) in 2015 , dozens of individuals are still imprisoned and tortured there for the peaceful expression of their political beliefs.

Since the end of World War II, much attention has been paid to stopping abuses like those that occurred in Vietnam. Global and regional human rights treaties have been ratified, and concerns about human rights abuses have sparked many foreign policy actions. A vibrant and connected network of human rights advocates and organizations has fought tirelessly for the abused and have expanded our understanding of what human rights means and what protections should be expected. Despite all of this, most countries in the world still have evidence of abuses within their borders.

This article examines why human rights abuse occurs and what can be done to help protect human rights. In the last 30 years, there has been an explosion of human rights–related scholarship in leading international relations (IR) journals (Murdie, 2015 ). This literature has drawn on many theoretical traditions and paradigms and has enriched both the general IR literature and more human rights–specific scholarship.

We do not attempt to review all the international relations literature on human rights abuses; other scholars have recently produced very thorough reviews of the extant literature (Davenport, 2007 ; Goodman, Jinks, & Woods, 2012 ; Hafner-Burton & Ron, 2009 ; Hafner-Burton, 2012 , 2014 Landman, 2005 ; Morgan, 2009 ; ). Instead, this article attempts to review some of the human rights empirical literature in international relations and situate this literature into a set of general theoretical statements about why human rights abuses occur. We hope that this exercise will help in improving and expanding empirical IR theory related to this topic.

In general, IR scholars have made three large-scale theoretical statements:

Human rights abuses are a way for an unrestrained state, especially the executive branch and its agents, to try to control individuals and hold on to power.

Respect for human rights is an international norm, and international socialization and pressure about this norm can affect behavior in certain situations.

The codification of human rights norms into international treaties may influence behavior but, similar to our understanding of the effect of other treaties on state behavior, states only bind themselves weakly, and certain conditions are necessary for treaties to affect human rights.

After defining human rights in more detail, we outline the empirical literature that supports these theoretical statements. To note, however, human rights research is not confined to IR or political science; rather, it is also examined through the fields of sociology, anthropology, economics, history, psychology, and law (Morgan, 2009 ). Thus, the study of human rights is an interdisciplinary study in a way that most fields within international relations are not. Within political science, human rights research reaches across the boundary between international relations and comparative politics. Full understanding of human rights situations requires understanding the domestic factors and characteristics of bureaucracies more commonly discussed in research within the comparative politics subfield. At the same time, attempts to limit or prevent human rights often involve the international community in the drafting of treaties, the foreign policy between states, and the flow of global norms about human rights practices. Thus, understanding why human rights abuses occur requires understanding the elements of both comparative politics and international relations. We see this as an advantage in the study of human rights. IR scholars can utilize theories from comparative politics and disciplines outside of political science to create a more complete understanding of human rights situations and produce research that speaks to a broad audience of scholars and individuals outside the academic world.

What Are Human Rights?

Much of our current understanding of human rights is based on international law, especially on the conception of rights included within the United Nation’s nonbinding Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), adopted in 1948 . This document creates a list of what is now commonly accepted as individual rights, including political rights; civil rights; social, economic, and cultural rights; and more broadly conceptualized rights of development and freedom from poverty, which also fit under the umbrella term of human rights (Landman, 2006 ).

The Emphasis on Physical Integrity Rights

The UDHR specifies the rights of individuals in 30 separate articles, addressing a range of rights from the “right to life, liberty, and security of person” (art. 3) to “the right to rest and leisure” (art. 23). Our collective understanding of which rights are included as human rights has expanded over time. Recently, advocacy related to human rights has included rights related to access to the Internet and sexual minority rights [i.e., lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) rights], among others.

Although the concept of human rights includes a wide range of rights, much of the research on human rights within IR focuses on a very narrow set of rights, often referred to as physical integrity or bodily integrity rights . In addition, most of the focus within international relations has focused specifically on abuses of these rights on citizens of a specific state by governmental actors from this state. Abuses by fellow citizens or nonstate actors, like corporations or rebel movements, have often been ignored. 1 Similarly, abuses by government actors beyond their own state borders have also received little attention in the IR scholarship, despite horrific accounts of abuses by military interveners and peacekeepers, among others.

Physical integrity rights are conceptualized as “freedom from” rights, and they typically include being free from extrajudicial killing, the use of torture, political imprisonment, and disappearance. To respect these rights, governments need only restrain from violating them; hence, they are sometimes called negative rights . On the other hand, in order to respect positive rights , like the right to education or the right to health, the state must provide resources or services. The study of these positive rights has primarily been done by political economists, often without a human rights frame. It is worth noting, however, that there is a growing number of IR studies on rights beyond physical integrity rights, like women’s rights and labor rights (e.g., Detraz & Peksen, 2016 ; Peksen & Blanton, 2017 ). This expansion of the types of rights examined by IR scholars holds great promise for a more encompassing theory of human rights practices and for additional inquiry into why some states may perform well on certain rights, but not on others.

Many human rights scholars rely on a small number of quantitative measures to capture physical integrity rights practices. One of the most prominent is the CIRI Physical Integrity Rights Index (Cingranelli, Richards, & Clay, 2014 ). This composite measure captures observable state practices regarding the use of torture, extrajudicial killings, disappearances, and political imprisonment during a given year (Cingranelli & Richards, 2010 ). The Political Terror Scale (PTS) is a similar measure that is widely used (Wood & Gibney, 2010 ). Both of these measures are created by using information from yearly reports released by the U.S. State Department and Amnesty International. The use of such measures makes it much easier to conduct empirical analyses across a global sample of states for a long period of time. However, it is important to remember that these measures capture only a small range of human rights practices. Although this is a limitation, current research has allowed scholars to understand many of the reasons why states abuse these physical integrity rights and propose solutions to prevent abuses. Similarly, these measures may not account for the changing standard of accountability over time, leading scholars to conclude (erroneously) that there have been no improvements in state practices over time (Fariss, 2014 ). 2

Human Rights Abuses and the State

One of the most common assumptions in international relations and comparative politics concerns the desire of a regime leader to remain in power (Bueno de Mesquita, Smith, Siverson, & Morrow, 2003 ; Chiozza & Goemans, 2004 ). A leader makes calculated decisions to remain in power or to ensure that his or her political party does. Human rights abuses are one “tool” that leaders can use to try to hold on to political power. If a regime is threatened, a leader can use his or her control of security forces to violate the human rights of citizens within the state. Abuses are designed to increase the cost that a possible dissident would face for violently (or even nonviolently) challenging the leader, hopefully cutting off dissent before it occurs (Ritter & Conrad, 2016 ). Davenport ( 2007 , p. 7) calls this the “law of coercive responsiveness.” In general, the law leads us to expect to see repression increase as opposition to the regime leadership increases within a state, and to expect to see repression increase as the regime faces threats to its power from abroad, especially in cases involving international war. States engaged in international war must respond to these external threats and any internal threats at the same time, constraining the resources available to the state. This means that even states that otherwise may have granted concessions to citizens will be more likely to respond to their demands with repression while engaged in international conflict due to the need to commit resources to facing international foes (Rasler, 1986 ). In general, this logic explains why there is such a strong empirical link between international and civil war and repression; when a state is threatened militarily, a government will respond with repression in order to control the population, try to extract information from that population that could help it remain in power, or both (Poe & Tate, 1994 ).

Given that the law of coercive responsiveness would lead us to expect an increase in repression whenever a leader is threatened, perhaps the question is not so much why states abuse human rights as it is why some states abuse the human rights of their citizens more than other states. Abuses are a common response by a threatened leader who has the power to control security forces. It is with this thought in mind that we now turn to a variety of state characteristics that are associated with differences in human rights performance and reflect this underlying theoretical logic.

Regime Type

It has long been suggested that democratic regimes are associated with better human rights, and this suggestion has received a great deal of empirical support. There are a number of explanations for why democracies might have greater respect for human rights. First, democracies allow the peaceful turnover of power. The political institutions of a democratic government are composed of citizens, and they are approved by citizens through the process of voting. Elections provide citizens with a legitimate channel through which to remove leaders from power without resorting to political violence (Davenport, 1999 ). When leaders regularly face the possibility of being removed from power by their constituents, they are more beholden to their constituents’ wishes. This will force leaders to show greater respect for human rights because there is a regular risk of being removed from office if citizens are unhappy with their leadership and their use of repression.

However, not all democratic regimes are equal (Bueno de Mesquita et al., 2005 ). Simply holding an election does not necessarily make a state a democracy. If elections are not free and fair, then they fail to hold leaders accountable or to convey the grievances of the population to the regime’s leadership. Only when elections are free and fair with more than one choice do they force leaders to be accountable to their citizens and potentially limit human rights abuses. Further, there is much research questioning whether elections alone are enough to affect human rights practices (Cingranelli & Filippov, 2010 ; Davenport, 1997 ; Richards, 1999 ; ). Richards and Gelleny ( 2007 ), for example, find that national legislative elections improve human rights only in the year following the election. Presidential elections are associated with less respect for human rights, something that Richard and Gelleny ( 2007 , p. 520) claim is linked to the “rigidity and winner-take-all structure of many presidential systems.”

Elections are only one aspect of democracies that has been potentially linked to better human rights practices. Institutional constraints and channels of regularized communication also matter. Democracy is often conceptualized not only by free elections, but also by constraints on an executive’s power. As Hafner-Burton, Hyde, and Jablonski ( 2012 ) show, an unconstrained leader may be more likely to use violence around an election. Judicial constraints have been found to limit the use of torture; although these same constraints may make leaders less likely to ratify the CAT (Powell & Staton, 2009 ). Conrad and Moore ( 2010 ), however, conclude that institutions that constrain executives, such as freedom of expression or institutional checks, may not be enough to stop torture when a regime is threatened. Recent work has highlighted how the creation of national human rights ombudsmen or institutional offices can constrain executives by providing a regularzed way for abuses to be publicized and adjudicated (Smith, 2006 ; Welch, 2017 ).

Democracies have more channels for communication and compromise between regime leaders and the opposition than do autocracies, meaning that there are usually more available alternatives to repression that would still limit the possibility of threat to the leadership (Henderson, 1991 ). Political opposition is theorized to develop through grievances from citizens who feel that they are receiving less than they expect and that the government is responsible for their plight (Gurr, 1968 ). In democracies, citizens have more institutionalized channels through which to get their grievances heard by the regime. Citizens in democracies are also much more likely to have their demands met, as leaders in democracies that do not address such grievances are unlikely to stay in office. Citizens in autocracies may demand greater participation in decision-making, greater freedom in criticizing leadership, or pressure for more transparent government, but these calls for reform are unlikely to be met, as that would require autocratic leaders to relinquish power. Further, autocracies draw their power from a very small group of political elites and must provide private goods to these elites in order to stay in power. Democratic leaders have a greater incentive to pursue policies that benefit large segments of society, as they need the political support of a much larger group (Bueno de Mesquita et al., 2003 ). As demands are less likely to be met though concessions in autocracies, political opposition is more likely to be handled with repression (Davis & Ward, 1990 ).

When opposition threatens the power of autocratic leaders, who may not depend at all on winning the votes of members of the opposition, they will likely use repression in an attempt to silence this opposition; this was part of what Davenport ( 2007 , p. 7) calls the “law of coercive responsiveness.” However, as he continues, there is a “puzzle” (p. 8) about whether the abuse will actually limit dissent: even though leaders utilize repression to coerce political opposition into submission, these actions can paradoxically incite further opposition. This reveals an endogenous relationship between protest and repression that is found in many autocratic states. Political opposition feeds into higher degrees of repression, which increases political opposition, leading the cycle to repeat (Pierskalla, 2010 ; Rasler, 1996 ; Ritter, 2014 ; Thoms & Ron, 2007 ). Repression also increases the grievances formed by citizens, possibly causing them to engage in more violent forms of opposition. When repression against citizens is severe, it can lead to terrorism against the state and even full-fledged civil war (Bell, Cingranelli, Murdie, & Caglayan, 2013 ; Thoms & Ron, 2007 ). In response, the government will utilize more severe forms of repression in an attempt to quash the rebellion, continuing until either the opposition is completely eradicated or the government is forced from power.

Another argument for the empirical connection between democracy and better human rights performance centers on the norms and expectations of behavior in democratic regimes. Democratic regimes have strong norms of nonviolence; these norms could influence how leaders in democratic regimes use violence, both domestically and internationally (Hegre, 2001 ; Maoz & Russett, 1993 ; Risse-Kappen, 1995 ). Research also suggests that better human rights practices domestically may create norms of engagement that limit international conflict (Caprioli & Trumbore, 2003 , 2006 ; Peterson & Graham, 2011 ; Sobek, Abouharb, & Ingram, 2006 ; Tomz & Weeks, 2016 ).

Although there are many empirical theories about the relationship between democracy and human rights practices, extant research suggests a few important caveats. First, this relationship is not necessarily linear. Scholars have noted that complete autocracies—those that we would expect to exercise the most political repression—tend to exercise relatively little repression (Davenport & Armstrong, 2004 ; Fein, 1995 ). Fein ( 1995 , p. 170) argues that there is “more murder in the middle,” in that there is a U-shaped relationship between regime type and repression, suggesting that states that are neither strong democracies nor strong autocracies have the greatest likelihood to use repression. Davenport and Armstrong ( 2004 ) point out, however, that it is more of a threshold relationship, with only consolidated democracies limiting repression.

Second, just as not all democracies are equal in their human rights performance, there also are differences between authoritarian regimes. Vreeland ( 2008 ) finds that dictatorships with multiple political parties, indicative of shared power, are more likely to both commit torture and ratify the CAT. Vreeland ( 2008 ) argues that this is due to how shared power emboldens potential dissidents, creating opportunities for torture, but also likely leading to concessions like treaty ratification. Conrad ( 2011 ) finds, however, that effective judiciaries can constrain dictators in their use of torture.

Finally, it is important to acknowledge that democracy and human rights, especially the physical integrity rights most typically studied by IR scholars, are conceptually related. Hill ( 2016 ) argues that some definitions of democracy include freedom from repression as a key component, cautioning scholars to be careful about their definition of democracy and that this definition is conceptually distinct from physical integrity rights performance.

State Wealth

Beyond regime type, one of the most consistent findings within the literature on human rights suggests that wealthy states abuse human rights less often than poor states. 3 However, scholars have disagreed on exactly why economic development is associated with better protection of human rights. First, wealthy states might have less need to use repression. As Henderson ( 1991 ) states, we expect to see fewer grievances in wealthy states, since citizens should be more satisfied with their standard of living. As discussed previously, repression is often used as a response to opposition, making it unnecessary when opposition is lacking. Also, wealthier states have a greater ability to grant concessions to citizens in the form of goods and services rather than resorting to repression (Conrad, 2011 ; Davenport, 2007 ). Thus, wealthier states should see less political opposition and also have means of dealing with opposition other than resorting to repression.

Economic development, especially development tied to globalization, is also linked to changes in the way that society is structured within a state, which can affect human rights practices. Richards, Gelleny, and Sacko ( 2001 ) discuss the two main schools that provide expectations about the relation between globalized economic development and human rights practices, referred to as the liberal neoclassical and dependency schools. The liberal neoclassical school suggests that a globalized economy will lead to enhanced wealth across a society, leading to the creation of a middle class. When the middle class develops greater wealth, they are able to devote more time and resources to their demands against the state. This access to greater resources is necessary for a social opposition movement to succeed (Zald & McCarthy, 1987 ). While this increase in the strength of opposition may initially lead to enhanced use of repression, eventually the government will be unable to effectively quash opposition that is well funded and supported throughout society. Thus, grievances in countries that are amassing wealth are more likely to be addressed by governments, and human rights behavior is more likely to improve.

The second main school that links a globalized economy and human rights practices is the dependency school, which argues that poor states often do not evenly distribute the gains from globalization to the general population, instead concentrating increased wealth in the hands of political elites. This allows these elites to expand their use of repression as a response to political opposition, increasing human rights violations. In addition, by increasing the wealth of only the elites, those living in poverty develop stronger grievances about their deprivation, leading to more low-level opposition as a response, followed by more repression (Davenport, 2007 ).

Dependency theory is a particularly powerful tool in explaining the human rights records of states that draw their wealth from natural resources such as oil (DeMeritt & Young, 2013 ). Oil is extremely expensive to extricate, meaning that the ability to control oilfields is limited to those with substantial economic and human resources. This, coupled with the tremendous wealth that can be gained from the sale of oil, provides a unique opportunity for governments in such states to greatly enhance the wealth of a small group of political elites. Research supports dependency theory in oil-rich states, showing that such states have significantly higher levels of human rights abuses than poor states that do not have oil wealth (DeMeritt & Young, 2013 ).

These two schools may seem contradictory, but they can be understood as being complementary to each other. The liberal neoclassical school holds that economic development leads to the formation of a middle class, but this middle class cannot form in states where wealth is isolated in the hands of the elite. Only when wealth is distributed across society and can lead to the development of a middle class will we see opposition movements that are powerful enough to effectively demand changes in human rights practices.

State Capacity

There are many similarities between theories of state wealth and human rights and those of state capacity and human rights. State capacity can be thought of as the centralized power within a state, and weak states are characterized by a lack of centralized power. Englehart ( 2009 ) describes weak states as those with low ability to collect taxes, high corruption, and/or a lack of law and order. Some scholars have captured state capacity with indicators of economic development, implying that wealthy states are more capable than others (Hendrix, 2010 ).

Many scholars have found that capable states are less likely to abuse physical integrity rights (Englehart, 2009 ; Cole, 2015 ; Young, 2009 ). State capacity is necessary to be able to monitor the behavior of security forces and other government agents. Human rights abuses can occur not because they were authorized by the regime leadership, but because state agents are not trained and/or monitored. Without training and monitoring, human rights abuses often occur as part of control or interrogation tactics (Muñoz, 2009 ). A capable state can limit these unauthorized abuses, limiting the overall levels of human rights abuses within the state.

The relationship between the state and its agents can be understood through principal-agent theory, in which the state acts as the principal and holds the authority to command security agents (Englehart, 2009 ). However, agents do not necessarily follow the commands of the principal. Weak states lack the ability to provide oversight of state agents, making them more independent. This can make it difficult for weak states to change human rights practices, even when they have a desire to do so. As Cole ( 2015 ) explains, many states that sign human rights treaties have the desire to improve practices but lack the ability to enforce new standards among state agents. This highlights the idea that human rights abuses are not always state-sanctioned; in fact, they often directly contradict state policy.

State capacity also affects the perceived need to resort to repression. Strong state capacity can prevent political dissatisfaction from erupting into violent political unrest. Weak states (those with an unstable hold on state power) are inherently more threatened by opposition and will thus resort to more resorting to human rights abuses to control the population (Young, 2009 ). Limited state capacity is also tied to the emergence of violent rebel groups (Fearon & Laitin, 2003 ). This makes weak states more susceptible to civil war, and civil war is linked to increases in human rights violations by the state (Poe & Tate, 1994 ).

Human Rights and International Dynamics

In the previous section, we examined how characteristics of the state (namely, its regime type, its economic wealth, and its capacity) matter for its human rights performance. The basic insight from this research is that human rights abuses occur as a mechanism of population control when a regime or its agents are unrestrained by domestic institutions, an organized and developed domestic opposition, or both. However, human rights concerns are not a wholly domestic matter. The rights outlined in the UDHR were the result of international collaboration and joint advocacy efforts. They fit the classic definition of a norm: a “standard of appropriate behavior for actors with a given identity” (Finnemore & Sikkink, 1998 , p. 889). The protection of human rights norms since the UDHR’s crafting has been heavily influenced by international dynamics and actors. Foreign policy actions of states, transnational organizations of all stripes, and the involvement of intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) can pressure and socialize states to adopt human rights norms. However, these actions can also backfire, leading to an often-unintended worsening of human rights conditions. We explore these dynamics next.

Norm Entrepreneurs and Advocacy Actors

The adoption of human rights language and the internalization of human rights ideals are the results of a process of normative development and diffusion. Both in the case of now well-accepted norms (like bodily integrity rights) and in the case of newer and developing norms (like sexual minority rights or the right to development), norm entrepreneurs help in articulating and spreading these human rights ideas. According to Finnemore and Sikkink’s ( 1998 ) theory of the norm life cycle, these entrepreneurs work to get sympathetic regime leaders and other key constituents to adopt a norm as a general expectation of behavior. This larger group then helps in codifying and socializing other state actors about the norm. Finnemore and Sikkink ( 1998 , p. 900) see IGOs as important at this stage; the norm is “institutionalized in international rules.” If a critical mass of supporters is reached, often requiring the support of key states, a tipping point occurs, where the norm cascades and additional state and nonstate actors are socialized to adopt the norm.

It is at this stage in the norm socialization process where international actors often use a host of techniques and tactics to try to pressure governments to change their behavior. Advocates can point out that “legitimate” states do not abuse human rights (Finnemore & Sikkink, 1998 , p. 902). Material and nonmaterial carrots and sticks can be used to pressure a state to change its behavior. In some situations, this process of socialization can lead to the state “internalizing” the norm, giving it “taken-for-granted” status (Finnemore & Sikkink, 1998 , p. 904).

Although Finnemore and Sikkink ( 1998 )’s theory of the norm life cycle is often not explicitly mentioned in current empirical work on how international actors influence domestic human rights practices, it aptly applies. International nongovernmental organizations (INGOs), like Human Rights Watch or Amnesty International, are often critical actors at the early stages of the life cycle. They help in spreading or educating local populations about a norm, as well as being crucial to getting the norm on the international agenda. Once key states have adopted the norm and it has been institutionalized, INGOs work to bring abuses to the attention of sympathetic states and advocates. The media attention that INGOs bring to abusive regimes, often termed “shaming and blaming” or “naming and shaming” by scholars, can be key to getting third-party states and INGOs to start pressuring the country to change their human rights practices.

INGOs can also help heighten domestic pressure on the regime. This combination of domestic and international pressure is what Keck and Sikkink ( 1998 ) term a transnational advocacy network . Later work by Risse, Ropp, and Sikkink ( 1999 , 2013 ) further laid out the iterative process through which advocates work to socialize states about human rights; this process was named the spiral model . In this model, if international pressure is concentrated on an abusive regime, “tactical concessions” can be made by the abusive regime, leading to some limited and short-term improvements in human rights practices and, perhaps, the adoption of human rights laws (Risse & Sikkink 1999 , p. 12). If pressure continues, these concessions can turn into internalized human rights norms, completing the norm life cycle.

In line with these theoretical arguments, human rights INGOs have been linked to changes in human rights opinions and mobilization (Ausderan, 2014 ; Davis, Murdie, & Steinmetz, 2012 ; McEntire, Leiby, & Krain, 2015 ; Murdie & Bhasin, 2011 ). Their “naming and shaming” activities have also been linked to many forms of international pressure and involvement, including humanitarian intervention (Murdie & Peksen, 2013a ), international sanctions (Murdie & Peksen, 2013b ), drops in foreign direct investment (Barry, Clay, & Flynn, 2013 ), trade (Peterson, Murdie, & Asal, 2017 ), and the bypassing of foreign aid (Dietrich & Murdie, 2017 ). Some studies have found direct links between shaming by human rights INGOs and drops in certain human rights abuses (DeMeritt, 2012 ; Krain, 2012 ; Murdie, 2014 ), although this relationship has also been found to be conditional on domestic and/or international mobilization (Murdie & Davis, 2012 ) and domestic regime type (Hendrix & Wong, 2013 ; Murdie, 2014 ).

Worth mentioning, there are concerns that shaming of one type of abuse by human rights INGOs and IGOs could lead states to change their abusive tactics (DeMeritt, Conrad, & Fariss, 2016 ; Hafner-Burton, 2008 ). Further, there is work that is highly critical of certain behaviors of INGOs, highlighting the negative consequences of their often-overlooked, nonprincipled behavior (Clifford, 2005 ; Cooley & Ron, 2002 ; Murdie, 2014 ). Further work is necessary to understand the conditions when INGOs and other advocates are most likely to be successful and when they are likely to be ineffective or counterproductive to human rights goals.

State and IGO Foreign Policy Actions

There is a growing body of empirical work that looks at whether certain foreign policy actions improve human rights in a targeted state. Although this work does occasionally find that international actions can improve certain human rights practices, there is much work that shows that some international pressure tactics are counterproductive to human rights goals. To the extent that these actions are encouraged or influenced by human rights advocates, this could diminish the overall effects of advocates on human rights practices (Allendoerfer & Murdie, 2015 ).

On the positive side, there is some research that finds that certain types of foreign military interventions can improve certain human rights practices. For example, Krain ( 2005 ) finds that foreign military interventions against the perpetrator can help limit the severity of mass killings. DeMeritt ( 2015 ) concludes that interventions in support of the government can limit the onset of mass killings. Murdie and Davis ( 2010 ) find that only peacekeeping interventions with a strong humanitarian focus can improve human rights in countries after civil wars. However, Peksen ( 2012 ) finds that foreign military interventions do not generally improve human rights.

Another potential positive international action for human rights improvement is the support that international actors provide for transitional justice mechanisms, like the use of truth commissions after civil wars or human rights atrocities. Many studies have found that these mechanisms, especially in certain combinations, can improve some human rights outcomes, even after accounting for the factors that led to the implementation of these mechanisms in the first place (Dancy & Wiebelhaus-Brahm, 2015 ; Kim & Sikkink, 2010 ; Olsen, Payne, & Reiter, 2010 ; Polizzi, 2016 ).

On the negative side, however, there are many international foreign policy actions that are not associated with improved human rights. Foreign aid is not often associated with improved human rights (Barratt, 2007 ) and repressive regimes are rarely punished for poor human rights records (Esarey & DeMeritt, 2016 ; Nielsen, 2013 ). Economic sanctions can exasperate human rights abuses (Peksen, 2009 ; Wood, 2008 ). Actions by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank often harm human rights (Abouharb & Cingranelli, 2007 ). Most of this work explains the negative or null findings as the unintended consequences of international foreign policy action. These actions can limit the general public’s ability or willingness to pressure their leaders and can make abusive leaders feel threatened, heightening their desire to use repressive practices to stay in power. Another important issue in this research concerns the selection of states to receive international action and the geopolitical concerns that can complicate whether these actions are designed with human rights goals.

In short, there is a well-established theoretical lens through which to examine how international actors influence the adoption and internalization of human rights norms. Although much current empirical work has shown that advocacy actors (particularly human rights INGOs) do influence human rights outcomes in the ways outlined in the extant theoretical literature, there is much work to be done to understand the types of international foreign policy pressure that can stop human rights abuses.

Human Rights Treaties

The previous section on how international pressure is associated with human rights practices ignores an important international pressure source: international human rights law. This was intentional; the international human rights treaty regime is a very specific type of international pressure that does not nicely conform to the theoretical and empirical literature concerning many of the international foreign policy actions discussed earlier in this article. Instead, the study of how the international human rights treaty regime influences human rights practices has drawn heavily on earlier theoretical arguments on international cooperation and compliance ( Abbott, Keohane, Moravcsik, Slaughter, & Snidal, 2000 ; Downs, Rocke, & Barsoom, 1996 ; Morrow, 1994 ; von Stein, 2005 ) and the role of domestic institutions in encouraging compliance with international agreements (Dai, 2005 ).

Although much of the work within this area has focused on the human rights treaties drafted within the United Nations (UN) that followed the UDHR, like the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) or the CAT, which we refer to here as UN human rights treaties , there is also a rich literature on regional human rights treaties and courts (Hawkins & Jacoby, 2010 ; Helfer & Voeten, 2014 ; Hillebrecht, 2012 ; Tallberg, 2002 ), as well as a growing literature on the International Criminal Court (Chapman & Chaudoin, 2013 ; Ritter & Wolford, 2012 ). Due to space constraints, the discussion here focuses on the literature concerning UN human rights treaties, where there has recently been a surge of empirical work concerning whether treaty ratification affects human rights practices.

Many early empirical works argued and found that various UN international human rights treaties are not generally associated with unconditional improvements in various human rights practices (Hafner-Burton & Tsutsui, 2005 ; Hathaway, 2002 ; Keith, 1999 ). As such, there was much early evidence that UN human rights treaties alone were not sufficient to lead to greater respect for human rights. In line with general arguments on the limits of international cooperation, the existing treaty system was created with weak enforcement mechanisms and states are unlikely to voluntarily bind themselves in ways that would limit their ability to control their populations. There are tremendous issues of self-selection as well: states may be ratifying treaties after a war or as part of their transition to democracy. As such, it is difficult to ascertain whether any improvements in human rights practices are causally linked to the treaty or are linked to the underlying conditions that led the state to ratify the treaty in the first place.

Much of the scholarship that followed has (a) taken issues of self-selection seriously, (b) examined the domestic conditions that could make treaties more likely to affect human rights practices (Conrad & Ritter, 2013 ; Hill, 2010 ; Lupu, 2013 ; Neumayer, 2005 ; Simmons, 2009 ), or both. As to the first issue, many studies are using advanced statistical treatment effects or “matching” techniques to account for the underlying self-selection issue. Some of these studies have found that certain treaties cause improvements in certain human rights, and explanations have been given for these unique causal effects. For example, Hill ( 2010 ) finds that the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) causes better human rights performance on women’s political rights, something Hill ( 2010 ) explains is due to the nonthreatening nature of women’s political rights to the regime leadership. Lupu ( 2013 ) uses a slightly different method to account for self-selection and finds that CEDAW causes improved women’s political, social, and economic rights.

The newer literature has also found that treaties can be effective in some situations. In line with the spiral model outlined previously, Neumayer ( 2005 ) finds, for example, that treaties are associated with improved human rights in democratic regimes and where there are large numbers of INGOs with members present within the state. Similarly, Simmons ( 2009 ) finds that treaties can be a useful tool for dissidents to use to try to get concessions from a repressive regime. And, as mentioned, Powell and Staton ( 2009 ) highlight the utility of an independent judiciary in leading states where the CAT is ratified to lessen their use of torture. Recent work by Conrad and Ritter ( 2013 ) connects the effectiveness of treaties to the characteristics of the judiciary and the security of the leader.

Although these findings provide a small glimmer of hope for the usefulness of the international human rights regime in certain situations, Fariss ( 2014 ) argues that there may be more reasons to be hopeful. As mentioned, Fariss ( 2014 ) contends that there is a changing standard of accountability for physical integrity rights abuses over time. Using his corrected measure, Fariss ( 2014 , 2017a ) shows a general association between treaty ratification and improved human rights practices. Cingranelli and Filippov ( 2017 ), however, question the empirical validity of this finding, arguing that the Fariss ( 2014 ) results are time dependent. Nonetheless, future work should examine how changing standards of accountability (some changing standards perhaps even aided by the human rights regime) affect the relationship between treaty ratification and human rights practices.

Why do state actors abuse human rights? In this article, we outlined three stylized theoretical statements that are supported in the empirical literature:

Respect for human rights is an international norm, and international socialization and pressure about this norm can, in certain situations, affect behavior.

The codification of human rights norms into international treaties may influence behavior but, like our understanding of the effect of other treaties on state behavior, states only bind themselves weakly and certain conditions are necessary for treaties to affect human rights.

This is an especially great juncture in the study of human rights. First, more detailed and rich data are now available; this data will allow future scholars to examine rights beyond the conventional focus on physical integrity violations by state actors and allow much more nuance in the particularities of the abuse and the abuser (e.g., Conrad, Haglund, & Moore, 2014 ; Cornett, Gibney, & Haschke, 2016 ). In addition, automated events data also hold much promise for near real-time analysis and for more nuanced study of the state-society dynamics that exasperate human rights abuses (Boschee et al., 2015 ; Fariss et al., 2015 ; Quinn, Monroe, Colaresi, Crespin, & Radev, 2010 ). The combination of quantitative and qualitative techniques also will continue to contribute to the breadth and depth of our knowledge on why abuses occur (Hafner-Burton & Ron, 2009 ).

Second, advances in empirical techniques now allow scholars to take self-selection seriously and examine more directly the causal process connecting certain interventions and institutions to changes in human rights outcomes (Allendoerfer & Murdie, 2015 ; Hill, 2010 ; Lupu, 2013 ; Murdie & Peksen, 2013b ). These techniques will help us determine how certain actions could mediate the effects of advocacy, or perhaps lead to unintended consequences that could harm human rights.

Third, a growing number of scholars are focusing on public opinion related to human rights (Ausderan, 2014 ; Bracic, 2016 ; Murdie & Purser, 2017 ; Ron, Golden, Crow, & Pandya, 2017 ; Wallace, 2013 ). Although these studies have not yet been extended to focusing on how public opinion relates to human rights outcomes in a cross-national sample of states, work is this area is critical for building our microfoundations for how human rights improvements occur and the potential role of public opinion in this process.

Finally, there have been recent advances in the practice of human rights promotion and the strategies of human rights advocates. Human rights performance within a country could be influenced by current increases in training on nonviolent resistance, a renewed focus on transitional justice and nonstate actors, and the use of technology to aid in the recording of abuses. Future studies should incorporate these advances into our theoretical understanding of the process by which human rights improve. The efficacy of these tactics should also be tested empirically.

In sum, the existing IR literature on why states abuse human rights has highlighted the nuanced relationships between international and domestic factors and human rights practices. There are few laws in human rights theories, but the works discussed in this article do point to a general theory of why states abuse human rights. The literature draws heavily on theories related to domestic constraints on leaders, on how norms diffuse, and on when international agreements affect state behavior. By drawing on this generalized set of knowledge, as well as current advances in the field, future work holds much potential to contribute to both our scholarly understanding of human rights practices and the growing practice of human rights advocacy outside academia.

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1. Recently, principal investigators of the Political Terror Scale (PTS) have introduced a new measure of violence by nonstate actors: the Societal Violence Scale (SVS). As the authors of this scale remark in their explanation of the scale, the role of the state in abuses by nonstate actors is not trivial: “the state is obliged not only to refrain from human rights abuses itself, but also has the duty to prevent abuses by third parties, including private actors, and to take positive measures for the provision of rights to everyone under the state’s jurisdiction” (Cornett, Gibney, & Haschke, 2016 , n.p.).

2. For more discussion about this still controversial idea, see Clark and Sikkink ( 2013 ), Richards ( 2016 ), Fariss ( 2017a , 2017b ), and Cingranelli and Filippov ( 2017 ).

3. It is necessary for economic wealth to be distributed throughout society before we can expect to see a link between economic development and improved human rights practices. As such, a high gross domestic product (GDP), coupled with a low GDP per capita, reflect a society that has not achieved economic advancement throughout the population. When we refer to “wealthy states,” we are discussing states with a high GDP coupled with a relatively high GDP per capita.

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International Human Rights Law: A Short History

About the author, frans viljoen.

The phrase "human rights" may be used in an abstract and philosophical sense, either as denoting a special category of moral claim that all humans may invoke or, more pragmatically, as the manifestation of these claims in positive law, for example, as constitutional guarantees to hold Governments accountable under national legal processes. While the first understanding of the phrase may be referred to as "human rights", the second is described herein as "human rights law".

While the origin of "human rights" lies in the nature of the human being itself, as articulated in all the world's major religions and moral philosophy, "human rights law" is a more recent phenomenon that is closely associated with the rise of the liberal democratic State. In such States, majoritarianism legitimizes legislation and the increasingly bureaucratized functioning of the executive. However, majorities sometimes may have little regard for "numerical" minorities, such as sentenced criminals, linguistic or religious groups, non-nationals, indigenous peoples and the socially stigmatized. It therefore becomes necessary to guarantee the existence and rights of numerical minorities, the vulnerable and the powerless. This is done by agreeing on the rules governing society in the form of a constitutionally entrenched and justiciable bill of rights containing basic human rights for all. Through this bill of rights, "human rights law" is created, becoming integral to the legal system and superior to ordinary law and executive action.

In this article, some aspects of the history of human rights law at the global, regional and subregional levels are traced. The focus falls on the recent, rather than the more remote, past. To start with, some observations are made about the "three generations" of human rights law.

Three generations of international human rights law Human rights activism can be described as a struggle to ensure that the gap between human rights and human rights law is narrowed down in order to ensure the full legal recognition and actual realization of human rights. History shows that governments do not generally grant rights willingly but that rights gains are only secured through a successful challenge to absolutist authority. Following on the Magna Carta, which set limits on the powers of royal Government in thirteenth century England, the 1776 American Declaration of Independence and the 1789 French Declaration des droits de l'Homme et de du citoyen (Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen) were landmarks of how revolutionary visions could be transformed into national law and made into justiciable guarantees against future abuse.

The traditional categorization of three generations of human rights, used in both national and international human rights discourse, traces the chronological evolution of human rights as an echo to the cry of the French revolution: Liberté (freedoms, "civil and political" or "first generation" rights), Egalité (equality, "socio-economic" or "second generation" rights), and Fraternité (solidarity, "collective" or "third generation" rights). In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the struggle for rights focused on the liberation from authoritarian oppression and the corresponding rights of free speech, association and religion and the right to vote. With the changed view of the State role in an industrializing world, and against the background of growing inequalities, the importance of socio-economic rights became more clearly articulated. With growing globalization and a heightened awareness of overlapping global concerns, especially due to extreme poverty in some parts of the world, "third generation" rights, such as the rights to a healthy environment, to self-determination and to development, have been adopted.

During the period of the cold war, "first generation" rights were prioritized in Western democracies, while second generation rights were resisted as socialist notions. In the developing world, economic growth and development were often regarded as goals able to trump "civil and political" rights. The discrepancy between the two sets of rights was also emphasized: "civil and political" rights were said to be of immediate application, while "second generation" rights were understood to be implemented only in the long term or progressively. Another axis of division was the supposed notion that "first generation" rights place negative obligations on States while "second generation" rights place positive obligations on States. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, it became generally accepted that such a dichotomy does not do justice to the extent to which these rights are interrelated and interdependent. The dichotomy of positive/negative obligations no longer holds water. It seems much more useful to regard all rights as interdependent and indivisible, and as potentially entailing a variety of obligations on the State. These obligations may be categorized as the duty to respect, protect, promote and fulfil.

Global level For many centuries, there was no international human rights law regime in place. In fact, international law supported and colluded in many of the worst human rights atrocities, including the Atlantic Slave Trade and colonialism. It was only in the nineteenth century that the international community adopted a treaty abolishing slavery. The first international legal standards were adopted under the auspices of the International Labour Organization (ILO), which was founded in 1919 as part of the Peace Treaty of Versailles. ILO is meant to protect the rights of workers in an ever-industrializing world.

After the First World War, tentative attempts were made to establish a human rights system under the League of Nations. For example, a Minority Committee was established to hear complaints from minorities, and a Mandates Commission was put in place to deal with individual petitions of persons living in mandate territories. However, these attempts had not been very successful and came to an abrupt end when the Second World War erupted. It took the trauma of that war, and in particular Hitler's crude racially-motivated atrocities in the name of national socialism, to cement international consensus in the form of the United Nations as a bulwark against war and for the preservation of peace.

The core system of human rights promotion and protection under the United Nations has a dual basis: the UN Charter, adopted in 1945, and a network of treaties subsequently adopted by UN members. The Charter-based system applies to all 192 UN Member States, while only those States that have ratified or acceded to particular treaties are bound to observe that part of the treaty-based (or conventional) system to which they have explicitly agreed.

Charter-based system This system evolved under the UN Economic and Social Council, which set up the Commission on Human Rights, as mandated by article 68 of the UN Charter. The Commission did not consist of independent experts, but was made up of 54 governmental representatives elected by the Council, irrespective of the human rights record of the States concerned. As a consequence, States earmarked as some of the worst human rights violators served as members of the Commission. The main accomplishment of the Commission was the elaboration and near-universal acceptance of the three major international human rights instruments: the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in 1948, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the latter two adopted in 1966. As the adoption of those two separate documents indicates, the initial idea of transforming the Universal Declaration into a single binding instrument was not accomplished, mainly due to a lack of agreement about the justiciability of socio-economic rights. As a result, individual complaints could be lodged, alleging violations by certain States of ICCPR, but not so with ICESCR.

The normative basis of the UN Charter system is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted on 10 December 1948, which has given authoritative content to the vague reference to human rights in the UN Charter. Although it was adopted as a mere declaration, without a binding force, it has subsequently come to be recognized as a universal yardstick of State conduct. Many of its provisions have acquired the status of customary international law.

Faced with allegations of human rights violations, particularly in apartheid South Africa, the Commission had to devise a system for the consideration of complaints. Two mechanisms emerged, the "1235" and "1503" procedures, adopted in 1959 and 1970, respectively, each named after the Economic and Social Council resolution establishing them. Both mechanisms dealt only with situations of gross human rights violations. The difference was that the "1235" procedure entailed a public discussion while "1503" remained confidential. In order to fill the gap in effective implementation of human rights, a number of special procedures were established by the Commission. Unique procedures take the form of special rapporteurs, independent experts or working groups looking at a particular country (country-specific mandate) or focusing on a thematic issue (thematic mandate).

Leapfrogging a few decades to 2005, in his report In Larger Freedom: Towards Development, Security and Human Rights for All, the former UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, called for the replacement of the Commission by a smaller, permanent and human rights-compliant Council, able to fill the credibility gap left by States that used their Commission membership "to protect themselves against criticism and to criticize others". 1 The major reason for replacing the Commission was the very selective way in which it exercised its country-specific mandate, due mainly to the political bias of representatives and the ability of more powerful countries to deflect the attention away from themselves and those enjoying their support. In 2006, the General Assembly decided to follow the Secretary-General's recommendation, creating the Human Rights Council as a replacement to the Commission on Human Rights. 2

There are some important differences between the former Commission on Human Rights and the current Human Rights Council. As a subsidiary organ of the General Assembly, the Council enjoys an elevated status compared to the Commission, which was a functional body of the Economic and Social Council. It has a slightly smaller membership (47 States) and its members are elected by an absolute majority of the Assembly (97 States). To avoid prolonged dominance by a few States, members may be elected only for two consecutive three-year terms. The Council serves as a standing or permanent body, which meets regularly, not only for annual "politically charged six-week sessions" as the Commission did. Following the more human rights-sensitive selection criteria, the list of States elected by the Assembly contrasts with countries which, in 2006, served on the Commission. The Assembly may, by a two-thirds majority vote, suspend a member that engages in gross and systematic human rights violations.

The Human Rights Council retained most of the special procedures, including the confidential "1503" (now called the "compliant procedure"), and introduced the Universal Peer Review (UPR). Starting in April 2008, one third of UN Member States has undergone this process. The UPR sUPR hows similarities with the African Peer Review Mechanism which has been set up under the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). Apart from the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the General Assembly adopted numerous other declarations. When sufficient consensus emerges between States, declarations may be transformed into binding agreements. It is revealing that the required level of agreement is lacking on crucial issues, such as the protection of non-hegemonic citizenship. The two relevant declarations -- the Declaration on the Rights of Persons belonging to Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, adopted in 1992, and the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, adopted in 2007, have not been translated into binding instruments. The same is true of the Declaration on the Right to Development, which was adopted in 1986.

Treaty-based system The treaty-based system developed even more rapidly than the Charter-based system. The first treaty, adopted in 1948, was the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which addressed the most immediate past experience of the Nazi Holocaust. Since then, a huge number of treaties have been adopted, covering a wide array of subjects, eight of them on human rights -- each comprising a treaty monitoring body -- under the auspices of the United Nations.

The first, adopted in 1965, is the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD), followed by ICCPR and ICESCR in 1966. The international human rights regime then started to move away from a generic focus, shifting its attention instead to particularly marginalized and oppressed groups or themes: the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) adopted in 1979; the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984); the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989); the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (1990); and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006). The latest treaty is the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances (ICED), also adopted in 2006 but yet to enter into force. With the adoption of an Optional Protocol to ICESCR in 2008, allowing for individual complaints regarding alleged violations of socio-economic rights, the UN treaty system now also embodies the principle that all rights are justiciable. Office of the UN High Commissioner Twenty years after the adoption of the Universal Declaration, the first International Conference on Human Rights was held in 1968 in Teheran. As the world was at that stage caught in the grip of the cold war, little consensus emerged and not much was achieved. The scene was very different when the second world conference took place in Vienna in 1993. The cold war had come to an end, but the genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina was unfolding. Against this background, 171 Heads of State and Government met and adopted the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action. It reaffirmed that all rights are universal, indivisible and interdependent. Several resolutions adopted there were subsequently implemented, including the adoption of an Optional Protocol to CEDAW and the establishment of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, with the first High Commissioner (José Ayala Lasso) elected in 1994. The High Commissioner has the major responsibility for human rights in the United Nations. The increasingly important human rights field presence in ratcheted countries also falls under this Office.

Other conferences have also highlighted important issues, such as racism and xenophobia, which were discussed at the 2001 World Conference Against Racism, held in Durban, South Africa. This culminated in the adoption of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action. A review conference to assess progress in the implementation of the Declaration took place in April 2009.

Regional level Since the Second World War, three regional human rights regimes -- norms and institutions that are accepted as binding by States -- have been established. Each of these systems operates under the auspices of an intergovernmental organization or an international political body. In the case of the European system -- the best of the three -- it is the Council of Europe, which was founded in 1949 by 10 Western European States to promote human rights and the rule of law in post-Second World War Europe, avoided a regression into totalitarianism and served as a bulwark against Communism. The Organization of American States (OAS) was founded in 1948 to promote regional peace, security and development. In Africa, a human rights system was adopted under the auspices of the Organization for African Unity (OAU), which was formed in 1963 and transformed in 2002 into the African Union (AU).

In each of the three systems, the substantive norms are set out in one principal treaty. The Council of Europe adopted its primary human rights treaty in 1950: the European Convention of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. Incorporating the protocols adopted thereto, it includes mainly "civil and political" rights, but also provides for the right to property. All 47 Council of Europe members have become party to the European Convention. OAS adopted the American Convention on Human Rights in 1969, which has been ratified by 24 States. The American Convention contains rights similar to those in the European Convention but goes further by providing for a minimum of "socio-economic" rights. In contrast to these two treaties, the African Charter, adopted by OAU in 1981, contains justiciable "socio-economic" rights and elaborates on the duties of individuals and the rights of peoples. All AU members are parties to the African Charter.

The way in which the principal treaty is implemented or enforced differs in each region. In an evolution spanning many decades, the European system of implementation, operating out of Strasbourg, France, developed from a system where a Commission and a Court co-existed to form a single judicial institution. The European Court of Human Rights deals with individual cases. A dual model is in place in the Americas, consisting of the Inter-American Commission, based in Washington, D.C., and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, based in San José, Costa Rica. Individual complainants have to submit their grievances to the Inter-American Commission first; thereafter, the case may proceed to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. The Commission also has the function of conducting on-site visits. After some recent institutional reforms, the African system now resembles the Inter-American system.

Fledgling Arab and Muslim regional systems have also emerged under the League of Arab States and the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC). According to the Islamic world view, the Koran and other religious sources play a dominant role in the regulation of social life.

The League of Arab States was founded in terms of the Pact of the League of Arab States of 1945. Its overriding aim is to strengthen unity among Arab States by developing closer links between its members. The Pact emphasizes the independence and sovereignty of its members, but no mention is made in its founding document of either the contents or principles of human rights.

At the Teheran World Conference in 1968, some Arab States managed to have the position of Arabs in the territories occupied by Israel included in the agenda and successfully articulated it as a human rights issue. This created awareness of human rights among the Arab States in the aftermath of a number of defeats at the hands of Israel in 1967. However, at the Teheran Conference and thereafter, the commitment of the Arab League to human rights was primarily on directing criticism against Israel over its treatment of the inhabitants in Palestine and other occupied areas. In 1968, a regional conference on human rights was held in Beirut, where the Permanent Arab Commission on Human Rights (ACHR) was established. Since inception, the ACHR has been a highly politicized body, with its political nature accentuated by the method of appointment. The Commission does not consist of independent experts, as in many other international human rights bodies, but of government representatives. On 15 September 1994, the Council of the League of Arab States adopted the Arab Charter on Human Rights, whose entry into force, which required seven ratifications, was reached in 2008.

OIC, established in 1969, aims at the promotion of Islamic solidarity among the 56 Member States and works towards cooperation in the economic, cultural and political spheres. The major human rights document, adopted in Cairo in 1990 under this framework, is the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam, which is of a declamatory nature only. As its title indicates, and given the aims of OIC, the declaration is closely based on the principles of the Shari'ah. In 2004, OIC adopted a binding instrument with a specific focus: the Covenant on the Rights of the Child in Islam. This Convention is open for ratification and will enter into force after 20 OIC member States have ratified it. Although the Convention provides for a monitoring mechanism -- the Islamic Committee on the Rights of the Child -- its mandate is only vaguely drafted.

Overlapping to some extent with the Muslim world, the heterogeneous Asian region stretches from Indonesia to Japan, comprising a diverse group of nations. Despite some efforts by the United Nations, no supranational human rights convention or body has been established in the Asia-Pacific region. In the absence of an intergovernmental organization serving as a regional umbrella that unites all the diverse States in this region, a regional human rights system remains unlikely.

Subregional level In more recent times, the subregional level has emerged as another site for human rights struggle, particularly in Africa. As a result of a weak regional system under the African Union, a number of African sub-Regional Economic Communities (RECs) emerged from the 1970s: most prominently, the Economic Community of West African States, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC). Although these RECs are primarily aimed at subregional economic integration, and not at the realization of human rights, there is an inevitable overlap in that their aims of economic integration and poverty eradication are linked to the realization of socio-economic rights. In a number of the founding treaties of RECs, human rights are given explicit recognition as being integral to the organizations' aims. By creating subregional courts with an implicit, or sometimes explicit, mandate to deal with human rights cases, it is apparent that these economic communities have become key role-players in the African regional human rights system.

Two decisions of subregional courts illustrate the growing significance of RECs to human rights protection. In a case brought against Uganda, it was contended that Uganda violated the EAC Treaty when it re-arrested 14 accused persons after they had been granted bail. 3 The Court, in 2007, held that Uganda had violated the rule of law doctrine, as enshrined among the fundamental principles governing EAC.

In its first decision on the merits of a case, delivered in November 2008, 4 the SADC Tribunal held that it had jurisdiction, on the basis of the SADC Treaty, to deal with the acquisition of agricultural land by the Zimbabwean Government, carried out under an amendment to the Constitution (Amendment 17). The Tribunal further found that, as it targeted white farmers, the Zimbabwean land reform programme violated article 6(2) of the SADC Treaty, which outlaws discrimination on the grounds of race, among other factors. As to the remedial order, the Tribunal directed Zimbabwe to protect the possession, occupation and ownership of lands belonging to applicants and pay fair compensation to those whose land had already been expropriated.

Promising developments towards subregional human rights protection have also recently occurred in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), bringing together the founding States of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines. Although ASEAN was established in 1967, a formal founding treaty (the ASEAN Charter) was adopted only in 2007. The Charter envisages the establishment of an ASEAN human rights body -- a process that is still underway.

Not by States Alone Advances in human rights are not dependent only on States. Non-governmental organizations have been very influential in advancing awareness on important issues and have prepared the ground for declarations and treaties subsequently adopted by the United Nations.

The role of civil society is of particular importance when the contentiousness of an issue inhibits State action. The Yogyakarta Principles on the Application of International Human Rights Law in relation to Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity is a case in point. Although it was adopted in November 2006 by 29 experts from only 25 countries, the 29 principles contained in the document -- related to State obligations in respect of sexual orientation and gender identity -- are becoming an internationally accepted point of reference and are likely to steer future discussions.

The international human rights law landscape today looks radically different from 60 years ago when the Universal Declaration was adopted. Significant advances have been made since the Second World War in expanding the normative reach of international human rights law, leading to the proliferation of human rights law at the international level. Over the last few decades, however, attention has shifted to the implementation and enforcement of human rights norms, to the development of more secure safety nets and to a critical appraisal of the impact of the norms. Greater concern for human rights has also been accompanied with greater emphasis on the individual liability of those responsible for gross human rights violations in the form of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. The creation of international criminal tribunals, including the International Criminal Court in 1998, constitutes a trend towards the humanization of international law. The further juridification of international human rights law is exemplified by the establishment of more courts, the extension of judicial mandates to include human rights, and the unequivocal acceptance that all rights are justiciable. With the adoption of the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, there is much clearer acceptance of the principle of indivisibility under international human rights law. However, the constant evolution of the international human rights regime depends greatly on non-State actors, as is exemplified by their role in advocating for and preparing the normative ground for the recognition of the rights of "sexual minorities". There is no doubt that the landscape is to undergo dramatic changes in the next 60 years.

1. In Larger Freedom: Towards Development, Security and Human Rights for All, Report of the Secretary-General, UN Doc A/49/2005, 21 March 2005.

2. UN Doc. A/RES/60/251 (para 13), 3 April 2006, recommending to the Economic and Social Council to "abolish" the Commission on Human Rights on 16 June 2006.

3. James Katabazi and Others v Secretary-General of the EAC and Attorney-General of Uganda, Reference 1 of 2007, East African Court of Justice, 1 November 2007.

4. Mike Campbell (Pvt) Limited and Others v Republic of Zimbabwe, Case SADCT 2/07, SADC Tribunal, 28 November 2008.

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The concept of Human Rights Essay

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Introduction

Human rights- legitimation, human rights – justification, reference list.

Normally, the conventional comprehension of human rights is the absolute basic rights to which an individual is naturally entitled because he or she is a human being. Therefore, human rights are considered universal (valid the world over) and egalitarian (no different for everybody).

These rights might be present as natural rights or as legal rights, both in state and international regulation. The policy of human rights in global carry out within international edict, worldwide, and local institutions in the strategies of nations and the actions of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), has been a basis of public guiding principle around the world (Glenn 2011).

The concept of human rights affirms that, given that the public discussion of peacetime international society is alleged to have a universal proper language, then it is one of the human rights. Nevertheless, the strong allegations made by the policy of human rights keep on provoking substantial doubt and debates with reference to the nature, content, and validations of human rights to date. Unquestionably, the issue of what is denoted by a right is itself contentious, and a topic of continued rational debate.

As countered to charity, the subject of rights picks out entitlement in place of need, and consequently presupposes equal opportunity between donors and recipients of assistance. Formal complement between duties and rights signifies that, if an individual or a group possesses rights, in that case, another individual or group has the obligation to respect those rights.

Many of the fundamental initiatives, which animated the human rights movement, emerged in the after effects of the World War II and the mayhem of the Holocaust, leading to the legitimation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) by the United Nations General Assembly, in the year 1948. Legitimation implies according legal status (Hooft 2009, p. 55-60), which is different from justification that implies providing explanations for taking the principles and ethics seriously.

The traditional society did not have the perception of universal human rights. Traditional societies had intricate coordination of duties, for instance, ideas of fairness, political legality, and human thriving that aimed at acquiring human dignity, thriving, or well-being entirely free of human rights. With respect to human rights, an imperfection in argument is genetic fallacy. It presumes that a norm is appropriate only to the environment of its source.

To the argument concerning the legality of the rights expressed in the UDHR, human rights are universal. This signifies that human rights are applicable everywhere in the world. Pragmatic positivism is an endeavour to escape resolving the most significant of theoretical difficulties, that of the character of continuation. The basis of pragmatic positivism is repudiation to face the fundamental philosophical clash between idealism and greed, which brings about rejection of greed.

The transformationist conception of human rights is an argument that, in every cultural tradition, a number of people at several times have used defective perceptions of human rights that restrict protection of human rights to in-groups, whereas there is exclusion of out-groups (Hooft 2009, pp.61-65).

The perception of rights has functional reality all societies. This comprises even those that do not officially admit that perception because all people are born free and alike in solemnity and rights. Human beings posses reason, as well as sense of wrong and right, and ought to act towards each other in a spirit of goodwill.

Charles Taylor holds that, rights are not merely the only perception that could generate order in society and harmony between countries. There can be dissimilar pathways to the same target (Taylor 1999, pp.124-127). This implies that there is a likelihood of overlapping consensus on the human rights even amongst persons from diverse traditions. Taylor comprehends subjective rights as protection or liberty that is deemed as it were the possession of someone.

For instance, rather than saying that it is incorrect to murder me, it is alleged that I possess a right to life. According to Taylor, diverse groups, nations, religious societies, cultures while embracing incompatible essential perspectives on human nature, religion, or metaphysics, could come to a concurrence on particular norms that should govern human conduct.

Each could have its individual way of validating this from out of its thorough background plan. In this regard, we would concur on the norms, whereas differing on their being the right norms. Moreover, we would be satisfied to reside in this consensus, unbothered by the distinctions of deep underlying conviction (Taylor 1999, pp. 128-130).

Leaders in East Asia like Lee Kwan Yew consider something hazardously distinctive, dissolvent of society, fragmenting, in the western legal civilization (certainly, they have mainly in mind or their views the US).

Nevertheless, in their disapproval of Western conversation of human rights, they as well appear to be assaulting the fundamental values of the West, which purportedly gives dominance to the person, where allegedly a Confucian point of view could have a bigger place for the society, and the intricate mesh of human relations where every person stands.

In Asian communities, human rights may be defended through communitarian arguments without choice of western-style legal processes. How rights might be defended, in such Asian societies, without recourse to Western-style legal processes. This involves not inquiring so much the legal types, but articulating divergence with the fundamental philosophical explanation.

In Taylor’s account, Thai Buddhism may sustain human rights by turning from a focus on obtaining advantage and even earthly victory via blessings and performances of piety, as well as concentrating more on the unique objective of enlightenment. This attempts to go back to initial core of Buddhism regarding circumventing of suffering.

These produce perceptions of Buddhism as a foundation for democratic community and practice. Commitment of Buddhism to democracy, fairness, and human rights call for respect (Taylor 1999, pp. 131-137). This feature of western rights discourse is often particularly difficult to export, as it comes across societies where there is consideration of particular social differences as highly significant, and they are viewed sequentially as connected with particular ways, which are now considered as biased in Western societies.

Mainly as in the West, we are distant from having dealt with how to merge gender equality with our thoughts of gender dissimilarity. By “affirmation of ordinary life”, Taylor means the enormous cultural revolution that has been happening in modernity. In the development of Western ethical mindsets, this played a role of augmenting life and reducing suffering, thus leading to an exemplary life that is smacked of egotism and pride.

Westerners might come to comprehend the inherent sense of Shari’a law as the effortless outcome of pre-modern delusions, in the same group where they currently position the ancient rule execution scenarios (Taylor 1999, pp. 138-144).

An obstruction, in the course to a common understanding involving cultural traditions internationally, comes from the incapacity of several Westerners to perceive their culture like one amid many. To this degree, they will have a tendency of assuming that the path to union necessitates that others, as well cast off traditional notions, they even discard their religious legacy, and turn into unmarked moderns as them.

Cosmopolitan values for global relocation accept two justifications both associated with arguments on human rights: an intrinsic and a practical perception. The intrinsic justification, from this viewpoint of human rights, is deemed to come from natural rights. The practical justification of human rights aims at illustrating the implication of a human right to lowest values of well-being, based on a universal concurrence, on the role that the values of justice ought to play at the global level.

This perception deems the practical justification as distinct from the subject of their character. Subjectivity is an argument that has precedence because it comprises rights to basic needs (Hooft 2009, pp. 66-70. The importance of the concept of subjectivity is in justifying the precedence of individual rights.

Needs have precedence over desires and is an objective worth that can almost not be denied. Strongly desiring something does not ascertain that an individual has a right to it since that is just expression of want. Nussbaum affirms ten basic human capabilities (Hooft 2009, pp.71-81).

These include life (not dying too early), bodily health (ability to have good health, shelter, and food), bodily integrity (liberated to move free of assault and having sexual choice as well as gratification). They also comprise imagination, senses, and thought (able to use these maximally and excellently), emotions, practical reason, affiliation (ability to reside with and near others), other species (having concern for plants, nature, and animals), play, and control over the environment.

The utilitarian approach, which asks individuals what they presently desire and how content they are, is inadequate to deal with the assessment of the impartiality of social and economic arrangements (Nussbaum 2003).

This argument holds because there more generally has a sufficient theory of economic impartiality, and of social impartiality, where people are prepared to make claims regarding essential rights that are to some point independent of the desires that they to have, inclinations shaped, frequently, by unfair background circumstances.

Gross National Product (GNP) is also an inadequate determinant of human and economic advancement, because it fails to disaggregate and independently consider essential features of development, like health and education, which are obviously not exceptionally well connected with GNP, even if the distribution is considered (Nussbaum 2003).

The importance of capabilities approach lies in regular arguments, in support of issues of gender equality. Nussbaum believes that, her capabilities approach provides accuracy to the talk of human rights for when people are asked what they are able to carry out and to be, there is a much closer comprehension of the obstacles societies have raised against complete fairness for women (Williams 2000).

A stress on capabilities instead of operation protects a diversity of types of life because countries are evaluated in areas like educational and health accomplishment (Nussbaum 2003).

From this paper, human rights are universally valid, and their justification signifies the giving of explanations for taking the principles and ideals critically, whereas their legitimation denotes giving officially authorized significance.

The significance of depending on a perception of basic need in justifying the precedence of individual rights indicates that, needs have a main concern over desires. In addition, basic needs can validate an affirmation of rights as claims to human continued existence and a simply adequate survival (Keith 2012).

Glenn, H 2011, ‘The Concept of Dignity in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights’, Journal of Religious Ethics , vol.39 no.1, pp. 1-24.

Hooft, S 2009, Cosmopolitanism: A Philosophy for Global Ethics , Acumen, Durham.

Keith, S 2012, ‘A Declaration of Human Responsibilities’, Contemporary Review, vol. 294 no. 1704, pp. 46-53.

Nussbaum, M 2003, ‘Capabilities as Fundamental Entitlements: Sen and Social Justice’, Feminist Economics, vol. 9 no. 3, pp. 33-59.

Taylor, C 1999, “Conditions of an Unforced Consensus of Human Rights”, in J Bauer & D Bell (eds), The East Asian Challenge for Human Rights , Cambridge University Press Cambridge, Cambridge, pp. 124-144.

Williams, J 2000, Unbending Gender: Why Family and Work Conflict and What to Do About It , Oxford University Press, New York.

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Essay on Human Rights in English (150, 200, 250, 500 Words)

Here, we’ve presented essays on “Human Rights” in 150, 200, 250 & 500 word samples. All the essays will be helpful for students of all classes i.e. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 & class 12.

Table of Contents

Essay on Human Rights in 150 Words

Introduction.

Human rights are fundamental rights and freedoms inherent to all individuals, regardless of nationality, ethnicity, gender, or any other status. They encompass various aspects of life, including civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights. These rights are enshrined in international law, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948.

The Importance of Human Rights

Human rights ensure that every person is treated with dignity, equality, and fairness. They serve as a safeguard against discrimination, oppression, and injustice. By upholding human rights, societies promote peace, stability, and development. Access to education, healthcare, and a decent standard of living are among the rights that contribute to individual well-being and collective progress.

Upholding Human Rights in Practice

Despite the universal recognition of human rights, violations persist worldwide. Issues such as poverty, inequality, discrimination, and political repression continue to undermine the realization of these rights. Efforts to address these challenges require a collective commitment from governments, civil society, and individuals to promote accountability, transparency, and respect for human dignity.

In conclusion, human rights are the cornerstone of a just and equitable society. Upholding these rights is essential for fostering peace, prosperity, and human flourishing. It is incumbent upon all stakeholders to work together to protect and promote human rights for present and future generations.

Human Rights Essay in 200 Words

Human rights are universal entitlements that belong to every individual by virtue of their humanity. They encompass a broad range of rights, including civil, political, economic, social, and cultural freedoms. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948, serves as a foundational document outlining these rights and their significance.

The Significance of Human Rights

Human rights serve as a crucial framework for ensuring justice, equality, and dignity for all people. They provide a moral and legal foundation for protecting individuals from discrimination, oppression, and abuse. By upholding human rights, societies promote inclusivity, diversity, and respect for human dignity.

Protecting Civil and Political Rights

Civil and political rights, such as the right to freedom of expression, assembly, and fair trial, are essential for fostering democratic governance and rule of law. These rights empower individuals to participate in decision-making processes and hold governments accountable for their actions.

Promoting Economic and Social Rights

Economic and social rights, including the right to education, healthcare, and adequate standard of living, are crucial for ensuring the well-being and dignity of every person. Access to these rights enables individuals to fulfill their potential and contribute to society.

In conclusion, human rights are fundamental to the promotion of a just, equitable, and inclusive world. Upholding these rights requires concerted efforts from governments, civil society, and individuals to address systemic injustices and promote respect for human dignity in all aspects of life.

Essay Writing on Human Rights in 250 Words

Human rights are inherent to all individuals, regardless of race, nationality, or social status. They are enshrined in international law to safeguard the dignity, equality, and freedoms of every person. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948, serves as a foundational document in this regard.

Evolution of Human Rights

The concept of human rights has evolved over centuries, with notable milestones such as the Magna Carta in 1215 and the abolition of slavery in the 19th century. The struggle for rights continues today, with ongoing efforts to address issues like gender inequality, racial discrimination, and refugee rights.

Ensuring Civil and Political Rights

Civil and political rights, such as freedom of speech, assembly, and the right to a fair trial, are essential for upholding democracy and the rule of law. According to Amnesty International, as of 2020, 63 countries have imposed restrictions on freedom of expression, highlighting the ongoing challenges in protecting these rights globally.

Economic and Social Rights

Access to education, healthcare, and a decent standard of living are fundamental economic and social rights. However, as reported by the World Bank, as of 2021, over 700 million people still live in extreme poverty, underscoring the need for greater efforts to address socio-economic inequalities and ensure inclusive development.

Human Rights in Conflict Zones

Conflict zones often witness severe human rights abuses, including violence against civilians and displacement. According to the United Nations Refugee Agency, as of 2020, over 82 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide, highlighting the urgent need for humanitarian action and protection of rights in such contexts.

In conclusion, human rights remain a cornerstone of global efforts to promote peace, justice, and equality. While significant progress has been made, challenges persist in ensuring the full realization of these rights for all individuals. It is imperative for governments, civil society, and the international community to continue working together to uphold and protect human rights worldwide.

Writing an Essay on Human Rights in 500 Words

Human rights represent the essential freedoms and entitlements that every individual possesses inherently by virtue of being human. Rooted in international law and moral principles, human rights serve as a framework for promoting dignity, equality, and justice globally. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, stands as a seminal document outlining these rights.

Historical Context

Throughout history, the recognition and protection of human rights have evolved significantly. Milestones such as the Magna Carta in 1215 and the abolition of slavery in the 19th century marked pivotal moments in the advancement of human rights. The horrors of World War II prompted the international community to establish a comprehensive framework for human rights protection, culminating in the adoption of the Universal Declaration.

The Scope of Human Rights

Human rights encompass a broad spectrum of civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights. Civil and political rights, including freedom of speech, assembly, and religion, are fundamental for ensuring democratic governance and individual autonomy. Economic and social rights, such as the right to education, healthcare, and adequate standard of living, are essential for enabling people to live with dignity and fulfill their potential.

Global Challenges

Despite progress in human rights advocacy, numerous challenges persist. According to Amnesty International, as of 2020, over 140 countries had arbitrarily restricted freedom of expression, indicating ongoing threats to civil liberties worldwide. Similarly, the World Bank reported that as of 2021, approximately 10% of the world’s population lived in extreme poverty, underscoring the persistent socio-economic inequalities that undermine human dignity.

Human Rights Violations in Conflict Zones

Conflict zones remain hotspots for egregious human rights violations, including violence against civilians, forced displacement, and humanitarian crises. The United Nations Refugee Agency reported that by the end of 2020, more than 82 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide, highlighting the urgent need for robust humanitarian action and protection of rights in such contexts.

Gender Equality and Women’s Rights

Gender inequality continues to pose a significant challenge to the realization of human rights. According to UN Women, as of 2020, women and girls globally faced disproportionate barriers to education, employment, and participation in decision-making processes. Efforts to promote gender equality and women’s rights are essential for advancing human rights for all.

Environmental Rights and Climate Justice

The intersection of human rights and environmental issues has gained increasing attention in recent years. Climate change disproportionately affects marginalized communities and exacerbates existing socio-economic inequalities. As of 2020, the United Nations estimated that over 1 billion people were at risk of climate-related displacement, highlighting the urgent need for climate justice and sustainable development.

In conclusion, human rights are foundational to the promotion of dignity, equality, and justice for all individuals. While significant progress has been made in advancing human rights globally, persistent challenges, including discrimination, poverty, and conflict, require sustained efforts from governments, civil society, and the international community. Upholding and protecting human rights remain imperative in building a more inclusive, equitable, and sustainable world for present and future generations.

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5 Human Rights Topics For Your Human Rights Essay

When you’re writing a paper on human rights, you want to pick a topic that’s relevant and compelling. It seems like our world is heading in a downwards spiral, but writing about the issues provokes action, which in turn results in change. Here are five topics that have been getting attention (or aren’t getting enough attention) in recent years. These are all important; choosing one just comes down to what speaks to you most powerfully:

Police brutality in the United States

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Violence by American police is a major issue in the human rights arena these days and data indicates it’s getting worse. According to Killed By Police, a website that tracks police killings, 2018 has witnessed more deaths than in the last five years over the same period of time. It most likely won’t get better, as the DOJ recently ended a program that helped keep corrupt police departments in check. Black Americans are most vulnerable; in 2012, they made up 31% of police-killing victims, while only comprising 13% of the total US population.

Questions an essay could answer: Why are African-Americans and other minorities at a higher risk of police violence than white people? What has been done to undermine efforts to change the policing system? What could reduce killings by law enforcement?

Global mental health treatment

We hear a lot about how the mental health system in America is broken, but on a global scale, it’s just as much of a problem. Close to 800 000 people die due to suicide every year, which is one person every 40 seconds. Not much has been done to treat this issue, though according to a World Bank study, poor mental health has a drastic effect on one’s quality of life. Most governments have very small budgets for mental health treatment. In a WHO study, around 47 countries (out of 191) do not have any kind of national legislation or policies on mental health.

Questions an essay could answer: What is the current state of mental health treatment around the world? What specific treatments exist? What effect does poor mental health have on a nation’s economy, culture, etc? Why hasn’t the United Nations taken more aggressive action?

US policy on refugees

Since President Trump took office and instituted increasingly harsh limits and action on refugees and immigration, the US has entered a dark time. Just nine months after entering office, he capped the refugee admissions number to 45,000. Other programmes have been completely eliminated, such as the Central Americans Minors programme, which let children from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras join their parents who are legally in the US. Those seeking asylum have also been met with significant opposition. The biggest story, of course, is how children are being separated and interned apart from their parents. These are just a few topics that a paper about the US refugee policy could cover.

Questions an essay could answer : How has the current US refugee policy affected other countries’ opinion on America? How is this policy different than America’s stance in the past? What are the potential consequences of letting so few refugees into the country, for them and for the United States?

Transgender rights in Europe

In recent years, transgender rights have been challenged in the political arena with legislation such as the Bathroom Laws and weakened legal protection against work discrimination. What’s happening in Europe? In many countries like Belgium and Switzerland, transgender individuals were until very recently legally required to undergo sterilization and surgery before obtaining new identification papers. What provoked this change?

Questions an essay could answer: What is the history of trans rights in Europe? What countries have made the most positive moves in accepting transgender individuals? What can the United States do to follow progressive European countries into a new era?

Disability rights in America

Though somewhat ignored by the media, disability rights are under attack in America. Various pieces of legislature include deep cuts to Medicaid and removals of protections for disabled workers and students. One of the biggest blows is the Medicaid work requirement, which is currently allowed in three states. In order to receive assistance, people must meet a certain number of hours, but those with disabilities or illnesses won’t be able to. In response, Americans with disabilities are rising up in protest.

Questions an essay could answer: How are disability advocates fighting for their cause? What is the Trump administration’s response to activists? What can be done to protect those with disabilities?

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Human Rights Careers (HRC) provides information about online courses, jobs, paid internships, masters degrees, scholarships and other opportunities in the human rights sector and related areas.

Protection of Human Rights

Human rights are a political aspect that everyone should recognize and respect. Being human beings, human rights have always been laid down over the years and do not have to be granted by any state. They apply to every one of us and do not have to be granted by the state that we live in. Human rights are inherent to all of us, and it does not matter what gender we are, the color of our skin, our religious beliefs, the languages we speak, or any other status (Cosgrove & Shaughnessy, 2020). Although rights might have slight differences between states and political boundaries, they should all be respected because they promote equality among all human beings. This paper seeks to discuss the recognition of rights from a political perspective.

Raising the issue of human rights in this course is important because it equips people with the knowledge and values to recognize, claim and defend their rights (Reinert et al., 2021). It also fosters attitudes and behaviors in us required to uphold rights for everyone in society, which in turn promotes equality, dignity, and respect in our communities. Raising the issue of human rights is fundamental because it is crucial for building and advancing our societies, enables us to participate in decision-making and resolving our conflicts peacefully, and fosters empathy, inclusion, and non-discrimination.

Human rights protect our dignity as human beings and should be recognized. No government or individual has the mandate to violate another person’s right (Lu, 2022). They are important because they enrich us with values like equality and respect, which help us create a desirable society to live in. They govern how we interact with each other in the community, school, the workplace, politics, and international relations. It is, therefore, crucial for people to comprehend rights which eases the promotion of justice and serenity of the society not only on a state level but on a global level as well.

Human rights are universal and unalienable, meaning that we are equally entitled to our rights. They should only be restricted in particular situations; for instance, one may be restricted from the right to liberty if he/she is incriminated by a court of law. They are independent, meaning that a particular class of rights should not be exercised in the absence of another; for example, the exercise of civil rights eases the exercising of rights concerning culture, economy, and social activities. (Leary, 2019). Rights are equal, meaning we are all born with equal dignity and rights. Human rights participation and inclusion mean that all people can freely and actively participate in development. The Human Rights rule of law means that states have a mandatory obligation to comply with the legal norms entangled in the instruments of human rights.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948 and became the first legal document to advocate for the universal protection of fundamental human rights (Donnelly & Whelan, 2020). The UDHR is reinforced with thirty articles enhancing the principles of human rights conventions. The UDHR, together with the International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant for Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, form the International Bill of Rights. These rights govern the integration of human beings in society with each other and individual relationships with the obligations in the state we live in.

International Human Rights law establishes a foundation that states are required to respect. This means that states should not only abstain from interfering with the administration and practice of human rights but also protect individuals and groups from abuse. Governments all over the globe have enforced domestic legislation which integrates with their obligations. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights governs equality before the law, conscience and religion, freedom of opinion and expression, and participation in public affairs and elections (Ali, 2021). The Covenant prohibits arbitrary deprivation of life, degrading treatment, punishment, and discrimination. The International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights seeks to protect the right to work in just and favorable conditions, the right to social protection, the right to adequate living standards of physical and mental well-being, the right to education, and the right to benefit from cultural freedom.

Human rights are relevant to comparative politics because different states and continents have different mechanisms to uphold these rights. In Canada, the Canadian Human Rights Act, established in 1977, protects the people of Canada from discrimination by the Canadian federal government. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is taking steps towards institutionalizing regional human rights standards in the Arab sector. The Council of Europe, along with the European Union (EU) and the Organization for Security and Cooperation (OSCE), advocate for rights in Europe (Sikkink, 2019). These organizations have a significant impact on the protection of rights.

Our rights influence how we interact with each other. It is thus fundamental that everyone recognizes what they are and respect them. Comprehension of human rights helps us maintain the well-being of our society. However, the concept of human rights raises questions for thought. As much as human rights are universal, should our cultural diversities bypass this aspect? What should we do in cases where we become victims of a violation of rights? What causes the need for agreements between different states on rights rather than every country determining its own standards?

Ali, S. S. (2021). Gender and human rights in Islam and international law: equal before Allah, unequal before man? In Gender and Human Rights in Islam and International Law . Brill.

Cosgrove, L., & Shaughnessy, A. F. (2020). Mental health as a basic human right and the interference of commercialized science. Health and Human Rights Journal , 22 (1), p. 61.

Donnelly, J., & Whelan, D. J. (2020). International human rights Journal . p. 37–48.

Kakoullis, E. J., & Johnson, K. (2020). Recognizing Human Rights in Different Cultural Contexts . P. 32-35.

Leary, V. A. (2019). Globalization and Human Rights. In Human Rights: New Dimensions and Challenges Journal . p. 265–279.

Lu, S. (2022). Data Privacy, Human Rights, and Algorithmic Opacity. Human Rights, and Algorithmic Opacity (January 10, 2022). California Law Review Journal, p. 110.

Reinert, A., Schwartz, J. C., & Pfander, J. E. (2021). New Federalism and Civil Rights Enforcement. Nw. UL Rev. , 116 , 737.

Sikkink, K. (2019). 6. The Power of Principled Ideas: Human Rights Policies in the United States and Western Europe. In Ideas and foreign policy Journal . p. 139–170.

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The Legal Protection of Human Rights: Sceptical Essays

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Reacting to the poor record of the UK Human Rights Act 1998 and similar provisions in protecting human rights, this book explores ways of promoting human rights more effectively through political and democratic mechanisms. The book expresses ideological scepticism concerning the relative neglect of social and economic rights and institutional scepticism concerning the failures of court-centred means for enhancing human rights goals in general. Criticizing the ‘juridification’ of human rights through the transferring of the prime responsibility for defining human rights violations to courts and advocating the greater ‘politicization’ of human rights responsibilities through such measures as enhanced Parliamentary scrutiny of existing and proposed legislation, a group of twenty-four human rights scholars present a variety of perspectives on the disappointing human rights outcomes of recent institutional developments and consider the prospects of reviving the moral force and political implications of human rights values. Thus, one chapter recounts the Human Rights Act failures with respect to counter-terrorism legislation, another charts how the ‘dialogue’ model reduces parliaments' capacities to hold governments to accountable for human rights violations, a further chapter considers which institutions best protect fundament al rights, and another chapter reflects on how the idea of human rights could be ‘rescued’ in Britain today. Other chapters deal with the historical human rights failures of courts during the Cold War and in Northern Ireland, the diverse outcomes of human rights judicial review, and examine aspects of the human rights regimes in a variety of jurisdictions, including Finland, Sweden, New Zealand, Australia, Scotland, Canada, Europe, and the United States.

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Sovereignty and Human Rights

Living reference work entry
First Online: 25 September 2020
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Han Liu 3

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Introduction

The relationship between sovereignty and human rights is one of the most contested questions in legal theory and practice. It has been mostly conceived as antagonistic in contemporary discussions. Sovereignty is often deemed as a threat to human rights of individuals, especially when a state violating human rights invokes sovereignty as defense against criticism or scrutiny. It has been argued that the universal protection of human rights entails the rejection of state sovereignty. Full protection of human rights, therefore, necessarily requires a force that encroaches, compromises, or even breaks down the sovereignty of the state. Sovereignty seems as an anachronism that must be discarded or disregarded in the era of human rights. This has become a global ethos at the turn of the century.

Against this backdrop, this essay will first provide a short history of the concept of sovereignty and then introduce the development of international human rights movement as well as...

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Annan K (1999) Two concepts of sovereignty. The Economist:49–50

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School of Law, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China

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Correspondence to Han Liu .

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Center for International & Comparative Law, University of Baltimore School of Law, Baltimore, MD, USA

Mortimer Sellers

Sozial- und Wirtschaftswissenschaften, University of Salzburg, Austria, Salzburg, Austria

Stephan Kirste

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Graduate School of Intercultural Studies, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan

Tetsu Sakurai

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Liu, H. (2020). Sovereignty and Human Rights. In: Sellers, M., Kirste, S. (eds) Encyclopedia of the Philosophy of Law and Social Philosophy. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6730-0_323-1

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6730-0_323-1

Received : 19 August 2020

Accepted : 20 August 2020

Published : 25 September 2020

Publisher Name : Springer, Dordrecht

Print ISBN : 978-94-007-6730-0

Online ISBN : 978-94-007-6730-0

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Sudan: un fact-finding mission outlines extensive human rights violations, international crimes, urges protection of civilians [en/ar], attachments.

GENEVA – Sudan’s warring parties have committed an appalling range of harrowing human rights violations and international crimes, including many which may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, the UN’s Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for the Sudan said in its first report today.

Both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), as well as their respective allies, were found to be responsible for patterns of large-scale violations, including indiscriminate and direct attacks carried out through airstrikes and shelling against civilians, schools, hospitals, communication networks and vital water and electricity supplies.

The warring parties also targeted civilians – as well as those assisting survivors or documenting violations – through rape and other forms of sexual violence, arbitrary arrest and detention, as well as torture and ill-treatment. These violations may amount to war crimes related to violence to life and person and committing outrages upon personal dignity, the report found.

“The gravity of these findings underscores the urgent and immediate action to protect civilians,” said Mohamed Chande Othman, Chair of the Fact-Finding Mission.

“Given the failure of the warring parties to spare civilians, it is imperative that an independent and impartial force with a mandate to safeguard civilians be deployed without delay,” Othman said. “The protection of the civilian population is paramount, and all parties must comply with their obligations under international law and immediately and unconditionally cease all attacks on the civilian population.”

The report also found reasonable grounds to believe that RSF and its allied militias committed the additional war crimes of rape, sexual slavery, and pillage, as well as ordering the displacement of the civilian population and the recruitment of children below 15 in hostilities. Horrific assaults carried by the RSF and its allies against non-Arab communities – in particular the Masalit in and around El Geneina, West Darfur – included killings, torture, rape and other forms of sexual violence, destruction of property and pillage.

There are also reasonable grounds to believe that acts committed by the RSF and its allied militias amount to numerous crimes against humanity, including murder, torture, enslavement, rape, sexual slavery, other sexual violence of comparable gravity, persecution on the basis of ethnic and gender targeting, and forcible displacement.

The conflict, which has spread to 14 of the 18 states in Sudan, has killed and wounded tens of thousands of civilians, displaced nearly 8 million people and forced two million more to flee to neighboring countries. The warring parties have exacerbated the crisis by obstructing humanitarian access, the report said.

“The people of the Sudan have suffered unimaginable tragedy,” said Expert Member Joy Ngozi Ezeilo. “A sustainable ceasefire must be prioritized to halt the fighting in which the civilian population is caught and enable the effective delivery of badly needed humanitarian assistance to all those in need, regardless of their location.”

The report – mandated by the Human Rights Council when it established the Fact-Finding Mission in October 2023 – was drawn from investigations conducted between January and August 2024. These included visits to Chad, Kenya, and Uganda, first-hand testimony from 182 survivors, family members and eyewitnesses, extensive consultations with experts and civil society members, and the corroboration and analysis of additional information provided to the Mission.

The report recommended expanding the existing arms embargo in Darfur pursuant to Security Council Resolution 1556 (2004) and subsequent resolutions, to all Sudan to stem the supply of weapons, ammunition, and other logistical or financial support to the warring parties and prevent further escalation. Those supplying arms, the report warned, may be complicit in grave violations of human rights and humanitarian law.

Sudanese authorities should cooperate fully with the International Criminal Court (ICC), and surrender all indicted persons, including former President Al Bashir, the report said. The ICC’s jurisdiction stemming from Security Council resolution 1593 (2005) concerning the situation in Darfur should also be expanded to cover the entire territory of Sudan.

Because efforts by Sudanese authorities to investigate and prosecute those responsible for international crimes have been marred by a lack of willingness characterized by selective justice and a lack of impartiality, bringing accountability to victims will be profoundly challenging.

The report also called for the establishment of a separate international judicial mechanism working in tandem and complementary to the ICC.

“These findings should serve as a wake-up call to the international community to take decisive action to support survivors, their families and affected communities, and hold perpetrators accountable**,” said Expert Member Mona Rishmawi**. “A comprehensive approach to transitional justice is vital for addressing the root causes of the conflict and ensuring accountability.”

Applauding the various efforts undertaken to bring the parties to the negotiating table, Othman said “the people of Sudan deserve a future marked by peace, prosperity, and respect for human rights.”

“The international community must support the Sudanese aspiration for an inclusive and representative civilian government that respects the rights of all citizens,” Othman said. ”This support is essential for fostering a path toward equality, justice, and sustainable peace in Sudan.”

Background: The Human Rights Council established the Fact-Finding Mission in October, through resolution A/HRC/RES/54/2 . In December 2023, the President of the Human Rights Council appointed Mohamed Chande Othman, as the Chair of the Fact-Finding Mission and Joy Ngozi Ezeilo and Mona Rishmawi as Members. The Secretariat of the Fact-Finding Mission is based in the UN Office at Nairobi, Kenya. The mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission is, inter alia, “to investigate and establish the facts, circumstances and root causes of all alleged human rights violations and abuses and violations of international humanitarian law, including those committed against refugees, and related crimes in the context of the ongoing armed conflict that began on 15 April 2023, between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces, as well as other warring parties.” The Mission, which was established for an initial duration of one year, was further requested to collect and analyse evidence in view of any future legal proceedings; to identify, where possible, individuals and entities responsible; and to make recommendations with a view to ending impunity and ensuring accountability and access to justice for victims.

More information on the work of the Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan can be found here .

For media queries, please contact: Todd Pitman, Media Adviser - Investigative Missions, [email protected] / (+41) 76 691 1761 or Pascal Sim, Human Rights Council Media Officer, at [email protected] .

College of Law

Outside of Boyd Law Building at Iowa Law

Outside of the Boyd Law Building at Iowa Law

Human rights scholar and attorney Hope Metcalf joins Iowa Law School faculty

The University of Iowa College of Law is pleased to announce the faculty appointment of leading human rights scholar Hope R. Metcalf.

Drawing on broad experience and expertise in human rights law, Metcalf’s research, practice, and teaching focus on protection of human rights defenders and strengthening democratic spaces, both in the United States and internationally.

Metcalf comes to the University of Iowa after more than 15 years at Yale Law School. From 2014-2024 she served as executive director for the Orville H. Schell, Jr. Center for International Human Rights Law; she also co-taught in the Allard K. Lowenstein International Human Rights Clinic. The Schell Center enables students, faculty, visiting scholars, and the broader institution to conduct research and engage in pressing human rights issues and discussions.

Metcalf is joining an institution with its own proud history of commitment to and innovation in human rights. Iowa Law School is home to the UI Human Rights Center, a nationally respected program that serves Iowa Law, the UI community, and the state of Iowa as a hub for human rights scholarship, teaching, and engagement.

Prior to Metcalf’s work at the Schell Center, she was director of Yale Law’s Arthur Liman Center for Public Interest Law. She also served as project director for the National Litigation Project of the Lowenstein International Human Rights Clinic; she began her Yale Law career as a fellow there from 2007-2008. Before joining academia, she was an associate attorney at the firms of Debevoise & Plimpton and Wiggin and Dana.

Metcalf earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Yale University in 1996 and her law degree from the New York University School of Law in 2001.

A photo illustration shows a paper airplane made of the U.S. Constitution crashing into the ground. It is against a colorful background.

Critic’s Notebook

The Constitution Is Sacred. Is It Also Dangerous?

One of the biggest threats to America’s politics might be the country’s founding document.

Credit... Photo illustration by Ben Denzer

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By Jennifer Szalai

Aug. 31, 2024

The United States Constitution is in trouble. After Donald Trump lost the 2020 election, he called for the “ termination of all rules, regulations and articles, even those found in the Constitution.” Outraged critics denounced him for threatening a document that is supposed to be “sacrosanct.” By announcing his desire to throw off constitutional constraints in order to satisfy his personal ambitions, Trump was making his authoritarian inclinations abundantly clear.

It’s no surprise, then, that liberals charge Trump with being a menace to the Constitution . But his presidency and the prospect of his re-election have also generated another, very different, argument: that Trump owes his political ascent to the Constitution, making him a beneficiary of a document that is essentially antidemocratic and, in this day and age, increasingly dysfunctional.

After all, Trump became president in 2016 after losing the popular vote but winning the Electoral College (Article II). He appointed three justices to the Supreme Court (Article III), two of whom were confirmed by senators representing just 44 percent of the population (Article I). Those three justices helped overturn Roe v. Wade, a reversal with which most Americans disagreed . The eminent legal scholar Erwin Chemerinsky, worried about opinion polls showing “a dramatic loss of faith in democracy,” writes in his new book, “No Democracy Lasts Forever”: “It is important for Americans to see that these failures stem from the Constitution itself.”

Back in 2018, Chemerinsky, the dean of Berkeley’s law school, still seemed to place considerable faith in the Constitution, pleading with fellow progressives in his book “We the People” “not to turn their back on the Constitution and the courts.” By contrast, “No Democracy Lasts Forever” is markedly pessimistic. Asserting that the Constitution, which is famously difficult to amend , has put the country “in grave danger,” Chemerinsky lays out what would need to happen for a new constitutional convention — and, in the book’s more somber moments, he entertains the possibility of secession . West Coast states might form a nation called “Pacifica.” Red states might form their own country. He hopes that any divorce, if it comes, will be peaceful.

The prospect of secession sounds extreme, but in suggesting that the Constitution could hasten the end of American democracy, Chemerinsky is far from alone. The argument that what ails the country’s politics isn’t simply the president, or Congress, or the Supreme Court, but the founding document that presides over all three, has been gaining traction, especially among liberals. Books and op-eds critiquing the Constitution have proliferated. Scholars are arguing that the Constitution has incentivized what Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt call a “Tyranny of the Minority.”

The anguish is, in some sense, a flip side of veneration. Americans have long assumed that the Constitution could save us; a growing chorus now wonders whether we need to be saved from it.

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The University of Chicago The Law School

Global human rights clinic—significant achievements for 2023-24.

The Global Human Rights Clinic (GHRC) students continue to advance justice and address the inequalities and structural disparities that lead to human rights violations worldwide using diverse tactics and interdisciplinary tools. Over the past year, students and clinic director Anjli Parrin—who joined the faculty permanently in October 2023—worked in teams to promote human rights around the world. In particular, the GHRC supported justice efforts in the context of conflict and related to mass atrocities; the investigation and prevention of unlawful killings globally; the rights of missing migrants; the right to health; climate justice; and the right to equality and non-discrimination. Select work from each of these strands is described below.

Justice in Conflict: Supporting Atrocity Investigations in The Gambia and Central African Republic

The GHRC partners with civil society organizations and multidisciplinary scientific experts to investigate war crimes and mass atrocities, and advance justice in the context of conflict. Over this past year, the GHRC supported effective investigations in the Central African Republic and the Gambia. In addition, the Clinic worked with grassroots civil society and victims’ associations in both countries to advance critical human rights.

Central African Republic

In the Central African Republic (CAR), protracted violence and conflict has had devastating impacts on the civilian population. Civilians have borne the brunt of grave human rights violations, and the country remains one of the poorest in the world. The GHRC supported judicial authorities to carry out complex investigations of alleged mass atrocities committed during armed conflict in the country. Students worked alongside lawyers and scientific experts to conduct detailed factfinding, prepare legal memos on evidence collection and preservation, and support the creation of investigation files of human rights abuses.

Further, the GHRC alongside the Columbia Law School Smith Family Human Rights Clinic, partnered with CAR civil society, which is significantly under-funded and under-resourced, and therefore frequently shut out of international human rights forums and subject to attacks and threats domestically. We worked with two organizations—the Collectif des Organisations Musulmanes de Centrafrique (COMUC), an umbrella network of Muslim civil society, and the Association des Femmes Juriste de Centrafrique (AFJC), a women’s lawyers’ organization, and one of the largest providers of legal aid in the country—to document and advocate for the rights of religious minorities and women at the United Nations Human Rights Council. Students supported these organizations to:

Launch a major human rights report on the right to freedom of religion and belief, and non-discrimination of religious minorities in CAR. This report documents violations of the right to life, arbitrary detention, freedom of movement, legal recognition, health, and education, and was launched in Geneva in December 2023.
Carry out advocacy before the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, as part of CAR’s Universal Periodic Review, a unique process of the Council whereby States’ human rights records are reviewed every five years. Students supported advocates from COMUC and AFJC to prepare reports on the human rights situation, present at a pre-session for the review in Geneva, and to meet diplomatic missions to inform them about the human rights situation in the country. The clinic’s support to national civil society ensured that they had access to this important international advocacy forum. The civil society reports can be accessed at the UN Office of the High Commission for Human Rights website (for a summary, see, A/HRC/WG.6/45/CAF/3 ).

In the Gambia, a military regime run by autocrat Yahya Jammeh committed scores of human rights abuses between 1994 and 2016, including arbitrary detentions, extrajudicial killings, and enforced disappearances. Following the overturning of the Jammeh regime, a truth commission was created to understand what happened during the dictatorship, and a special prosecution office is being set up. Families of those killed and disappeared are searching for answers as to the fate of their loved ones.

In partnership with the African Network Against Extrajudicial Killings and Enforced Disappearances (ANEKED) Gambia chapter, the Gambian Ministry of Justice, and the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team, GHRC students supported efforts to advance justice and the search for missing persons in the Gambia. In particular, building on an assessment of the forensic and international criminal system conducted last year, the GHRC worked with civil society to carry out factfinding related to a key mass atrocity case. Additionally, in the Fall, the GHRC will work with ANEKED to expand its transitional justice and memory curriculum, so that young persons in the Gambia and globally learn about the process for truth and justice in the country.

Extrajudicial Executions: Preventing and Investigating Unlawful Deaths Globally

The GHRC provided strategic support to Morris Tidball-Binz, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions, and a leading independent human rights expert appointed by the United Nations to advise on the issue of unlawful killings from a thematic perspective. The Special Rapporteur procedures are a key pillar through which human rights is advanced at the UN. As part of their mandate, Special Rapporteurs undertake country visits, conduct annual thematic studies, and act on individual cases of reported violations by sending communications to States and international authorities. As of June 2024, Tidball-Binz joined the University of Chicago Pozen Family Center for Human Rights as a visiting senior research associate, where he will engage with and conduct joint research alongside Pozen Center and GHRC students.

In particular, the GHRC supported the Special Rapporteur with:

Preparation for his country visit to Ukraine in May 2024. GHRC students conducted detailed research, factfinding, and analysis of concerns relating to unlawful killings in Ukraine, producing background research about the human rights situation prior to as well as during the ongoing escalation in hostilities. The research covered legislative and policy structures, key crosscutting concerns, emblematic cases, and positive developments. During the Special Rapporteur’s actual time in-country, GHRC students provided remote, ongoing support as required.
Support in the research and drafting of his thematic report on the protection of the dead from a human rights perspective. GHRC students conducted factfinding, expert interviews, and legal analysis to inform the Special Rapporteur’s thematic report on protection of the dead, which was presented to the UN Human Rights Council on June 26, 2024 ( A/HRC/56/56 ). The UN Special Rapporteur acknowledged the contributions of the GHRC (video, remarks referencing the GHRC at 31:30).

Missing Migrants: A Forensic Response for African Missing Migrants in Southwest Europe

Thousands of Africans go missing each year attempting to cross international borders in search of safety and better opportunities. Despite the broad recognition among states of the importance and need to address the situation of missing migrants, there is a lack of formal coordination and procedures among all relevant stakeholders relating to missing migrants, and in many instances, even within a country’s government, there is a lack of information sharing. For families searching for the fate and whereabouts of their loved ones, the uncertainty is devastating, often leaving them in limbo.

In partnership with the Immigrants’ Rights Clinic (IRC) and the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team, the GHRC is supporting efforts to identify missing migrants traveling from Africa to South-West Europe. Over this course of this academic year, GHRC/IRC students:

Researched migration patterns in key departure and transit countries in Africa, focusing on migrants leaving from the Gambia, Senegal, Morocco, and Tunisia. Additionally, students researched migration arrival patterns in Spain.
Commenced an analysis of the existing legal frameworks governing the rights of missing migrants, and laws that pertain to transnational exchange of information of missing migrants. This analysis will be further developed and published next academic year.
Prepared to carry out travel to the Gambia, Senegal, Tunisia, and Morocco, including identifying key stakeholders in each country from civil society, state institutions, and intergovernmental institutions.

Advancing the Right to Health Globally

GHRC students work to address violations of the right to health globally. We do so in two key areas—by working with Indigenous groups globally to reinterpret the international human right to health in accordance with Indigenous knowledge systems; and to support the realization of the right to health in the context of armed conflict.

Indigenous rights to health

In partnership with Human Rights Watch and Indigenous groups in South Africa, the Navajo Nation, and Guåhan (Guam), GHRC students are working to tackle systemic harms within global health and understand the impact of colonial determinants on health outcomes. This academic year, students worked to finalize a human rights report on the impact of US military buildup in Guåhan on Indigenous CHamoru medicinal and healing practices (the military currently controls approximately one-third of land on Guåhan). This report will be released in the Fall of 2024. Further, GHRC students supported Indigenous groups in South Africa and the Navajo Nation to document violations of the right to health in their lands.

Drawing upon his research through the GHRC, undergraduate student Elijah Jenkins was selected to receive the prestigious Stamps Scholarship , which will support him to undertake additional research in Guåhan. As a CHamoru student, Jenkins will deepen his understanding of and research into the impact of colonialism on the peoples of Guåhan and will continue to be supported by the GHRC.

Attacks on healthcare in conflict

The GHRC partnered with the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Medicine to document, research, and support legal claims of violations of the right to health in the context of the ongoing conflict in Israel and Palestine. This project is taking place with the support and partnership of the Heath and Vascular Hospital at the Public Aid Society in Gaza. GHRC law students and Pritzker School medical students teamed up to conduct interviews with doctors who have recently traveled to Gaza, conduct open-source research into violations of the right to health, and analyze the applicable international humanitarian law governing protection of medical establishments and personnel. The team is currently preparing joint submissions to legal and quasi-judicial bodies.

Bridging the Chasm Between Law, Science, Technology and Narrative to Advance Climate Justice

While climate change is having a devastating impact across the planet, the harms are not experienced equally. Those on the frontlines of the climate crisis are frequently those who have contributed least to climate harms—including Indigenous groups, individuals living in small island nations, young people, and communities across the Global South. Coalitions of young people, including the Pacific Island Students Fighting Climate Change (PISFCC) and the World’s Youth for Climate Justice (WY4CJ), are leading the right to ensure a livable present and future.

In March 2023, the PISFCC succeeded in getting a historic resolution adopted, asking the International Court of Justice—the World’s Court—to rule on what the obligations of States are to protect the climate, and what the consequences are for the world’s biggest violators. Ahead of the ICJ oral hearings, GHRC is partnering with PISFCC, WY4CJ, visual investigations experts SITU Research , and artist Suneil Sanzgiri, to create a fifteen-minute film that weaves together the stories of young people and the impacts of climate harm through testimony, historical and contemporary documentation, and climate science. The film will debut at the Pinakothek der Moderne museum as part of the upcoming exhibition, Visual Investigations: between Advocacy, Journalism, and Law , opening October 10, 2024 in Munich, Germany.

Advancing Equality: Resisting Discriminatory Laws in Uganda and Globally

Discriminatory laws impact the ability of sexual and gender minorities, as well as other vulnerable groups, to access basic rights. Recently, several countries have passed discriminatory laws, including ones criminalizing homosexuality with extraordinarily punitive sentences. GHRC students work alongside civil society organizations in Uganda and around the world to challenge unfair laws and policies. This academic year, students:

Partnered with Chapter Four Uganda and the Makerere University Human Rights and Peace Centre to develop a strategy to challenge discriminatory provisions in the survivor’s benefit clause of the National Social Security Fund Act. In March 2024, GHRC students traveled to Uganda to host the first of its kind moot court competition around this provision. Students partnered with Ugandan colleagues to prepare their arguments, and following the event met with the Minister of Justice to advocate for changes in the law. Currently, students are preparing a joint white paper on the issue, which will be published over the summer of 2024.
In partnership with Stanford Law School International Human Rights and Conflict Resolution Clinic, GHRC students supported major NGOs in countries where new restrictions on sexual orientation and gender identity had been passed to analyze the restrictions and publish public-facing advocacy documents explaining their implications.
Supported the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions with research and legal analysis of LGBTQI+ killings, ahead of a thematic report which he will present to the UN General Assembly in October 2024.

Student Post-Graduate Fellowships

Additionally, GHRC graduating students obtained prestigious fellowships to pursue public interest work post-graduation. In 2023, Nico Thompson Lleras and Marin Murdock both received fellowships to work at Reprieve’s Unlawful Detention program and International Coalition of Sites of Conscience’s Global Initiative for Justice, Truth, and Reconciliation. In 2024, graduating student Bryant King will join the Clooney Foundation for Justice as a legal fellow, and Elisa Epstein received the Equal Justice Works Fellowship to support a two-year fellowship at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

A tragic start to National Child Protection Week

As the launch of National Child Protection Week throws the spotlight on creating better futures where children and young people flourish, the National Children’s Commissioner Anne Hollonds is speaking up for the thousands of children whose futures are bleak because Australian governments do not prioritise their human rights to safety, care and protection.

Commissioner Hollonds said: “It was a privilege to speak at the launch of National Child Protection Week today, but I did so with a very heavy heart. A second child has died in youth detention in less than a year.

“This devastating death of a child in the care of the state reminds us of all the other children who are also suffering every day, because of the failure of Australian governments to honour our promise to protect the human rights of our children. Australia ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990 but has failed to embed its principles into domestic laws.

“Thousands of children each year are failed by inadequate support from health, education and social service systems, resulting in the child protection and child justice systems being chronically overwhelmed. The basic needs of Australia’s most vulnerable children – such as housing, enough food to eat, education and health care - are not being met.

“In a rich and developed country these are preventable problems of our own making. These children are falling through the gaps created by our neglect and governments’ lack of action based on decades of evidence.

“Less than two weeks ago I tabled in Parliament a report called Help Way Earlier! How Australia can transform child justice to improve safety and wellbeing.

“This report outlines a reform strategy – guided by evidence – to address the needs of vulnerable children and their families and help to prevent offending by children and keep the community safer. A key recommendation is that governments work together across the federation.

“Currently ‘children and child wellbeing’ is not a priority for National Cabinet, unlike other important issues including ‘women and women’s safety’. Given the ongoing crises in child protection and child justice systems everywhere in Australia, we should be asking our leaders ‘why?’ Children should not pay the price of ‘federation failure’.

“National Cabinet will be meeting on Friday 6 September in Child Protection Week. It is my urgent plea to the Prime Minister and leaders of all governments across our federation to look closely at the evidence in the Help Way Earlier! report and agree to make child wellbeing a key priority for National Cabinet.”

Child Protection Week runs from 1-7 September.

Media contact: [email protected] or 0457 281 897

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As the launch of National Child Protection Week throws the spotlight on creating better futures where children and young people flourish, the National Children's Commissioner Anne Hollonds is speaking up for the thousands of children whose futures are bleak because Australian governments do not prioritise their human rights to safety, care and protection. Commissioner Hollonds said: "It ...

Protection of Human Rights

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Article contents

Introduction

What Are Human Rights?

The Emphasis on Physical Integrity Rights

Human Rights Abuses and the State

Regime Type

State Wealth

State Capacity

Human Rights and International Dynamics

Norm Entrepreneurs and Advocacy Actors

State and IGO Foreign Policy Actions

Human Rights Treaties

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