Chapter Twelve: Human Rights Flashcards
human rights definition
rights possessed by all individuals by virtue of being a person, regardless of status
Article 55 UN charter
- higher standards of living, full employment, and conditions of economic and social progress
- solutions of international, economic, social, heath, and related problems
- universal respect and observance for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction of race, sex, language, or religion
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UNDHR)
adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1948 to clarify what rights were embodied in Article 55
UDHR four pillars
dignity, liberty, equality, and brotherhood
What does the UDHR suggest?
a level playing field is created for all people globally
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)
focused on Western states and provides basic political civil rights such as gender equality, innocent until proven guilty, freedom of religion
International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR)
supported by communist states and developing world and provides basic political and civil rights such as right to just and favorable working conditions, right to education for children, right to adequate standard of living
human rights controversy
states have different interests in human rights because of conflicting political institutions, legal traditions, and philosophies
Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees parties’ obligations
-respect refugees’ personal status and the rights that come with it like marriage (article 12)
- provide access to courts for refugees (article 16)
Determining which rights states care about
asking whether states undertake costly actions to punish violators
How do government officials respond to human rights abuses?
statements of disapproval; true sanctions are rare
Why do states violate human rights?
- lack of capacity
- foreign threats
- sovereignty
- maintain power
Why do states sign human rights agreements?
- demonstrate adherence to democratic norms
- lock-in new institutions and practices
- gain contingent rewards provided by others
- to be able to influence human rights in other countries
What does ratifying human rights treaties associate with?
an increase in individual human rights violations
Three possible explanations for violations
- int’l human rights law might not matter and is sporadically enforced
- states may ratify treaties simply to mask their continuing patterns of abuse
- countries that sign human rights agreements are also the ones that are most likely to abuse them
What does international human rights law do for actors
empowers actors to advocate their own rights
What does international human rights law do for NGOs?
allow them to create political pressure that may in time force states to act
Conditions that states will protect human rights
- when confronted with domestic pressure to prevent or stop human rights abuses
- when it serves their larger geopolitical interests
- when the principle of sovereignty, and consequently non-intervention, can be bridged with other principles
Transitional justice
requires countries or members of government to come clean with what they have done so it can fixed (e.g., reparations, holding leaders accountable, preventing those leaders from being power again)
Individual petition
Individual governments write into law to allow individual citizens to appeal to the UN when human rights violations occur.
Universal jurisdiction
Allows countries to prosecute people from other countries who have violated international law
Linkage politics
The action where two unrelated issues are somehow linked together. Two or more countries can come together and trade concessions on said issues. These incentives can be used to nudge other governments in the right direction.
