Do Pressure Groups Better Protect Civil Rights Than Gov Flashcards
1A: pressure groups bring judicial review cases, allowing funding and fair legal representation
For example, recently, Labour’s Home Secretary requested Apple creates a back door into iCloud to bypass ADP security containing encrypted data. Liberty is challenging this under the principles of the right to privacy and freedom of expression, and alongside Apple’s case against the govt, the govt’s attempt to keep the case secret was rejected by the Investigatory Powers Tribunal and the case will be heard soon.
This shows pressure groups are at the forefront, actively protecting the rights of citizens alongside the worlds largest corporations , holding the govt to account on violations that could set precedent for further surveillance and further erosion of the rights of privacy for expense of “protection”
1B: the independent judiciary
Rights are protected by the judiciary Seperate to the executive and legislative, especially since the creation of the Supreme Court, whom no longer sit at the House Of Lords. This allows protection against the sgate in a selective manner, where the Supreme Court decides points of law of public importance e.g. in 2018 it was ruled that heterosexual couples could have civil partnerships and the Civil Partnerships Act 2004 is incompatible with the ECHR, as of 2019 this has now been ammenddd
2A: well respected pressure groups can influence voting in parliament
In 2015, the Howard League opposed the mandatory court fee of £1,200 for convicted offenders, believing it would lead to people to pleading guilty to avoid case, disproportionally affecting poorer citizens and contradicting the right to a fair trial, they also circulated unfair cases to the press, building public resistance eventually leading to the fee being dropped by the coalition govt
2B: govt legislation is the true protector of rights
The human rights act 1998 is now pseudo-entrenched into Uk politics meaning that although literally it can be removed by an AOP, it has enough public support to make that very unlikely without a reasonable atmerstice like BBOR. It also made it so people could bring a case to a court inside UK, rather than Strasbourg. Also gives Uk a rights culture, all legislation must hold up to its expectations.
3A: outsider groups can exert pressure on the govt to protect rights
Outsider groups can indirectly influence the govt to protect rights via epetitions, media campaigns, protests and direct action.
For example Amnesty International campaigned for the release of Julian Assange from Belmarsh Prison after 5 years for leaking US documents allegedly showing war crimes. Amnesty supported Assange’s role in societies right to freedom of information and justice. Including 25,000 signatures in Belgium alone, throughout the 12 years of his impirionsment, Amnesty continuously campaigned and supported his freedom
3B: outsider groups can, through stubbornness, isolate themselves and their cause
Due to their sometimes uncompromising nature, 1) ministers may not wish to associate with such radical policies or measures and 2) the pressure group themselves may refuse to liaise with institutions they deem as opposition to their cause. For example demonstrations organised by BLM after death of George Floyd although mostly peaceful obviously had extremes, with 27 officers being injured in London, with fireworks thrown af the police line.
Although many politicians support the cause, as Sadiq Kahn said the cause was “badly let fown by a minority”.
As media is the main method of outsider groups, the cause can very quickly be lost in sensationalised headlines and individual acts.
3A:
