Health, human rights and intervention (DONE)

Question 1

What were measures of development usually based on and what do they now consider?

Answer 1

• There are various ways of measuring the development of countries, and these have usually been based on economic criteria linked to the amount of wealth a country generates through its businesses and trade.
• However, more recent measures are based on socio-economic or socio-political criteria such as happiness or corruption.
• Some measures also consider the state of the natural environment, because ecosystem services are important in providing essential resources for humans.
• Economists believe that traditional measures are best because they are based on objective measurable data, but others believe that such measures do not accurately assess the full range of human wellbeing.

Question 2

What are the 4 traditional economic measures of development?

Answer 2

Gross domestic product (GDP):
- The total value of goods and services a country produces in a year
(or a quarter); it reflects the country’s economic activity and broadly represents the standard of living in a country.
GDP per capita:
- GDP divided by the number of people in the country, giving a measure of mean wealth per person.
- However, this disguises disparities between the very rich and the very poor.
GDP per capita (PPP based):
- GDP per capita adjusted according to Purchasing Power Parity (PPP); it considers the difference in costs of living between countries (usually compared with the USA).
Gross national income (GNI) per capita:
- The total wealth created by a country, including income from exports (minus taxes and debts).
- Since currency exchange rates vary, this measure can change considerably over time.

Question 3

Why can’t measures of development cover all countries and what criteria do emerging countries use?

Answer 3

• Many measures of development cannot cover all the countries of the world because data for those countries is either unavailable or unreliable:
• The Better Life Index covers only Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries.
• Some emerging or developing countries use proxy criteria; this is where a development indicator is based on an indirect measure by assuming that they are linked.

Question 4

What is the Human development index and what is the link between the wealth and happiness of a country?

Answer 4

• The Human Development Index (HDI) - produced by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) since 1990 - is a socio-economic measure of development based on GDP, adult literacy levels and life expectancy.
• Many regard this as a better measure of development because it considers wealth, education and health (but not the state of the natural environment).
• The links between the wealth of a country or the people within it and contentment (or happiness)
  are complex: a country may be wealthy, but inequalities between its people may still exist, and freedoms may not be guaranteed.

Question 5

What problems can economic development cause within a country and what measures can show sustainable long term development?

Answer 5

• Economic development may be unsustainable for some countries if there are obstacles such as high levels of pollution affecting human and environmental health, overuse of resources such as water and forests, disparity between ethnic groups producing tension and confiict, or corruption in political and economic systems.
• Measures of development based on these issues show sustainable development over a longer timescale, judging whether future generations will have the same opportunities as current generations.
• Development approaches also vary between countries: although the ‘Western’ economic approach is the most common due to globalisation forces, some countries try to follow a more socialist or environmentally sustainable path.

Question 6

What is The Happy Planet Index?

Answer 6

• The Happy Planet Index, devised by the New Economic Foundation (NEF), combines impacts on the natural environment (the ecological footprint) with the wellbeing of people (life expectancy), and considers the efficiency of resource use in improving people’s lives without damaging the environment.
• However, it does not include a strong economic component.

Question 7

What is The World Happiness Index?

Answer 7

• The World Happiness Index considers dystopia as a benchmark against which to measure a country’s levels of social support, generosity, life expectancy, corruption, GDP per capita and freedom to make choices.

Question 8

What is The KOF Index of Globalisation?

Answer 8

• The KOF Index of Globalisation measures the strength of links between countries, using economic, social and political criteria.
• It indirectly measures development because the countries with the strongest links are likely to have developed in terms of trade, investment and socio-political power.
• Overall, the 2015 KOF Index showed that while economic and social globalisation has slowed, political globalisation has slowly increased.

Question 9

What is The Freedom Index?

Answer 9

• The Freedom Index considers political rights, civil liberties and freedom status; in 2016 the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region had the least freedom, with 72 per cent of countries ‘not free’, followed by Eurasia ( 58 per cent) and sub-Saharan Africa (41 per cent).
• The ‘best’ area was Europe (86 per cent free), and so it is not surprising that many asylum-seekers from Africa and Asia migrate to Europe for sanctuary.

Question 10

What factors impact the wellbeing of a population?

Answer 10

• Access to fresh clean water, food and energy security, environmental quality, health care provision, life expectancy and human rights.
• These factors were reflected in the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), 2000-15, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 2015-30.

Question 11

What is environmental quality and how is it changing over time?

Answer 11

• Environmental quality is the quality of the air, water, land and natural environments in which people live.
• Pollution and environmental degradation have a negative influence on human wellbeing.
• The NEF assessment of the global footprint showed that 1987 was the first year in which humans used more resources than the Earth provided.
• The overuse of annual resources occurs earlier each year, and in 2016 it was estimated that this happened on 8 August.

Question 12

How can health be assessed and may impact health indicators?

Answer 12

• Health can be assessed through mortality rates, which can be age-specific - such as infant or child mortality - or cause-specific - for example deaths from diseases or natural hazards.
• Food scarcity and malnutrition may exaggerate mortality rates.
• In addition, conflicts such as civil wars clearly bring the threat of death or injury, reducing wellbeing.

Question 13

What is life expectancy and what does it show?

Answer 13

• Life expectancy is the number of years a newborn baby is expected to live assuming living conditions in the area of birth do not change.
• Usually given separately for males and females, life expectancy is an indicator of health and it reflects the living conditions and health care system of a place.

Question 14

How are Human rights used as an indicator?

Answer 14

• Human rights are enshrined in the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 1948.
• There are international codes (supported by the UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)) but, as the Freedom Index shows, this does not guarantee that people’s rights are recognised.

Question 15

What is the relationship between economic growth and health?

Answer 15

• the correlation between life expectancy and GDP per capita in 2013 shows that life expectancy does increase with wealth.
• as countries are able to spend more on health care systems and water and sanitation systems.
• Wealthy countries are also able to spend more on education, which increases people’s ability to improve their lives and obtain higher-paid jobs, which in turn improves their access to services and decision-making pathways.

Question 16

Why is education important in the development of a country?

Answer 16

• Education is central to developing human capital - because people need knowledge, understanding and skills in order to be able to improve their lives, and because better workers help the development of a country.
• Through education, literacy levels improve and this enables people to learn and communicate more widely.
• People are then able to understand:
  • the need for basic hygiene and health care
  • ways to control their family size
  • how to become involved in decision-making
  • their rights in the 21st-century world.

Question 17

How is education different in developing countries compared to developed countries and how does this relate to gender inequality?

Answer 17

• Children in developed countries attend primary and secondary school, and many progress to higher education.
• However, in developing countries many children aged 7 to 14 are working, rather than attending school - to help on family farms, as in Indonesia, or in manufacturing industries,
  as in Bangladesh.
• The UN estimated that, in 2013, 59 million children of primary school age and
  65 million of lower secondary school age were not attending school; most of them were girls.
• In 2015 only 69 per cent of countries had equal gender access to primary school and 48 per cent to secondary education.
• The problem was worse where poverty was high and in areas with conflicts, epidemics or natural disasters, with the countries of the Sahel having nearly 30 million children (6-11 years of age) out of school, with twice as many girls as boys never receiving any education.

Question 18

How do some cultures in developing countries restrict female freedoms?

Answer 18

• Improvements in education have not come equally to females, and historically across the world the role of females has not been equal to that of males.
• In modern democracies, equality laws now ensure that women have equal status and rights, but some cultures in developing countries still restrict female freedoms.
• Investment in female education has been shown to improve health and child mortality between 15 and 20 years after female literacy rates have increased.

Question 19

How do UNESCO believe gender equality can be achieved?

Answer 19

• the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) believes that gender equality can be achieved through education.
• UNESCO sees education as the main ‘driver’ of development and a fundamental right of all people, and its suggested targets for countries include spending at least 4-6 per cent of GDP on education.
• Many SDGs are linked to education and equality (for example ‘By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes’).

Question 20

Why is access to education often restricted?

Answer 20

• Access to education is restricted during times of internal conflict and because of poverty.
• In culturally conservative Islamic countries there may also be restrictions affecting females, for example on mixed gender schooling and the roles of male and female teachers, and the belief that girls should be learning how to run a home and preparing for married life.
• But there is a wide difference between Islamic countries and, rather than religious influences, conservative traditions and poverty may be the most important factors.

Question 21

Why did the world population explosion occur and what impact is continued increasing population having?

Answer 21

• The world population explosion (it grew from 3 billion in 1960 to 7 billion in 2011) has mainly been due to large increases in developing countries, especially Africa and Asia, with 80 per cent of the world’s population now living in developing countries.
• By 2050 the world’s population is expected to have grown by a further 2.5 billion, with much of this increase in Africa.
• Population growth increases pressures on resources such as food and water, on living space and on infrastructure
  such as sanitation.
• Widespread poverty and overcrowding, especially in rapidly growing cities, ensure that health issues persist in many developing countries, despite success in eradicating some diseases.

Question 22

How do large young and old dependancy ratios impact developing countries?

Answer 22

• Tensions between different groups in developing countries, such as in Syria and Libya, can lead
  to open conflict affecting people’s wellbeing, as do large numbers of young dependants.
• For example, Niger had a young dependency ratio of 107:100 in 2014, and the highest 13 nations were all in Africa.
• In some developing countries the numbers of elderly dependants are increasing; for example Argentina’s ratio was 17:100 in 2014, with China’s predicted to rise to 39:100 by 2050.
• Consequently, health and life expectancy vary considerably between the developing regions of the world, as reflected in a wide variety of indicators including infant and maternal mortality rates.

Question 23

How have maternal mortality rates changed over time?

Answer 23

• Maternal mortality has improved globally, with an average decline of 45 per cent between 1990 and 2013.
• However, some developing countries performed well, such as Cambodia (86 per cent) and Laos (80 per cent), while others did poorly, such as Cote d’Ivoire (3 per cent) and Kenya (17 per cent).
• Similarly, there has been a global average reduction of 47 per cent in child mortality, but with large variations.
• For example, Peru (77 per cent) and Egypt (75 per cent) do well, but DR Congo (15 per cent) and Somalia (17 per cent) do poorly.

Question 24

How does life expectancy vary in the developed world and what are the reasons for the variation?

Answer 24

• While developed countries in North America, Europe, Oceania and Japan have much better health levels and life expectancy than developing countries, there are variations in the developed world of between 70.5 years (Russia) and 83.7 years (Japan), with life expectancies also over 83 years in Switzerland and Singapore.
• These variations are linked to diet, lifestyle, relative deprivation and access to medical care.
• There is a positive correlation between spending on health care, linked to the wealth of a country, and life expectancy.
• For example, Switzerland had the highest expenditure, at US$9,673 per capita in 2014, while Russia spent only US$893.
• Life expectancy is highest in developed countries in western and northern Europe and East Asia, and lowest in the Middle East, and Eastern Europe.
• It is clear that countries with shorter life expectancies are not spending enough on health care to raise standards.
• Some countries, such as South Korea and Japan, are doing well on slightly lower expenditures, while the USA has a relatively low life expectancy (79.3 years) despite having the third-highest expenditure on health care per person (US$9,403).

Question 25

Why does Japan have a high life expectancy and why does USA have a low life expectancy relative to their expenditure?

Answer 25

• The Japanese National Centre for Global Health and Medicine found, in a 15-year study of nearly 80,000 people (2016), that one of the main reasons for the country’s long life expectancy was a healthy balanced diet. Other reasons include advances in medical treatment, staying active and elderly people being involved in the local community. In the USA, 2016 research by the National Centre for Health Statistics showed that 48 per cent of the gap between male life expectancy in the USA and Europe could be accounted for by injuries resulting from rearms, drugs and vehicle accidents. In 2012 the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine highlighted the higher poverty levels in the USA compared with other developed countries, which limited access to health care for poorer people, who tend not to have health insurance. Other common reasons for this lower life expectancy include obesity, heart and lung disease and pollution levels in cities.

Question 26

How does life expectancy vary within the UK?

Answer 26

• Southern parts of the UK have a longer average life expectancy than the north.
• The longest life expectancies are in Dorset (2010-12) - 82.9 years for males in East Dorset, and 86.6 years for females in Purbeck - while the shortest were in Glasgow (72.6 years for men and 78.5 years for women).
• Life expectancy in the UK continues to increase, at a slightly faster rate for males than females, perhaps because of changing types of employment, with males now involved in less physically demanding work.
• The living environment also has a part to play: the two highest-ranked places to live in England (2015) - Bebington (Wirral) and Kesgrave (Sufolk Coastal) - had life expectancies that were significantly higher than Liverpool and Middlesbrough, cities that have experienced economic decline and deprivation.

Question 27

How has the lifestyle in Northern Ireland impacted health?

Answer 27

• Lifestyle has an impact on health and life expectancy, as shown by a European health survey in 2013-14:
• Northern Ireland had the highest number of regular smokers in the UK for both males and females (23.5 and 22.4 per cent respectively).
• the highest proportion of males involved in heavy labouring work (10.6 per cent).
• the highest perception of poor health in the UK (11 per cent).
• In 2014 Northern Ireland also had the lowest proportion of public spending in the UK on health (19 per cent).

Question 28

How has the lifestyle in Wales impacted health?

Answer 28

• Wales had the equal largest number of males drinking alcohol every day (10.9 per cent).
• a high proportion of men doing heavy labouring work (9.9 per cent).
• the highest proportion of male and female obesity (26.6 and 18.4 per cent respectively)
• the highest male and female high blood pressure (20.5 and 18.7 per cent respectively).

Question 29

What evidence for the UK shows that lifestyle is not the only factor in varying life expectancy?

Answer 29

• Scotland did not feature as the highest in any category in the European health survey in 2013-14 but still had the shortest life expectancies of any UK country - 76.2 years for males and 80.6 years for females - showing that lifestyle is not the only factor.

Question 30

Why is the north-south health divide in the UK partly attributed to smoking and alcohol patterns?

Answer 30

• Easington in Durham had the highest proportion of smokers (37 per cent) and Liverpool the highest number of hospital admissions for alcohol-related problems (652/100,000).
• while Chiltern (Buckinghamshire) had the lowest number of smoking-related deaths (147/100,000) and Kensington and Chelsea (London) - home to many wealthy people, and with life expectancies over 80 years for both males and females - the fewest cancer deaths (81/100,000).
• London nevertheless has the highest rates of infectious diseases, probably because of its high population density and the large number of migrants and tourists moving through the capital.

Question 31

How does life expectancy vary across different socio-economic groups in the UK?

Answer 31

• There is not much difference in health and life expectancy within the same socio-economic group across the UK, but significant differences between socio-economic groups.
• An important factor would appear to be occupation type:
• jobs that are physically demanding or that expose workers to chemicals and particulates (dust) are riskier.
• Another factor in inequalities is income level:
• people on lower incomes tend to have lower educational attainment, which affects their attitude to diet, exercise, smoking and alcohol consumption, and may also limit their access to health care, despite having a free, universal health care system.

Question 32

How does economic and social development vary between countries of different types with different regimes?

Answer 32

• Some countries are committed to a welfare state, within which the wellbeing of all citizens is regarded as a priority and spending on health care and education systems is high, such as in Norway and Sweden.
• Other countries are committed to economic development in the short term and this may mean that budgets are arranged in favour of industrial and business infrastructures, such as in Brazil and Ghana.
• A few countries have prioritised other areas, such as military spending, as in North Korea.
• others have totalitarian regimes where the political or ruling elite may allocate only small budgets to health and education as a means of controlling people, as in China and Uzbekistan.

Question 33

How does the UK and Brazil public spending compare?

Answer 33

• Public spending in the UK for 2016 was £759.5 billion, with 18 per cent on health care and 12 per cent on education.
• The National Health Service (NHS) offers free medical care for all.
• Spending on health amounts to US$3,102 per person for 2016.
• Brazil has a Unified Health System that entitles every Brazilian to free health care, which amounted to US$1,471 per capita in 2013, or 4.4 per cent of GDP.
• However, a quarter of Brazil’s population has private medical plans, which suggests that there may be unequal access.
• Information from some developing countries and especially from totalitarian countries is often not available, for example North Korea, or may be unreliable, for example Niger.

Question 34

What do the main IGOs emphasise about development?

Answer 34

• Since 1945 the main IGOs have emphasised the importance of economic development through free trade and self-regulating markets.
• allowing economic processes to follow their course without interference or regulation.
• These views were based on capitalist economic theories, as reflected in Kondratiev’s cycles or Rostow’s stages.

Question 35

What do the IMF and world bank aim to do and why can their strategies often fail?

Answer 35

• The IMF was established to provide loans to countries in financial difficulties, so that they could continue to participate in international trade and transactions.
• Similarly, the World Bank offers loans to countries that need money during an economic recession or for spending on expensive infrastructure and industry to bring about the development of the country.
• However, many of these loans did not lead to economic success and countries became indebted, leading to the Highly Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC) in 1996, which provides debt relief from the IMF and World Bank cancellation of debts or sustainable repayment schedules.
• Most loans or debt relief agreements also have conditions attached, which can lead to austerity within the country and divert government spending away from health, education and welfare.

Question 36

What does the WTO aim to do?

Answer 36

• The WTO has operated since 1995, regulating world trade by overseeing negotiations between countries and promoting the reduction or removal of tariffs and other trade barriers, on the premise that all countries benefit.
• However, this is not always the case, as demonstrated by the Fair Trade movement.

Question 37

What IGOs aim to promote the importance of social and environmental themes of development?

Answer 37

• The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) helps countries make policies and national development plans, and provides expertise for working towards the SDGs.
• The UNDP’s Human Development Index (HDI) reflects the desire to combine economic and social progress.
• The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) promotes food security and nutrition.
• the World Health Organisation (WHO) promotes health and disease eradication.
• the UN International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has helped look after the rights of children since 1946.
• The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) identified 31 natural and cultural world heritage sites in May 2016 that are at risk from climate change, including Yellowstone National Park (USA), the Galapagos Islands (Ecuador),
  the Great Barrier Reef (Australia) and Komada National Park (Indonesia).
• The UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) promotes improvements in air pollution levels and the eradication of the illegal wildlife trade, assisted by other IGOs.

Question 38

How do developed countries help emerging countries in meeting MDGs and SDGs?

Answer 38

• The eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) ran from 2000 to 2015, when the more extensive Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) replaced them.
• Developed countries had mostly already fulfilled all the MDG goals, but had an important role in assisting emerging and developing countries to meet them, and this role will continue with the SDGs.

Question 39

How has the MDG1 helped to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger?

Answer 39

• By 2015 the proportion of people in developing countries living on less than US$1.25 a day had fallen to 14 per cent, but this still left 836 million people living below this level.
• The proportion of undernourished had fallen by 12.9 per cent by 2015.
• While all world regions improved their poverty and hunger levels, the specific targets for poverty were not met in sub-Saharan Africa or Western Asia, and those for hunger were not met in sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean, South Asia, West Asia or Oceania.

Question 40

How has MDG2 helped to achieve universal primary education?

Answer 40

• By 2015 primary school enrolment rates had reached 91 per cent, but 57 million primary-aged children were still not attending school.
• All world regions improved, with sub-Saharan countries on average reaching 80 per cent enrolment.
• In the whole of Africa, the gender balance was still unequal and conflicts were also responsible for children not going to school.

Question 41

How has MDG3 helped promote gender equality and empower women?

Answer 41

• Many developing countries eliminated gender disparity in education, with South East Asia having more girls than boys in primary school by 2015.
• More women were in paid employment and in parliaments but parity has still not been reached.
• Oceania and sub-Saharan Africa were furthest from the target.
• In Latin America and the Caribbean the number of women in poor households increased.

Question 42

How has MDG4 helped to reduce child mortality?

Answer 42

• All regions improved significantly, with child mortality halving between 1990 and 2015.
• Between 2000 and 2013, 84 per cent of children received at least one measles vaccination, preventing an estimated 15.6 million deaths.
• Sub-Saharan Africa improved rapidly from a low base but missed the target, as did most world regions except North Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean and East Asia.

Question 43

How has MDG5 helped to improve maternal health?

Answer 43

• Maternal mortality declined by 36 per cent between 2000 and 2013, with notable decreases in South East Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.
• More health personnel were present at births (71 per cent in 2014) and antenatal care improved, as did the use of contraception.
• However, no world region met the target.

Question 44

How has MDG6 helped combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases?

Answer 44

• New HIV infections fell by 40 per cent between 2000 and 2013, and the distribution of treatments increased six times.
• Between 2000 and 2015, 6.2 million malaria deaths were prevented and the incidence of the disease reduced by 37 per cent.
• TB prevention, diagnosis and treatment saved 37 million lives (2000-13), with mortality rates decreasing by 45 per cent.
• Despite these improvements in all world regions, new diseases, such as ebola, brought new threats.

Question 45

How has MDG7 helped ensure environmental sustainability?

Answer 45

• Protection of marine and terrestrial areas increased; for example, protected land areas in Latin America and the Caribbean increased from 8.8 per cent in 1990 to 23.4 per cent in 2014.
• Some forms of pollution greatly decreased, such as stratospheric ozone, but greenhouse gas emissions increased.
• Forest and marine resources continued to be over-exploited, causing environmental degradation, which affected the poorest people the most.
• Many people had improved access to water and sanitation, but in 2015 42 per cent of the world population still did not have access to water in their homes.
• Fewer countries met the sanitation target despite 2.1 billion people benefiting from improved sanitation.
• The drinking water and sanitation targets were not met in Oceania, sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia.

Question 46

How has MDG8 helped develop a global partnership for development?

Answer 46

• There were improvements, with official development aid from developed countries increasing by 66 per cent (2000-14), reaching US$135.2 billion, with several European countries such as the UK exceeding the UN aid target (0.7 per cent of GNI).
• Trade balances became more favourable for developing countries.
• Mobile phone networks spread to cover 95 per cent of the world’s population, and internet cover for 43 per cent by 2015.

Question 47

How are the SDGs introduced different to the previous MDGs?

Answer 47

• The 17 SDGs adopted in September 2015, with a targe date of 2030, are broader than the MDGs and each has many specific targets.

Question 48

What is the UDHR and its ‘Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights’ and why are they inconsistent?

Answer 48

• The UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) of 1948 set out the fundamentals of human rights that everyone is entitled to.
• It contains 30 Articles specifying these rights, such as freedom, justice, peace and no persecution, to be applied within countries and internationally.
• The UDHR and its Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1976) are collectively known as the International Bill of Human Rights, which has led to a range of treaties.
• These form the basis of international law, national constitutions and laws, and are reflected in cultures and government policies.
• As all aspects of human rights are linked, countries are expected to adhere to the whole ‘package’.
• However, some countries are selective for economic or political reasons, and sometimes human rights may be more important than sovereignty.
• Some rights are contradictory or difficult to define, which leads to different interpretations and contested points of view, so rights are inconsistently applied.

Question 49

What has the increase in authoritarian countries caused and why have not all countries signed the UDHR?

Answer 49

• Since the start of the 21st century there has been an increase in the number of ‘authoritarian’ countries, which has further limited human rights.
• For example, there are countries where executions still take place (Pakistan), slavery exists (Mauritania), and discrimination against women continues (Saudi Arabia).
• Not all countries have signed and ratified the UDHR; for example, Saudi Arabia with its conservative Islamic beliefs does not agree with freedom of religious choice or equal rights of women in marriage.
• Some Islamic countries believe that the UNDR is too ‘Westernised’, and in 1990 they produced their own similar version - the Cairo Declaration of Human Rights in Islam.

Question 50

How do western countries enforce the importance of human rights and how do some developing countries dispute the importance?

Answer 50

• Developed ‘Western’ countries have often tied development aid to human rights, or have occasionally undertaken military operations to intervene where there have been human rights violations, as international law can be regarded as more important than sovereignty.
• Some nations, especially developing countries, dispute the balance of civil and political rights and economic, social and cultural rights, arguing that economic development must have priority for them.
• The USA and the EU have condemned human rights violations in a number of countries, such as Syria, Russia and China.

Question 51

How is their a lack of consistency in the intervention of developed countries towards violations of human rights in developing countries?

Answer 51

• Russia cited protection of ethnic minority groups as the reason for its military action in eastern Ukraine.
• Similarly, the USA cited the suppression of human rights in Iraq to gain support for military action.
• However, failure to act in Libya and Sudan in the recent past shows the lack of consistency in the global governance of human rights.

Question 52

How have the UK helped to intervene to enforce human rights in developing countries?

Answer 52

• In 2015 the UK identified 30 human rights priority countries (from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe), and the Department for International Development (DFID) based their overseas development assistance or aid (ODA) on economic and social rights arising from the SDGs.
• In 2015 59.6 per cent of the UK’s ODA went to African countries and 38.6 per cent to Asian countries; and the UK supported sanctions on Burundi and South Sudan as well as Yemen and Syria.

Question 53

What is the ECHR, how did it grow and what is its purpose?

Answer 53

• The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) was formulated by the Council of Europe, based on the UDHR, in 1950, and ratified by the UK in 1951.
• As political Europe expanded and unified, more countries ratified the convention, and there are now 47 signatory countries.
• The purpose is to achieve ‘greater unity’ and a ‘realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms’.
• There are 59 Articles and various protocols.
• The European Court of Human Rights was set up
  in 1959 to interpret and ensure compliance with the ECHR, acting as a checking mechanism on national laws; for example, the UK Human Rights Act (1998) was based on the ECHR to make it more effective in UK law.

Question 54

How has the ECHR been controversial?

Answer 54

• The ECHR has been controversial - some see it as undermining national sovereignty when its rulings override national courts’ decisions.
• For example, the European Court has blocked the deportation of people to countries where they may be tortured, allowed prisoners to vote, overturned abortion laws and judged surveillance to infringe privacy.
• Criticisms of the Court are the length of time it takes to make rulings and the backlog of cases that built up, although this was streamlined in 2010.
• In 2015/16 these factors led to the UK Government proposing to replace the
  1998 Act with something ‘more British’, but this is also controversial because many believe that the ECHR has helped the police and juries reach clearer verdicts.
• Also, only a minority (1.4 per cent) of judgements made by the European Court have concerned the UK, and 99 per cent of these were ‘thrown out’.
• The vast majority of judgements and cases have involved eastern European countries, including Russia and Turkey.

Question 55

What are the Geneva conventions and which is considered the most important?

Answer 55

• The four 1949 Geneva Conventions (GC) have been agreed by 196 countries, or ‘observers’.
• However, not all have agreed to the 1977 and 2005 protocols.
• Collectively, these are international treaties that create rules for war situations, especially o ering protection to civilians, medical workers, hospital ships, aid workers, those unable to fight such as the wounded, and prisoners of war.
• Since in the 21st century most armed conflicts are internal, many regard Article 3 as the most important because it prohibits torture, hostage-taking and degrading treatment.

Question 56

What do the Geneva conventions apply to?

Answer 56

• The GC applies to both international and internal armed conflicts.
• The GC is strongly interlinked with international humanitarian laws (UDHR and ECHR), and breaches of the GC are investigated, perpetrators caught and judged by an international court.
• However, the process is complex and many breaches are dealt with by regional or internal legal systems, although ultimately the UN Security Council is the final international tribunal.
• The UN also can call upon its peacekeeping forces to monitor humanitarian situations and ensure that the GC is being applied.
• War crimes have been tried at International Criminal Tribunals for the civil wars in Rwanda (1994) and the former Yugoslavia (1992-95), but other situations such as Sudan (2003-04), Ukraine (2014>) and Syria (2011>) were not dealt with in the same way.

Question 57

What criticism have the Geneva Conventions received and why?

Answer 57

• NGOs such as Amnesty International (Al) and Human Rights Watch (HRW) have reported that many countries breach the GC by torturing or mistreating their citizens.
• This occurred in 82 per cent of the 160 countries surveyed, including the Central African Republic, Syria, Libya, Iraq, Nigeria and Ukraine.
• Al described the international response as ‘shameful and ineffective’ and called for greater action.
• One consequence of this situation is the increase in the total number of refugees, asylum­ seekers and internally displaced people to its highest level since the Second World War, reaching 59.5 million in 2014.
• These migrations have significant international repercussions, such as the EU debate on admitting refugees, and fears over international terrorism and political extremism.

Question 58

What impacts the emphasis of a countries policies?

Answer 58

• A country’s priorities dictate the emphasis of its policies and plans, and are linked to its existing levels of economic and social development, including its political philosophy.
• Some countries put human rights first while others put economic development first, and they may move back and forwards along this continuum over time.

Question 59

Why are human rights not at the forefront of newly democratised countries policies?

Answer 59

• A logical premise would be that democratisation of countries such as Brazil, India, Indonesia and South Africa would create a culture for promoting human rights through new constitutions and laws.
• However, many newly democratised countries appear to prioritise security of the country, energy security, economic development, and trade and financial flows over human rights.
• Former colonies may wish to show their ability to make autonomous decisions and they will also regard direct or indirect superpower influence on human rights as infringing their sovereignty, as in Iraq, Libya and Syria.
• International NGOs and world regional organisations such as the African Union may intervene, but some influential organisations such as the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) prioritise economic growth in emerging and developing countries.

Question 60

Why may some countries ignore the help of organisations assessing human rights?

Answer 60

• Sometimes countries may ignore the UDHR or the UN’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR), which assesses human rights issues of all member countries and provides help and assistance (over 40 countries are reviewed each year).
• Some developing countries that do not wish to publicise their own human rights record, such as India with Kashmir, are unwilling to implicate other countries too quickly.
• The people in a country may themselves be reluctant to change systems, even if they are authoritarian (support order and authority), if the systems appear to be working economically, or they may reject democratic or semi-democratic systems when these do not appear to be improving jobs and wealth.
• These differences have led to the share of ‘free’ countries declining by 2 per cent between 2005 and 2015, according to the 2016 Freedom Index.

Question 61

How has globalised communication caused sanctions to be imposed on countries violating human rights?

Answer 61

• Globalised communication means that reports of human rights abuses are not easy for democratic nations to ignore.
• This has led to crowdsourcing and pressure on the UN to take action, for example over North Korea.
• The UN, ASEAN and bilateral diplomacy imposed sanctions on Myanmar to confront and encourage the military dictatorship to respect human rights within that country; this pressure eventually led to democratic elections in 2015.
• The international community often uses the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) principle to gain the cooperation of countries in sanctions, as in the Cote d’Ivoire (2011) and the Central African Republic, working with the African Union.

Question 62

How did the global economic recession impact the transition of emerging economies towards democracies?

Answer 62

• Emerging economies of the world need political leaders and systems able to support economic growth.
• However, the economic recession (from 2008 onwards) led many to internal public and political unrest, revealing that they were not well governed.
• The transition of emerging powers towards democracy has slowed, even though reforms and pledges in some - such as India, Indonesia and Malaysia - promise progress.
• Some of the established superpowers also struggled, according to The Economist’s Democracy Index, with authoritarian Russia and democratic USA moving backwards between 2006 and 2015, totalitarian China making a small improvement, and the democratic UK taking a significant step forwards.

Question 63

How did democracy and political stability vary in the year 2015 globally?

Answer 63

• The Democracy Index looks at a country’s electoral process and pluralism, civil liberties, the functioning of government and the political culture.
• The year 2015 was reported as a ‘fearful’ one, with civil wars, terrorism and migration issues, which appeared to decrease democracy in some countries because of fears of insecurity and extremism, resulting in only 20 full democracies.
• Europe experienced ‘populist’ or ‘nationalistic’ political movements and the USA experienced a political ‘mood’ based on some extreme rhetoric.
• Latin America, Asia and Eastern Europe were characterised by flawed democracies and political instability, while autocratic regimes were concentrated in Africa, the Middle East and CIS countries in Eastern Europe.
• The largest annual decline in democracy was in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, as the Arab Spring
  (2010) failed to improve freedom and human rights.
• However, some countries moved forward with democratic elections, such as Myanmar, Nigeria, Madagascar and Burkina Faso, and the public outcry against political corruption in South American countries sowed the seeds of greater democracy.
• An analysis of the link between GDP growth rates and democracy in 18 economically emerging countries showed no correlation between the two variables.

Question 64

What is used to measure political corruption and how did corruption levels vary in 2015?

Answer 64

• The Corruption Perceptions Index (produced by NGO Transparency International) measures the perceived level of public sector corruption and so it is a qualitative measure.
• In 2015, 68 per cent
  of the 168 countries surveyed - including developed, emerging and developing countries - had serious corruption problems (score under 50), causing an estimated financial loss of over US$1 trillion a year.
• Between 2012 and 2015 Greece, Senegal and the UK (74/100 in 2012 to 81/100 in 2015) reduced their levels of corruption, but in Australia, Brazil, Libya, Spain and Turkey corruption increased, as did conflict areas such as Sudan, Somalia and Afghanistan.
• An analysis of the link between GDP growth rates and corruption in 18 economically emerging countries shows a significant negative correlation between the two variables, so the greater the democracy the lower the corruption.
• There are few quantitative measures of corruption, because data is difficult to obtain.
• The World Bank assesses ‘policies for social inclusion and equity’ and ‘public sector management and institutions’, but for only 95 countries.

Question 65

How do high levels of corruption impact countries?

Answer 65

• Corruption reduces levels of trust and threatens human rights, as systems become unfair and support the groups with power, or even persecute the poor and other disadvantaged groups.
• Corruption may affect the economic system through favouritism of certain businesses, and may also work against health and safety laws, such as in Bangladesh textile factories, or affect the political system through ignoring ethnic minority groups such as in Myanmar (Rohingya Muslim minority), or affect the judicial system by retaining people in detention without a fair trial, such as in Russia, China and even the USA (Guantanamo Bay).

Question 66

What is the UN convention against Corruption and what did meetings conclude?

Answer 66

• The UN Convention against Corruption was established in 2003, and the anti-corruption summit meeting held in London in 2016 recognised that corruption was at the core of many world problems.
• The meeting concluded that corruption should be exposed, the corrupters pursued and punished, victims of corruption supported and corruption eradicated.
• they said ‘Corruption erodes public trust in government, undermines the rule oflaw, and may give rise to political and economic grievances that may, in conjunction with other factors, fuel violent extremism.’
• ‘Tackling corruption is vital for sustaining economic stability and growth, maintaining security ofsocieties,protectinghumanrights, reducingpovert protectingtheenvironmentforfuture generations and addressing serious and organised crime.’

Question 67

Why do some modern countries have borders without consideration of ethnic and cultural groups?

Answer 67

• As a result of their colonial history, many modern countries have borders that were drawn without reference to traditional boundaries between ethnic or cultural groups.
• Some boundaries are simply straight lines, drawn by the colonists on a map without any consideration for physical or social geography.
• This has created ethnic tension and group conflicts within newly independent states such as Iraq.

Question 68

How have Iraq’s borders caused conflict between ethnic and cultural groups?

Answer 68

• Iraq was largely created in 1920 after secret negotiations between European countries, but after its independence in 1932 the country experienced conflict between Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish ethnic groups, which led to civil war, authoritarian rule, modern wars and debate about dividing the country into three autonomous regions.

Question 69

How have Indias borders caused conflict between ethnic and cultural groups?

Answer 69

• After its independence in 1947, India immediately experienced widespread conflict between Hindu and Muslim groups, especially in
  the Kashmir region, which led to the creation of Pakistan and Bangladesh and continuing tensions between these three countries.

Question 70

How have borders in West Africa caused conflict between ethnic and cultural groups?

Answer 70

• In West Africa there have been at least seven post-colonial conflicts, with civil wars in Nigeria (1967-70), Liberia (1989 and 1999), Sierra Leone (1991-2002), Guinea-Bissau (1998-99) and Cote d’Ivoire (2002-07 and 2010-11).
• These conflicts were costly in terms of damage to the environment, economy and human life, and in many countries minority groups continue to have fewer rights than dominant groups, such as the Roma population in Eastern Europe and the Dalits in India.

Question 71

What does the 2014 Gender Inequality Index show?

Answer 71

• The 2014 Gender Inequality Index, produced by UNDP, shows that while European countries have the greatest gender equality, with Slovenia (0.016) and Switzerland (0.028) at the top, most of
  the countries with the highest levels of inequality are in developing countries, especially Africa.
• Women in countries with high inequality have fewer rights than men; these are often entrenched in the culture as traditional or religious beliefs and then reflected in the country’s laws

Question 72

How do the UN aim to recognise the rights of indigenous people and also how do they suffer inequalities compared to non-indigenous people?

Answer 72

• Since 1995 the UN has recognised the rights of indigenous peoples, with awareness campaigns, a Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (2000), a Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007), and a World Conference on Indigenous Peoples (2014).
• However, as with the Aborigines in Australia, they still suffer inequalities when compared to the non-indigenous population, and in many parts of the world are only moderately satisfied with progress.
• The UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples stated that ‘indigenous women experience a huge complex range of human rights abuses arising from discrimination and marginalisation, with lack of access to land, livelihood, decision-making bodies and physical abuse and atrocities.’

Question 73

How do women struggle to attain equal rights with men and how are countries trying to improve gender equality?

Answer 73

• Women in all countries have struggled to attain equal rights with men.
• In developed countries these rights are now entrenched in laws, although remuneration levels often remain significantly below those of men.
• In developing countries much progress is still required, especially where traditional or distorted religious beliefs place severe restrictions on girls and women, limiting their access to education, freedom of choice and freedom of movement.
• Campaigns continue in many countries to protect and improve the lives of females.

Question 74

What did the IWGIA 2016 report show about human rights in indigenous territories?

Answer 74

• The International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA) 2016 report notes at least 11 countries with human rights violations and conflicts within indigenous territories, with the loss of many lives.
• Many world regions have organisations representing indigenous peoples, such as in the Americas and Pacific (International Indian Treaty Council) and the Arctic (Arctic Council).

Question 75

What do indicators of human rights show about the relationship between economic development and human rights?

Answer 75

• Indicators of human rights show that there is not always a positive correlation
  between economic development and improvements in human rights.
• However, there is a wide range of possible development and human rights interventions that can be used by superpowers such as the USA, developed countries such as Australia, or regional organisations such as NATO or the African Union to bring about improvements.

Question 76

How has the purpose of aid changed from the Cold War era to the 21st century?

Answer 76

• During the Cold War era, much aid was given for political reasons, for example to friendly regimes, former colonies, or to persuade countries to support the ‘West’ or the ‘East’.
• Following the end of the Cold War, the purpose of aid was realigned to help poor people anywhere in the world.
• However, in the 21st century aid has again become politicised and is given to support countries combating radical extremism, such as Afghanistan and Syria, or to help control migration into Europe, such as Turkey and Nigeria.
• Aid is often in the form of money allocated for specific purposes; in 2014, 17.52 per cent of EU aid was for ‘government and civil society’, which includes human rights matters, and 17.63 per cent for ‘humanitarian aid’ in response to disasters.

Question 77

What did analysis of development aid by The Economist in 2016 show?

Answer 77

• An analysis of development aid by The Economist in 2016 suggested that the quality of governance and level of poverty in a country did not significantly affect the amount of aid received.
• The countries that received the most aid per capita were those with smaller populations, for example Samoa and Bhutan, perhaps because it is easier to direct aid to where it is needed and publicise the positive results.

Question 78

What are trade embargoes and how can they be effective?

Answer 78

• These are foreign policies or laws that ban exports to and imports from a country in protest against actions by that country.
• Trade embargoes can be effective in bringing about change, because without exports national income is reduced.
• Strategic goods and technology, especially military arms and equipment, are banned from export when there are concerns about human rights violations, internal instability and repression, or about international security threats - including the development of weapons of mass destruction.
• However, exports of medicines and foods can be allowed to continue for humanitarian reasons.

Question 79

What impacts did the US trade embargo against Cuba have?

Answer 79

• The US trade embargo against Cuba (condemned by the UN), imposed in the 1960 after Fidel Castro’s takeover and support of communism, costs the country an estimated US$685 million a year and restricts its development.
• However, the USA also loses as a result of the embargo - an estimated US$1.2 billion a year.
• In 2016 President Obama called for the embargo to be lifted.

Question 80

How are trade embargoes usually imposed?

Answer 80

• Embargoes are usually imposed by the UN or EU, and effectively become international law, such as with Iran (concerns over enriched uranium - lifted in January 2016), DR Congo (internal repression and instability), and North Korea (a totalitarian state with nuclear weapons development).

Question 81

What is military aid, what is its purpose and how did the USA support countries using it?

Answer 81

• This may be in the form of technology and equipment, or peacekeeping forces, such as NATO or UN.
• The purpose of military aid is to help a country defend itself, to counter insurgents or to support pro-democracy factions within a country against extreme authoritarian regimes (although these are not always easy to identify).
• For example, in 2015 the USA provided military aid to 63 countries through its foreign military funding programme.
• By far the biggest recipient was Israel, with over 55 per cent of the budget.
• The USA has traditionally supported Israel in the troubled Middle East, despite its often aggressive policies.
• In 2016 a new agreement was reached to provide up to US$40 billion to update Israel’s air force and missile defences, although a condition may be that they provide ‘dignity and self determination’ for Palestinians.

Question 82

How was military aid distributed globally in May 2016?

Answer 82

• In May 2016 there were 16 UN peacekeeping operations, with 89,098 troops deployed, 12,611 police and 1,801 military observers as well as civilian personnel.
• These forces were drawn from 123 countries.
• Perhaps unsurprisingly, nine peacekeeping operations were in Africa and four in the Middle East, with significant forces assigned to Sudan (Darfur and Abyei) (20,513 and 4,788 peacekeepers respectively), South Sudan (16,014) and the DR Congo (DRC) (22,721).
• The operation in the DRC protects civilians, humanitarian personnel and human rights defenders under threat, and supports the DRC government in its efforts to stabilise the country and bring peace.

Question 83

How has direct military action been used to defend human rights?

Answer 83

• Direct military action has been used to defend human rights, sometimes controversially.
• For example, no-fly zones were enforced over Iraq (1991) and Libya (2011) by military aircraft from other countries (NATO) - the latter authorised by the UN.
• Indirect action may take the form of covert support for factions, such as Russia’s involvement in eastern Ukraine, or providing weapons to one side in a conflict.
• The UN often relies on the willingness of militarily powerful members such as the USA and the UK to provide the force necessary.

Question 84

In 2016 what did Amnesty International campaign to bring attention to?

Answer 84

In 2016 Amnesty International promoted campaign to bring attention to:
• Brazil, for unlawful killings in Rio de Janeiro
• Saudi Arabia, for ill-treatment and lack of protection for human rights defenders and activists
• Venezuela, for attacks on human rights workers
• Iran, for imprisonment of human rights campaigners
• Germany, for failing the victims of racial violence.

Question 85

Why may a countries withdraw aid from a corrupt country such as Malawi?

Answer 85

• To put collective international pressure on a country, aid may be withdrawn if corruption is involved.
• For example, Malawi received US$1.17 billion in 2012, about 28 per cent of the country’s GNI, but in 2013 around US$30 million was stolen through corruption, and investigators suffered physical violence.
• Consequently aid the following year was reduced by 20 per cent and donors tried to avoid using government systems, taking the aid directly to those needing it.

Question 86

Why does Russia aim to block the UN from taking action against its allies such as Syria?

Answer 86

• In the UN, Russia frequently uses its veto powers to block support for action against its perceived allies, countries or individuals, such as supporting Assad in Syria because this regime was Russia’s only influence in the Middle East, and withdrawing support for NATO action in Libya when it believed that the military action had gone beyond the UN mandate and it appeared that a ‘Western-friendly’ government would be installed.
• There is great concern among humanitarian groups that powerful developed countries intervene only when it matters to them politically, but from 2014, EU development aid directly to emerging economies was phased out to be replaced by a concentration of aid on the poorest places in the world (75 per cent of EU aid 2014-20 to be of the latter type).

Question 87

What has been the intervention approach in recent decades and how have the IMF supported this idea?

Answer 87

• In recent decades, the intervention approach has stressed ‘trade not aid’, based on neoliberal ideas that social justice and human development would follow economic development when corrupt governments, which slow social development, are removed.
• The IMF adopted this approach through its structural adjustment policies, which attach conditions to loans such as deregulation and privatisation, as seen in Chile and Mexico.

Question 88

What needs to be done to meet SDGs and UN targets on development aid?

Answer 88

• There has been debate over the development aid needed to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030: It has been estimated that US$17 trillion will be required and the UN target is 0.7 per cent of GNI to be allocated by developed countries to overseas development assistance (ODA), with at least US$100 billion a year donated by 2020.
• However, some say that this will merely prolong structural inequalities and the dependence of developing countries on aid from developed countries, although the G77 group has called for more financial assistance.

Question 89

What stance do the world bank have on development aid?

Answer 89

• The World Bank and other international banks believe that there needs to be ‘intelligent development nance’, providing more development aid but targeted at countries with poverty, vulnerability and limited fiscal capacity, and used to encourage public and private sources of finance.

Question 90

What stance do the UNEP have on development aid?

Answer 90

• The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) said that there should be a proper valuation of natural capital and ecosystems services when considering aid projects so that damage is limited.

Question 91

When should countries respond collectively to violations of human rights according to the UN?

Answer 91

• In 2009 the UN General Secretary said that there may be times when countries should respond collectively ‘in a timely and decisive manner’ when a country has failed to protect the welfare or allow human suffering of its citizens - including genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing or crimes against humanity.
• In these situations, some argue that a country sacrifices its sovereignty.

Question 92

How does FDI act as development aid and how was FDI spent in 2015?

Answer 92

• Some suggest that foreign direct investment (FDI) and trade have become more important than aid, as developing countries prioritise economic development.
• The amount of aid given has been in decline and the plethora of IGOs and NGOs such as Oxfam and Christian Aid, and smaller charities, sometimes creates coordination issues so that aid falls below the required standard.
• In 2015 US$130 billion was donated, mainly from Germany, the UK, France, Japan and the USA, although
  9 per cent of this amount was spent in donor countries to help refugees.
• The main recipients of aid were India (US$4.8 billion), and Vietnam (US$4.8 billion), although per capita this meant that Vietnam received more than India (US$1,658, compared to just US$17).
• A trend with aid is that it
  is given in smaller amounts, with the average project loan in 2014 only one-third the size it was in 2000.

Question 93

What is humanitarian aid, how is it used and how is it beneficial?

Answer 93

• Humanitarian aid is Official Development Assistance (ODA), given mostly by NGOs in times of emergency, such as a natural disaster like an earthquake, or human-made disaster such as a civil war.
• This aid usually concentrates on the basics of life, including food, clean water, shelter and medical care.
• Community ODA is given to help poorer people improve their lives through projects based on ‘bottom-up’ schemes decided in partnership with local communities, who are best placed to identify their own needs.
• The small, low-cost and manageable projects are usually work- or infrastructure-related, such as micro-HEP (Practical Action) or Playpumps (One Water).
• Welfare ODA is to provide access to education and health care and improve the status of women.
• Bilateral aid is where ODA is agreed between the governments of two countries, sometimes for specific purposes and sometimes with conditions attached.
• Multilateral aid organised by
  IGOs such as UNICEF, UNDP, the World Bank or the IMF usually aims to reduce poverty and raise economic performance, but the MDGs and SDGs have broadened the focus to include social and environmental matters since 2000.

Question 94

In what cases has development aid been a success?

Answer 94

• Historically, development aid has had successes, such as the USA’s support for South Korea and Taiwan, which enabled those nations to become ‘tiger economies’ and then established economically developed countries.
• In terms of world health, aid helped eradicate smallpox in the 1970s and has nearly eliminated polio.

Question 95

Which countries receive the most aid and why is it bas that China is now a large global donor?

Answer 95

• Countries in strategic positions have tended to receive more aid - for example, Turkey received US$3.4 billion in 2014 - even if they are more authoritarian or have internal human rights issues.
• Countries that received aid to help them to become more democratic, such as Peru, may find their aid reduced even though there may still be many needy people in the country.
• China is becoming a larger global donor, often to countries where aid from other sources has been reduced or withdrawn, but is less concerned with human rights and democracy and may overlook abuses.

Question 96

How can development aid encourage corruption and what other negatives are there of development aid?

Answer 96

• Development aid may encourage corruption because of the large sums of money involved; it may also support authoritarian regimes at times and postpone democracy.
• The administration systems of developing countries may be overwhelmed or take a substantial proportion of aid, so that not all the aid reaches the people who need it.
• Aid may distort the actual financial and economic status of a country by artificially adding to its GDP, and when aid is reduced or withdrawn it may cause economic uncertainty and collapse.
• Sometimes the ruling elite of a recipient country diverts the aid budget to military spending, which may prolong unrest and civil war.
• Sometimes it has not been possible to direct humanitarian aid to people in developing countries because the government has banned foreign aid workers from the country, as happened in Myanmar.

Question 97

What does some research suggest about which type of countries are receiving the most aid?

Answer 97

• Some research suggests that there is a trend of aid going to poorly governed ‘middle-income’ countries rather than to those in poverty, but other research suggests that countries attempting to become more democratic receive more aid.
• This illustrates the complexity of this type of intervention, and why there is uncertainty and controversy.

Question 98

Who encourages economic development and what do the aims often overlook?

Answer 98

• Economic development has been encouraged by colonial superpowers and the dominant superpower, the USA, following the theoretical economic principles espoused by neoliberal views such as Rostow.
• However, these economic aims often overlooked the effect of development on the natural environment and the human rights of some groups of people, especially minority groups such as indigenous peoples living in peripheral areas.

Question 99

How do the global strategic interests of countries influence their intervention?

Answer 99

• Countries’ global strategic interests have long influenced their intervention in other countries.
• Examples are Russia’s support for Cuba and Syria, China’s support for North Korea and the USA’s support for Saudi Arabia.
• In this way the superpowers are able to maintain their influence in world regions from which they might otherwise be excluded.
• However, they give humanitarian reasons as public justification of their military intervention, using international human rights conventions to explain their involvement in situations where people are at risk of persecution.

Question 100

In what situations is military aid given to countries?

Answer 100

• Military aid may sometimes be given to countries whose human rights record over time is poor, occasionally at a time of regime change so that there is support for a change in human rights, such as in Bolivia, Egypt and Zimbabwe.
• US foreign military spending in 2015 shows that three of it top contributions were to some of the worst human rights offenders in 20-14 (Pakistan, Iraq and Yemen).
• However, a considerable length of time is usually required for there to be consolidated political and cultural change, and some countries may return to ‘old ways’.
• Military aid may also be given for strategic or political reasons, to gain influence in a country or key region of the world, such as Russia supporting the Assad regime in Syria to keep a foothold in the Middle East, and the USA supporting Jordan for similar reasons.

Question 101

Why have countries become involved in direct military intervention in the Middle East?

Answer 101

• Since the terrorist attacks on civilians in the USA in 2001, some countries have become involved in direct military intervention in places where terrorist groups are known to operate, such as Afghanistan and Pakistan.
• The US Department of State currently lists 60 terrorist organisations, with ISIL-Khorasan and ISIL- Libya added in 2016. Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria has been the most organised, with 31,000 fighters, and the wealthiest, with oil revenue.
• In 2014 it managed to gain territory in Iraq and Syria, while committing atrocities and mass executions including those of minority groups such as the Albu Nimr tribe in Anbar Province in Iraq in October 2014.
• The US used air strikes to halt and weaken IS.

Question 102

What did The Institute for Economics and Peace Global Index of 2015 show about terrorism?

Answer 102

• The Institute for Economics and Peace Global Terrorism Index of 2015 showed that in 2014 terrorism was concentrated mostly in five countries: Iraq, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Pakistan and
  Syria, which together accounted for 78 per cent of the lives lost globally.
• While terrorism has spread widely in the world, nearly all attacks (92 per cent) were in countries that supported political violence, with a long history of armed conflict, corruption and a lack of respect for human rights.
• However there have been accusations of torture of prisoners by US and UK forces as well, especially of suspected terrorists detained in the infamous camp at Guantanamo Bay.

Question 103

Why is it difficult to measure the success of interventions?

Answer 103

• Ways of measuring the development of a country are diverse and the success of geopolitical interventions is difficult to judge, especially if the accuracy of data is in doubt.
• It may be years or decades before it is possible to make judgements on interventions
  in countries currently in conflict situations, especially if government structures, economic systems, health and education systems and infrastructure have been damaged and need investment.

Question 104

What does data for the 21st century suggest about the success of interventions?

Answer 104

• It is difficult to correlate data measuring success with data on interventions, and other intangible factors that are difficult to measure may also affect the results.
• The data for the 21st century appears to suggest an improvement in gender equality, life expectancy, health and education in countries receiving intervention.
• However, freedom of speech does not appear to have improved, and changes in wealth have been very mixed.

Question 105

What does data say about the impact of interventions on population migration?

Answer 105

• An analysis of population migration shows that movements of refugees and internally displaced people have increased, particularly in the MENA region, where there is a high level of conflict as well as the usual push factors of poverty and natural hazards.
• In 2016 there were 4 million Syrian refugees, and displacement of people in Iraq and Yemen.
• People smuggling and trafficking has increased, costing refugees not
  only their money but also their lives.
• In 2015 the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) estimated 5,411 refugee deaths.
• In 2016 the main reason for refugee fatalities was drowning, as people tried to cross open water in craft not designed for such journeys.
• In Syria 10.8 million people were in need of humanitarian aid, including 6.5 million IDPs, but because of the conflict it was difficult to get aid to people.
• UNHCR did reach over 3 million IDPs in 2014 and delivered key relief items, but more was needed.
• Similarly, Iraq was declared a level-3 emergency situation by UNHCR in 2014, which caused a huge logistics operation to get aid to people before winter; this was their largest operation in over a decade.
• Working with IGOs and NGOs, in 2015 UNHCR launched the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (3RP), which brought together humanitarian and development interventions to produce a ‘sustainable resilience-based response’ to the refugee crisis in each country.

Question 106

How was it difficult to measure the success of interventions in 2015 when muslims fled Myanmar?

Answer 106

• In 2015 Reuters news agency reported the plight of Rohingya Muslims fleeing persecution and poverty in Myanmar by boat, risking sickness and starvation at sea.
• Political complexities in the region made it difficult to assess the success of interventions: Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia all turned away refugee boats while also accepting some people, while the UN expressed ‘alarm’ and ASEAN was ‘silent’. The Guardian reported that the UNHCR, USA, other governments and international organisations held emergency meetings in 2015 but no clear action plan for the region emerged.
• Assessing intervention success is therefore difficult, especially as the numbers involved in illegal human tra cking are uncertain.
• A reason for the lack of reported intervention may be the uncertainty over the legal status of the ‘boat people’, as Myanmar considers the Rohingya to be illegal Bangladeshi immigrants in their country.

Question 107

What are Democratic institutions and what purpose do they have?

Answer 107

• Democratic institutions are based on the concepts of equality and freedom, using political voting systems based on ‘one person, one vote’, with majority rule enforcing human rights.
• Economic development has often been seen as a promoter of democratic institutions in capitalist societies, with a good standard of living highly prized.
• Once established, democratic institutions help to develop socio-political values that promote freedom and human rights.
• Education is important in this process as it makes people aware of their rights and gives them the means of expressing them.
• Wealth also facilitates greater independence from the state and the ability to resolve conflicts through local and national democratic institutions such as councils and courts.
• Economic growth creates global links that include a flow of information that may weaken authoritarian states, a
  fact illustrated by China’s policy of limiting access to the global internet.
• Research suggests that democratic countries do make greater economic progress than autocratic ones but that this is not continuous over time - probably because of economic cycles, as predicted by Kondratiev.

Question 108

How did democratic institutions initially form and why is there debate over how they were created?

Answer 108

• There is debate about how democratic institutions are created initially.
• It has been found that economic development may prolong democracy and allow it to mature, and when per capita income (PPP) rises above US$10,000 (2015 values), democracy should last forever (Przeworski and Limongi, 1993).
• Global democracy advanced after the shock of the Second World War, which led to the establishment of the UN and its IGOs, and waves of independence of former colonial countries.
• Other research has shown that a rapid increase in per capita income may change moderately authoritarian countries into democracies, but not strongly authoritarian countries (Londregan and Poole, 1990).
• What is clear is that wealth, democracy and economic freedom all contribute to better governance.

Question 109

What does the UDHR state about free speech and how is this assessed?

Answer 109

• The UDHR states that everyone has the right to freedom of expression (free speech), to hold an opinion without fear of interference with the right to have that opinion, and to be able to receive and give information and ideas through any form of communication and across any boundaries.
• Assessing this is usually done by looking at press freedom, censorship and of arrests of journalists.
• Countries where freedom of expression was curtailed in 2016 included areas of unrest such as Syria and Ukraine, areas with political change such as Turkey, authoritarian states such as Russia and China, and communist countries such as Vietnam and Cuba.

Question 110

Why is economic growth the main priority for authoritarian based countries and how does this impact human rights?

Answer 110

• For some countries, especially those with flawed economies or those that are authoritarian-based, economic development has been a priority and systems and institutions are organised to support this aim.
• This means that there may be less public money to invest in human wellbeing, and regulations and laws may create human rights issues.
• In recent decades China has experienced economic growth despite being an authoritarian regime, raising millions of people out of poverty and linking in with the world economy.
• Between 2000 and 2014 China increased its GDP per capita (PPP) by 4.5 times, while South Korea’s PPP only increased by 1.9 times.
• However, at the same time China’s economic freedom and human rights decreased while South Korea’s increased.

Question 111

How has development aid got a mixed record of benefitting countries and how did aid impact South America?

Answer 111

• Since the links between aid, development, health and human rights are not clear, it is difficult to make correlations.
• There are inconsistencies in the delivery of aid, with different political choices being made, or in some cases aid removed too soon from a country, for example Peru.
• Certainly, well-managed humanitarian aid can make a significant difference to people affected by a disaster, whereas economic aid with conditions may be less successful if it creates dependency on the donor country or institution, or diverts recipient government funding away from health and education programmes.
• In a multipolar world, aid may become more regionalised, with groups of countries that share similar goals helping each other.
• Scale is another consideration: expensive, large top-down schemes may benefit the economy but disadvantage local people and the natural environment - such as the Santo Antonio Dam on the Madeira River in Brazil - while small bottom­ up schemes are relatively cheap and aim to benefit local communities - such as micro-hydro in Chambamontera, Peru.

Question 112

What is the traditional approach to development aid and why hasn’t it worked in some countries e.g. Brazil?

Answer 112

• The purpose of development aid is to improve the economic and social wellbeing of people within a country.
• The traditional approach has been to improve the economy of a country to create wealth, which families or the government can then allocate to health and education. There is a strong positive correlation between increasing wealth and longer life expectancy and lower child mortality rates, for example.
• However, in some countries increased wealth may not be spread evenly among the population, creating inequalities such as in Brazil.
• While some countries in receipt of development aid have reduced inequalities, others have increased them.

Question 113

What does data show about the correlation between the amount of ODA received by a country and the improvements they have made, what countries don’t follow the typical patterns?

Answer 113

• Data shows that the largest amount of aid or the largest increase in aid does not necessarily bring about the largest improvements.
• For example, Vietnam had the largest amount of official ODA in 2014, but the income shares of the lowest and highest deciles show an increased wealth gap; life expectancy improvement was below the UK and the child mortality rate was the fourth highest in 2015 out of the countries listed.
• Some of those receiving less aid, such as Bolivia, decreased inequalities while at the same time having the best increase in life expectancy and decrease in
  child mortality out of the countries listed.
• A correlation analysis of the data shows no significant correlation between an increase or decrease in development aid and any of the variables.
• There is a very small positive correlation between the change in ODA and higher income share of the lowest decile of population, and a very small negative correlation between ODA change and child mortality (health) (i.e. as ODA increases child mortality decreases).
• The correlation between a change in ODA and life expectancy is close to zero showing no correlation.

Question 114

Why do superpowers give development aid, how do TNCs support this and how do superpowers judge the success of ODA?

Answer 114

• Economic and military superpowers often use development aid as an element of their foreign policies, to strengthen links within the globalisation process; this is supported by the involvement of TNCs.
• Trade conventions may be used to promote home companies and secure deals for resources or trade, a process sometimes described as neocolonialism.
• Superpowers may also judge their success by the amount of support they receive from the UN Security Council or General Assembly or similar regional alliances, or from military alliances such as NATO; or they may form new military alliances to gain influence in different world regions.

Question 115

Why may the present humanitarian regime be no longer fit for purpose?

Answer 115

• In the 21st century, superpower interventions may not be able to cope with the protracted issues of conflict (such as Afghanistan from 2001), huge refugee movements (over 1 million arrivals in Europe in 2015), climate change (average global temperature 1°C compared to re-inaustrial level) and large natural disasters (Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004).
• The present humanitarian regime was devised halfway through the 20th century and may no longer be ‘fit for purpose’.
• For example, IDPs are not officially part of the UNHCR remit, yet outnumber refugees considerably.
• Perhaps response options need to be stronger and the burden of intervention needs to be shared more widely in the future.

Question 116

What are the costs of military interventions and why are they controversial?

Answer 116

• Military interventions have been controversial because of the costs they may bring:
• the deaths of innocent civilians, the destruction of housing and infrastructure, the need to support and shelter those displaced, the disruption of livelihoods, the infringement of human rights during the conflict, and loss of sovereignty by the countries receiving the military intervention.
• The examples of Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya show that it is difficult to reunite and restructure countries after regime collapses.
• The short-term gains of preventing infringements of human rights, such as the persecution of minority groups and protecting resource pathways (for example oil supplies) need to be balanced against the long-term costs of lengthening conflicts, encouraging international terrorism and prolonging instability.

Question 117

Who outlined the 3 pillars of responsibility for military interventions?

Answer 117

• In 2012, UN General Secretary Ban Ki-Moon outlined three pillars of responsibility to protect (R2P), which he said were not necessarily in a sequence.

Question 118

What is pillar 1 for military interventions?

Answer 118

Pillar 1:

• A state has legal responsibility to maintain stability and enforce human rights, such as reducing rhetoric that may target minority groups and inflame situations.
• International interventions could include preventative diplomacy and disruption of arms shipments that could be used for crimes against humanity.

Question 119

What is pillar 2 for military interventions?

Answer 119

Pillar 2:

• A state is responsible for protecting its citizens and resolving tense situations before conflict breaks out.
• International intervention could include a UN commission to investigate situations, establish facts and identify the perpetrators of crimes.

Question 120

What is pillar 3 for military interventions?

Answer 120

Pillar 3:

• Even though it is ‘not the role of the UN to replace the state’, there may be occasions when the state needs help to meet its legal responsibilities to protect its citizens.
• International intervention may include the use of peacekeeping missions with the consent of the legal democratic government of a state, in order to ensure a return to peace, social renewal and better institutions.

Question 121

When can non military interventions be successful and why is it important that aid does not finish once there is an improvement in the situation?

Answer 121

• The response to the ebola outbreak in West Africa showed that non-military intervention can bring short-term benefits in saving lives, and also when linked with long-term development plans can improve a country.
• It is important that development aid does not finish once there has been an improvement in a situation or a solution to a specific issue.
• Developing countries need continued help, especially with population growth and climate change increasing the difficulties faced by the poorest people.
• There is greater transparency now on where aid goes and what it is spent on, and some of the best schemes are those based on a donor’s expert knowledge.
• Each possible intervention is unique, with different perceptions and nuanced understanding, which makes it difficult to have one approach; however, there will always be preventative and humanitarian response stages with the UN working with a variety of IGO and NGO partners.

Question 122

What consequences can a lack of action in development aid cause?

Answer 122

• A lack of action can have consequences that may be as serious, or more serious, than those arising from action.
• For example, if Saddam Hussein had been left in power in Iraq, or if Afghanistan had been left alone, or if IS had been allowed to expand its insurgency unchecked there could’ve been consequences.
• Many believe that the peace and security around the world are better because of interventions, but not all agree.
• There have been times when intervention or action did not take place, when perhaps it should have.

Question 123

How can a lack of action in development aid affect the environment and what treaty was introduced to counteract this?

Answer 123

• Lack of action can also affect the natural environment.
• Climate change is having important global consequences, but action has been slow.
• In 1979 the first World Climate Conference (WCC) was held, in 1988 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established, and in 1990 the WCC and IPCC called for a global treaty.
• In 1992 the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) international treaty was drawn up to achieve international cooperation to combat climate change and cope with its impacts.
• Negotiations started three years later, and two years after that the Kyoto Protocol was agreed, which required developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in a two-stage commitment (2008-12 and 2013-20) using the ‘polluter pays’ principle.
• However, some countries never ratified the treaty - most notably the USA, which at the time was the largest polluter, and developing countries were excluded.

Question 124

Why was The Paris agreement formed and what countries were first to agree and why?

Answer 124

• After two significant IPCC reports (2007 and 2014), the seriousness of global climate change impacts on the natural environment and socio-political development was clear.
• The Paris Agreement (2015) was an international agreement that increased the level of action to be taken around the world, with funding made available to help developing countries face the challenges. However, even though 177 countries signed the Paris Agreement, by June 2016 only 17 had ratified it.
• For the agreement to come into force, there need to be 55 ratifications accounting for at least 55 per cent of emissions.
• Unsurprisingly, some of the first to ratify the Paris Agreement were Fiji, the Maldives, Tuvalu, Palau and Nauru - small island states seriously affected by sea level rise.
• Fiji has already moved villages inland from its coast.
• This is just one negative consequence of the lack of intervention on climate change.

Question 125

Environmental impacts of climate change?

Answer 125

• Degradation and loss of coral reefs.
• Coastal ecosystems threatened and processes changed.
• Biomes shifted by altitude and latitude.
• Glaciers and ice caps melting and water cycle balance changed.
• Change to the thermohaline ocean conveyor.
• Increase in extreme weather hazard events.

Question 126

Social impacts of climate change?

Answer 126

• Spread of diseases in warmer and wetter climate.
• Fishing grounds move, with loss of income and food.
• Indigenous groups lose their harmonious balance with nature.
• Small farmers struggle due to weather changes, diseases and pests.
• Extreme poverty for those reliant on their environment.
• reduced public spending on welfare and health, as funds are diverted to climate change adaptation and mitigation.
• Increased health issues suffered by vulnerable groups.

Question 127

Political impacts of climate change?

Answer 127

• Loss of territory and
  communities to sea level rise or desertification.
• Increase in numbers of environmental refugees.
• Traditional political balances threatened by change in resource availability e.g. water.
• Increased poverty and hardship causing unrest and rebellion.
• Disputes arising over new frontiers e.g. the Arctic.
• Fragile states with poor governance unable to use climate change aid.