rights in context

Question 1

what are civil liberties?

Answer 1

rights and freedoms enjoyed by citizens and freedoms guaranteed by the state e.g. freedom of speech, freedom of association etc

Question 2

what are civil rights?

Answer 2

rights and freedoms protected by the state e.g. right to education, right to equal treatment etc

Question 3

what was the Magna Carta? and when was it

Answer 3

it was in 1215 and it was an attempt to limit the power of the monarch, by ensuring the government could only impose taxes with consent of the people

Question 4

what is the bill of rights act 1689?

Answer 4

a set of civil liberties to protect the people from military dictatorship, these consisted of free elections, freedom of speech within parliament etc

Question 5

what is the human rights act 1998?

Answer 5

before the human rights act, the UK relied on negative rights, meaning, you could do whatever you wanted as long as it doesn’t go against the law, but the human rights act introduced positive rights, which were rights that had to be protected and respected by law. (European Convention of Rights)

Question 6

what is the equality act 2010?

Answer 6

it protects different groups within society

Question 7

strengths of UK rights

Answer 7

• judiciary is independent and neutral
• the principle of equal rights is established
• strong common law tradition
• the UK is subject to the European Convention on Human Rights

Question 7

what is the difference between collective and individual rights?

Answer 7

collective rights are rights that protect groups within society, for example, religious groups, protection from terrorism and the right of the community to their own freedom of movement. whereas individual rights are basic rights, like freedom of expression, the right to privacy, and the right to strike for employment rights and pay.

Question 8

what is the Campbell V Mirror Group News case?

Answer 8

the mirror posted pic of Naomi Campbell leaving drug addiction clinic and she sued them. the Law Lords had to decide if Campbell had the right to privacy or if the Mirror had the freedom of expression. in the end, the Law Lords were in favour of Naomi Campbell

Question 9

what is the freedom of information act 2000 and when has it been useful?

Answer 9

gives the right for the public to see information held by public bodies, like investments. it was useful during the MPs expenses scandal of 2009, where one of the MPs claimed expenses to build a ‘duck pond’

Question 10

3 weaknesses of the rights in the UK

Answer 10

• common law can be vague and disputed, it can also be set aside by parliamentary statutes
• parliament remains sovereign and can can ignore or even repeal the ECHR and the human rights act
• equality is subject to interpretation, and some groups come into conflict over the enforcement of their rights, like LGBT+ groups and religious groups

Question 11

what is liberty? what do they fight for?

Answer 11

the national council for civil liberties, they aim to protect and uphold civil rights and liberties across the UK

Question 12

what methods does liberty use?

Answer 12

• research and investigate rights abuses and publicises it through the media to spread awareness and develop support
• they also work with the government to advise on legislation and ensure it complies with the human rights act
• they also organise petitions, protests and public demonstrations

Question 13

list 2 of liberty’s successes

Answer 13

august 2020: liberty won a court of appeal ruling against the legal framework of South Wales Police when using facial recognition tech

2015: publicised the campaign to ‘save the human rights act’ to publicise and oppose the tories’ party manifesto to replace HR act with a bill of rights

Question 14

list 2 of liberty’s failures

Answer 14

• they have failed in their attempts to ban the use of facial recognition across the UK, it is still used by the Metropolitan Police

2020b and 2021: despite their online petitions and campaigns against lockdown restrictions, the government continued to impose restrictions on peoples’ freedoms

Question 15

what is amnesty? what do they fight for?

Answer 15

they’re a non governmental organisation who aim to protest people wherever they believe justice or freedom has been denied, they also aim to educate society

Question 16

what methods do amnesty use?

Answer 16

• put pressure on government to act on and support reform, this could be done by a letter writing campaign
• they also use platforms like email and twitter to pressurise the government, like the #FreeNazanin to put pressure on the Iranian government
• they also organise petitions and public demonstrations to raise awareness and put pressure on governments

Question 17

list 2 of amnesty’s successes

Answer 17

write for rights: this campaign has lead to a number of people being released from prison, like the release of Yecenia Armenta, who was jailed due to a ‘confession’ extracted after 15 years of torture

2013: they used satellites to capture images of human rights abuses in Sudan, North Korea and Syria, which helped raise awareness and could be used in future court cases

Question 18

list 2 of amnesty’s failures

Answer 18

• they have failed in their aim to persuade the Vatican to remove its ban to abortion
• despite arranging 38,000 members in an online action and calls to the international community, China continues to detain muslim groups