rights in context Flashcards
What re civil liberties?
- the rights that citezens have in a democracy ;
- freedom of speech
- right to fair trail
- freedom of association
- freedom of religion
- in Britain, civil liberties are part of the law and can be charged by the government any any time
Human Rights Act (1998)
- it incorporates the European convention on human rights (ECHR) 1950 into UK law
- citizens can now challenge laws I UK courts rather than having to go to ECHR
- UK courts can issue a ‘declaration of incompatibility’, which can put pressure on the government to back down
- the ECHR is nothing to do with the European Union
Freedom of information act (2000)
- it was introduced to create a more open system of government
- gives citizens the ‘right to know’ information regarding how and who made decisions
- allows the public to access files from any government body, any person can request information and has right to have that information given to them
- however has major exceptions to it particularly if it affects major national security
The equality act (2010)
- this combined earlier legislation and made it illegal to discriminate in 9 areas;
- sexual orientation
- religion
- gender reassignment
- age
- race
- disability
- margin/civil partnership
- pregnancy
- belief
How are rights protected in the UK?
- judicial review - review of ministers and officials decisions to ensure they are lawful
- declared unlawful when they are ultra vires, when the minister is acting beyond their powers
- common law - rules established through customs
- statue law - takes precedence over common law
Conflict between individual and collective rights
Individual rights; Collective rights;
- right to privacy - freedom of the press
- freedom of expression - upholding religious tolerance
- right to protect. - right to peaceful existence
- freedom of movement and assembly - security of the nation
Rights in the UK; well protected?
- the HRA and other laws mean that rights are set out clearly and in detail
- a rights-based culture has been established
- this allows the judiciary to be active in defending rights
- pressure groups, such as liberty, work to stop governments undermining rights
Rights in the UK; well protected?
- citizens rights have been restricted as governments seek to protect citizens from terrorism
-the right to protest near parliament has been restricted - the government has also introduced ‘control orders’ to restrict freedom of movement
- the media undermines rights protection by portraying acts like that HRA as restricitng rights
Threats to civil liberties in the UK
- surveillance - the UK has more surveillance cameras that any other country in Europe, in 2010, it was estimated that there is one CCTV camera for every 14 people
- stop and search - police now have the power to stop & search any suspected person without having to record why they have done it
- freedom of expression - laws against incitement to racial/religious hatred are often seems as threats to free speech
- political demonstrations - police are increasingly using powerful public order laws to prevents legitimate protests
- anti-terrorism - it is claimed that anti-terrorise has led to the police to make excessive use of powers of search and interrogation on the grounds of national security
Rights to protection case - The Abu Qatada case (2012)
- 2012 ECHr judgment prevented the deportation of the radical Islamist cleric to Jordan where he risked being tortured and tried
- he was removed in 2012, and was tried and acquitted
- Theresa May, then Home Secretary said he would’ve been removed earlier if the ECHR not ‘moved the goalposts’ by establishing new, unprecedented legal grounds for blocking his deportation
Rights protection cases - The Belmarsh ruling (2004)
- Law Lords ruled 8-1 against the governments indefinite detention of terrorist suspects in Belmarsh prison
- Lord Hoffmann,am ruled that there was no ‘state of public emergency threatening the life of the nation’ - the only basis for Britain opting-it of Art 5 of the European convention, the right to liberty
