Week 10 (Data on Human Rights Violations)

Question 1

What are some reasons why human rights data is important? (Scholarly Importance)

Answer 1

Since the 1990s political scientists have increasingly used statistics (and complicated statistical methods) to study human rights, as they try to answer various questions

What kinds of states are more repressive than others?

What impact do various foreign policies have on human rights practices in targeted states? etc…

Question 2

Political Importance

Answer 2

For social movements and activists, statistics can help generate support for a cause and motivate political action

In the 1980s the Argentinian human rights movement estimated that the military government in the 1970s had committed an estimated 15,000-30,000 disappearances

Argentina activists used this large number which was hotly contested at the time, to motivate deeop and widespread reforms during the country’s transition to democracy.

Question 3

The Personal Importance:

Answer 3

Human rights data can help us determine if our views of the world are accurate

What should we do when data and our personal opinions collide? Four options:

Ignore the data and continue to hold the same opinion

Question the data and find legitimate reasons to reject its reliability, resulting in holding the same opinion

Question the data and find legitimate reasons to accept its reliability, resulting in a new opinion

Accept the data at face value and immediately change our minds…

Question 4

Questions to ask to assess the reliability of the Torture in Mexico data

Answer 4

Thinking critically about the extent to which data tells us something meaningful about the “real world” takes some practical experience.

Question 5

1.) What is the organization or initiative behind this data? Might they have any incentives to misrepresent the patterns of torture in Mexico?

Answer 5

The data comes from the “V-Dem Project” which focuses on the study of democracy.

Question 6

2.) In V-Dem’s data on torture, how is torture defined?

Answer 6

According to the V-Dem Codebook (p. 176): torture refers to the purposeful inflicting of extreme pain, whether mental or physical, to extract information or intimidate victims, who are in a state of incarceration.

Question 7

3.)How was the information on torture measured and quantified?

Answer 7

In the V-Dem data on torture, the data collectors assign a number (0-4) based on their assessment of how prevalent torture was in a given year

Question 8

4.)Was the data on torture too fine-grained and specific to be believed?

Answer 8

One issue with studying torture is that it is a state practice that is often hidden from the public’s eye

Government officials rarely publicize their torture practices and often will hide or destroy any records of it

Question 9

5.)How historical is the data?

Answer 9

Observers suggest that in general, the older the data is, the less reliable it is. This is especially the case for statistics that are not based on standardized government data collection procedures and even these ought to be viewed with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Question 10

Key features of HRW’s research methodology

Answer 10

1.)Where possible, develop a “on the ground” presence in the region being studied…

2.)Build working relationships with locals, including activists, NGOs, journalists, and government officials

3.)Conduct private, in-person confidential interviews with victims and witnesses of the issues being examined

4.)Where possible, conduct interviews with government, military, and rebel group officials

Question 11

Bias within the HRW research

Answer 11

But like human rights statistics, the information in a human rights NGO’s report may not be politically neutral and inherently objective

In addition, human rights NGOs are often researching topics that are complex and open to interpretation, such as compliance with international humanitarian law during an armed conflict
reliance on victim and witness testimony might introduce some bias into their findings.

This is especially the case in situations where locals have an incentive to describe political opponents in the worst possible way

Question 12

Measures to reduce Bias within the HRW research

Answer 12

1.)Interviews, where possible, are done in person
2.)All interviews are done in private
3.)All interviews are confidential
4.)Throughout an interview, interviewers will often ask the same questions multiple times
5.)Interviewees will often ask the same questions to different people

Question 13

Suggested further measures to reduce bias

Answer 13

1.)Make all interview transcripts publicly available.
2.)Ensure the HRW researcher is politically neutral and does not have a past history of advocacy on the conflict being examined.