Human Rights and Corruption - Essay Example

Human Rights Human rights apply to all human beings and do not discriminate on nationality, color, religion, language or any other status. All people are equal and entitled to human rights without any discrimination. The law normally puts across universal human rights that are in the form of international law, treaties, and other sources of international law. The international human right law sets out some government obligations on how they should or should not act. The main reason is to promote and protect human rights as well as an individuals or group freedom. Human rights entail both obligations and rights and it is the obligation of the state to protect individuals and groups from human rights abuses. Human rights history got its shape through major world events and more especially the struggle for freedom, dignity, and equality globally. The establishment of the United Nations in 1945, contributed to the formal and universal recognition of human rights. It reaffirmed the faith of people taking part of it in dealing with human rights (Donnelly, 9). One of the major achievements of the human rights was the formation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that still has a heavy impact on people’s lives worldwide. Human rights are constantly evolving and their standards change according to the needs and interests of human beings. An individual requires not buying, receive, or inherit their right. This is because they belong to human beings and are applicable to all people at all times and are the birthrights of all humans thus making them universal. Human beings need them to live a good life without undermining them live a dignified life. Terrorism is a major factor that contributes to people not enjoying their right to life. In addition, terrorism destabilizes the governments; therefore, undermining civil society, jeopardizes peace and security, and threatens the economic and social development of a country. Moreover, the security of an individual, which is a basic human right, is at risk. Therefore, states have a duty and obligation to ensure that they are taking positive measures to ensure that their nationals get protection against the threats of terrorists and bringing the perpetrators to justice. Corruption is rampant worldwide and the people who commit are either people who work in the private or public sector. The existence of corruption shows the failure of the state towards human rights obligation. Corruption affects the nature of equality and human dignity. Human beings have a right to live in a society that is corruption free. This is because corruption poses negative effects on the society as it hinders the fulfillment of human rights. Through the enforcement of the international human rights law regime, there is social empowerment and accountability. Violation of human rights is directly linked to corruption. This is when a corrupt act deliberately infringes or violates human rights. For instance, when a judge gets an offer in the form of a bribe, it affects the independence of the judge hence violating the right to a fair trial. In addition, corrupt practices can be indirect, where the practices are essential factors that contribute to a chain of event events that leads to the violation of human rights. For example, when public officials allow the importation of illegal and toxic waste from other countries and they receive a bribe. If the illegal or toxic products are kept in the residential area, and affects the persons living in that area, the right to life and good health is violated indirectly because of bribery. Additionally, corruption in the electoral process raises concerns in the accuracy of the result. This may result in individual’s conflicts and protests as well as cause serious violation of human rights as their freedom to elect the people they want in the government is violated. Human rights have norms and principles that are not discriminating. Both international human rights and the treaty bodies affirm that non-discrimination is the basic principle of human rights and all states need to implement it without any condition. Likewise, whenever human rights are guaranteed, the society is empowered this is because the resources are evenly distributed and open to ordinary citizens. Social empowerment entails making the civil society strong to improve the economic and political development, thus making good access and interaction between states, therefore balancing the economic, social, and political opportunity for different states. The human rights of people with disability include the issue of disability where there is limited access to resources to these people. The barriers that prevent people with disabilities to enjoy their human rights are abundant. For example, television programming may be inaccessible to people who do not see or hear. In addition, information that is not in simple language is a challenge to people with intellectual disabilities. The human right strives to ensure that accessibility is available as it directly affects the enjoyment of human rights by people with disabilities. Specific barriers to access can also affect negatively the enjoyment of human rights. For example, the lack of accessible transportation prevents people with disabilities to move from one place to another. Ultimately, it is important to recognize people with disabilities as equal members of the society. The voting process should be in a manner in which it accommodates people with disabilities so that they can enjoy their voting rights. Human right ensures that the inclusion and participation of people with disabilities are readily available. Individuals should be equipped with rehabilitation equipment where individuals are able to get knowledge, tools or resources that help people make them better persons. This affects mostly persons with disabilities. For example, an employer may be required to provide an accessible workplace that accommodates persons with disabilities, but the employer is not required to provide a wheelchair (Donnelly, 67). Habilitation and rehabilitation are important as they ensure that persons with disabilities get access to their human rights. In addition, persons with disabilities are able to achieve the objectives they have set for themselves. The human rights, freedom of expression and opinion affects the society greatly. All persons have a right to hold onto their opinions or views. This is regardless of how popular or the status they hold in the society. This right has a protection and is not subjected to any form of restriction by the states. All persons have a right to receive an education and knowledge that contribute to the development of skills and ideas to the society. The prevailing social attitudes and social status often create an atmosphere where people’s opinions are not welcome. The right to freedom of expression is the ability of all people to participate on an equal basis to develop as individuals. Individuals are at risk for exposure to torture or degrading treatment or punishment. Many of these violations go unnoticed as they occur frequently in institutionalized settings. Under the human rights law, all human beings have the right to be free from all forms of abuse or violence. The lack of this right to be free from torture makes individuals lack the enjoyment of human rights and should be suspended or restricted. When a person gets tortured, it may lead to serious physical and mental injuries or the onset of serious medical conditions. Respect for individual privacy and personal integrity is vital in the society. The right of individuals to decide for themselves about what information to publicize and which ones not is important. This information includes the views, opinions, and personal information that are in relation to an individual’s health and finances. In addition, privacy of communication which is the security of peoples private interactions with other people. This includes telephone conversations, private one-on-one conversations, emails and other forms of communication. However, there are some exceptions like when an individual is a suspect and is involved in a crime. Even then, there are laws that govern these exceptions to ensure that such interruptions get proper management. In addition, people’s homes and the people they live with as well as other personal property if not protected can lead to the violation of human rights. Human rights ensure that the governments respect, fulfill, and protect the right to health care services. However, it is not a guarantee that individuals will get the right to be free from all diseases. This is because the health of people is beyond the government’s control as people have personal choices of unhealthy behaviors. In addition, different societies have laws and policies that govern the protection of human health. Every state has a health system that provides medical care and other programs designed to give information about the risks associated with health, the prevention of diseases and how to live a healthy life. Health for all people directly affects the human rights as it aids in ensuring access to education and that governments are responsible for the quality and equity of health systems nationally. All persons need to get fair treatment equally during the provision of health services and the need for equal access to health programs. Individuals have a right to the opportunity to earn a living by freely choosing or accepting work and to work in an environment that is safe and has favorable working conditions. The right to work includes the right to form unions through which people can protect their interests. Every person has a right to work as it affects positively on the development of the society. These opportunities should be available to all persons in a country, regardless of their gender or physical ability. Violations of the right to work may lead to the lack of enjoyment of human rights as well as the denial of a person’s sense of dignity and self-worth. The right to work mostly viewed in many societies as an important way in which people make their own contributions towards the contributions, growth, and the development of a society. The ability to take part and access justice is vital to all people in the society. It encompasses people’s effective access to the procedures, systems, and information that is necessary while administering justice. People, who feel that their rights are violated, may turn to the justice system to seek remedy. People may participate in the justice system, as they can be witnesses or jurors in a trial. In addition, if the judicial system fails to accommodate people’s needs, then people are not practicing their rights to the judicial system. Human rights help remove the barriers that make people not able to use their judicial system effectively as well as participate in the administration of justice. Human rights ensure that all children have a right to education, attend school, and receive books that they will use to gain knowledge and skills that will better their lives. Governments are also bound to provide and support lifelong education and provide quality education that will maximize the full development of an individual. The right to education makes people be able to advocate their rights, as they are able to get the necessary skills. This will contribute to the people in the society becoming responsible as well as contributing members in the society. The contributions may include the political and public life and the ability to navigate judicial systems effectively (Donnelly, 30). Lastly, human rights ensure that all persons participate in cultural life. This includes the components of being part of the community like recreation and sport activities. Children should be able to play and enjoy their childhood. Individuals should freely participate in sporting and recreation activities without discrimination. All learning institutions should have policies that allow the participation of all students in sporting activities. Human rights organizations are working tirelessly to promote the meaningful participation of cultural and leisure activities. Moreover, sports and cultural activities are some of the tools for promoting peace and order in the society as well as impact the right to health. In summary, all states have an obligation and role to play in ensuring that people’s rights get no violation. In addition, respect for people and their property are also very important. The judicial systems should in such a way that it accommodates all the persons in the society without discrimination. Work Cited Donnelly, Jack. International Human Rights. Boulder, Colo.: Westview, 2006. Print. Read More