The Violation of Human Rights - Essay Example

HUMAN RIGHTS Foreword: The research paper analyzes different aspects of violating human rights. Thesis: Despite claiming that human rights is the first priority for the USA there are many cases of its violation. Part 1 Domestic violence has always been the issue of deep attention from the government, though it became a legal abuse only since 1980 in the USA and Europe. Before that time it was called wife-abuse and was investigated rather unwillingly. The first concern regarding domestic violence refers to the national attitude towards domestic violence. In her speech Laura Bush revealed the truth about domestic violence, especially in Muslim countries. The thing is that even in the USA where the rights of men and women are almost equal the latter continue to be victims of the domestic violence. Speaking about those countries where a woman doesn’t have any rights it is necessary to point out that the situation hasn’t almost changed since the last century. A man can do everything to his wife, even to kill her, while having no punishment for this. The next issue concerns the female organizations that try to fight for their rights. There are many such organizations in the world, mind you, that most of them are situated in those countries with the lowest level of domestic violence. In Muslim countries only few organizations managed to survive in the tough world of male dominance. These organizations strive for introducing laws that will to some extend protect the victims of domestic violence. These laws are to set stricter punishments for those in crime. “Most legal and community-based interveners now received at least some training on the dynamics of domestic violence, many agencies had protocols in place for responding to cases involving battering, and general community awareness increased exponentially during the course of three decades” (Erwin, 2006). And the third issue refers to the spreading of these ideas around the world. It is without doubt that the initiator of these reforms is the USA. Here the democratic society found forces to fight the social inequality. The main argument of these reforms is that women who are the most often victims of domesticс violence cannot protect themselves because they are physically weaker. That is why it is necessary to introduce the reforms that will avert such acts of violence. This can be done only through the stricter punishment. “The generalized understanding of domestic violence in the United States focuses on a more individualistic understanding related to either the power and control of a batterer over a victim or a pseudotherapeutic model that speaks of phases of violent episodes and the learned helplessness of battered women” (Erwin, 2006). Moreover, the ideas of fighting against domestic violence have partially touched the Muslim world. Part 2 Today correctional facilities, in fact, as always involve many cases of human rights violation. Being a prisoner does not mean being less human. The jail does not take away the human rights that a person has in every-day life. The USA correctional offices reveal to have some of just terrible violations of human rights. The first that needs to be mentioned is the use of dogs in cells extraction. Surely, the guards do not use poodles or spaniels they use fighting dogs that can seriously injure a person or even kill. These animals are used in jail to guard the territory, to follow the escaped prisoners and so on. But the newest function that prisons’ leaders though of is really offensive and cannot be accepted by the society. Cells can be extracted without dogs with the help of armed guards or even using forced from the guards. Thus the dogs are distinguished for their cruelty and fighting instincts. They are taught in such a way that after being given an order they strive to perform it immediately and with violence. The very fact of frightening people with animals violates human rights. “There are basically two categories of prison abuse: conduct which is sanctioned by express policy and misconduct that violates policy - the use of dogs to assist in cell extractions is an example of the former” (The Use of Dogs for Cell Extractions in U.S. Prisons). It surely humiliates the human dignity to be hunted down, and the worst thing is that in most cases the prisoners cannot complain because of the same reason. The next issue that prisoners’ rights are violated concerns mentally ill or disabled people. The thing is that according to statistics among prisoners the number of mentally disabled or of those with mental deviations is much higher in prisons than in common life. It can be explained by two factors. Firstly, people with mental disorders are more likely to commit crime because they do not estimate reality in a proper way. Secondly, even if a person gets to prison being mentally healthy, there is high probability that the local rules and procedures will turn a person into a mentally disabled. “Somewhere between two and three hundred thousand men and women in the U.S. prisons suffer from mental disorders, including such serious illnesses as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression” (Ill-Equipped). Their rights are violated in the way that they do not get the proper treatment and the conditions that they live in cannot be called even normal. The research conducted in the USA revealed that health centers within prisons lack staff, medicines, equipment and even doctors. Prisoners with mental deviations do not get medicines – they get only constant punishment and reproaches from the guards. And the third violation is that prisoners, though still humans, are considered to have no rights at all. They are constantly threatened and intimidated by the guards. Therefore, offenders have no right to express their discontent because of being afraid of this. Part 3 The present situation in the USA with deportation cannot be called an adequate one at all. It cannot be said that after the terrorist attack in 1996 and 2002 it became stricter, it just seems to work definitely wrong. The thing is that the system departs those who have been the citizens of the USA for more than 10 years. People used to live peacefully, being married to Native Americans, having business in the country and having plans. Though, once they get in to the view of the police or deportation police they are made to go back to their motherland. Even if a person does have a family in the USA, they are parted in this case. The deportation policy regards equally those who live in the USA without any documents and those who pay taxes and represent a hardworking middle class. Such human rights as the freedom of choice for the place to live in are violated. “The dramatic increase in the use of immigration detention has forced US immigration authorities to contract with approximately 350 state and county criminal jails across the country to house individuals pending deportation proceedings” (Jailed without Justice ). The process of deportation is in any case, to be conducted according to the international rules that rest on human rights. In is written in the rules that each case is to be investigated in details and only then the department can give the resolution weather a person can stay or is to be deported. Nowadays in most cases the fact that a person arrived from other country several years ago and was noticed in some act of felony results in deportation. This person could have acted in such a way because of the restricted circumstances or because of the young age. It is clear that the USA has become the desired place for many immigrants of the world. However, during the crises the country faced the great rate of unemployment, rising level of crimes and even overpopulation. Deportation was accepted as one of the measures to thin out the population. Though, such method does not take into account the human rights and personal tragedies of the destroyed families and lives. The only thing that can be done here is to loose the strict policy a bit. Each definite case is to be given a thorough investigation in order not to deport law-abiding citizens who can contribute to the development of the country. Part 4 Florida is believed to have to most strict laws concerning ex-felons. According to legislation convicts do not have the right to vote. “An ex-felons civil rights are taken away permanently until and unless he or she successfully completes a lengthy clemency application process and is granted restoration of civil rights by the Governor and the Board of Executive Clemency” (Applying for Restoration of Civil rights in Florida). In this way the state violated the basic human right of freedom of choice to vote. The whole procedure of restoration one’s voting rights is rather long and is not always likely to end up successfully. The thing is that an ex-felon is scrutinized by a special Committee which duty is to decide weather a person is worth being given the right to vote or no. The whole system suggests that those who are released from prison are not supposed to be the full members of the society but rather sub-citizens. Such position is sure to belittle a human dignity. In particular it is true about the procedure of the voting rights restoration. It implies visiting some red tape institutions and constant explanation that one is an ex-convict who wants to be a full-fledged member of society. “Loss of civil rights takes away not only the right to vote, but also the right to hold public office, serve on a jury, and hold certain types of state occupational licenses” (Applying for Restoration of Civil rights in Florida). In other words the system has introduced the constant reminder of a person’s past. The fact that ex-felons have almost no rights affected the way people treat ex-offenders. In the majority of cases they are refused to be given more or less well-paid job, they have problems with renting a house and other estate. BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. “Jailed without Justice”. Web. 15 Dec, 2010 http://www.amnestyusa.org/document.php?id=ENGUSA20090325002&lang=e> 2. „The Use of Dogs for Cell Extractions in U.S. Prisons”. Human Rights Watch, vol 18, No 5(6) 3. “Families separated and immigrants Harmed by United Sates”. Human Rights Watch, vol 19, No 3(6). 4. “Ill-Equipped”. Human Rights Watch, October 21, 2003. 5. Pendergraph, James speaking at the Police Foundation National Conference, The Role of Local Police: Striking a Balance between Immigration Enforcement and Civil Liberties, Washington, D.C. 6. Peter Hart, Dobbs Choice: CNN Host Picks Immigration As His Ax to Grind, Extra!, Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, January/February 2004, available at: http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=1162. 7.Erwin, Patricia. “Exporting US domestic Violence Reforms.” Feminist Criminology 3 (1) (2006). 8. ‘Applying for Restoration of Civil rights in Florida’ . Web Dec 15, 2009 < http://www.aclufl.org/issues/voting_rights/applying_for_rights_restoration.cfm > Read More