Concepts of International Human Rights Law - Assignment Example

Reflective Journal Name Institution Tutor Date Topic 1: Introduction to concepts of International Human Rights Law One of the main controversy relating to international human rights laws is the disagreement regarding the provisions of these laws. Some people feel that the provisions are not sufficient to cover all the human need, therefore, influencing the position of their respective countries (De, 2005). Although there exist several laws, the number of countries that have signed the treaty is limited. The number of critics opposing the existing laws is on the rise and the trend can be attributed to the dissatisfaction of the issues being addressed by the laws. Concerns are beginning to rise that the laws only address what is already stated in the constitution law of a country. Another controversy is that in some of the countries that are subject to the treaty, there is a feeling that the laws are too vague to not only be understood but also implemented. Enforcing the laws, therefore, becomes challenging for the respective bodies due to this vagueness that is felt by some parties to be intentional (De, 2005). Some states lack the legal framework necessary to ensure that the human rights are protected. Where the country is under dictatorship kind of governance, the government protects itself from the responsibility by manipulating the bodies responsible for overseeing the implementation of the laws (Moeckli, 2013). Such is done by failing to finance the organs or providing them with the required structure to operate effectively. International human rights are of extreme importance since they protect all the individuals and groups globally from actions by the governments. It acts as a limit to the way that states act towards their citizens. Since some states violate the individual rights of their citizens, the international law provides a platform where the violated persons can express their concerns (Baginska, 2016). Even though the states are sovereign in that they have the freedom to acts independent of external influence, they are obliged to ensure that the human dignity is protected. They also help to offer a solution when there is a clash between rights on a case to case basis. After the abuse, victims of international human rights violations use the existing legal framework to report their complaints. The fact that most of the crimes are committed by or with the knowledge of those in power, who are supposed to file, forward and process the complaints with the goal of protecting and compensating the victims, makes it challenging for the affected individuals to be sufficiently serviced and protected (Baginska, 2016). An approach that can be employed to reduce the violation of the international human rights is through establishing and strengthening the judicial and administrative tools adopted by the state. Such tools include the administrative and the judicial system that needs to be shaped in a manner that they support the provision of justice to the victims (De, 2005). Topic 2: International Human Rights Law and the United Nations System Controversies surrounding the international human rights laws are due to the source of the laws and the type of impact they have considering the sovereignty of the states. The traditional sources include international treaties, international customs and the general principle of the law. Although international laws were traditionally viewed as laws of nations where they govern interaction between states, it is viewed by some individuals as a tool that interferes with the sovereignty of the states (De, 2005). Globalization has facilitated movement across borders making the international human rights laws to be of crucial importance in the current society. The position of the United Nations System in implementing and protecting the international human rights makes the body be of crucial importance for various reasons. First, the United Nations General Assembly Resolutions is the main source of international law (De, 2005). If the general assembly supports some laws, it persuades other countries to sign the respective treaties. Another way that the United Nations supports the international human rights is by overviewing the implementation of the laws. It has been given the mandate of ensuring that although the states are sovereign, they do not deny the citizens and other non-citizens their basic rights outlined in the international human rights laws. The international human rights law originated from the international law of aliens that aimed at protecting citizens of one country from possible harm by other states (Moeckli, 2013). The law, therefore, charged the states with the responsibility of protecting their own citizens from actions of other states. It also provided for the state to sue for the compensation of its own citizens by the states who committed the offense. However the provision that the offended individual has to exhaust all the options available in the host states before their own states can intervene making it challenging for the victims to be adequately compensated or serviced. The United Nations, an independent body should be empowered to enable it to tackle challenges relating to human rights more effectively. Such empowerment can be done by providing both financial and non-financial support and addressing the issues compromising the integrity of the body (Shelton, 2008). The body should take into concept the cultural differences that may fragment the human rights laws. Other regional systems that charged with the responsibility of observing the states practices and the manner that these practices affect the citizens should be empowered since they are better positioned to more effectively deal with international human rights challenges. Topic 3: Introducing International Human Rights Law and the United Nations System Since the international human rights law focuses on ensuring the accountability of the states, it is faced with various challenges. One such concern is difficulties in determining instances when a state is liable for the violation of the international human rights laws. In circumstances where the violation is committed by individuals or disorganized groups, the state is also charged with the responsibility of exercising control over the groups or individuals. Some states also lack the legal framework necessary to ensure that the human rights are protected. Where the country is under dictatorship kind of governance, the government protects itself from the responsibility by manipulating the bodies responsible for overseeing the implementation of the laws (Moeckli, 2013). Such is done by failing to finance the organs or providing them with the required structure to operate effectively. Ensuring the accountability of the state is of crucial importance since the matter has been neglected by those in powerful positions. Leaders in some states have been modifying the laws to serve their interests by ensuring that the violating groups or individuals are not charged. The intervention by the United Nations, therefore, helps in ensuring the accountability of not only the state but also those in power as they fear the repercussion (Moeckli, 2013). The perception that the United Nations and generally the international human rights laws are simply just toothless tigers is encouraged due to the ineffectiveness of the laws in promoting law and order (Shelton, 2008). Several instances have been witnessed where the dignity of humanity has been violated by state bodies yet no action has been taken to either prevent further damage or even punish the offenders. Such an instance includes the Rwandan genocide where over half a million Rwandan citizens were brutally murdered, therefore denying them their basic right to life (Shelton, 2008). During the tragedy, an estimated 4 million Rwandese were displaced from their homes. Topic 4: Regional Human Rights Protection- Europe, the Organization of American States and the African Union Compared Regional bodies those countries from one region rely upon for the protection of international human rights has been faced with the issue of fragmenting the international human rights laws. The body from one region may apply different laws compared to bodies from another region. Such difference in the laws results in confusion over which laws are to be applied once the human rights of individuals are violated by a state. The Council of Europe, Organization of the American States and the African Union are an example of regional bodies instituted to ensure the protection of human rights of individuals from Europe, America and Africa respectively (De, 2005). Perception and understanding of the international human rights laws are heavily shaped by the cultural block of the stated individuals. Since individuals tend to belong to different cultural values, it is important to determine the contribution made by the cultural block of the individual in determining the accepted human rights. From a cultural imperialism point of view, the international human rights laws are viewed to have been developed by the western cultures and should not be imposed on other non-western blocks such as the Japanese, Orthodox, Confucian and Hindu culture (Moeckli, 2013). The justification given by the view is that the non-western blocks are on different levels of development, cultures, and history. On the other hand, Universalists hold the belief that all individual should enjoy equal rights despite differences in blocks such as the culture, religion and the status of the economy (Moeckli, 2013). The laws, therefore, have to provide for a margin of appreciation to permit the states to translate the laws depending on their respective culture. The conflict between the internationally agreed upon human rights laws and the regional laws makes it difficult to protect, compensate or even provide the essential services to the victims of oppression. Opposing the apartheid regime in South Africa became challenging even though it was against the international human rights laws since it was permitted in the regional laws (Shelton, 2008). A standard of formulating regional laws should be based on the international laws where if the set laws violate the internationally agreed upon basic human rights, they should be nullified. Important cultural aspects should, however, be taken into concept when developing the secondary human rights to increase the acceptance of these laws (Shelton, 2008). References Bagińska, E. (2016). Damages for violations of human rights: A comparative study of domestic legal systems. Top of Form De, F. K. (2005). Out of the ashes: Reparation for victims of gross and systematic human rights violations. Antwerpen [u.a.: Intersentia. Bottom of Form Moeckli, D., Shah, S., & Sivakumaran, S. (2013). International human rights law. Top of Form Shelton, D. (2008). Regional protection of human rights. New York: Oxford University Press Bottom of FormTop of FormShelton, D. (2015). Remedies in international human rights law. 3rd rev. ed. Corby: Oxford University Press. Read More