Case For Human Rights Research Articles

A Business Case for Human Rights at Work? Experimental Evidence on Labor Trafficking and Child Labor at Brick Kilns in Bangladesh

A Business Case for Human Rights at Work? Experimental Evidence on Labor Trafficking and Child Labor at Brick Kilns in Bangladesh

The European Court of Human Rights as a Factor in Improving Human Rights Implementation in Ukraine

The urgency of the issue of human rights implementation is determined by its permanent nature. Human rights ensuring has become not only a moral imperative, but also a key indicator of the countries' development and their readiness to cooperate in the international arena. Human rights implementation is an important component of any democratic society. The level of freedom and justice within society depends on how efficiency human rights are implemented. The European Court of Human Rights activity, the practice of which is recognized as a source of national law, is of particular importance.
 The purpose of the study is to cover the practice of the European Court of Human Rights as a factor in improving the human rights provision in Ukraine.
 It is emphasized that the practice of the European Court of Human Rights is considered as having a precedent nature, although the system of decisions of the Strasbourg Court does not have formal features characteristic of "classical” precedent law.
 It is indicated that the European Court of Human Rights practice can influence national law in several ways: the use of legal provisions formulated by the European Court of Human Rights by national courts; interpretation by national public authorities of the norms of national legislation through legal provisions formulated by the European Court of Human Rights; amending national legislation in accordance with the practice of the European Court of Human Rights; development of the human rights doctrine.
 It is emphasized that the decisions of the Court are binding for all member states, parties to the Convention. Therefore, national judicial authorities are also obliged to apply the legal provisions set forth in the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights in cases where they concern the rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
 It is summarized that the European Court of Human Rights practice is a crucial factor in the development of domestic law, contributing to the improvement of the human rights implementation. The practice of the European Court of Human Rights influences the formation and development of national legislation. In the case that national legislation does not meet international standards, the decision of the European Court of Human Rights may encourage the state to amend its legal acts to meet convention standards.

Mobilizing religious differences and terrorism, negotiating civil rights in Egypt

AbstractThe Egyptian state's publication of its first National Human Rights Strategy 2021–2026 (NHRS) (2021) on the anniversary of the September 11th attacks came at the crossroads of Western pressure to improve human rights and the state's use of counterterrorism to silence voices. The recent arrests of Coptic activists, dubbing them “terrorists” on the pretext of disturbing public peace and instigating sectarianism, follows the regime's capitalization on Egypt's history of battling Islamic radicalism and sectarian strife. The regime has additionally used societal instabilities post the 2011 revolution to demonstrate Egypt's unique case of human rights. This paper analyzes the ways in which the language of the NHRS entangles terrorism to negotiate the interpretation of civil rights and social justice. In doing so, the thesis of NHRS posits civil rights and social justice to be the responsibility of the collective in general, and religious institutions in particular, as preservers of public peace and national unity. While the publication of the NHRS is inscribed in the feigning of democratization to Western donors, assigning Coptic activists as terrorists, as this paper argues, plays up religious differences, broadens the purview of counterterrorism, and expands state power.

The Alien Tort Statute of 1789 is no longer available to foreigners toclaim for wrongdoings on foreign soil

The Alien Tort Statute (“ATS”) of 1789 was part of the first law to be enacted by the First Congress of the USA. Its original purpose was primarily to remedy harms suffered by aliens at the hands of US citizens. For two centuries it remained dormant. Then it became a vehicle to advance human rights. Sosa v Humberto Alvarez-Machain 542 US 692 (2004) was the first of four ATS cases decided by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS). Kiobel v Royal Dutch Petroleum Co 569 US 108 (2013) followed and with it, the court limited the application of the ATS. It coined the term “touch and concern” whereby only those with a nexus with the US could pursue grievances. It also enforced the principle of extraterritoriality. Jesner v Arab Bank, PLC 584 US ___ (2018); 138 S Ct 1386 (2018) brought further clarity by imposing clear limits on which parties may be defendants in ATS cases. Nestlé USA, Inc v John Doe I; Cargill, Inc v John Doe I 593 US ___ (2021); 141 S Ct 1931 (2021) precluded future cases of human rights abuses against corporations when allegations can only be made that general corporate decision-making occurred in the US. In future, plaintiffs will have to establish a strong domestic nexus with the US for a claim under the ATS to be successful. Eventually the statute lost its attractiveness for foreign plaintiffs wanting to settle in US courts human rights scores committed in foreign places. Yet some aggrieved Namibians tried to pursue a case against Germany in an attempt to extricate monetary compensation from the former colonial power as restitutional compensation on the basis of the provisions in the ATS. Their attempts failed. Compensation for German atrocities committed during the colonial era in German South West Africa was pursued by the Namibian government outside of the courts. This article illustrates that, at the hand of decisions by the highest court in the US involving particular groups of foreigners, legal avenues using the ATS as a basis have now been closed.

Citizenship, Identity, and Veiling: Interrogating the Limits of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights in Cases Involving the Religious Dress of Muslim Women

AbstractIn 2021, the debate about the spaces in which Europe’s Muslim citizens should be permitted to wear religious veils was reanimated by the introduction of new prohibitions introduced in Switzerland and France, and the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union in joined cases C-804/18 and C-341/19. This article examines the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights concerning veiling. We argue that veil bans reduce the ability of Muslim women to actualize themselves as citizens by limiting their capacity to develop their identity through autonomous action. As such, we argue, the right ultimately at stake—which should protect rights in respect of veiling—is the right to a private life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, and judicial and popular conceptions of veiling should be reoriented to accommodate this view. Doing so, we argue, highlights the full range of functions that veiling implicates—including religious but also secular identarian concerns and exposes how a usually expansive right has been curtailed in cases involving veiling.

Guarantees in case of deprivation of property under the law of the European Convention on Human Rights

From the content of the property right, the guarantees of protection against arbitrary or disproportionate forms of interference in the exercise of this fundamental right of the person result. Such interference may take the form of deprivation or limitation of rights. Every individual has the right to own property and to use the goods in his possession. Depriving the person of his property can only take place in the case of the existence of a public necessity. If these circumstances occur, the state is obliged to ensure fair compensation. Both governments and others are prohibited from assigning property without justification. In this article, we propose to analyze the relevant provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights, as well as the general principles established by the European Court of Human Rights in cases where deprivation of property is invoked.

Elements of child-friendly justice based on the case law of the European Court of Human Rights

Virtually every child is not immune to entering the justice system and this can happen in a variety of ways, covering all areas of justice from the start of a pre-trial investigation to the execution of a judgment in a civil case. In doing so, the justice system should be structured to take into account the «best interests of the child» as broadly understood and to distinguish it from justice where adults are involved. This requires the state, when organising justice, to create special elements in its system aimed at the «best interests of the child», which can be seen quite clearly in the «special features» of child-friendly justice. Alongside this, the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights is an important benchmark in the protection of human rights, not excluding children’s rights. They cover safeguards for a wide range of rights and in many cases it is through the practice of the Strasbourg Court that important trends in the protection of children’s rights can be seen. As a consequence, an analysis of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights helps to highlight the special features of child-friendly justice, which will contribute to the formation of specific elements, establish their presence (or absence) in practice and the possibility to suggest ways to implement them, both in legislation and in law enforcement practice. A summary of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights in cases involving children’s rights demonstrates to us first and foremost the need for special attention in proceedings involving a child. An analysis of the validity of interference with the various rights guaranteed by the Convention, which does not enshrine separate rights for children, highlights particular elements that need to be enshrined in a child-friendly justice system. The above elements are not an exhaustive list to be considered when implementing child-friendly justice, they may complement each other, depending on the specifics of each situation, and they are a good reference point to be reflected both in legislation and in practice, which may be the subject of further scientific discussion and development. Key words: European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, European Court of Human Rights, child rights, child-friendly justice, best interests of the child.

Review: Religion and Violence, Rights and Reconciliation, edited by Daniel H. Levine

This volume reprints articles devoted to violence and religion in Latin America that were first published in 2020 in MDPI’s open access journal Religions. Although only a single chapter addresses the “reconciliation” in the title (Soledad Contoggio’s article on forensic investigations in Argentina after the “Dirty War”), all chapters deal with the issue of human rights. They also cover the complicated relationship between church and state, such as the complicity and resistance of the Catholic Church during the Pinochet regime in Chile (Ruderer) and the conflicts over creation of the proper social and political order that beset Mexico in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries (Hensel). Often Catholic laypeople, women and men religious, and clergy found themselves caught in the middle, as in the case of the 20-year war with the Shining Path in Peru, where they became the targets of revolutionaries and the military alike (Tovar Samanez).Of special interest to Nova Religio readers would be the chapter on the growth of Dominion Theology in Central America and Brazil due to the Evangelical and Pentecostal upsurge (Garrard). The development of the New Apostolic Reformation, a loose network of “apostles,” has created celebrity evangelists, or “prayer warriors,” who engage in what they call a cosmic struggle against the forces of darkness at work in society. Also of interest, but taking a different stance, is the article detailing the attacks on practitioners of Afro-Brazilian religions in Rio de Janeiro by drug traffickers (Boaz). It is conversion to Evangelical Christianity that prompts the traffickers to expel devotees from various areas, destroy shrines and places of worship, and threaten priests because they are supposedly worshipping the devil. Boaz argues, however, that this should not been seen as spiritual warfare but, rather, as a clearcut case of human rights violations.As the book’s editor, Daniel H. Levine, observes, although the cases come from Latin America the issues they raise are global. Many of the problems the articles address are hidden in plain sight. This book illuminates what the problems are and where they are to be found.

Problems of Compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights in cases of Deportation from the Russian Federation

Over the past few years, the European Court of Human Rights has repeatedly found Russia’s failure to comply with the guarantees of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) in deportation cases. At the same time, the ECtHR, as a rule, found the same type of violations, indicating the presence of systemic defects in the Russian legal system. A significant number of new similar and related complaints are currently pending before the ECtHR, including a recently communicated complaint by human rights activist Vanessa Kogan, head of the NGO Astreya, related to the annulment of her residence permit in Russia. The paper is devoted to assessing the observance by the Russian authorities of the ECHR guarantees in the field of deportation, identifying key problems in this area and ways to solve them. The paper develops a study conducted in the recently published issue “Protection in cases of expulsion from the Russian Federation”, prepared in cooperation with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Based on the results of this study, the author concludes that deportation and related procedures, from the point of view of compliance with the ECHR, are the most problematic mechanism for expulsion from Russia. The paper shows the main defects in legal regulation and law enforcement practice, and suggests specific measures to eliminate them.

Implementation of Human Rights and the Mandatory Precedents in Foreign Trade, Legal Effectiveness: Mexico Case

We make an analysis of the implementation of human rights and the mandatory precedent in matters of Mexican foreign trade, in an administrative and judicial context in the search for legal effectiveness with constitutional control, highlighting the implementation of human rights contained in treaties commercial, such as access to justice and prompt and expeditious;
 We point out a recent case of human rights and foreign trade, with the implementation in the Mexican legal system, of the Free Trade Agreement Mexico United States Canada, before the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation, as well as a possible proposal before the provisions of its Article 14.D.5, regarding the right of access to prompt and expeditious justice in investment matters, and avoiding the resolution of controversies before international arbitration panels that have been questioned.

Biomedicine issues in the European Court of Human Rights Case-Law: Boljević v. Serbia

The article considers the recent case-law of the European Court of Human Rights in cases related to the use of the achievements of biomedicine in the light of the implementation of human rights and freedoms provided for by the European Convention on Human Rights and its additional protocols. In fact, the author pays special attention to the case of Boljević v. Serbia , in which the applicant, a Serbian citizen, alleged that his right to respect for private and family life had been violated as a result of the refusal of the Serbian national courts to reopen paternity proceedings, in which the applicant intended to prove, through DNA testing, that Mr. A was his biological father. It has to be mentioned that in this case in the 1970s the Serbian national courts issued final decision according to which Mr. A was not recognized as the applicant's biological father, and the applicant indicated that at that time it was impossible to carry out DNA test and he did not know about the existence of such decision (during the proceedings, the applicant was represented by a lawyer appointed by local authorities, since he was a minor), and that now there is such a possibility. In this connection, the applicant argued that the denial to satisfy his claims on procedural basis by the domestic courts violated his right to family and private life. The ECtHR ruled that Art. 8 of the Convention has been violated. In that case, the issues of compliance with a balance of private and public interests were dealt with (the interests of the applicant to establish his biological father identity and the interests of the state in maintaining legal certainty).

Negotiation for a free belonging: Home and human rights in Bhattarai’s Registän Diary

Home and human rights appear as interwined categories in narratives related to migration. However, these two categories have not been amply explored as proximate matters in any migration related texts such as Registän Diary. Home is not only a place for dwelling with varying frameworks but also many other things like a space, a feeling and a will to belong. Having a home, a place to dwell and belong, is one of the basic rights of human, specifically in line with the view that human rights are rights held by individuals simply because they are part of the human species regardless of their sex, race, nationality, and economic background. In this paper, the researcher, remaining within the paradigm of qualitative research, draws ideas from the scholars alike Pico Iyer, Salman Rushdie, Shalley Mallet, Lynn Hunt, Joseph R. Slaughter, examines the life narratives of the labour migrants to the Gulf from Nepal, argues and concludes that be it through the multifaceted depiction of home or cases of human rights abuse, Registän Diary negotiates a free belonging for all the citizens in a secure world.

The european court of human rights practice influence on the national system of Ukraine

Ukraine has recognized the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights by acceding to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. The implementation of Western concepts of the rule of law, human dignity and human rights stipulates study of the European Court of Human Rights practice, which, in accordance with national law, is the source of Ukrainian law. It is emphasized that the enshrinement of the rule of law principle in a number of laws was accompanied by a normative provision on the necessity to understand the content of this principle through the European Court of Human Rights practice.
 The purpose of the study is to elucidate the general provisions characterizing the impact of the European Court of Human Rightsice practice on the national system of Ukraine.
 It is substantiated that the European Court of Human Rights ensures the relevance of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms provisions, compliance of its rules with modernity, ensuring the general spirit of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms which is designed to uphold and ensure the values of a democratic society.
 It is noted that in interpreting the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, the European Court of Human Rights is a kind of subject of legal doctrines making in the field of human rights affecting the legal systems of the states parties to this Convention.
 Some decisions of the European Court of Human Rights in cases against Ukraine, which played a significant role in changing the national legal system, are analyzed, in particular,the decisions in the cases Koretsky and Others v. Ukraine, Natalia Mykhaylenko v. Ukraine, and Volokhy v. Ukraine.
 The following legal provisions as the separation of law and the law are mentioned, giving priority to law over the law in case of contradiction between them; understanding the content of the rule of law, the importance of legal certainty and reasoning of the decision to restrict human rights, legal equality of people, and giving real access to a fair trial to a person, etc.
 It is concluded that when considering the applicants' complaints about Ukraine's non-fulfillment of its obligations in the field of human rights, the European Court of Human Rights forms legal provisions that become an integral part of the domestic legal system, in some cases they (the decisions) are the factor in changing legislation, and influence the legal doctrine transformation.

Towards a Systems Theory Approach to Managing Human Rights Violations in Nigeria

This paper attempted a documentary assessment of human rights violations in Nigeria in the last two decades (1999-2020) given that the period constitutes the lengthiest uninterrupted democratic era since the country’s independence in 1960. The study found that human rights violations still persist in both covert and overt forms in the present than as in the past. The paper further attempted gauging these violations within the premises of the presence and absence of functional systems approach to governance within the country and subsumes that a close knit network between the machinery of governance with particular reference to its security operatives and active human rights and civil society groups will go a long way to minimizing cases of human rights abuses in the country.

Human rights abuses in local government areas in Nigeria during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic: Faith-based organisations as agents of transformation

Background: There were cases of human rights abuse during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in the Warri, Uyo, Afikpo, Aba North, Kaduna South and Idemili North local government areas. Indigenes of these areas went through excruciating pain and suffering after the declaration of total lockdown by their state governments. The state governments declared lockdown, with no (or inefficient) distribution of palliatives to the indigenous population.Aim: This article examines human rights abuses perpetrated whilst the victims were in the same vicinity as their aggressors during the lockdown occasioned by the coronavirus.Setting: The data were collected from the Warri, Uyo, Afikpo, Aba North, Kaduna South and Idemili local government areas.Methods: The phenomenological method of qualitative research was used in the study. Data were collected from official government documents, gazettes, and faith-based organisation (FBOs). The data collected were analysed descriptively.Results: Corruption among security personnel, the lack of sensitisation and training of security personnel by the government on the rules of engagement and the Lack of punishment of security personnel after their abuse of power are the motivating factors to the human rights abuses during the coronavirus pandemic in Nigeria.Conclusion: Citizens were forced to go out to look for money and food to buy. These citizens were engaged by security agents (enforcing the lockdown) and were harassed and killed. The findings reveal that lack of special training for COVID-19 security personnel, corruption and lack of sensitisation are the reasons for these cases of human rights abuse. Faith-based organisations have roles to play towards achieving a reduction in the escalating cases of human rights abuse in these areas.

Bibliometric analysis of sustainable agriculture on human rights governance approach: concept of sustainability on human rights governance

This study aims to examine social justice and human rights from the government’s perspective to promote Sustainable Development as well as from an agricultural perspective. This research method is qualitative research with literature study. literature study is carried out to find out various distances or findings that have not been found in previous research as a comparison in conducting current research. The literature findings show that some of the main topics appear most frequently based on data from Scopus, vosviewer and Nvivo12 plus. The results of this study of Global Governance of Human Rights with a total of 78 documents, but it is not comparable to the reality on the ground; namely, there are still many cases of human rights, racism and conflicts between black and white groups. Second, Global Human Rights Governance has an important role in the methodology of human rights analysis. From the perspective of global governance, the concept of sustainability is correlated with the idea of human rights such as the emergence of development in rural communities’ agricultural land which causes changes in their livelihoods as farmers which affect the economy and the surrounding environment. In the concept of SDGs, justice is one of the concepts that is of concern to the government that must be developed through a governance approach

Principles of disciplinary liability of a judge in the case law of the European Court of Human Rights

The article analyzes the key decisions of the European Court of Human Rights in cases against Ukraine in order to implementthe principles of disciplinary liability of judges.Particular attention should be paid not only to the procedural but also to the substantive aspects, as the applicant’s dismissal inthe case did not comply with the rule of law. This concerned the disclosure of the content of such grounds for disciplinary liability as“violation of the oath of a judge”, the content of which was not disclosed by law at the time of the decision to dismiss the applicant.According to the ECtHR, in the context of the institution of disciplinary action, a reasonable approach should be used to assess theaccuracy of the law, as there is an objective need for the objective side of such offenses to be formulated in general terms. At the sametime, the legal role of the judiciary in ensuring the predictability of legislative provisions cannot be underestimated in the systems ofcontinental law. It is these bodies that interpret the exact meaning of the general provisions of the law consistently and eliminate anydoubts about the interpretation. Thus, while recognizing in general the admissibility of the use of general wording in determining thegrounds for disciplinary liability of a judge, the ECtHR stated that legislative uncertainty should be compensated by a law enforcementinterpretation.The analysis of these decisions showed that non-compliance with the generally accepted principles of disciplinary liability inbringing a judge to this type of liability leads to a violation of the provisions of the Convention. At the same time, compliance with therelevant principles should be ensured both in legislative activities on reasonable and clear definition of disciplinary liability and the procedurefor disciplinary proceedings by an independent and impartial body, and in law enforcement activities to provide uncertain legalrequirements.

Business and Human Rights Approaches to Intellectual Property

The relationship between business activity and human rights in the context of intellectual property (IP) is unique in several respects. First, it is an example of how national efforts to control the human rights impact of business activities can be frustrated by international agreements. Thus, the obligation under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (Guiding Principles) for states to maintain sufficient national policy space to address human rights impacts is particularly important in this area. Corporations also have a responsibility not to push for changes in domestic and international law that would enable them to maximize profits at the expense of human rights. Second, the case of human rights and IP provides an example of corporations taking advantage of legal rules that allow them to extract profits at the expense of human rights. These legal rules are directed toward a legitimate purpose — namely, fostering innovation — but they can also be abused in ways that harm human rights. Thus, the relationship between IP and human rights demonstrates that corporations may have a responsibility not to take maximal advantage of opportunities to make a profit where doing so would violate human rights. It also indicates that human rights law may constrain states in the choices they make about how to incentivize innovation.

Interview with Omar Shakir

In late November 2019, the Israeli Supreme Court upheld the Ministry of Interior's order to deport Human Rights Watch (HRW) director for Israel and Palestine, Omar Shakir. The court based its decision on a 2017 amendment to Israel's 1952 Entry into Israel Law enabling the government to refuse entry to foreigners who allegedly advocate for the boycott of Israel. The same law was invoked to deny entry to U.S. congresswomen Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar in the summer of 2019. The campaign against Shakir began almost immediately after he was hired by HRW in 2016, and the court's decision marked the culmination of a multi-year battle against the deportation order. In this interview, JPS Editorial Committee member, Rutgers University professor, and author Noura Erakat discusses the details of his case with Shakir in an exchange that also examines the implications of the case for human rights advocacy, in general, and for Palestinians, in particular. The interview was edited for length and clarity.

Las comisiones por la verdad en América Latina. El caso de Iguala (México)

En este artí­culo se describe qué es una comisión de la verdad y la justicia, y cómo se ha desarrollado la creación de estos organismos en algunos paí­ses de América Latina. Se destaca la relación de las comisiones con la garantí­a de los derechos a la verdad, al acceso a la justicia y a la reparación integral del daño de las ví­ctimas. De igual manera, se profundiza en la instauración e investigación de dichas comisiones, particularmente, en el caso de la desaparición de los 43 estudiantes de la Escuela Normal Rural Raúl Isidro Burgos en Iguala, México, un caso emblemático de violación a los derechos humanos. En este sentido, se presentan los hechos ocurridos en el caso, la investigación que realizó la Procuradurí­a de Justicia de la República (PGR) y las deficiencias que señalaron los organismos internacionales de derechos humanos. Por último, se presentan algunos obstáculos que la comisión por la verdad y la justicia para el caso Iguala debe afrontar para garantizar los derechos de las ví­ctimas y hacer justicia.