Exploring Human Rights Variations & Interventions

Topic 8:Option 8 ALesson 6 Health, Human Rights and Intervention

Previous lesson objectives • To understand that Governments and International Government Organisations play a significant role in defining development targets and policies • To understand that the relationship between economic and social development is complex and that it depends on political status of individual countries • To understand the role of the Intergovernmental Organisations (IGOs) for example World Bank, International Monetary Fund(IMF) and World Trade Organisation(WTO) on human development • To consider the purpose and progress of the United Nation’s (UN) Millennium Development Goals(MDGs) and to view the new set of Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs) post 2015

Defining Development Targets and Policies:‘Different attitudes to social progress…’ • 1.There is no universally agreed classification of different types of government. However, it is possible to think in terms of two continua, one running from left wing( socialist) to right wing( capitalist)and the other from democratic ( a regularly elected government body) to authoritarian and totalitarian. In general, it may be said that where a government is located along these two continuous will be reflected in its attitudes towards human development or ‘social progress.’

The World Bank (WB)HQ:Washington DC, USAhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F59fF-xu-bY

The IMF (International Monetary Fund)HQ: Washington DC USA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhrC2_Hak08

(HQ: Geneva, Switzerland) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-voHl16vFE

MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS 2000-2015 ( see Hodder Table 10.8 p.188)

RECAP: The topic is based around four enquiry questions: • Enquiry question 1: What is human development and why do levels vary from place to place? • Enquiry question 2: Why do human rights vary from place to place? • Enquiry question 3: How are human rights used as arguments for political and military intervention? • Enquiry question 4: What are the outcomes of geopolitical interventions in terms of human development and human rights?

Lesson Objectives • To understand the relationship between human rights and international law and international agreements : • 1.The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) • 2.European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) • 3.UK Human Rights Act • 4.Geneva Conventions

Enquiry question 2 : Why do human rights vary from place to place? • TODAY’S SPECIFICATION CONTENT: • Key idea: • 8A.4 Human rights have become important aspects of both international law and international agreements • Detailed content: • a) The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a statement of intent and a framework for foreign policy statements to explain economic or military intervention but not all states have signed the Declaration.

WHITEBOARD PAIRED THINKING What words do you associate with the term ‘Human Rights’? Which 3 human rights do you think are the most important ? What does the rest of the class think? http://www.humanrights.com/what-are-human-rights/ • ( Watch this video !Make notes on the History of Human rights- • Which people stand out in history for standing up to Human Rights?)

RECAP KEY TERM: • Human Rights: • The moral principles that underlie standards of human behaviour, the inalienable rights to which a person is entitled regardless of their nationality, language, ethnicity or gender. The rights include liberty, freedom of movement and speech, personal security and access to education and justice.

Recently in the news…..a human rights crisis issue.. • http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-41189748

KEY CONCEPTS: • Causality:The link between human rights and international justice • Inequality:Variations in the implementation of human rights laws

The Importance of Human Rights • Few countries deny the importance of human rights but many countries give economic development precedence of them. Different countries have very different attitudes towards human rights in general. • History tells us that a disregard for human rights has led to ‘ barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind’ (UDHR). • In the 2010s the civilised world has witnessed the heinous jihadist terrorist actionsof IS however it was the Nazi attempt to exterminate the Jews during the Second World War that was the immediate catalyst for the UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS (UDHR) proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in 1948.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RR4VXNX3jA • At the UN’s General Assembly in 1948 the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)set out the fundamentals of human rights that everyone is entitled to. • It contains 30 articles specifying these rights such as freedom, justice, peace and no persecution, to be applied within countries and internationally. • *The problem is that these rights are not really legally binding and are therefore unenforceable at an international level since countries have signed a declaration and not a treaty* • Some countries are selective for either economic or political reasons with regard to the implementation of these rights. • Some rights are contradictory or difficult to define, which leads to different interpretations and contested points of view, so rights are inconsistently applied. • Not all countries have signed the declaration • The UDHR has been a significant factor influencing foreign policies and international relationships( see later notes)

Enquiry question 2 : Why do human rights vary from place to place? • TODAY’S SPECIFICATION CONTENT: • Key idea: • 8A.4 Human rights have become important aspects of both international law and international agreements • Detailed content: • b) The European Convention on Human Rights (UDHR) is a statement by the nations of the Council of Europe to help prevent conflict and integrated into the UK by the Human Rights Act of 1998;the ECHR remains controversial as some see it as an erosion of national sovereignty.

KEY TERMS: • Treaty: • a formal agreement between two or more states with reference to peace, alliance, or other international relations • Convention: • an agreement between states covering particular matters, especially one less formal than a treaty. • Ratify: • sign or give formal consent to (a treaty, contract, or agreement), making it officially valid. • Protocol: • the official procedure or system of rules governing affairs of state or diplomatic occasions.

The European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOcmUQTgjCw • The Council of Europe was formed in 1949 to establish better relationships between European countries following the Second World War. It now consists of 47 member states, including all current 28 EU members ( see map- next slide). • In 1950 the Council of Europe drafted the ECHR as a treaty to protect human rights and achieve greater unity. • There are 14 ‘articles’, each protecting a basic human right. Together they allow people in Europe to lead free and dignified lives. The articles include: • i) a right to life • ii) the prohibition of slavery and torture • iii) the right to a fair trial • iv) freedom of expression

The ECHR as part of British Law • The ECHR was only integrated into British law as part of the 1998 Human Rights Act- the delay being caused by resistance within UK political parties to change. • The Human Rights Actis a UK law passed in 1998. It lets you defend your rights in UK courts and compels public organisations (including the Government, police and local councils) to treat everyone equally, with fairness, dignity and respect.

Human Rights in the UK • In Britain, most people understand that their ‘ human rights’ are protected by law e.g. they cannot be imprisoned without charge, that being gay is not a crime, that they cannot assault their children etc.. • The 1998 Human Rights Act can be used by every person resident in the UK, regardless of whether they are a British citizen or foreign national, child or adult, prisoner or member of the public. It protects 15 fundamental rights and freedoms, including the rights to life, privacy and fee speech- all based on articles in the ECHR. • It ensures that people can defend their rights in court, and that public and private organisations( e.g the government , private companies and the police) must treat everyone equally, with fairness, dignity and respect.

Objections to the ECHR • Despite a widespread agreement about ‘human rights’ in the UK, some such ‘rights’ can be questioned by pressure groups and newspapers. • They argue that the 1998 Human Rights Act ( and therefore the ECHR) is undemocratic because it threatens British sovereignty and self- determination- i.e the right of British Parliament to determine its own laws. • Some argue that under the 1998 Human Rights Act, the British courts are bound by decisions made at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, Germany, and that people have the same rights there, even if they commit serious crimes or perform acts of terrorism. • There is a body of opinion in the UK that is less convinced about the need for the European Court to interfere in our legal and parliamentary proceedings • In 2016 following the vote to leave the EU, the British government announced plans to scrap the 1998 Human Rights Act and replace it with a ‘British Bill of Rights and Responsibilities’. If passed, it would mean that the ECHR would no longer be able to overrule GB court judgements .

Enquiry question 2 : Why do human rights vary from place to place? • TODAY’S SPECIFICATION CONTENT: • Key idea: • 8A.4 Human rights have become important aspects of both international law and international agreements • Detailed content: • c) The Geneva Convention forms a basis in international law for prosecuting individuals and organisations who commit war crimes and is endorsed by 196 countries; however few cases come to trial and over 150 countries continue to engage in torture

WHITEBOARD PAIRED THINKING • What do you think the purpose of the Geneva Conventions are ? • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52BNwSy354w • (TED talks- Law in pictures) • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R26ltwNHZ5A • ( The Rules of War)

The Geneva Conventions • 1.The original Geneva Convention was established in 1864, following the need for humanitarian protection arising from advances in weapons technology and changes to the nature or armed conflict. It was concerned only with soldiers wounded on the battlefield. • 2.Following the Second World War, countries around the world adopted the FOUR GENEVA CONVENTIONS that were expanded to cover anyone caught up in conflict( not just those taking an active part in the fighting).This included members of the armed forces on land and at sea, prisoners of war and civilians. • 3.The four Conventions were designed to be a body of rules that protect civilians and people who are no longer fighting, including the wounded and sick military personnel and prisoners of war caught up in conflict anywhere in the world. • 4.The Geneva Conventions have been almost universally ratified with 196 countries signed up to them although not all have agreed to the three subsequent protocols • 5.The Geneva Conventions are also used to determine the definition of what counts as a ‘war crime’.

The Geneva Conventions cont.. • Few cases of violations of the Geneva Conventions ever come to trial. • In 2014, the human rights organisation Amnesty International’s annual report on torture showed that 141 countries still use torture, including the USA. • The USA has also been intensively criticised by Amnesty for the continued existence of Camp Delta , the Guantanamo Bay military prison in Cuba, in which terrorist suspects have allegedly been tortured.

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL • https://www.amnesty.org/en/who-we-are/ ( WATCH THE VIDEO ON HUMAN ACTIVISM) • Amnesty International is a global movement of more than 7 million people who take injustice personally. ‘We are campaigning for a world where human rights are enjoyed by all. We are funded by members and people like you. We are independent of any political ideology, economic interest or religion.’

TASK- Answer the following… • 1. State 3 universal rights embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Which three human rights do you think are the most important? Why? • 2.Name the international convention that applies particularly to the EU. • 3. Does the UK have its own legislation dealing with human rights? If so, why? • 4. Summarise the aims of the Geneva Convention. • 5. Do all countries legally comply with the rules of the Geneva convention? Give named examples to illustrate.

Exploring Human Rights Variations & Interventions