StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

International Human Rights Issues - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
The essay "International Human Rights Issues" focuses on the critical analysis of the major issues in international human rights. According to 2010 statistics, the United Arab Emirates is among the world’s richest economies with a 2.5% growth rate and $37 GDP per capita…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER98.3% of users find it useful
International Human Rights Issues
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "International Human Rights Issues"

Human Rights Project According to a statistics, United Arab Emirates is among the world’s richest economies with a 2.5% growth rate and $37 GDP per capita. The economic growth can be attributed to supply of cheap labor mainly by workers seeking to escape poverty from other countries. Literature indicates that 90% of the labor force is majorly migrant workers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Asia, Europe and Africa. However, research indicates that despite the image of abundance and wealth in the United Arab Emirates, the riches do not trickle down to expatriates and the better part of the country’s population. Research by international human rights organizations have described the worst forms of labor abuse and dehumanization among low income earners like domestic and construction workers in the United Arab Emirates. For example, the worst form of exploitation is the “Kafala” sponsorship program that gives sponsors and employers authority to determine the immigrants’ legal residence (Chalcraft, 2011). According to Sonnez, Apostolopoulos, Tran & Rentrope (2011), employers are given the authority to control migrant workers pay, living conditions, and ability to renew or terminate their contracts without regard to the country’s labor laws. Another form of human right violation is debt bondage and confiscation of passports because migrant workers have been charged high recruitment fees by their home agencies. Violation comes in because the migrants are promised high salaries but on arrival they wages are too low ranging from $175 to $220 per month. A report by Human Rights Watch (2012) indicates that construction workers live in inhumane conditions, with eight to ten laborers sharing a room because of poverty and debt. For instance, they were expected to work for more than 12 hours per day with very few breaks even under extreme heat of the day (Exploited Workers Building Island of Happiness, 2009). The poor wages and increased cases of abuse thrive because of the political environment which has continuously ignored the need for establishing labor unions and enforcing legal action on abusers. Lack of labor unions limits migrants’ choices, rights to expression, ability to seek justice and freedom to move from one employer to another equating the situation to modern day slavery. These limitations have led to increased cases of suicides among immigrants who find themselves in fixed inhumane environment. A 2009 police report indicated that 113 migrants committed suicide with the most victims coming from domestic and construction workers bracket (ITUC report, 2011). Moreover, despite efforts for contractual agreements, employers violate the contract terms and refuse to pay or go for months without paying migrants wages. Contracts are terminated without notice and in some cases employees are deported without accord to the legal process. For example, Saudi Arabia workers were deported to their country after moving into the country to seek refuge following the destruction of their homes by a typhoon. United Arab Emirates is a signatory to the ILO’S convention to abolish forced labor and therefore measures have been initiated to eradicate it. In addition, it is required by the international community to uphold the United Nations millennium development goals like ensure poverty eradication and gender equality (UAE Ministry of Labor, 2007). Reports indicate that the government has been forced to initiate labor reforms because of external pressure from other governments and human right organizations. To maintain its position and relations with the international community, the government has promised to rectify its labor laws through ensuring better working conditions, ensuring compensation, accommodation and holidays for migrants. A human Rights Watch follow up report 2012 indicated that employees had improved in timely payment of their workers’ wages and health insurance schemes had been established to protect the migrants’ welfare at work. Moreover, in 2006, the government allowed foreign workers to form unions that can protect them from the alleged mistreatment by employers. The United Arab Emirates government accepted to consider the enactment of a domestic workers law in 2012 with reforms like weekly day off and legal action on people who encourage workers to leave their employers. In addition, the international labor organization requires its signatories to accord domestic workers equal rights as other workers. For enforcement, labor inspection and a platform for easy access to justice should be initiated and the right channels for conveying of information as well as rescuing of workers from abusive employers should be put in place In conclusion, domestic and construction workers are subjected to debt bondage, low wages and sexual abuse by their employers. Moreover, their working environment, home bondage, puts their lives at risk because the abuse that happens within the home confines is not documented and the level of abuse deteriorates to the level of murder in some cases. Employees go for months without payment, are denied weekly rest days and are subjected to both verbal and physical abuse and are prohibited from leaving the employers premises. United Arab Emirates should adopt and implement employment contract that should be enforced to all employers. The contract can protect vulnerable groups from abuse and fill in the legal void that gives employers an opportunity to exploit them. Project 2 Reservations are the exceptions made by different states for not implementing international treaties fully under the justification of culture, religion and the effect of certain sanctions on the country’s business environment. Reservations give governments a leeway to undermine human rights and other essential rules according to the international environment. For example, Bangladeshi’s reservation to the implementation of equal rights during the women rights convection was that implementation was to be done in accordance with the Sharia law. Another example is Yemen’s reservation on racial discrimination treaty whereby it required excluding political, marriage inheritance and rights to freedom thereby rendering the treaty ineffective for the intended purpose. International organizations such as the United Nations argue that Arab states among other Islamic countries bring out the issue of human rights with a dilemma. On one side, they do not accept the universal need to uphold human rights and equality citing culture and religion as defense and on the other hand, they want to bring out Islam as a religion that respects human rights through signing United Nations convention (Ivan, 2006). Religious principles have continually being used as the medium for excusing different forms of abuse which in real sense are more affiliated to local customs and practices. Hiding behind religion exonerates offenders from being held accountable or justification on either legal or moral basis. Islamic law has continuously being dragged into human rights debates to lower standards because it requires tolerance and respect for others. In the Arab countries, non-Muslims are mistreated and maimed because they are not considered as human beings. According to the World Report (2012), the international community has formed ties with nations that still uphold oppressive practices and hamper the worst forms of human abuse hence making them reluctant to change. The world report suggests that the international community should prioritize the need for the Arab states to uphold protection of human rights and foreign workers so that a democratic transition can be achieved. The report suggests that support for peaceful protests is the only way to counter the regions abuses, autocrats and achievement of basic rights. Insistence on acknowledgement and respect for human rights can help in the championing and raising violations indicate intolerance and press for the need to change (Gulf Center for Human Rights, 2013). Most international treaties aim at protecting minority groups and women because they are vulnerable to abuse and are not included in the country’s frameworks of legal protection like labor laws. The treaty targets at protecting migrants working as nannies, caregivers and housekeepers and accord them legal protection. According to the Human Rights Watch (2013), Arab countries are excluded from treaties requiring sovereign countries to alleviate discrimination and abuse. This is because of fear of political upheavals and terrorism associated with violation of the Islamic law. The international community argues that Arab countries should be pushed to recognize the rights and freedoms of people living in their vicinity. Autocrats leading Islamic countries interpret Islamic laws to fit their description of what is considered as just so as to perpetuate their abuse and insubordination behind the mask of religion. Islamic governments ascribe to restrictive views and ignore the need to fight against repression and violation of human rights (Muftah Editors, 2012). In conclusion, Islamic communities are signatories of international human rights but religious and cultural connotations are applied to give exceptions for subordination and discrimination (Whitaker, 2009). For instance, women are required to be submissive and secondary status and can never be equals to their male counterparts. Arab countries refer to the need for gender equality as a western imposition and women are relegated to their subservient roles and heightened forms of domestic oppression. Discrimination in the Arab countries is entrenched in Islamic law and this makes change and adoption of new parties difficult. The Arab countries should realize that women have attained equality as their male counter parts and therefore they cannot continue using religion and culture to deny their women their basic rights. References Chalcraft, J., (2011). Migration politics in the Arabian Peninsula. In: Held, David and Ulrichsen, Kristian, (eds.). The transformation of the Gulf: politics, economics and the global order. Routledge, Abingdon, UK. Country Reports on Human Rights Practices Report, (2010). http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2010/nea/154475.htm Gulf Center for Human Rights, (2013). Trial Observation Report: Case Number 17/2013 “The United Arab Emirates 94” / March 2013 http://gc4hr.org/report/view/13, HRW: UAE: Exploited Workers Building ‘Island of Happiness’ (2009). Human Rights Watch, New York, Available at: http://www.hrw.org/news/2009/05/18/uae-exploited-workers-building-island-happiness HRW: World Report (2012). United Arab Emirates. Human Rights Watch, New York, Available at: http://www.hrw.org/world-report-2012/world-report-2012-united-arab-emirates Human Rights Report, (2010): United Arab Emirates Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Human Rights Watch, (2013). Proposed Domestic Workers Contract Falls Short: Gulf Countries Should Improve Laws, Ratify Treaty November 17, 2013 Human Rights Watch, (2013). World Report, United States of America. Print ITUC report: ‘Hidden faces of the Gulf miracle’ (2011), International Trade Union Congress, Brussels, Belgium. Available at: http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/VS_QatarEN_final.pdf Ivan W., (2006). Dubai Economic Boom Comes at a Price for Workers", NPR Muftah Editors, (2012) Human Rights in the Arab World: The Importance of Follow-Through, http://muftah.org/human-rights-in-the-arab-world-the-importance-of-follow-through/ Sonmez, S., Apostolopoulos, Y., Tran, D., and Rentrope, S., (2011). Human rights and health disparities for migrant workers in the UAE. Health and Human Rights: An International Journal, UAE Ministry of Labor, (2007). "The Protection of the Rights of Workers in the United Arab Emirates Annual Report, http://www.uae-us.org/assets Whitaker B., (2009). Human rights in the Arab countries, http://www.albab.com/arab/human.htm World Report, (2012). Strengthen Support for ‘Arab Spring’, Governments Should Support Rights, Not Abusive Allies, http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/01/22/world-report-2012-strengthen-support-arab-spring Read More

 

Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Human Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2”, n.d.)
Human Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 2. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/history/1624700-human-rights
(Human Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 Words - 2)
Human Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 Words - 2. https://studentshare.org/history/1624700-human-rights.
“Human Rights Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 Words - 2”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/history/1624700-human-rights.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF International Human Rights Issues

International Human Rights Apply Equally, Despite Cultural Differences

This declaration also emphasizes the international human rights as common standards in the promotion of the rights and freedoms of all nations and all peoples.... This paper shall critically discuss the following statement: international human rights apply equally, despite cultural differences.... It shall consider situations and cases which portray the applications which help establish support for the protection of international human rights....
19 Pages (4750 words) Essay

Human Rights and Cultural Processes of Change

The review "human rights and Cultural Processes of Change" focuses on the critical analysis of the major issues concerning the human rights and cultural processes of change.... The current human rights norms and practices have evolved from centuries of war and struggle.... Scholars and theorists have endeavored to refine the elements that comprise human rights.... And in the process, several theoretical underpinnings were developed to clearly define a universal definition of human rights....
6 Pages (1500 words) Book Report/Review

Doctrine of the Supremacy of Parliament in the Modern United Kingdom

While finding the proposition of the HRA (human rights Act) for parliamentary sovereignty, Alison Young11 was of the view that the courts should interpret and offer impact to the laws so that it becomes in line with the rights enshrined in the European Convention on human rights, 1950(ECHR).... When the Bill of rights was introduced in 1689, it attempted to regulate the association between the Parliament and the Queen in a legitimate dominion, and it has been the custom of the court to give due recognition to the pre-eminence of an Act enacted by the Parliament1....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay

Transnational Corporations and the International Human Rights Regime

The principal cause of the dilemma involving transnational business corporations and human rights violations is the vacuum in governance created by globalization.... The principal cause of the dilemma involving transnational business corporations and human rights violations is the vacuum in governance created by globalization.... The UN's human rights Council takes the position that ‘governance gaps' created by the speed of globalization and the failure of states to keep pace in their capacities to provide the necessary regulatory frameworks enable the ‘permissive environment' that allows for the ‘wrongful acts by companies of all kinds without adequate sanctioning or reparation....
10 Pages (2500 words) Essay

Childrens Rights in the UK and International Human Rights

"Children's Rights in the UK and international human rights" paper focuses on safeguarding the rights of children and young people involved in asylum processes and in challenging discriminatory practices.... international human rights law now informs all elements of UK strategy and policy as it relates even to children as human rights laws have strengthened the concept of children's rights as well (under, 1990).... Childcare professionals and lawyers who work with children must be able to apply the international human rights legal framework in childcare settings and situations so that the rights of children and young people are well protected....
12 Pages (3000 words) Essay

International Human Rights Law issues

The essay "international human rights Law issues" focuses on the critical analysis of the major issues on international human rights law.... The UN Secretary-General mentioned in the above-highlighted statement that human rights is one of his core focuses, but at the same time, we as the people can observe a gap between what is planned and promised and what the actual reality is.... LN also comprised bodies that were aimed at defining and securing rights of labor and highlighting public issues at an elevated platform such as health, opium, and rights of refugees....
12 Pages (3000 words) Essay

Accountability of the United Nations

The international legal system has failed to provide an adequate remedy to the International Human Rights Issues and human rights violations in the middle east and the African countries.... The paper "Accountability of the United Nations " discusses that after toppling the Taliban regime in Kabul, the international Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) was mandated to train the Afghan security forces, including the Afghan army and Afghan police forces as well.... Among other international governing bodies and institutions, the role of the United Nations has been pivotal and central as well as it is one of the umbrella international institutions working for global peace, security, and stability....
11 Pages (2750 words) Essay

Human Rights and the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights

The system defines the violations, provides protection, and addresses International Human Rights Issues.... ther mechanisms used to protect and address human rights violations include the International Criminal Tribunals, International Criminal Court, and other UN Specialized Agencies such as UNESCO that cover human rights issues in education, science, culture, and information.... This essay "human rights and the United Nations Declaration of human rights" focuses on rights inherent to individuals simply because they are human....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us