Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Figures and Tables
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Part I
- Part II
- 5 Civil Rights
- 6 Equality for Women: Education, Work, and Reproductive Rights
- 7 Humane Treatment: The Prevalence and Prevention of Torture
- 8 The Protection of Innocents: Rights of the Child
- 9 Conclusion
- Appendix 1 Data Appendix
- Appendix 2 Regime Type and Rule of Law Categories
- References
- Index
7 - Humane Treatment: The Prevalence and Prevention of Torture
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of Figures and Tables
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Part I
- Part II
- 5 Civil Rights
- 6 Equality for Women: Education, Work, and Reproductive Rights
- 7 Humane Treatment: The Prevalence and Prevention of Torture
- 8 The Protection of Innocents: Rights of the Child
- 9 Conclusion
- Appendix 1 Data Appendix
- Appendix 2 Regime Type and Rule of Law Categories
- References
- Index
Summary
We know from historical experience that when human beings have defensible rights – when their agency as individuals is protected and enhanced – they are less likely to be abused and oppressed. On these grounds, we count the diffusion of human rights instruments as progress even if there remains an unconscionable gap between the instruments and the actual practices of states charged to comply with them.
Michael IgnatieffCruelty is perhaps the most difficult human interaction to regulate. Whether inflicted on alleged criminals, ethnic minorities, political opposition, or enemies of the nation, torture and inhumane treatment involve relationships of power and vulnerability that frequently resist external intervention. Torture is often one despicable act in a broader, frequently violent, political drama. Perpetrators sometimes view their actions as justified when placed in their broader context. What hope is there for international legal commitments to influence the torture and inhumane treatment of detainees held by public authorities? Does the diffusion of treaties banning torture really count as progress, as Michael Ignatieff implies, or is the “unconscionable gap” so wide as to make a mockery of efforts at legal prohibition?
The previous chapters have demonstrated that international legal agreements have had a positive, though limited, effect on the human rights practices of some governments. The crucial difference between gender or children's issues (discussed in the next chapter) and torture is that the latter is often perceived to have a critical bearing on the ability of the government to maintain order, security, and its own political power.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Mobilizing for Human RightsInternational Law in Domestic Politics, pp. 256 - 306Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2009