Human Rights in Liberia versus the United Arab Emirates

Human Rights in Liberia versus the United Arab Emirates

Human rights are rights that are essential to all human beings. Respect for human rights means all people are entitled to the rights and freedoms stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human rights (Alnaqbi, 2018). This factor implies that no one would be treated differently under their race, color, faith, political affiliation, sex, origin, or social status. Human rights influence relationships between people and administrations, especially the state. Human rights dictate the boundaries of state power over people. Human rights laws require the state to undertake measures that create an environment where all individuals enjoy their rights as humans. The extent of democracy varies between countries, depending on how their governments respect and foster the reign of human rights (Carey & Poe, 2019). This paper will compare human rights in Liberia and the United Arab Emirates. The research is motivated by the fact that the government determines human rights adherence or abuse in place and level of human rights growth overtime. The International Human Rights Organization focuses on fostering human rights protection to build a peaceful world.

Literature Review

Emergence of Human Rights

The idea of protecting human rights is grounded on the knowledge that every human being is entitled to rights and dignity. Over time, various theories about human rights have been explained and have shed light on the importance of a person’s life. The consciousness approach to human rights was initially directed by the universal declaration of human rights (Carey & Poe, 2019). The author argued that the domination of human rights originates from western civilization. Still, the reality is that human rights awareness is rooted in the opinions of various schools of thought. Most of the theories are contributed mainly by religious traditions even though they worship differently, but they have a common goal of protecting human rights. With time, all the influences about safeguarding human rights linked, leading to the revolutions in Britain, America, and French. These revolutions led to the development of the natural law that focused on human rights. The natural law later formed the basis for ethics plus philosophical politics (Inglis, 2018). Besides, the law is placed in the panel of positive rights and implemented through regulations and authorized systems.

Human Rights in the UAE

Following the evolution of the nature of human rights, UAE focuses on human parity together with social fairness. In the recent past, UAE has changed gradually from acting in its traditional ways where people did not have access to health care services and had little education. Currently, it is an urbanized nation with an improved organization (Freeman, 2017). The growth led to an increased population from about one million people to ten million people, according to the statistics conducted in 2014 (Alnaqbi, 2019). Besides having good infrastructure, the republic of UAE faced difficulties together with its persons. The government has then set measures actively and transparently so that they secure those individuals and communities, contributing mainly to the growth development (Freeman, 2018). They have concentrated on sustainable economic of funding education and healthcare services. Recently, vital advancements have been conducted to protect the rights of various individuals. For instance, workers, especially women and children as well. Also, the UAE state department complimented on the significant improvement that they have made through coping with little standards to eradicate human trafficking. Punishments are the returns for those who practice sex trafficking and also those in support of the offense so that all people are alert on the prevention.

Methodology

This study uses a qualitative research method. This approach involves identification of phenomena to be researched, identification of variables, generation of hypotheses to be tested, data collection, data analysis, and interpretation, and conclusions (Kumar, 2019). In collecting data, this research will rely on surveys. The survey is conducted online with various persons who have resided in the two target locations for at least one year. Specifically, the interviewees should have lived in Liberia and the UAE, respectively. This experience is essential to ensure that the respondents can provide in-depth information for this analysis since the study is qualitative. In this regard, the phenomena to be studied is human rights in Liberia and UAE. Following the data collection, an analysis will be conducted, which will include supportive evidence from secondary sources such as journals and reports from authoritative sources such as the International Human Rights Organization. The purpose of using literature is to provide a holistic understanding of the topic, with adequate evidence from first-hand experiences and research on the same.

Data Analysis

The world has witnessed tremendous growth towards respect and protection of human rights. Before the Second World War, the rights of persons were abused by governments and rulers. There was much discrimination of individuals based on their color and origin and many more variations. However, with time human rights movements developed to fight for the growth of human rights.

Legal Framework

Human rights in Liberia and UAE have some similarities and differences. The Liberian constitution has captured human rights under fundamental rights. It states that the state should respect and defend the rights of all its people and citizens, and non-citizens should respect the rights of one another (Donnelly & Whelan, 2019). Besides, the right to life, freedom of movement, the right to decent labor, freedom of thought, and the right to receive a fair judgment in a court of law are envisaged. Article 26 of the UAE’s constitution states that all people are equal before the law. Hence, no person should be mistreated based on their race, social status, country of origin, or religious affiliation.

Functionalism Theory

The functionalism theory is a prevailing theory in sociology that was advanced by Emile Durkheim, who was a researcher in the social order. The theory states that all aspects of society serve a function and are essential for the survival of that society (Freeman, 2018). The protection of Human rights conforms to the functionalism theory. This school of thought argues that society should accommodate people of different social statuses, religious beliefs, races, political affiliation, and many more variations.

Right to Life

The right to life is considered as the fulcrum of all human rights. It is built on the argument that no one, including the government, has the right to end one’s life. The right is captured in the constitutions of most countries. As a necessary right, the right to life is captured in the customary international law and also in general law principles. In Liberia, there has been a myriad of instances where the right to life has been abused. Liberian laws still allow for death penalties and hence opening a loophole for executions of persons by government authorities (Donnelly & Whelan, 2017). International human rights movements such as Amnesty International have proposed that Liberia get rid of the death penalty to reduce abuse to human life. The UAE laws, on the other hand, have provided for the protection of the right to life. However, despite this constitutional provision, there are some instances where the state is accused of violating this human right. The right to life conforms to the theory of functionality since it gives an equal opportunity for all. The right to life provides an equal opportunity for people of all races. As these people live, they subscribe to certain social status, religious belief, and political affiliations.

Right to Movement

Both Liberia and UAE have succeeded in protecting this human right. Citizens are free to move to any place as guided by the boundaries of the law. The law only restricts movement to areas where the presence of unauthorized persons causes a nuisance or amounts to trespass (Macdonald & Plamping, 2018). The right to movement conforms to the theory of functionalism. People in different places have a role to play in society. Living in certain areas influences peoples’ economic activities, which play a role in supporting the economy and society.

Freedom of Expression

The Liberia constitution provides for freedom of expression but provides legal remedies for those whose freedom of expression hurts others. The UAE ‘s law also allows citizens to have the right to express their thoughts through either writing or speech (Kumar, 2019). However, in both countries, people’s right to expression has been suppressed, especially by the state. The freedom of expression yields people with different opinions. These contrasting opinions, when taped positively, create a society that is conducive for all to live.

Freedom of Assembly

These rights are provided for in the constitution of both countries. However, there still exists some political pressure to undermine this right, especially when people wish to express dissatisfaction with the state. This right to assembly is well utilized in congregations, such as worship areas and social gatherings (Poe, 2019). The theory of functionalism promotes the right to freedom of assembly since it justifies why people congregate together irrespective of their characteristics.

Conclusion

Human rights encompass personal, civil, economic freedoms. Human rights are a lack of coercive intent. The Human Freedom Index objectively ranks countries based on their progress in protecting different human rights. Human rights have grown significantly and improved the basis of economic and political growth. Irrespective of race, sex, or social status, individual rights are crucial and should be handled with care. For the growth and development of a country or community, it is relevant to borrow the idea of functionalism, which shows all aspects of the society serve a function and are all essential for the community. Therefore, countries should set strategies of human rights protection as the main objectives. More resources are channeled towards the International Court of Justice to tackle cases of abuse of human rights. Create adverse punishments for states and individuals who perpetrate violation of human rights. Increase awareness among individuals on their human rights and available remedies.