Human rights/Tutorials
The impact of the human rights treaties
The impact of the treaties has been characterised by long delays between commitment and implementation. According to the authors of a 1999 study of the impact of the United Nations treaties, they have had an enormous influence upon the understanding of the concept of human rights, as a result of which their influence is likely to increase [1].
Linda Keith found that countries that ratified the civil rights treaty often had better human rights records than those that do not [2]. Oona Hathaway also found that ratifying countries had better records than non-ratifying countries, but that ratification is sometimes associated with worse performance [3]. Emilie Hafner-Burton and Kiyatero Tsutsui found that there were better human rights records in democracies, developed countries and countries whose citizens take part in civil rights movements. [4]. Eric Neumayer found that ratification improved performance depending upon the extent of democracy and the strength of civil society [5].
References
- ↑ [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=WGJdzmYOQfEC&pg=PA1&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=4#v=onepage&q&f=false Christof Heyns and Frans. Viljoen: The Impact of the United Nations Human Rights Treaties on the Domestic Level, Kluwer Law International, 2003 (Google books extract)]
- ↑ Linda Keith: The United Nations Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Does it Make A Difference to Human Rights Behavior?, Journal of Peace Research, 1999
- ↑ Oona A. Hathaway: Do Human Rights Treaties Make a Difference?, Yale Law Journal 2002
- ↑ Emilie Hafner-Burton and Kiyatero Tsutsui: Human Rights in a Globalizing World. The Paradox of Empty Promises, American Journal of Sociology, 2005
- ↑ Eric Neumayer; Do International Human Rights Treaties Improve Respect for Human Rights, LSE Research Online, 2006