Topic > The effect of non-governmental organizations on human rights

IndexIntroductionConclusionReferenceIntroductionDefense, development of international human rights standards, monitoring of human rights violations, service provision and activism on human rights issues are the salient functions of several organizations non-governmental organizations (NGOs) especially in third world countries. In the globalized world order, NGOs tend to bridge the geographical and institutional gaps found between sovereign states and the international community for people and communities who deserve to enjoy the rights guaranteed by the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights (UNHRD). NGOs apply internal or external strategies, often hybrid strategies to achieve their goal when working with state authorities. It is imperative to examine the influence of these NGOs in the human rights system and how they act effectively in different political situations. Although the growing number and activities of NGOs and their groups indicate the incipient stage of the formation of global civil society, there are notable differences in thinking among them, as well as among governments. This situation limits the achievement of universal consensus on human rights issues. This essay analyzes the effect of NGOs on the human rights system in detail. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Some human rights NGOs conduct in-depth investigations globally into major planned crimes. For example, PPT is an international network of experts and social activists that thoroughly investigates crimes against humanity and makes judgments on that particular case. In this context, PPT investigates entire dimensions of international crimes through the research and evidence presented. Although the PPT has no legal authority to enforce its rulings, these rulings appear more authentic to be referenced by UN bodies due to the expertise and professional reputation of its group. Domestic NGOs play a significant role in revealing human rights violations by state or majority communities to the global community and thus the relationship with states becomes hostile due to their activities. However, the detailed study on human rights NGOs shows that citizen participation in human rights activities increases not only in industrialized democratic countries but also in less democratic and less industrialized countries due to the connection with global civil society. Mostly, NGOs give top priority to humanitarian issues that would otherwise go unnoticed and use impartial experts to gather facts, figures and academic arguments. During the major anti-Muslim riots in the Gujarat province of India in 2002, Human Right Watch was involved in extensive evidence gathering, fact finding and recommendations in a very hostile working environment and this publicity raised awareness of the vulnerability of Muslims Indians and global pressure led to the prosecution of many perpetrators involved in that uprising. This is exact proof of how local NGOs could work effectively by putting humanitarian issues on their agenda. As for third world countries, unlike first world countries, they started decreasing human rights activities starting from the 1970s, then came non-governmental human rights activism. at the forefront of countering state violations of human rights and disseminating global human rights norms adapted by the worlddeveloped. At the same time, the affected states began to strengthen the concept of sovereignty under the guise of national integrity and security, so they deliberately alienated such NGOs. After states have been almost trivialized in the exercise of sovereignty over peoples due to the consequences of rapid globalization, tensions between state sovereignty and NGOs have consistently existed for the last few decades. Philosophically, sovereignty could be explained by authority, so authority is the right given to the state by the people to impose order, the right to be obliged. But this is accompanied not only by legitimate state power and rights, but they must also be practiced. Furthermore, sovereignty can be classified as absolute and non-absolute based on which state has control over its affairs. Currently, almost all states do not have absolute sovereignty, however, they have absolute sovereignty in the law and order of the territory. This nature leads to the critical relationship between the State which has legitimate authority in crime control and the NGOs which defend the human rights of prisoners, detainees and victims of extrajudicial trials. Amnesty International's Agenda is the perfect emulation to examine this tension. As Clark (1995) argues, because NGOs have a single-issue agenda in their function, they are effective in achieving goals, whereas states have multiple functions with priorities determined by national interest. States have evidently been shown to maintain their dominant role in the procedures and substance of interaction on key issues of sovereignty. Therefore, human rights NGOs such as Amnesty International must deal with states on national security issues that are the highest priority. However, it is now widely recognized that unless the sovereignty of a state implies with its indispensable responsibility that the state recognizes and guarantees the fundamental rights and dignity of all citizens, the state has no ultimate power over its people. . This concept provides a moral justification for international communities and NGOs to intervene with state policies especially in human rights issues. Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), Article 03 guarantees that everyone has the right to life, liberty and security. When Amnesty International (AI) works against capital punishment around the world, its effectiveness becomes more questionable. AI uses highly experienced experts and research and analysis capabilities on human rights violations, and AI is the authentic source for the United Nations. However, residents of retentionist countries are more supportive of the death penalty than abolitionist countries. Sometimes, NGO violation of national human rights issues is assumed to be part of the international agenda to suppress and isolate the state from the international community. The Sri Lankan government's attempts to suppress the independent operations of human rights organizations after the end of the civil war under the 2016 Anti-Terrorism Law shows exactly what I mean in the previous paragraph. In these particular situations, NGO human rights work can end up with adverse human rights consequences. According to the United Nations Charter of 1945 and the UDHR of 1948, it is recognized that women's rights are human rights. NGOs working with women's rights have diverse influences in state policies and work primarily with both national community-based organizations at the grassroots level and INGOs. Evidently, public opinion influences decision-making onissues such as civil rights, public defense spending and economic policies. National NGOs contribute to changing public opinion on civil rights in a long-term perspective. Competent activists and NGOs start with public education, awareness-raising and field research in domestic communities and empower women to forcefully demand their rights. When it comes to policy-making strategies, local actors join international communities through a broad network and tend to push governments towards favorable actions. This approach is more successful, especially in developing countries. The Collective of Civil Society of Sri Lanka (CCCS), a consortium of NGOs, has been working to mitigate discrimination against women in Sri Lanka at the local level and has submitted its reports to the Universal Periodic Review of the United Nations Human Rights Council ( UNHRC) together with their feasible recommendation. In this context, the UNHRC's successful lobbying has brought benefits to increase women's representation in decision-making processes by nominating 25% of women candidates in local government elections. The idea of ​​human rights can be considered both as a legitimate aspect and as a belief for social movements. , but this crucial difference is noticed only by scholars. Many women's rights NGOs use both approaches, but the latter is more sustainable for spreading the idea broadly. It is unclear to determine the influence of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) NGOs such as the International Lesbian Gay Association. The demand for LGBT human rights was well established with political opportunities in the European Union, but this approach did not work well in the United Nations due to opposition from many antagonistic states. NGOs have little influence in countries where religious fundamentalism is accepted by the state as a guiding principle. They have little access to raise public awareness in these states and their only strategy is to exert external pressure through UN bodies. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Conclusion In conclusion, as seen from the essay, NGOs working with human rights issues have a positive influence with a significant extent in spreading human rights norms, revealing state-led violations and community awareness . NGOs dealing with state sovereignty and security issues face severe limitations to bring about change, and many times their influence has negative effects on the community and increases state control over their activities. NGOs follow both internal and external strategies to bring about necessary changes in the human rights system, but its success depends on the application of external strategy with the support of national communities through an appropriate agenda. Reference Sri Lanka Civil Society Collective, Fact Sheet – UPR 2017 – Sri Lanka 3rd Cycle Universal Periodic Review: Women's Rights 2017, accessed 18 March 2019, https://www.upr-info.org/sites/default /files/general-document/pdf/women_s_rights_factsheet_srilanka_2017.pdfClark, AM 1995, 'Non-governmental organizations and their influence on international society', Journal of International Affairs, pp 507-525.Clark, AM, Friedman, EJ & Hochstetler, K 1998, 'The sovereign limits of global civil society: a comparison of NGO participation in the United Nations world conferences on the environment, human rights and women', World Politics, vol. 51, no. 1, pp. 1-35. Council of Europe, Compass: Handbook for education 2019,. 493-512.