The Rights of Statistical People

In this Comment, I argue that the use of cost-benefit analysis to evaluate life-saving regulatory programs has, in a society that eschews reliance on cost-benefit analysis in other life-saving situations, been justified by the creation of a new kind of entity-the statistical person. A primary feature of the statistical person, as I will explain, is that she is unidentified; she is no one\u27s sister, or daughter, or mother. Indeed, in one conception, the statistical person is not a person at all, but rather only a collection of risks. By distinguishing statistical lives from the lives of those we know, economic analysts have attempted to sidestep the uncomfortable fact that most of us profess ourselves quite incapable of identifying the monetary equivalent of the lives of our sisters, daughters, mothers, and friends

Human Rights of Disabled People in the South

[Excerpt] This paper focuses on human rights of disabled people in the South. This superficially remote topic is actually relevant to every reader. This article explains that our ignorance has led to the global disparity between rich and poor people and reinforced particularly the vulnerability of disabled people in the South. Thus the aim of this article is to bring the consciousness and ownership of the wide readers towards disability issues in the South

Working on Disability in Country Programmes

[Excerpt] The World Bank estimates that 20% of the world’s poorest people are disabled. This means that disabled people comprise one of the largest single groups of excluded and chronically poor people in the developing world. Challenging exclusion is central to reducing poverty and meeting the MDGs. So promoting the inclusion, rights and dignity of disabled people is central to poverty reduction and to achieving human rights

Human rights enforcement by people living in poverty: access to justice in Nigeria

This article analyses the challenges facing those living in poverty in Nigeria in accessing justice for the enforcement of their rights, despite those rights being constitutionally protected and despite the existence of a specific procedure for their enforcement. People living in poverty are generally most likely to see their human rights violated, and least likely to enforce their rights. The article posits that the judiciary in developing countries has a crucial role to play in fighting human rights violations specifically affecting people living in poverty, and notes the great challenge for the Nigerian legislator and judiciary towards making justice accessible in practical terms to the needy in Nigeria. The example of public interest litigation in India can serve as a source of inspiration in this respect

Disability Human Rights

[Excerpt] Responding to the absence of an international treaty expressly protecting people with disabilities, the United Nations General Assembly will soon adopt a disability-based human rights convention. This Article examines the theoretical implications of adding disability to the existing canon of human rights, both for individuals with disabilities and for other under-protected people. It develops a “disability human rights paradigm” by combining components of the social model of disability, the human right to development, and Martha Nussbaum’s version of the capabilities approach, but filters them through a disability rights perspective to preserve that which provides for individual flourishing and modifying that which does not. This Article maintains that Nussbaum’s capabilities approach provides an especially fertile space within which to understand the content of human rights. However, because her scheme excludes some intellectually disabled individuals and conditions the inclusion of others, it falls short of a comprehensive framework. Amending Nussbaum’s capabilities approach to develop the talents of all individuals results in a disability human rights paradigm that recognizes the dignity and worth of every person. This Article also argues that a disability rights paradigm is capable of fortifying human rights in two ways: first, it can reinforce protections afforded to groups already protected, such as women; and second, it can extend protections to people currently not protected, such as sexual minorities and the poor. Ultimately, the disability rights paradigm indicates that human rights protection can progress from a group to an individual basis. Repositioning disability as an inclusive concept embraces disability as a universal human variation rather than an aberration

The Impact of the Criminalization of HIV Non-Disclosure on the Health and Human Rights of “Black” Communities

The criminalization of HIV non-disclosure has become a hot topic for discussion and debate amongst human rights advocates, HIV/AIDS service providers, and people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. This paper explores the inherent problems with HIV non-disclosure laws. These laws are ambiguous and pose a serious threat to public health policy and programming by obstructing the fundamental human rights of people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. Using a human rights framework, this paper explores the impact of non-disclosure laws on the health and rights of African, Caribbean, and Black-Canadian communities and proposes ways to address the shortcomings of HIV non-disclosure laws and inadequate social policies

The Non-government Report on the Implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Australia, Contribution by SCALES authors

This non-government report to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child responds to the Australian Government’s Combined Second and Third Reports and makes recommendations to further Australia’s compliance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. This report was prepared by the National Children’s and Youth Law Centre and Defence for Children International (Australia) following consultations with a wide range of people working with children and young people in Australia across many sectors as well as some participation and input from children and young people themselves

Human Rights and Disability: The International Context

The human rights approach to disability is part of the human rights movement that has developed over the latter half of the 20th century. The increasing international attention to human rights issues has lead to a number of significant international human rights commitments in the areas of disability. Examples of these achievements are reviewed, and some recently proposed strategies for enforcing the human rights of people with disabilities, to ensure international commitments are respected and meaningful at the local level, are described

The Role of the Judiciary in the Protection of Human Rights and Development: A Middle Eastern Perspective

One of the vital ways to keep human rights safe is by preserving the prevailing role of the judiciary. Standards developed by the judiciary have a significant beneficial effect of making the lives of people better and the accomplishment of the government\u27s goals easier. In addition, these standards may ensure a better understanding of the relationship between the people and their government, on the one hand, and among the members of the international community, on the other. Moreover, major countries, such as the United States, have a great responsibility, by virtue of their international weight and technological advancement, to help promote human rights. The major countries should play an active role, especially in situations where the people of the Middle East are willing to contribute to the development of human rights and to show that they have serious intentions to spread peace and stability