Identity Building and the Holocaust: Roma Political Nationalism

1997 ◽  
Vol 25 (02) ◽  
pp. 269-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Slawomir Kapralski

It is significant that, at a time in which violent nationalisms are re-entering the European political stage, one of the basic aims of Romani elites in the area of human rights is to be recognized as a nation, a fact marked symbolically by the attention being paid to national emblems. Of course, other issues (equal civil rights, minority rights, political representation or community development) are also among the objectives of Roma organizations (PER Report, 1992, p. 7). However, in the case of these latter issues, the question can be asked, to whom are these basic human rights to be granted? In other words, Romani elites seem to realize that the most important right for which they should strive is the right to have a commonly accepted and externally recognized self-definition as a group which should be granted consequent rights. In the present circumstances, especially in Eastern Europe, there is little doubt that the elected self-identification by the Romani people will be a national one, since this is perceived as stronger and more respectable than other identity-constructs such as ethnic minority.

Author(s):  
T. I. Otcheskaya

The article is devoted to topical issues of protection of human and civil rights and freedoms by an important state body — the prosecutor’s offi ce in two states — the Russian Federation and the People’s Republic of China. The author investigated the issue of the formation of prosecutorial supervision in the European space in the mechanism of statehood on the example of the Russian Federation and in the Asian space on the example of the People’s Republic of China.At the same time, the approaches of the two states to the protection of human rights at the constitutional level, which are regulated by the Constitution of the PRC and the Constitution of the Russian Federation, have been studied. The achievements of the Russian prosecutor’s offi ce in protecting human and civil rights and freedoms, which are the responsibility of the state, including on issues of observance of the labor rights of citizens, the right of citizens to protect life and health, are consecrated.The state program of action in the fi eld of human rights adopted by the State Council of the People’s Republic of China has also been studied in detail. Achievements in the social sphere are shown, which are provided not only by the state, but also by the prosecutor’s offi ce. The approaches of legal science in the two states are consecrated not only in the regulation of human and civil rights and freedoms, but also in their provision.Based on the material studied, the author concluded that it is possible to use the positive experience of Russia and China, mutually in both states, in order to ensure the protection of human and civil rights and freedoms in each of them.


Author(s):  
Mayer-Rieckh Alexander ◽  
Duthie Roger

Principle 36 deals with institutional reform in the aftermath of human rights violations. It contains measures that focus on state institutions responsible for violations and seek to identify the causes of the violations. The measures aim to reform structures and systems that allowed, facilitated, or promoted violations, and have the potential to act as an enabling condition for other transitional justice mechanisms by weakening or removing institutional sources of opposition. This chapter first provides a contextual and historical background on Principle 36 before discussing its theoretical framework and practice. It also examines the shift in emphasis from purges, to vetting, to broader institutional reform; the influence of historical context in Latin America and Eastern Europe in particular on the articulation of the measures; and the emphasis on the preventive function of the measures.


Author(s):  
Halyna Pryshliak ◽  

Numerous ideological dogmas and "propaganda struggles" over human rights, which took place for decades, did not make it possible to realistically comprehend and solve the problems of individual rights in Soviet society in full, according to a certain level of progress,say in the European Union. Such dogmas include the assertion that only socialism is able to fully guarantee human rights, that the main socio-economic rights for man and his freedom. Thus, freely or not, political and personal, spiritual and human rights, and even more so, environmental ones were underestimated. Unfortunately, this view reflected the actual practice in the former USSR and other former socialist countries. In the field of political, spiritual and personal rights and freedoms, there were quite a few forbidden topics, and environmental ones were not singled out at all. At the same time, competent jurists, both during the years of stagnation and during the so-called perestroika, consistently developed and defended the idea of human and civil rights. The article considers the problem of realization of human and civil rights and freedoms and guarantees of observance of international standards of ecological human rights in the national legislation. Emphasis is placed on the implementation of international norms in the field of human rights and freedoms in the practice of national legislation. It is proposed to supplement the current legislation with the right of citizens and their associations to control the bodies of state power and local self-government in the environmental sphere. It is concluded that problems with the realization of environmental rights and freedomsin Ukraine, unfortunately, exist. The level of theirimplementation islow, therefore, it can be stated that the level of efficiency is also low. In addition, it should be noted that citizens' awareness of the full range of their environmental rights and freedoms, which are enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine, and their continued application, will lead to their implementation at the appropriate democratic and legal level.


2021 ◽  
pp. 263-270
Author(s):  
William A. Schabas

Political rights are often grouped with civil rights as if both adjectives apply to certain categories, and some fundamental rights, such as freedom of expression, can be described as belonging to both categories. But the concept of political rights has an autonomous meaning. It applies specifically to the democratic vision of human rights, encompassing the right to participate in government, the right to vote and the right to participate in government. Elections must be both genuinie and periodic, based upon universal and equal suffrage and by secret vote or an equivalent free voting procedure. Equal access to the public service is also comprised within political rights.


10.12737/1549 ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 1 (12) ◽  
pp. 65-74
Author(s):  
Елена Никитина ◽  
Elena Nikitina

In article some problems of formation of the complete theory of human rights in Russia, in particular the concept of restriction of the rights are considered; the main reasons influencing on realization of institute of constitutional human and civil rights and freedoms are revealed; various cases of illegal restriction of the human rights by the example of the right to freedom of worship and religion are considered.


2004 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 325-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariana Karadjova

AbstractThis article presents an overview of how those East European countries that are members of the Council of Europe have approached the problems of restitution as a means of reparation for past injustices. In doing so, attention will be paid to: the entitled persons and the extent of restitution; the underlying motivations vis-à-vis the form of reparation (restitution in kind or compensation), and attitudes towards minority groups and foreigners as part of the restitution process. Emphasis will also be given to the role played by international instruments (the ECHR and its future Protocol 12, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, various UN resolutions, etc), as well as by judicial institutions (the European Court of Human Rights, the UN Human Rights Committee) in the evolution of the restitution process in Eastern Europe in general, and regarding such issues as equality between foreigners and nationals as well as minority and religious groups and the elaboration of an international standard of restitution as reparation for abuses of human rights in particular. The bodies of the ECHR have managed to avoid problems related to restitution and reparations for past injustices by arguing that the right of restitution is not guaranteed by art.1 of Protocol 1 to the the ECHR. But the entry into force of a new Protocol 12 to the Convention will likely result in changes being made in this thought process, at least as regards the position of foreigners. If measures denying restitution, owing to the claimant's nationality, were taken after ratifi cation of Protocol 12, the way should be opened in the future to foreigners (in addition to procedures before the UN Human Rights Committee) to more effectively defend their rights relative to such restorative measures: notably, the possibility of seizing the Strasbourg Court with claims relating to justifi cation for "unequal treatment". The right to remedy the injustices committed to the victims of violations of human rights and international humanitarian law has appeared with increasing frequency on the agenda of the UN Commission on Human Rights. Furthermore, in its recent case law, the UN Human Rights Committee has evidenced a concern over several questions relating to the respect of possessions; it has already opted for the proposition that any discrimination on the basis of nationality in restitution legislation can be deemed to be a violation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Lastly, after ratifi cation of Protocol 12, we can expect a link to be forged between the vision of the UN Commission on Human Rights and that of the European Court of Human Rights that may—in the future—lead to the elaboration of a common international mechanism regulating restitution as a means for the reparation of abuses of human rights.


Legal Ukraine ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 6-12
Author(s):  
Oleksandr Nelin

At the present stage of their development the Ukrainian society and the state are characterized by their pursuit to provide maximum realization of human and civil rights and to create a full-scale civil society. Obviously, in this context, a significant attention is paid to the human rights in Ukraine, however there is insufficient research systematically conceptualizing the human rights employing philosophical and legal instruments and methodology. The author highlights that particular attention in the mechanism of organizational and legal remedies is paid to judicial and extrajudicial protection of human and civil rights. In accordance with the Article 55 of the Constitution of Ukraine the judicial protection of human and civil rights is maintained through the system of general jurisdiction courts of Ukraine. The state ensures the right of every person to appeal in court against any decisions, actions or inactivity of the state bodies, local self-government bodies and government officials that violate human and civil rights. In case of exhausting all remedies of his/her rights and liberties protection in national courts the person can appeal to the international courts, e.g. to the European Court of Human Rights. At present, Ukraine holds the third position in the number of its citizens’ appeals to this distinguished international legal institution. Every person is able to appeal to the extrajudicial institutions authorized to protect the constitutional human and civil rights and liberties. In Ukraine there is a special body for this purpose — the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, whose activities are determined by the Law of Ukraine «On the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights» of 23 December, 1997. In case when all extrajudicial remedies of human rights protection are exhausted, a person has the right, guaranteed by the Constitution of Ukraine, to appeal to the international human rights organizations (Art. 55). In terms of the current theory and practice of guaranteeing the constitutional human and civil rights, together with the national regulatory, organizational and legal guarantees, it is worth to distinguish the international guarantees of the constitutional human and civil rights and liberties in Ukraine. The special international legal guarantees of the human and civil rights and liberties are usually divided into regulatory and institutional ones. Key words: human and civil rights and liberties, constitutional state, national legal doctrine, international law, imitation of human rights, constitutional and legal mechanism for ensuring human rights and liberties.


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