scholarly journals Patients or prisoners? Time to reconsider the voting rights of mentally disordered offenders

2016 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 169-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gareth Rees ◽  
James Reed

SummaryAlthough the Representation of the People Act 2000 permits most psychiatric in-patients to register on the electoral register, transferred prisoners and those admitted to hospital under hospital orders remain disenfranchised by law. This article clarifies the voting rights of individuals receiving in-patient psychiatric care and contends that the selective disenfranchisement of some mentally disordered offenders is problematic, discriminatory and may breach international human rights law. There are therefore strong arguments for the UK government to address this long-standing inequality before the next general election.

2021 ◽  
pp. 259-330
Author(s):  
Carmelo Danisi ◽  
Moira Dustin ◽  
Nuno Ferreira ◽  
Nina Held

AbstractPublic international law and, more specifically, international human rights law protect the right to access an asylum determination procedure and the principle of non-refoulement, as established in Chap. 10.1007/978-3-030-69441-8_3. Some would argue that asylum should not be seen by states as their own prerogative, but rather as a fundamental human right (Díaz Lafuente, 2014, pp. 206–207). How the right to access to asylum determination and the principle of non-refoulement are implemented varies from country to country, including within the EU, as discussed in Chap. 10.1007/978-3-030-69441-8_4. Chapter 10.1007/978-3-030-69441-8_6 dissected the different procedures adopted to adjudicate SOGI claims of international protection in Germany, Italy and the UK. In this chapter, we focus on the decision itself by analysing the Refugee Status Determination (RSD) process in the three countries studied. In the process, we highlight similarities and differences, merits and shortcomings, and often inconsistencies with supranational and international standards.


2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 137-158
Author(s):  
Maurice Taonezvi Vambe

The Constitution of Zimbabwe states that citizens who have reached the age of 18 years may vote in local and national elections. However, the Electoral Act states that only Zimbabwean citizens who are on diplomatic missions, civil servants and members of the armed forces on external missions may vote from abroad. This legal requirement effectively disenfranchises millions of Zimbabwean citizens who live and work in other countries. Why the current Zimbabwean authorities do not allow or enable their citizens to vote from abroad in Zimbabwe’s national elections is contentious, especially ahead of the 2023 general elections. This article uses the desktop approach to argue that the right to vote in one’s country of origin by citizens working and living abroad is a barometer of a nation’s deepening democratic practices, of which elections are a lynchpin. This study hopes to contribute to international human rights law. A study of voting from abroad contributes to discussions regarding the evolving and multifaceted relationship between sending states and their diaspora communities.


2008 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 65-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Leigh

This is the first in what is intended as a series of comments on current developments in the law concerning freedom of religion that will appear regularly in this Journal. This first survey deals with religious liberty challenges brought in the UK courts in 2007 and 2008. A subsequent survey will examine similar developments in international human rights law and especially before the European Court of Human Rights.


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