scholarly journals Media Framing of President Muhammadu Buhari’s Human Rights Abuses: a Study of The Punch, Vanguard, The Nation and Daily Trust Newspapers

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-102
Author(s):  
Silas Udenze ◽  
Barth Oshionebo ◽  
Stanislaus O. Iyorza

This study explores how four Nigerian newspapers framed President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and its human rights campaign. Using newspaper editorials published in The Punch, The Nation, Daily Trust, and Vanguard newspapers of December 2019 as the object of analysis, the paper draws on the methodological context of such framing to investigate how the selected newspapers framed the human rights situation in Nigeria. This study asserts that those newspapers’ editorials used varieties of framing methods, namely: “unrepentant dictator frame”, “resistance frame”, “indifference frame”, “warning frame”, and “sympathetic” frame to portray the government’s disposition to human rights issues. Furthermore, the paper reveals that the Nigerian media is partisan when it comes to the struggle against human rights while their positions on national issues like the fight against human rights abuse are subject to ethnic and political influences, as evident in the Daily Trust editorial. The study also revealed that editorials can be used as essential tools to curtail the excess of government, precisely, to fight against the abuse of human rights. Finally, the paper recommends that newspaper publishers should limit their editorial influences in day-to-day administration of news outlet to engender objectivity, news balance and accuracy in order not to exacerbate the socio-political situation in a multi-ethnic society such as Nigeria.

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 220-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric C. Mullis

There is a tradition of dance artists developing work for the concert stage in order to engage pressing social justice issues and, more specifically, the abuse of human rights. Anna Sokolow's Strange American Funeral (1935), Pearl Primus' Strange Fruit (1945), Katherine Dunham's Southland (1951), Alvin Ailey's Masekela Langage (1969), Jawole Willa Jo Zollar's Womb Wars (1992), William Forsythe's Human Writes (2005), and Douglas Wright's Black Milk (2006) are examples of acclaimed dances that address the manner in which marginalized individuals and social groups have not been granted equal ethical or political consideration. 1 In this essay I consider how dance enacts secular rituals of remembrance for victims of human rights abuses characteristic of a particular community's or nation's historical legacy. This entails discussion of aesthetic strategies used to portray human rights abuse, a consideration of the ethics of memory, and analysis of specific dance work. I discuss my site-adaptive work Poor Mouth (2013) which centers on labor rights issues in the American South during the Great Depression and I argue that dance which presents such issues performs a valuable social function as it encourages audiences to remember the past in a manner that facilitates a historically informed understanding of communal identity. Further, since historical instances of human rights abuse often have contemporary correlates and since remembrance affects the significance of places associated with the history in question, the implications of such work temporally and spatially extend beyond the performance venue and thereby contribute to political discourse in the public sphere. Dance intersects with human rights issues in many ways, but here I focus on dances intended for performance on the concert stage. For the purposes of this essay, the terms ‘dance activism’ and ‘political dance’ refer to dances that intentionally grapple with explicit human rights abuses and that are intended to be performed for a theatre-going audience. Along the way I note what bearing my points have for other forms such as popular dance, dance used in acts of public political protest, site-specific dance, and dance therapy, but I should emphasize that it is beyond the scope of this essay to consider the many ways that dance intersects with human rights and with political activism more generally. Lastly, I should say that my approach to this topic is informed by the personal experience of collaboratively creating and performing dance work in a particular community and that it is interdisciplinary in nature since its draw on aspects of philosophical ethics in order to reflect on that experience.


Author(s):  
Foday Yarbou

AbstractThe conflict between Jammu and Kashmir has acquired a multifaceted character. On one hand, the conflict involves national and territorial contestations between India and Pakistan, and on the other, it entails different kinds of human rights abuses and various political demands by religious, linguistic, regional, and ethnic groups in both parts. This article aims to portrait the images and human rights abuses meted on the people of Jammu and Kashmir. It also urges and pleads to India and Pakistan and all those countries who are taking part directly or indirectly in the territorial disputes or conflict in the region of Jammu and Kashmir to end the conflict. Human rights abuse such as torture, rape, sexual harassment, murder, and unnecessary killings of the people of this region were all condemned by the author of this article. He further requests the international community such as the United Nation to take a bold step in settling the conflict in that region by passing an effective resolution at the international level that will put an end to the conflict. In this article, the author uses a qualitative research method to explore different journals and write up of scholars in finding tangible solutions to the conflict in Jammu and Kashmir. The author also uses a theoretical explanation in the article. The result of this article intends to see that all the main concerning points raised in this write-up are fully considered and implemented by the United Nation in bringing peace and stability in the region of Jammu and Kashmir. Conflict in this region has become a worrying issue in the international community and the necessary steps should be taken to bring it to halt.


2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 214-231
Author(s):  
Katerina Yiannibas

This paper analyses the potential for international arbitration to provide effective remedy for business-related human rights abuses. Since the proliferation of international arbitration, the default arbitration mechanism as it stands has been contemplated by and large for the resolution of cross-border commercial disputes where the primary interests are efficiency and finality. However, there is evidence that human rights issues have emerged in international arbitration. Accordingly, if arbitration is to be used in such cases, the mechanism must be adapted in light of the particular issues that arise in the adjudication of human rights; the balance between transparency and confidentiality, reprisals against victims and human rights defenders, collective redress, financial assistance, the applicability of human rights standards. If proper procedures are in place to contemplate the particular interests involved in cases where the substantive claims involve human rights, the advantage of international arbitration is that it can provide direct access in a neutral forum for holding companies accountable where national jurisdictions are unavailable or difficult to access. This article begins by analysing the historical development of international arbitration so as to demonstrate a pattern of adaptability and flexibility vis-à-vis the subject matter of cross-border disputes. The article will then contemplate the potential of and concerns for international arbitration, putting forward specific recommendations for reforms of the international arbitration mechanism in cases where the substantive claims involve business-related human rights abuses.


2017 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
pp. 167-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sam R. Bell ◽  
K. Chad Clay ◽  
Amanda Murdie

Which countries are likely to be ignored for their human rights abuses? This article focuses on one particular way that cases of human rights abuse might be overlooked by human rights organizations (HROs): the relative visibility of the state’s abusiveness vis-à-vis its geographic and social peers. HROs are more likely to target abusive states that are located in regions with more HRO resources and/or are surrounded by states that demonstrate higher respect for human rights, as these abuses will stand out much more clearly. Further, human rights treaties can be used by abusive states as a form of strategic “social camouflage,” with states trying to minimize the risk of HRO attention by ratifying human rights treaties to look more like their rights-respecting peers. Using a cross-national time-series research design, this article finds much support for the argument: abusive states that “join the chorus” avoid HRO attention.


Author(s):  
Mahmood Monshipouri

Given the systematic threats facing humanity, there is an urgent need for new thinking about the human rights project. The most prevalent form of global abuse exists in the form of violence against women and children. Sexual violence has been considered the most pervasive, yet least recognized human rights, abuse in the world. Equally prevalent among the modern sources of threats to physical integrity rights are the pervasive practice of torture and the issue of poverty and the threats it poses to human dignity and human rights. Individual civil-political rights and the rights of minorities, including women, ethnic and religious minorities, and indigenous people have been protected at times and violated at other times by states. Moreover, some observers argue that group rights should be properly understood as an extension of the already recognized collective rights to self-determination of people. But this broad spectrum of human rights violations can be organized into two categories: domestic and international. The domestic sources include both local and national sources of human rights abuses, and international sources entail international and global dimensions. These analyses are interconnected and reinforcing, but they can be contradictory at times. Understanding such complex interrelations is a necessary condition for describing factors and processes leading to abuses. In an applied sense, this understanding is essential for suggesting how we should proceed with the protection of basic human rights. Although there is agreement on the most pressing problems of human suffering, there is no consensus over the answers.


Author(s):  
Peter Steele

North Korea is an enigma. The United Nations (UN) states that it is “…without parallel in the contemporary world …” in terms of abuse, exploitation and lack of civil rights. No other rogue state commands the attention and mystique as the isolated nation of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Despite an increasingly prevalent international front, including warming relations with South Korea and the threat of nuclear weapons, everyday citizens remain hidden. Public displays of Olympic cheerleaders or the admittance of “K-Pop” stars across the Korean Demilitarization Zone (DMZ) distract from the widespread human rights abuses and public indoctrination that is second nature in the country. But this is no surprise; In the DPRK, the leader is above all else. While marginalized groups in other countries may be granted a voice by international organizations, the vulnerable in North Korea are obscured in the shadow of the great leader’s actions.


2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-54
Author(s):  
Akhtar Baloch ◽  
Iram Tahir

The global war on terror has created a human rights dilemma for the mostmarginalised groups in societies. In a highly patriarchal society like Pakistan, this dilemma is further magnified due to the lack of focus on human rights problems it creates for subsections of society that do not have equal access to mainstream resources, such as women. This paper seeks to identify the human rights issues created due to terrorism and counter-terrorism from a gendered perspective in the context of women in Swat, Pakistan. Secondary data analysis has been used as a research methodology, and the Feminist Theory has been applied as the theoretical framework. Findings reveal that women in Swat have suffered human rights abuses in the economic, social and cultural context far more than men, and continue to suffer from psychological problems. The militant activity in Swat altered the mindset of women towards terrorism, creating women militants. The paper concludes that women in Swat suffered severe human rights abuses to their economic, social and cultural freedoms, and were not beneficiary to adequate rehabilitation initiatives, leaving emotional and mental after-effects on these women.


2003 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 101-123
Author(s):  
E. Ike Udogu

AbstractPhilosophers such as Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Hobbes, Locke and Marx, in the European context, and Dubois, Cabral, Fanon, and Ake, in the African political situation investigated and worked on modalities for constructing "the good political life" for human beings in a society with some success in the Occident and limited outcome in Africa. In the latter, the postcolonial period was marked by political competition over the control of the apparatus of power, the problems of human rights and political legitimacy, inter alia. Indeed, provisions were made in the constitution intended to assuage some of these conflictive problems. One such measure was the respect for human rights. The purpose of this essay is to show, concisely, how African governments have not always implemented human rights instruments contained in their constitutions, and to suggest ways that they might, in order to further stability in the area.


2021 ◽  
pp. 63-104
Author(s):  
Erika George

In view of the shortcomings of corporate law and international law, this chapter argues that pragmatic global policy instruments can provide a strong foundation for promoting changes in business practices and providing greater protection by closing the governance gaps that place human rights and the environment at risk. This chapter traces the trajectory of international policy initiatives advanced to address the governance gap culminating in the endorsement of the UN Framework and Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which seek to translate human rights issues into corporate responsibility imperatives. Based on the author’s analysis of primary UN documents and commentaries; interviews with different stakeholder constituencies in the policymaking process, including corporate representatives and rights activists; ethnographic research, including participation in and observations of the annual proceedings of the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights; and interviews with members of the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights, the chapter will show that while the consensus formed around global policy instruments is fragile, certain aspects of the Framework appear to be gaining traction as authoritative among those stakeholders best situated to address or avoid human rights abuses.


2014 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 136-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Engobo Emeseh ◽  
Ondotimi Songi

Purpose – CSR within a purely voluntary context has so far not made meaningful contributions to the problem of corporate environmental and human rights abuses in Africa. The paper therefore aims to improve the effectiveness of CSR in the continent by making companies accountable for the veracity of statements they have voluntarily put out in the public domain. Design/methodology/approach – The paper adopts the stakeholder and legitimacy theories and information regulation as its framework of analysis. Following a discourse on the developments in and limitations of sustainability, the paper constructs an argument in line with these theories how these reports can still be utilised to make meaningful contribution towards strengthening CSR through accountability for false and misleading statements. Findings – Corporations have a stake in information in sustainability reports with regard to their corporate image and reputation. Therefore, under the appropriate framework, utilising corporate accountability for false and misleading statements by companies has promise for making CSR more effective. Research limitations/implications – The main limitations of this research is the political will of national governments in Africa to undertake such an exercise and the relative ability of civil society groups in light of the power of corporations to effectively hold them to account through the models proposed. Originality/value – The paper is interdisciplinary, drawing upon both management and legal theories. A significant contribution of this research is its pragmatic approach which goes beyond calling for legal platform for CSR by recommending a model for accountability within the existing voluntary CSR framework.


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