Global Justice

This chapter turns to a normative premise in the social cohesion argument for restrictive immigration policies, according to which states should bring about (substantive) equality. This premise assumes a particular version of egalitarianism, according to which equality has domestic scope only (the focus is, after all, only on the impact of immigration in the receiving society). However, it is argued that equality has global scope. It is also argued that immigration, and in particular South–North migration, has a positive impact on global equality, due to the fact that migrants can achieve a higher standard of living and tend to send back remittances to their families in their country of origin. A number of objections to this argument are also considered, and it is argued that while immigration policy is not the most important policy for improving global equality, more open borders nevertheless have a role to play.

Discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation: A comparison between the United Kingdom and New Zealand

<p>This paper compares the way in which the United Kingdom and New Zealand approach discrimination claims on the ground of sexual orientation. This paper uses the recent judgment in the case of Bull v Hall as an avenue to explore this issue contrasting it with a similar fact situation in New Zealand, the Pilgrim Planet Lodge discrimination. This paper illustrates that the majority in Bull v Hall were able to take a substantive equality approach to their reasoning. This approach is the most consistent with the principle of nondiscrimination. The paper then focuses on the legislative and process differences in the United Kingdom and New Zealand and the results they produce. Finally by looking and the advantages and disadvantages of both approaches this paper concludes that to build a human rights culture and respect the principle of non-discrimination there needs to be more availability of pubic litigation of discrimination claims.</p>

Discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation: A comparison between the United Kingdom and New Zealand

<p>This paper compares the way in which the United Kingdom and New Zealand approach discrimination claims on the ground of sexual orientation. This paper uses the recent judgment in the case of Bull v Hall as an avenue to explore this issue contrasting it with a similar fact situation in New Zealand, the Pilgrim Planet Lodge discrimination. This paper illustrates that the majority in Bull v Hall were able to take a substantive equality approach to their reasoning. This approach is the most consistent with the principle of nondiscrimination. The paper then focuses on the legislative and process differences in the United Kingdom and New Zealand and the results they produce. Finally by looking and the advantages and disadvantages of both approaches this paper concludes that to build a human rights culture and respect the principle of non-discrimination there needs to be more availability of pubic litigation of discrimination claims.</p>

The Transformative Potential of a Vulnerability Focus in Basic Assistance Policies

The term 'vulnerability' is often used in law and policy to refer to disadvantaged, marginalized or excluded human beings. This book explores how a vulnerability focus in basic assistance policies can contribute to substantive equality and therefore to the realization of universal human rights in the migration context. It concentrates on the potential that such a vulnerability focus can have to mitigate stigmatization and stereotyping and to facilitate socio-economic participation.

The Development of the EU Non-Discrimination Regime

In Chapter 1 the development of the EU non-discrimination regime is introduced, first in terms of legal developments. It recapitulates the steps starting from the founding Treaties, which only dealt with discrimination on the grounds of nationality and gender, up until the Treaty of Amsterdam, introducing the competence for the discrimination grounds of racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, age, disability, and sexual orientation, and the adoption of the two Directives which are the focus of the book: Directive 2000/43/EC and Directive 2000/78/EC. It also points at financial instruments and institutions set up in parallel to support the implementation of these Directives and the recent adoption of a series of Strategic Documents and Action Plans in the Commission’s attempts to achieve a Union of equality. The second sub-chapter then discusses the shift from non-discrimination to substantive equality on the basis of the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and closes with some considerations regarding the different levels of impact of EU anti-discrimination law in national constitutional systems.

Human rights and the invisible nature of incarcerated women in post-apartheid South Africa: prison system progress in adopting the Bangkok Rules

Purpose The global spotlight is increasingly shone on the situation of women in the male-dominated prison environment. Africa has observed a 24% increase in its female prison population in the past decade. This year is the 10-year anniversary of the United Nations Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-custodial Measures for Women Offenders (the Bangkok Rules) adopted by the General Assembly on 21 December 2010. Design/methodology/approach Using a legal realist approach, this paper examines South Africa’s progress in adopting the Bangkok Rules. This paper documents the historical evolution of the penal system since colonial times, focused on the development of recognition, protection and promotion of human rights of prisoners and an assessment of incarcerated women’s situation over time. Findings The analysis of the human rights treaties, the non-binding international and regional human rights instruments, African court and domestic jurisprudence and extant academic and policy-based literature is cognizant of the evolutionary nature of racial socio-political dimensions in South Africa, and the indeterminate nature of application of historical/existing domestic laws, policies and standards of care when evaluated against the rule of law. Originality/value To date, there has been no legal realist assessment of the situation of women in South Africa’s prisons. This paper incorporates race and gendered intersectionality and move beyond hetero-normative ideologies of incarcerated women and the prohibition of discrimination in South African rights assurance. The authors acknowledge State policy-making processes, and they argue for substantive equality of all women deprived of their liberty in South Africa.

Substantive Equality Prostitution Law, 1999–2019

The chapter analyzes the impact of Sweden’s substantive equality prostitution law (a.k.a. Nordic Model) as a means of exploring potential challenges to pornography production. Comparisons of prostitution prevalence in Scandinavia, evidence of sex trafficking, sex purchasing, and attitudinal changes in the population are assessed. The law’s reduction of violence and increases in safety in prostitution are documented, along with evidence illustrating the importance of specialized exit programs. Critics, unwarranted skepticism, and symptomatic misinformation from academic sex industry apologists are addressed. Case law, rarely discussed outside Sweden, is critically reviewed, including early precedents that obstructed higher criminal penalties and civil remedies (e.g., damages and public support for prostitution exit). A civil rights amendment is proposed, which could be adopted via judicial interpretation or legislative means. The chapter concludes that comparatively seen, Sweden reduced prostitution extensively while making it safer. Similar effects are hypothesized to hold if the law applied to pornographers.

Judicial Challenges, 1982–2019

The chapter compares Canadian and U.S. judicial challenges, tracing the development of Canada’s unconventional harm-based criminal obscenity law under the 1982 Charter’s substantive equality guarantees. It highlights the Canadian Supreme Court intervener LEAF—a women’s organization instrumental in Butler (1992), where the law was saved as an equality provision against freedom of expression challenges. Butler is contrasted with the more categorical U.S. First Amendment law. Despite Butler’s promises, it is shown that since then, pornographers have mainly been protected by Canadian courts, which use desensitized contemporary standards, flawed empirical evidence, surgically inserted loopholes, and wishy-washy judicial reasoning where harm is concerned. In light of LEAF’s successful intervention, the civil rights model is explored as an alternative to criminal law that would better represent the groups whose interests are most threatened by pornography—groups with substantially stronger incentives than the government to invest time and effort in challenging the pornography industry.