Why Do Governments Abuse Human Rights?
Title
Why Do Governments Abuse Human Rights?
Author
Moore, Will H.
Welch, Ryan M.
Research Area
Social Institutions
Topic
Government Systems
Abstract
Because the abuse of human beings is abhorrent, we normatively expect governments to respect those rights. However, throughout human history, abuse of human begins has been the norm. Governments abuse rights because doing so helps leaders exercise, expand, or retain their power. Normatively, this is troubling. Yet, as a positive matter, it should not be surprising. We begin the essay explaining why this is so, and then turn to the question that broadly captures the research agendas of those studying the topic of human rights: how can people constrain Leviathan? Over the course of the 1980s and 1990s, several foundational studies helped establish a generally agreed on account that governments respond to dissent with coercion. Domestically, democracy and economic output both reduce rights abuses, while large populations increase repression. The impact of international characteristics is less well developed. In fact, what is known is that the international human right regime is complex and that norms, treaties, and international courts do not have a consistent effect on a countrys' respect for rights. Researchers are now studying complex relationships between domestic and international factors. For instance, the domestic judiciary of a country influences the extent to which human rights treaties constrain government abuse of rights. Over the coming decade, we expect scholars to produce considerable new knowledge about the impact of norms, treaties, and international courts on the states' (lack of) respect for human rights.