Human Rights Violations in the War on Terrorism

1038 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Terrorism and violation of human rights

Following the September 11th terrorist attacks in which at least 3,000 people were killed, the United States has pursued policies that violate human rights in order to wage the war on terrorism. These policies include the adoption of new security measures, the poor treatment of captured fighters at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba, and the willingness of the Bush administration to overlook human rights violations in other countries in return for their support in the war on terrorism. When the enemy is faceless, as it is in the United States' fight against terror, there is a tendency to violate human rights in order to identify the perpetrators and anticipate further atrocities. Violations include detaining suspects without sufficient evidence or cause, denial of access to lawyer, and unfair trials. In addition to these violations, the United States has passed legislation that allows for the indefinite detention of non-US nationals facing deportation on national security grounds. This is currently the case with Mazen Al-Najjar, a Muslim academic who came to the United States in 1981 as student and later became a university professor. In 1997, Al-Najjar was detained for three years after government lawyers claimed that he had raised funds for a terrorist organization. A judge later ruled that there were insufficient reasons for concluding that he posed a threat to national security and he was released. However, he was placed back into custody in November 2001 when immigration agents claimed that he "had established ties to terrorist organizations." According to Amnesty International, no new evidence was presented to support this claim and he is currently being held in solitary confinement for twenty-three hours a day in a ... ... middle of paper ... ...ver, the United States has established military bases there, and is thus willing to overlook several violations in exchange for cooperation against terrorists. While the threat of terrorism does require the adoption of specific security measures and policies, a grave danger exists in that human rights may be sacrificed in the name of security. The United States and its allies must do all that they can to ensure that human rights and freedoms are preserved. As a supporter of international law, the United States should be expected to adhere to a higher standard when it comes to the application and enforcement of these basic rights. Therefore, the United States must not use or condone the use of terrorism as an excuse to curb human rights. Human rights must govern how states treat people at all times. It is only then when states will truly be able to sustain peace.

Show More
Related

  • The World Trade Center Bombing

    1597 Words  | 4 Pages

    It’s a normal day at work when suddenly there is an explosion, trapping hundreds of people inside collapsing buildings covered in rubble. Coworkers, friends, and family are gone, never to be seen again, lost to senseless acts of terrorism. In 1993, 1998, and 2000, these events came to pass in the form of terrorist bombings on U.S. targets across the globe. The World Trade Center complex was a symbol of wealth and prosperity, but quickly became the target for radical Muslims and was attacked early in 1993. Despite this attack, the American people did not think that the terrorist organization behind the attack, al-Qaeda, was much of a threat, failing to properly respond to the attack and prepare for the future. Five years later and across the globe, another bombing occurred. This attack targeted the U.S. embassies in the African countries of Kenya and Tanzania. Again, the U.S. was distracted from the incident and did not react in a proper manner. Finally, in 2000, the U.S. was again subjected to a terrorist attack, this time on a naval warship docked in Yemen. The country again looked on in horror as the unthinkable happened, leaving people to again question their safety. Although these attacks on American targets were devastating, the United States should have learned from its mistakes to better prepare and defend against the September 11th attacks.

    Read More

  • Torture And Torture In 1984

    1475 Words  | 3 Pages

    Some believe that even in the most dire of situations, the act of torturing a prisoner to obtain information is not the most effective or efficient way to glean accurate information about a threat or terrorist group; experts have said that it is actually a very inefficient way to go about this and even that it is only on rare occasions that this results in useful, accurate information. However, there are also those who believe the exact opposite; that the only way to get information from a terrorist, or someone believed to be involved in terrorist activity, is to mentally break them down until they have suffered enough to surrender any information they might know or to the point where they just say whatever is necessary for the “interrogation” to stop, as in 1984.

    Read More

  • An Analysis of the essay “Can U.S. Citizens Be Held as Enemy Combatants”

    931 Words  | 2 Pages

    Ms. Vanklausen relies on primary and secondary sources with strong credentials in the realm of the constitution, law, public policy, and Americans’ right to freedom (Cato Inst., n.d.; Wikipedia, 2010) to support her argument. The authors have been published in a variety of respected periodicals as well as writing books on these topics. Her sources cite the expert opinions of Supreme Court Justices Sandra Day O’Connor and Antonin Scalia (“Can U.S. Citizens Be Held as Enemy Combatants”, Reinking & von der Osten, 2007, pp. 228, 231-233), who are entrusted with the ultimate responsibility to interpret our nation’s constitution and apply this standard to arguments brought before the Court when the rule of law is in question. Ms. Vanklausen also employs excerpts from the Bill of Rights to clarify the protections these individuals are not permitted in this situation. She provides a quotation by Thomas Jefferson, and notes decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Second Circuit Court, and Federal Court Judge Mukasey. She also refers to established truths upon which Americans depend as signs of their freedom, such as “The foundation of liberty has always rested on the resistance to the idea of arbitrary imprisonment by an executive. (Reinking & von der Osten, 2007)

    Read More

  • 9/11 Pros And Cons

    142 Words  | 1 Pages

    It is indeed sad that some people have to pay the price of criminals. However, when we see it from another perspective we might understand the reasons that may support it. The tragically events of 9/11 have change many things, in particular the safety of our people and policies of national security, as for instance the Anti-terrorism Act. The US government claims that this act is supported by several claims: one, this law is necessary to fulfill international obligations; two, many allied countries had ratified similar laws. And third, this Act provides greater protection than other legislations, (Boccabella, 2003). These legislations are not passed overnight, but after much study and critical thinking of possible consequences. What does not

    Read More

  • The Japanese Internment Camps

    1370 Words  | 3 Pages

    During the Second World War, the Japanese suffered great embarrassments because of their race. A law in 1948 provided reimbursement for property losses by those imprisoned, and in 1988 Congress awarded compensation payments of twenty thousand dollars to each survivor of the camps; it is estimated that about 73,000 people will receive this compensation for the violation of their liberties (2009). This topic is of significance in today’s society because of the War on Terrorism in Iraq. The same topics have come up in discussion during present day, making these past events significant when terrorism and counter-terrorism tactics are topics of national-security issues. The only difference is that Arab-Americans are not forced into concentration camps.

    Read More

  • No Such Thing as a Humanitarian Intervention

    1940 Words  | 4 Pages

    The issue of human rights has arisen only in the post-cold war whereby it was addressed by an international institution that is the United Nation. In the United Nation’s preamble stated that human rights are given to all humans and that there is equality for everyone. There will not be any sovereign states to diminish its people from taking these rights. The globalization of capitalism after the Cold War makes the issue of human rights seems admirable as there were sufferings in other parts of the world. This is because it is perceived that the western states are the champion of democracy which therefore provides a perfect body to carry out human rights activities. Such human sufferings occur in a sovereign state humanitarian intervention led by the international institution will be carried out to end the menace.

    Read More

  • Third Century Catholic Influences

    841 Words  | 2 Pages

    Marthaler, Berard L. “The Creed: The Apostolic Faith in Contemporary Theology”. 3rd ed. Mystic, CT: Twenty-Third Publications, 2010. Print.

    Read More

  • Red Badge of Courage Essay

    532 Words  | 2 Pages

    A newly enlisted rookie by the name of Henry Fleming battles his own wits as well as the attacking Confederate army in the fictional novel, The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane. Tormented by doubts of his own bravery, his fears come true, and he flees from battle. He runs from the scene only to be taken away to a day of weariness and struggles whilst making it back to camp. As the story progresses, he learns from his mistakes, grows out of his fears, and later turns out to be one of the bravest soldiers of all. In The Red Badge of Courage, by Stephen Crane, Henry Fleming is determined, curious, and brave although first fearful.

    Read More

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    687 Words  | 2 Pages

    Wolfgang started learning music at a very early age from his dad Leopold, who was a violin player. At the age of six he began composing and by eight he had written symphonies. His father toured Mozart and his sister around for the entertainment of nobles across Europe. From 1963 to 1973 Mozart went on tour with his father and family. He performed both publicly and privately for nobles of the time and often was asked to write music for weddings and other special occasions. While his father was often inflexible and hard to deal with, the tours that he went on were mostly improvised. “In 1777 Wolfgang went on a tour with his mother to Munich, Mannheim, and Paris. It was in Paris that his mother died suddenly in July, 1778. With no prospects of a job, Mozart dejectedly returned to Salzburg in 1779 and became court organist to the Archbishop.”(Sherrane, 1.2)

    Read More

  • Pouring Salt on the Wound

    1326 Words  | 3 Pages

    America’s Use of Torture in Interrogations of Suspected Terrorists Violates Human Rights by Lisa Hajjar

    Read More

  • Is State Terrorism '?: Is State Terrorism A Valid Concept?

    1279 Words  | 3 Pages

    The threat of global terrorism continues to rise with the total number of deaths reaching 32,685 in 2015, which is an 80 percent increase from 2014 (Global Index). With this said, terrorism remains a growing, and violent phenomenon that has dominated global debates. However, ‘terrorism’ remains a highly contested term; there is no global agreement on exactly what constitutes a terror act. An even more contested concept is whether to broaden the scope of terrorism to include non-state and state actors.

    Read More

  • Immanuel Kant's Ethical Theory Of Deontology

    1197 Words  | 3 Pages

    On September 11, 2001, this country was under attack and thousands of Americans died at the hands of terrorists. This action caused the U.S. Military to invade Iraq because of the idea that this country was involved in harboring terrorist and were believed to have weapons of mass destruction. This was an executive order that came down from our government, for us to go in and attack Iraq while searching for those who were responsible for the death of American lives. This war brought in many prisoners whom were part of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda, whom the military took into custody many of its lower level members to get tips in capturing higher level members. During the detainees stay at Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib, many of these prisoners

    Read More

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    1136 Words  | 3 Pages

    By the age of four it was evident that he possessed tremendous musical talent and music memory. His father, a master violinist and composer, decided to enroll young Wolfgang in harpsichord lessons. At age five Mozart was composing music and by age six he had mastered the keyboard. By his early teens, he had mastered the piano, violin, and harpsichord. He began composing minuets at the age of 5 and symphonies at age 9. In 1762, Mozart and his elder sister Maria Anna (best known as Nannerl) who was also a gifted keyboard player, were taken by their father on a short performing tour, of the courts at Vienna and Munich. Encouraged by their reception, they embarked the next year on a longer tour, including two weeks at Versailles, where the children enchanted Louis XV. In 1764 they arrived in London. Here Mozart wrote his first three symphonies, under the influence of Johann Christian Bach, youngest son of Johann Sebastian, who lived in the city. In Paris, Mozart published his first works:four sonatas for clavier: with accompanying violin in 1764. After their return to Salzburg there followed three trips to Italy between 1769 and 1773.

    Read More

  • The Convention Against Torture

    1107 Words  | 3 Pages

    Around the world and around the clock, human rights violations seem to never cease. In particular, torture violations are still rampant all over the world. One regime, the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, establishes a strong elaboration of norms against torture. Despite its efforts, many countries still outright reject its policies against torture while other countries openly accept them, but surreptitiously still violate them. The US, Israel, and Saudi Arabia all have failed to end torture despite accepting the provisions of the Convention.

    Read More

  • US Foreign Policy

    1023 Words  | 3 Pages

    What the US does in other countries usually ends up creating a conflict or an uprising in the

    Read More

More about Human Rights Violations in the War on Terrorism

Open Document