Human rights violations in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UK, EU, US: Get an elaborate idea here

Human rights are basic rights inherent to all humans, irrespective of their race, sex, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion or any other status. Human rights include freedom of opinion and expression, freedom from slavery and torture, the right to education, among others.

Everyone is entitled to the aforementioned rights, and there is no scope for discrimination. A series of international human rights treaties and other instruments adopted since 1945 have expanded the body of international human rights regulations.

Human rights are indivisible. Be it civil, political, economic, social or cultural in nature, these rights are all inherent to the dignity of every human. But it appears scores of individuals in certain countries are finding their basic human rights in danger.

Human rights situation analysis

1. In Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has been making headlines lately for hosting glittering events, securing Cristiano Ronaldo and other famous footballers to play in its national league and for innovative ideas such as ‘The Line’. It has also been making progress on gender equality.

But there have been serious violations noted in recent years. Amnesty International mentioned in a recent report that Saudi Arabia executed 196 people in 2022. On March 12, authorities killed 81 men in the single largest mass execution in recent decades.

The Kingdom controls domestic media and journalists can get arrested for a variety of ‘crimes’. Free speech also remains in danger as several outspoken activists are behind bars, simply for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly.

2. In Qatar

Despite the government’s ongoing efforts to reform the labour system of Qatar, abuses remain rife across the Gulf state, according to Amnesty International. Conditions have improved for some, but thousands are still facing delayed or unpaid salaries and denial of rest days.

In terms of freedom of expression, in 2021, members of tribes staged protests against their exclusion from Shura Council elections and a number of them got arrested. Many eventually got released upon signing a pledge, promising not to speak out about their detention.

Authorities continued to repress press freedom by imposing restrictions on broadcasters, including prohibiting them from filming in government buildings, hospitals, universities, private homes, migrant labourers’ accommodation sites, among certain other locations.

3. In United Kingdom

The UK has been accused of “deliberately destabilising” human rights on the global stage, the Guardian reported last month. In its annual global report, Amnesty International said Britain had been weakening human rights protections nationally and globally.

The report noted that with UK government policies targeting asylum seekers and other migrants, besides protesters, the country had breached its international human rights commitments and restricted protections at a “perilous” time in global history.

The organisation highlighted the UK’s Illegal Migration Act. In addition, the report also specifically criticised the UK for failing to prevent human rights violations in Gaza and its weak support for the ICC investigation into violations in Israel and Palestine.

4. In European Union

The World Report 2023 examined human rights crises in the EU during 2022. It assessed the responses to migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, discrimination amongst natives and non-natives, poverty and social exclusion, and fatalities caused by climate change.

The report highlighted the EU’s positive attitude towards the influx of Ukrainian refugees shortly after Russian invasion began. But it sharply contrast it against the strict treatment experienced by other regions. Several asylum seekers encountered pushbacks at EU borders.

EU members involved in illegal pushbacks of migrants from other regions included Bulgaria, Poland, Spain, Greece, Cyprus, Lithuania and Estonia, according to the report. Due to the substandard reception conditions, fatalities and other health risks occured.

5. In United States

In 2023, individuals experienced excessive violence on the basis of their actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity, according to Amnesty International. LGBT people became 9 times more likely than non-LGBT people to be victims of violent hate crimes.

A 2022 US Supreme Court decision ended federal protections around the right to abortion in a controversial move that shocked the globe. Several states, eventually, implemented total bans on abortion or bans carrying extremely limited exceptions, impacting millions of people.

Media sources suggest police shot and killed 1,153 people last year in cases of excessive use of force. Black people got disproportionately impacted, comprising nearly 18.5% of fatalities from police use of firearms, despite representing just about 13% of the population.