Human Rights

Democracy has long been promoted by many international organizations as the form of government that best secures individual rights and provides a more stable society. However, some studies have suggested that the process of democratization leaves states vulnerable to domestic political violence. This does not occur in all budding democracies, however; foreign aid programs that help build democracy may buffer some of these newly forming governments from internal strife.

On February 23, 2012, the United Nations issued report outlining the case that during the Syrian uprising the country’s regime has committed “gross human rights violations” and that “such violations originated from policies and directives issued at the highest levels of the armed forces and the Government.”

According to the United States Refugee Act of 1980, “a refugee is a person who is outside his or her country and who is unable or unwilling to return because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution.”

In the study of economic development, there is a general consensus that public infrastructure investments supporting private sector-led economic activities are essential for growth. However, questions remain about how countries with newly found natural resources such as oil might best spend revenues on infrastructure and avoid the “resource curse” — the tendency of economies focused on such resources to see slower, and narrower, growth.

The global relationship between the Internet and democracy has become a subject of great scholarly interest and debate. Prior research has focused on national Internet penetration, usage rates, and changes in the way government works and how public institutions operate.

As supply chains stretch around the globe, scrutiny of working conditions in distant factories has increased. But international labor standards often depend on corporations engaging in “private voluntary regulation,” and even when such standards are adhered to, factory floor dynamics may determine their actual effectiveness.

The United States government runs a joint congressional and executive branch commission that monitors China’s record on the rule of law, human rights, workers’ rights and a broad array of related areas. As China joined the World Trade Organization in 2000, the U.S. government established the commission to monitor China’s commitment to living up to the principles expected of WTO members.