Human rights violations

A human rights violation (or abuse) is abuse of people in a way that violates any fundamental human rights. The most common and widespread examples of the violations are:

- Men and women are not treated as equal.

- Different racial or religious groups are not treated as equal.

- Life, liberty or security of person are threatened.

- A person is sold or used as a slave.

- Cruel or unusual punishment is used on a person (torture or execution).

- Punishments are dealt arbitrarily, without a proper and fair trial.

- Arbitrary interference into personal or private lives by agents of the state.

- Citizens are forbidden to leave their country.

- Freedom of speech or religion is denied.

- Education is denied, etc.

Many international non-governmental organizations monitor and condemn human rights abuses. According to the Amnesty International report in 2004, only a very few countries do not violate human rights: the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Iceland and Costa Rica.

Nowadays the mass media report on police brutality. This term is used to describe the excessive use of physical force, assault, verbal attacks and threats by police officers. Widespread, systematic police brutality persists in some countries with authoritarian governments, corruption, or ineffective judicial systems. Brutality is one of several forms of police misconduct, which include false arrest, intimidation, racial profiling, political repression, surveillance abuse, sexual abuse and police corruption.

ABUSE