Global Campus Awarded Theses

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https://reponew.gchumanrights.org/handle/20.500.11825/738
Every year the regional master’s programmes of Global Campus of Human Rights select the best master theses of the previous academic year. The selected seven GC master theses cover a range of different international human rights topics and challenges.

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Browsing Global Campus Awarded Theses by Title

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    Access to Healthcare for Persons with Albinism in Ghana: A Human Rights Approach
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2021) Daklo, Andrews Kwame ; Lansink, Annette ; Ngwena, Charles
    The realisation of the right to health is crucial to the survival of everyone, including persons with albinism in Ghana. Access to healthcare facilities, goods and services is fundamental to the enjoyment of this right which is closely connected to the enjoyment of the right to life by persons with albinism. Against the backdrop of international human rights law, this study critically examines Ghana’s domestic legal frameworks and institutional arrangements for respecting, promoting, protecting and fulfilling the rights to health for persons with albinism. It identifies barriers hindering access to healthcare and enjoyment of the right to health, including legal and policy constraints, lack of healthrelated information, reasonable accommodation, and harmful practices. The study proposes legal, policy and institutional reforms and intensive public education to address these barriers. It draws on best practices from other African countries to realise the right to health of persons with albinism.
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    Access to Justice for Persons with Disabilities in Kenya: from Principles to Practice
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2020) Macharia, Wilson ; Mezmur, Benyam Dawit ; Mutambasere, Susan
    Approximately 15% of the world’s population experience a form of disability, with a significant number of them experiencing a severe disability. According to the 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census, about 2.2% of all Kenyans have a form of disability; with the most prevalent types of disabilities being mobility-related. These persons with disabilities face disproportionate marginalisation, which results in broad ranging restrictions on their full and effective participation in society. This marginalisation is further exacerbated by social, structural and legal barriers which impede their access to justice, a fundamental right, and a prerequisite for the realisation of other rights guaranteed across local and international human rights instruments. The international community has shifted towards a human rights approach which is aimed at enhancing effective participation of persons with disabilities on an equal basis with others. Kenya has expressed its commitment towards this approach through ratifying international human rights instruments such as the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which forms part of Kenyan law pursuant to article 2(6) of the Constitution of Kenya 2010. Article 13 of the Convention requires access to justice for persons with disabilities to be enhanced at all phases of the administration of justice. This notwithstanding, access to justice for persons with disabilities in Kenya remains an unfulfilled desire. Against this background, this thesis seeks to identify the main challenges and practices that impede access to justice in the Kenyan justice system with a specific focus on persons with disabilities, with the aim of suggesting possible solutions that can aid in solving this paradox. It achieves this through examining- the nature and scope of the right of access to justice for persons with disabilities; the recognition of the right of access to justice for persons with disabilities in the Kenyan and international legal framework; the barriers that hinder the full and effective participation of persons with disabilities in the Kenyan justice system, with a specific focus on the courts; and the steps that Kenya should take to eliminate the identified barriers.
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    Administration of indigenous justice : limits and scope of indigenous legal systems based on the plural control of constitutionality of the Plurinational Constitutional Court of Bolivia
    (Global Campus, 2017-09-20) Patzi Condori, Israel Leonardo ; Kreimer, Osvaldo
    This paper offers an analysis of the essential aspects of the collective human right to the administration of justice of the Native Indigenous Peoples and Nations in the Plurinational State of Bolivia, based on the role of the Plurinational Constitutional Court. Bolivia’s constitutional reform of 2009 led to the implementation of a new State model designed in the light of pluralism, interculturality and decolonisation, the guiding criteria from which the Native Indigenous Campesino Nations and Peoples are recognised the right to administer their own justice, with the sine qua non of respecting the fundamental rights established in the Political Constitution of the State and the Constitutionality Block (which ensures the validity of the international corpus jure of Human Rights). Based on the above, our research focuses on the application of the Plural Control of Constitutionality of the Plurinational Constitutional Court, understood as a new paradigm in the light of comparative law establishing the scope and limits of the administration of indigenous justice. KEYWORDS: Native Indigenous Campesino Nations and Peoples - Plurinational Constitutional Court - Administration of native indigenous campesino justice
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    An analysis of the legal, policy and institutional frameworks on the right to water in Uganda
    (Global Campus, 2014-09) Kabagambe, Agaba Daphine ; Durojaye, Ebenezer
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    Arctic voices from the frontlines of a warming world : the importance of indigenous knowledge in the climate change discourse
    (Global Campus, 2015-08) Waters, Eleanor ; Kuppe, René
    Arctic ice is melting at unprecedented rates, drastically altering arctic ecosystems, habitats, and lifestyles. Due to their subsistent ways of life, indigenous peoples have comparatively contributed very little to climate change, yet they are among the first to bear the brunt of its negative effects. Arctic indigenous peoples see human-induced climate change as a human rights issue, closely intertwined with self-determination and land rights. The various indigenous voices of the Arctic tell us they want to defend their cultures and will not be mere victims. They are increasingly vocal and involved in local, regional, and global solutions. The research in this paper reveals the impacts of climate change on traditional arctic ways of life. The contributions of indigenous ecological knowledge to adaptation initiatives are assessed and indigenous worldviews with inherent ties to the environment are discussed. A case study exposes the challenges of incorporating indigenous knowledge in Western science and politics. The Arctic Voices have a groundswell of support among scientists, researchers, environmentalists, and humanitarians yet there is very little government policy or action to help them combat the potential risks of climate change. As Arctic peoples continue to amplify their voices, policy and decision makers must listen in order to reach ethical and sustainable solutions to this crisis. Keywords: climate change; arctic; indigenous knowledge; indigenous rights; policy
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    Between localised practices and global imaginaries of boycott and peace: decolonial reflections on BDS in Palestine
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2018) Everly, Jo ; Alazzeh, Ala
    Since its formal inception in 2005, the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) has been a central tactic of the global struggle against the Israeli occupation of Palestine and its normalisation. It has also been at the forefront of numerous controversies around the world, especially with its recent nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize. After more than 10 years, the BDS has gained recent support from the PLO Central Council, while at the same time becoming a 'strategic threat' for Israel, which has introduced new legislation to ban its support. Some argue that the boycott has in fact become central to Palestinian politics. This increasingly vocal role in stirring the debate raises the question of what role the BDS is playing as a driver of change within local, Palestinian politics and how this affects the internationally-led project of 'conflict resolution' and democratisation. Within the context of the post-Oslo era of political and social division, what is the role of the boycott movement in re-defining the terms of the 'conflict' and as part of the wider resistance on the ground? By looking at the debates arising around the academic and cultural boycott within the Palestinian community, this thesis will analyse how the BDS movement is helping to re-frame both the global and local discourse around conflict and peace from a grassroots and indigenous perspective, while shaping its own identity as a rights-based movement for justice. Conceptualisations of BDS as both a “critique” and “dialogue”, as a transgression of social, political and discursive boundaries, and as a tool to reclaim collective identity will frame the discussion of BDS to understand it as part of the “Palestine analytic”: not as an exception but as the result of a global history of colonialism and relative anti-colonial struggle.
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    Between the domination of transnational companies and its discourse on business and human rights: contract farming and banana small farmers in the Davao region (The Philippines)
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2019) Hasanah, Mahesti ; Quan, Ryan Jeremiah D.
    This research examined violations towards small farmers’ rights over banana plantations – with the emphasis that the farmers held their agreements with transnational agribusiness corporations in Santo Tomas and Compostela Valley, Davao Region, Mindanao, the Philippines. By focusing on the right to work and the right to enjoyment of safe and healthy work conditions, the study was intended to enrich the existing literature reviews on contract farming (CF). The scholars in this field have explored this issue through many different approaches; however, perspective highlighting the farmers’ rights is still infrequently investigated. By using a case study method, the research focused on the implementation process of CF and its impact in the production cycle of small growers. The study conducted interviews and focus group discussions with eight small farmers, two academics, two nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) and one journalist and analysed government document policies, and had direct observation of several key events in the field. The research revealed that the companies governing the small farmers or growers as well as workers affect their social, economic and political aspects. Trans-national companies (TNCs) are controlling the market and the production chain through their subsidiaries or affiliation companies by rejecting the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UN Guiding Principles), obligating them to respect the rights regardless of their size, sector, operational context, ownership and structure. However, since the UN Guiding Principles can be sorted as soft law, the companies do not have an obligation to follow it. Instead, the companies are considered to be violating the right to work and right to the enjoyment of just and safe working conditions of the small farmers and workers. The violations included unfair contract signing, low payment on rented land, minimum wage and unhealthy working conditions. However, as CF is no single phenomenon, it was observed that the small farmers and workers had three strategies in gaining their rights over these domineering companies. They fought using formal and non-formal ways to demand the companies respect and fulfil their rights. This research should be able to strengthen the argument that companies are controlling the small farmers and workers under the CF system through social, economic and political aspects. Key words: Banana, Contract farming, Farmers’ rights, Socio-economic and political control, Philippines
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    Between Tradition and Fundamentalism: Muslim Women’s Rights in the North Caucasus
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2021) Gogueva, Zemfira ; Hristova, Maria
    At present, a significant number of young people in the North Caucasus, especially in urban areas, turn to Islamic fundamentalism. This undermines the influence of the traditional framework, adat, which tends to be supported by the older generation, as well as by those in power. While mass media and the official state narrative paint Islamic fundamentalism as a terrorist movement, supported by a small, marginalised group, the reality on the ground is much more complex. The aim of this study is to develop a better understanding of the religious and social changes taking place in the North Caucasus at the present moment, with a special focus on the rights and status of local women. The conclusions and recommendations offered by the study are based on 25 interviews with young women from Karachay-Cherkessia, Kabardino-Balkaria and Dagestan, conducted in summer 2021. The survey results indicate that women’s access to education and employment is often severely limited not only by social pressure and adat customs but also by internalised patriarchal ideas about gender roles. The other main finding of the study is that religious devotion often overcomes the adat’s influence in situations related to marriage and family life. Furthermore, North Caucasian women consciously choose fundamentalism as a way for self-improvement. As a result, women aspire to be active participants in the economic life of their republics, receive education and depend less on the traditional family hierarchy. From a theoretical perspective, the study uses the concept of Islamic feminism to articulate the possibility of fundamentalism as a conduit of women’s rights in the region.
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    Caste Discrimination: A Study on Existing Law and Its Implementation on Inter-Caste Marriage of Dalits in Rukum, Western Nepal
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2021) Dhami, Dharmendra Bahadur ; Seneviratne, Wasantha
    The right to marriage of Dalits is violated due to caste-based discrimination in Nepal. Despite the provision of the law, the inter-caste married couples face violence and difficulties in accessing justice. The Caste-Based Discrimination and Untouchability (Offence and Punishment) Act was introduced in 2011 to address the issue. However, since its establishment, nine death cases of Dalits have been reported due to inter-caste marriage. These cases call for the need to examine how the laws and policies are implemented by the concerned government authorities. Thus, this paper intends to: (1) investigate how the state implements the law on the right to the inter-caste marriage of Dalits, (2) identify the barriers in the implementation of the law that could be addressed and (3) find the gaps in the access to justice procedures under the law. The researcher in this qualitative research collected the data from the inter-caste married couples, police officers, government representatives, lawyers, non-governmental organisations and the National Dalit Commission. It is found from the findings that the challenges that occur in the implementation of the law and policies on the inter-caste marriage are: delaying and denying the registration of complaints of inter-caste married couples at the concerned police units, lack of protection of inter-caste married couples and lack of knowledge on the provisioned law. Moreover, there is also a challenge from the upper-caste people who do not recognise and respect the provisioned law due to their traditional discriminatory mindset. Therefore, along with the implementation of provision laws and policies, advocacy and campaigning are crucial to disseminate the law and change the community's perception of the right to marriage of Dalits.   Implication of the thesis: Firstly, this research helps in understanding the challenges in the implementation of the law and existing gaps that create difficulties in accessing justice to the victims, particularly the inter-caste married couples. Secondly, the suggested recommendations of the study help the policymakers in addressing the identified gaps. Lastly, the findings and recommendations of the research are useful for the NGOs and civil society organisations to pressurise the government through advocacy for making the concerned law implementing agencies serious and accountable. Keywords: caste-discrimination / inter-caste marriage / untouchability / socio-cultural exclusion / Dalits
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    Challenges faced by civilian personel providing international humanitarian assistance deployed in post-Cold War United Nations peacekeeping missions
    (Global Campus, 2015-08) Hernández, Lía ; Arcidiácono, Pilar
    Once the Cold War came to a close, the essence of peacekeeping operations changed in terms of their function and composition. There was a dramatic increase in the number of operations undertaken worldwide and the function associated with traditional peacekeeping operations evolved into multiple tasks undertaken by an increasing number of civilian personnel. Since then, international civilian peacekeepers deployed in the field of UN peacekeeping operations began to face numerous challenges and threats that had an impact on their personal security and safety as well the execution of their tasks which were essential to deliver effective humanitarian assistance according to the specific mandates of the UN peacekeeping missions.
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    Children’s Rights to Education in the Digital Era: Barriers of the Digital Divide for Children of Low-Income Families in Nepal
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2023) Karmacharya, Swasti ; Seneviratne, Wasantha ; Capaldi, Mark
    Human rights in Nepal recognises education as a fundamental right for all individuals. The pathways to achieve undisrupted access to education particularly for children from low-income families are still bounded by poverty and emerging barriers, such as digital divide. Thus, the objective of this research was to identify and critically examine the relationship between the barriers of digital divide and children’s right to education, especially in the context of COVID-19 pandemic which has placed further challenges on the education system. This qualitative research employed a narrative inquiry approach by using key informant interviews (KII) as its research method. The total sample size of this research was 19 key participants including parents of children from low-income families, public school teachers, non-governmental organisations and subject matter experts from Kathmandu, Nepal. The data were analysed by using narrative analysis. The research findings showed that digital divide significantly impacted children’s access to education, including the divide in ownership, access to digital devices and infrastructures. Possessing relevant knowledge, skills, adequate exposure and experience to efficiently use the digital technologies for learning purposes were equally crucial in determining the impacts of digital divide. Moreover, the compounded impacts of digital divide in education and COVID-19 further perpetuated systemic inequalities and reinforced forms of privilege and exclusion within the Nepalese education system. The existing regulatory frameworks of Nepal also proved to be doing very little to address the problems associated with educational inequity and consequent disparities. This research concluded that children from low-income families were continuously challenged by existing and emerging barriers, thus hindering their access to education. Implication of the thesis: This research highlights the gaps in knowledge, understanding and awareness on the prevalence and impacts of digital divide on children’s access to education in Nepal. This research helps raising awareness on the necessary actions needed by relevant duty bearers and stakeholders to ensure children from all backgrounds realise their education rights in an equitable manner in Nepal. Keywords: children’s right to education, access to education, digital divide, barriers of the digital divide, educational inequalities
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    Cinema as a Tool for Human Rights Education and Reconciliation in Post-conflict Communities, the Lebanese Cinema and the Civil War as a Case Study
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2021) Bara, Rawad ; Haddad, Rabih
    Since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, there have been continuous efforts to spread the concept of Human Rights Education (HRE). Formal tools for human rights education, such as programs and curricula in educational institutions, must be of great importance, but they face challenges in their reachability to diverse groups of society, so it was necessary to resort to informal tools as solutions to such challenges and to bridge this gap. Cinema is one of the most prominent informal tools because of its accessiblity to various segments of society and its educational and historical role in influencing public opinion, spreading awareness and advocating for human rights. This is evident through films that deal with armed conflicts, which gives films importance in the process of reconciliation in post-conflict societies. This research seeks to understand the nature of the relationship between the principles of reconciliation and Human Rights Education and how cinema can advocate for these two principles. The study deals with the case of the civil war in Lebanon and the fictional cinema that dealt with it, to analyse its potentiality in reconciliation and HRE, given that the conflict in Lebanon is one of the most controversial and sensitive conflicts in the region, which always raises the question about the extent to which there is a “real” peace today, after all these years have passed since the end of the civil war.
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    Civil society in exile, reconciliation and the future of Syria: the role of the emerging Syrian civil society in Lebanon
    (Global Campus, 2016-11) Welander, Marta ; Itani, Hala
    As the polarised violent conflict in Syria continues without end in sight, Syrians continue to flee into neighbouring countries in search of safety and security. The displacement of Syrians en masse into Lebanon over the past few years means that there are now Syrians from a wide variety of socioeconomic, sectarian and ethnic backgrounds, together forming a microcosm of Syrian society in Lebanon. Within this exiled population, many Syrians with strong entrepreneurial abilities from different political projects have taken the opportunity presented by the relatively enabling civil society environment in Lebanon to set up different forms of civil society groups. While no official register of these organisations exists, field research in Akkar, Beirut, Bekaa Valley, Shatila, and Tripoli, managed to identify a total of 34 Syrian-led civil society actors across Lebanon. Fourteen of these groups were examined more closely, through interviews and direct observations. The majority of the researched Syrian actors work in response to the suffering of fellow Syrian refugees, while some focus on easing the tension between Syrians and their Lebanese host communities, and others yet again conduct and disseminate research. The research suggests that Syrian civil society in Lebanon ought not to be misunderstood as merely a form of charitable service provision or temporary pastime activities of exiled Syrians. Rather, the analysis of the research findings suggests that the emergence of a Syrian civil society in exile presents a unique phenomenon. Instead of waiting passively for a ceasefire and a political settlement to be reached, these Syrian groups are seizing the opportunity to develop and grow as civil society actors in exile, hoping to play a role in rebuilding Syria at a later stage. However, the emerging civil society will require international support in order to sustain its work and develop organically. While the international community can play an important role in this context, it needs to recognise the specific and fragile circumstances in which the Syrian civil society actors are operating. A number of concrete recommendations are derived from the research findings, proposing ways in which the international community could support the emerging Syrian civil society in exile.
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    Community intervention as a means to destigmatize child soldiers and permit reintegration: a comparison case study of Uganda and Iraq
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2018) Runte, Julia ; De Vido, Sara
    The stigmatization of former child soldiers inhibits and prevents a child’s reintegration by re-victimizing and re-traumatizing the child and also making the child an outcast in their community. Additionally, there is little research and few legal mechanisms in place to help prevent stigmatization. The following thesis shows that more research and assistance is needed in the reintegration process in order to prevent stigmatization. By working directly with the community, former child soldiers have a higher chance for a positive reintegration. The thesis will examine the legal instruments connected to child soldiers, compare two case studies, and show how one case study can be applied to the world at large in aiding the prevention of stigmatization.
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    Comparative analysis of minority women rights protection in Moldova and Ukraine in the light of the international human rights standards
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2018) Balan, Ecaterina ; Vashchenko, Yuliya
    The current research ‘Comparative Analysis of Minority Women Rights Protection in Moldova and Ukraine in the Light of the International Human Rights Standards’/ «Մոլդովայում և Ուկրաինայում փոքրամասնություն կազմող կանանց իրավունքների պաշտպանության համեմատական վերլուծություն մարդու իրավունքների միջազգային ստանդարտների հիման վրա։» / «Сравнительный анализ защиты прав женщин из числа меньшинств в Молдове и в Украине через призму международных стандартов в области прав человека» explores the extent of policy protection of minority women rights in Moldova and Ukraine, comparatively analyses the correspondence of the national legal frameworks of these countries with the international standards in the field of minority women protection, and justifies the necessity to study this field in Moldovan and Ukrainian context. For these purposes the situation with minority women protection in Moldova and Ukraine has been briefly analysed, standards and recommendations of the international human rights mechanisms have been studied, the policies and legislative frameworks in this field have been analysed on a comparative basis, and the issues of their correspondence to the international standards have been explored. The research has led to the following conclusions: 1) Minority women in both, Moldova and Ukraine, experience multiple forms of discrimination and marginalization, making them one of the most vulnerable social groups; 2) International human rights mechanisms provide a moderate body of standards and recommendations to guide national policy-making in Ukraine and Moldova; 3) The national policy frameworks in Moldova and Ukraine with few insignificant exceptions miss the minority women perspective in planning, programming, and regulation, leaving this particular social subgroup basically unaddressed, despite their international obligations; 4) Both states strongly need to harmonize their policy and legal frameworks with the international human rights standards and recommendations concerning minority women, and subsequently implement them effectively; 5) National strategies and laws have to be based on gender and minority disaggregated and cross-disaggregated data.
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    Conflict-related sexual violence and international peace operations
    (Global Campus, 2013-06) Steinkogler, Cordula ; Murphy, Raymond
    Within the United Nations peace and security work, as well as in academic research, advocacy and policy initiatives concerned with peace and security, gender is mainly conceptualized as synonymous with women while sexual violence is largely conflated with gender-based violence and thus regarded as an issue that exclusively affects women as victims and men as perpetrators. This however led to the exclusion of male victims of conflict-related sexual violence from academic research, advocacy and policy initiatives, as well as UN initiatives on gender, peace and security. This thesis seeks to explore ways to conceptualize and address conflict-related sexual violence in a comprehensive and inclusive way within the UN peace and security agenda and particularly in peace operations. By the means of a critical analysis of academic literature and policy developments the thesis discusses the dominant conceptual and operational frameworks that have been developed to address conflict-related sexual violence and suggests a re-conceptualisation of gender and gender-based violence in order to better accommodate the empirical reality of male victims and female perpetrators of conflict-related sexual violence. The dominant explanatory and policy frameworks developed by scholars and adopted by the UN to prevent sexual violence in armed conflict are largely based on a narrow approach and fail to adequately address the complex dynamics of conflict-related sexual violence. Conflict-related sexual violence is conceptualized on the basis of a strict male perpetrator/female victim dualism that regards the perpetrator/victim relationship as a male/female relationship and thereby links it to sex rather than gender. This precludes an effective gender analysis of sexual violence in armed conflict and does not permit to include male victims and female perpetrators into a discussion on the root causes of conflict-related sexual violence. The dominant conceptualization of conflict-related sexual violence furthermore relies on an essentialist representation of men and women, portraying women as vulnerable victims of sexual violence and men as aggressive perpetrators. Through the perpetuation of these associations, existing gender stereotypes, identities and power relations that make sexual violence an effective tool of humiliation and intimidation in times of armed conflict are reinforced rather than challenged. Thus this thesis argues that a more inclusive and comprehensive gender approach to conflict-related sexual violence should be adopted that addresses the various root causes and underlying dynamics by challenging traditional gender stereotypes and identities promoted by dominant gender discourses. Strategies to enhance the ability of UN peace operations to protect civilians from conflict-related sexual violence will hardly be effective as long as gender stereotypes and ideologies that lie at the roots of sexual violence in armed conflict are reproduced rather than deconstructed in UN discourse on peace and security as well as in the discourses of member states and particularly their military institutions.
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    The constitutionality of religious education in Uganda
    (Global Campus of Human Rights, 2018) Muhumuza, Nimrod ; Mezmur, Benyam Dawit
    The 1995 Constitution of the Republic of Uganda is the first of Uganda’s constitutions to attempt to regulate church-state relations. Article 7 provides that Uganda ‘shall not adopt a state religion.’ This study attempts to discuss the jurisprudential value of this provision as it relates to religious education in Uganda. Borrowing from jurisdictions with a similar provision in their legislative framework, the study finds that state-sanctioned religious education that has the impact of endorsing or disapproving a particular religious instruction is unconstitutional.
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    Delayed justice in El Salvador prospects for transitional justice 25 years after the signing of the peace accords
    (Global Campus, 2017) Morales Ramírez, Ernesto José ; De Gori, Esteban
    This thesis analyses the political transition process in El Salvador after its twelve-year civil war and the Transitional Justice mechanisms used in the post-conflict context: first the Truth Commission and then the amnesty laws. The objective of this research is to establish the effects of the amnesty on the peace building process and the scenarios that may occur after its recent declaration of unconstitutionality in connection to democratic governability and the pursuit of justice for serious human rights violations perpetrated during the armed conflict, which remain still unpunished 25 years after the signing of the Peace Accords. Keywords: Transitional Justice, Peace Accords, amnesty.