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This paper explores the health rights of prisoners as defined in international law, and the mechanisms that have been used to ensure the rights of persons in detention to realise the highest attainable standard of health. It examines this right as articulated within United Nations and regional human rights treaties, non‐binding or so‐called soft law instruments from international organisations and the jurisprudence of international human rights bodies. It explores the use of economic, social and cultural rights mechanisms, and those within civil and political rights, as they engage the right to health of prisoners, and identifies the minimum legal obligations of governments in order to remain compliant with human rights norms as defined within the international case law. In addressing these issues, this article adopts a holistic approach to the definition of the highest attainable standard of health. This includes a consideration of adequate standards of general medical care, including preventative health and mental health services. It also examines the question of environmental health, and those poor conditions of detention that may exacerbate health decline, disease transmission, mental illness or death. The paper examines the approach to prison health of the United Nations human rights system and its various monitoring bodies, as well as the regional human rights systems in Europe, Africa and the Americas. Based upon this analysis, the paper draws conclusions on the current fulfilment of the right to health of prisoners on an international scale, and proposes expanded mechanisms under the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment to monitor and promote the health rights of prisoners at the international and domestic levels.

Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the cultural rights of labour in maritime employment a conceptual understanding.

The paper is qualitative in nature which deals the maritime employment policies, rules and regulations related to cultural rights in India.

This conceptual research paper gives an introductory framework of the cultural rights of labour in maritime employment in India.

This research paper would be helpful to the maritime entities and researchers to looking the issue of cultural rights aspects of labour in maritime employment.

This paper is one of the cultural rights approaches with respect to labour in maritime employment in India.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the correlation among health outcomes, and civil and political rights (CPR) and also economic, social and cultural rights.

The study uses cross-sectional data from 161 countries. The authors use health outcomes and human rights variables in the model. In order to combine dimensions of human rights, this paper uses factor analysis and obtains proxy variables that measure economic, social and cultural rights and CPR. The two proxy variables are used as independent variables to explain variations in health in a regression model. The paper then classifies countries by cluster analysis and explores the patterns of different components of human rights and health outcomes across country clusters.

The regression model demonstrates that the economic, social and cultural rights variables explain variations in all health outcomes. The relationship between CPR and health is weaker than that of the economic, social and cultural rights. Cluster analysis further reveals that despite the country’s commitment to CPR, those that highly respect economic, social and cultural rights lead to superior health outcomes. The more respect a country has for economic, social and cultural rights, the better the health outcomes for the citizens of that country.

National policies should consider equal emphasis on all dimensions of human rights for further improvements in health.

The sole promotion of CPR such as democracy and empowerment, absence of adequate support of economic, social and cultural rights such as rights to housing, education, food and work can only contribute partially to health.

This paper focuses on COVID-19 and human rights in the Global South. Controlling COVID-19 has become very challenging to the courtiers in the Global South and the Global North. Various restrictive measures, mainly lockdown, home quarantine, travel restrictions and social distancing have been taken in both Global North and South to control COVID-19. However, the lower-middle and poor class people of the Global South have suffered from these restrictive measures. Thus, this paper aims to explore the human rights issues of the Global South during COVID-19.

This study is a qualitative research based on secondary materials. It includes relevant scholarly articles, news reports and various reports from different national and international organizations. It critically reviews the current literature related to the topic to develop a theoretical understanding of human rights and public health in general and human rights challenges in COVID-19 in the Global South in particular. Existing international human rights principles in the case of public health were reviewed and discussed to identify the links between human rights laws in public health perspectives. Contents analysis was carried out to identify the relevant themes on the issues of human rights in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This paper finds that universal guidelines to control COVID-19 challenged the human rights norms, which impacts the enjoyment of human rights in the Global South. The human rights of the people in the Global South were undermined in the response to the control of COVID-19.

This paper is a significant study on the issues of human rights in public health emergencies. It addresses how the human rights of the vulnerable people in the Global South are undermined in the global pandemic response, which can be useful for the countries in the Global South for ensuring better human rights-based responses in the future.

To discuss the problem of cultural imperialism as it relates to human rights and to provide a framework for applying human rights to Library and Information Services (LIS) so as to respect diverse worldviews.

The chapter is theoretical in nature but also draws out important practical implications. The problem is described and addressed using the approach of philosophical ethics emphasizing moral pluralism. Political and moral theories are compared and lessons drawn from them for LIS practice.

Drawing on the work of philosopher Jacques Maritain (1949) as well as contemporary human rights theory, an understanding of human rights as pluralistic and evolving practical principles is developed. Using Maritain’s conception of human rights as a set of common principles of action, guidelines for applying human rights in ways that avoid cultural imperialism are provided.

The findings of this chapter should assist LIS professionals in understanding the relationship between human rights and cultural diversity. In addition, it gives professionals a framework for understanding and applying human rights in a ways that respects cultural diversity.

This chapter develops an original approach to applying human rights in a way that respects cultural diversity.

Purpose: The United States became a member of the United Nations’ (UN’s) core anti-racism treaty, International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), but has not passed the UN’s core gender equality treaty, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). This chapter explores why the United States passed only one of the conventions. It reviews the power, misinterpretation, and compliance theories that explain why only one of the treaties was ratified. In addition, it offers a fourth explanation of the nation’s behavior – that of relative cost.

Findings: This chapter shows that CEDAW’s mandates, which are specific in nature, are costlier with respect to public services, educational resources, and programs to alleviate cultural prejudices, than are the more broadly framed ICERD mandates. This chapter finds this difference as a driving factor for the nation to enter into the race convention and not the women’s rights pact.

Methodologies: Methodologies used in this publication include feminist and legal analyses and the examination of US policies as well as statements made by political figures.

Originality: This chapter makes contributions to legal and feminist scholarship by providing insight into the nation’s adoption of ICERD, and its failure to ratify CEDAW despite its stance that it is a supporter of women’s rights. The implications of this study are that while the power, misinterpretation, and compliance theories are useful to understand the apparent discrepant response to the two treaties, relative cost as defined by the different ways in which the treaties are framed is also useful in explaining the United States’ failure to ratify the gender equality treaty. Though CEDAW is more specific in its identification of equality issues and is costlier than ICERD, the advancement of both gender and racial equality in the United States falls short of international standards.

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the legal framework and challenges to economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights of women.

This paper focuses on ESC rights of women. ESC rights are recognized under primary instrument International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), which is adopted by the United Nations (UN) in 1966. States have obligations to respect, protect and fulfil ESC rights. This paper aims to address ESC rights of women in particular. It analyzes the international legal framework including provisions of UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and ICESCR and its optional protocol. It also analyzes provisions of Women’s Convention and identifies its linkage to ICESCR.

ESC rights are not justiciable and growing debate over justiciability is important for consideration. Also, there exist certain challenges for the progressive realization of ESC rights which need to be addressed by analyzing provisions of the existing legal framework and Maastricht Guidelines. The argument developed throughout the paper is that women’s ESC rights may be protected at all levels by the progressive realization of these rights. The issue of justiciability may also be resolved to protect the basic needs and interests of women that leads to their empowerment.

The work is original and not published by any other journal so far.

In India, recently on December 11, 2013, the Supreme Court re-established a ban on gay sex following a four-year period of decriminalization that had helped bring homosexuality out of the closet in this communally conservative country. In the light of such prosecution and denial of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) human rights in India, this chapter presents a library manifesto of action for progressive change in support of this marginalized and “invisible” population.

Content analysis of online news articles published during November 14, 2013–January 14, 2014 in The Times of India (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india), one of India’s most popular English newspaper, identifies proactive economic, educational, legal, political, and social actions libraries can adopt as agents of human rights protection to integrate a social justice agenda on behalf of this subjugated population.

This chapter presents an action-based manifesto consisting of realities experienced by sexual minorities in India and future economic, educational, legal, political, and social actions libraries can take on their behalf.

This research showcases the meaningful role of the library and information science professions in potentially shaping community-wide progressive changes to address the information needs and expectations of underserved populations who are marginalized owing to conservative laws, policies, practices, and politics. It also adopted an innovative strategy in library circles and human rights research of examining online news articles to explore the relevance of the information found in the news covered related to the adoption of an archaic law denying equal rights for sexual minorities in India.