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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.

This chapter concentrates on child rights institutions’ founding or organic laws that provide independence and powers to the national or local child rights institutions. This chapter analyzes the National Commission on the Rights of the Child Act (NCRCA, 2017) of Pakistan as a case. It employs the Paris Principles of 1993 and the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child’s General Comment No. 2 as a yardstick. This chapter also compares the NCRCA with the National Commission on Human Rights Act (NCHRA, 2012). It presents results from interviews of three Child Rights Movement Pakistan (CRM) members and a member of the National Commission on the Rights of the Child (NCRC). The analysis finds that the NCRC faces serious challenges in performing its duties and functions, which were already limited within the organic law. The NCRC is an advisory body whose only role is to suggest the federal bureaucracy when and if required. The NCRC has not been provided with funds and adequate resources. Even the NCRC members were not paid their salaries for many months. The analysis finds that the NCRC’s affairs are governed through the bureaucracy¹ (senior officials) within the Ministry of Human Rights, and the Human Rights Division. Rather than direct responsibility to the Parliament, the NCRC’s independence is undermined as its legislation directs. In the future, the NCRC will face challenges in advancing and protecting children’s rights because it does not have suo-motu (on its own) powers to intervene in matters affecting children. Therefore, it is indispensable to amend the NCRCA in consideration of the GC2 and the Paris Principles to bolster the institution’s independence and functions. These changes are essential to addressing violations of children’s rights and bringing about changes in the structures that affect children.

Human dignity is a crucial concept in international and domestic human rights law. It is understood to be the foundation of human rights, and while we know what human rights are, the nature, content, and grounds of human dignity remain unclear. The aim of this chapter is to propose scientific grounds for human dignity. In this context, the author will explore contemporary evolutionary biology and evolutionary psychology, where it is claimed that human nature is constituted by tendencies to cooperate (Tomasello, 2009), or under a different formulation, by narrow altruism and imperfect prudence (Załuski, 2009). Evolutionary psychology holds that we have basic tendencies to cooperate with one another and to behave altruistically in order to achieve a common good. This means that our basic evolutionary default and scientifically proven mode of being are optimistic and can be labelled as morally good. The author argues that this human nature constitutes scientific grounds for human dignity. The author’s argument holds that since human dignity comprises the inherent worth of every human being, this positive moral fact about the scientifically understood human nature is human dignity. The author then present this issue within two broader philosophical frameworks of analytic philosophy – namely, naturalism (especially methodological naturalism) and metaphysical realism. Following this, the author contends that references to natural sciences in debates on the foundations of human dignity and human rights argue against the strongest objection to human rights – the objection of Western ethnocentrism.

Education is a fundamental right that can lift people out of poverty, empower women, safeguard children from exploitative labor and promote democracy. In this sense, the right to education, which is recognized in several treaties, cannot be separated from the right to an education in human rights. The latter is crucial to the realization of human rights and contributes significantly to achieving equality, tolerance and respect for the dignity of others. Plus, through education in human rights, people would also not become more sympathetic about our differences, but they would also be empowered to demand and exercise their own rights, which will certainly contribute to their observance and implementation. This introductory chapter will explore why education in human rights is one of the most powerful tools to prevent atrocities and to guarantee every person a dignified life. Consequently, it will also argue that it is vital to integrate human rights education into the curriculum and classroom. Furthermore, this chapter will consider the right to receive this kind of education and the State’s obligation to guarantee it. Finally, it will analyze the best ways to teach human rights in higher education through active learning (simulations, discussions, role-play and moot courts).

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of globalization and its multiple dimensions on human rights in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The study extends the Poe and Tate (1994) model, which enumerates the various determinants of human rights. Ordered probit estimation is used to estimate the impact of globalization and its dimensions. For the purpose of empirical analysis, the period has been divided into three phases: short, medium and long term. This helps in understanding how the impact of the different dimensions of globalization has evolved over a period of time. Furthermore, analysis has been carried out to detect causality between human rights and globalization.

As per the results, overall globalization and social dimension of globalization do have a positive impact on human rights in long and medium term and, also, Granger-cause human rights. The political dimension of globalization has a positive relation with human rights, though there exists no causality between the two. On the other hand, the economic dimension of globalization fails to have a statistically significant impact on human rights. Impact of the social dimension of globalization dominates that of other dimensions of globalization.

This is one of the few studies that examine, in an empirical fashion, the impact of globalization on human rights in Sub-Saharan Africa.

It was expected that the Human Rights Act (HRA) 1998 would promote a human rights culture in public services and beyond. This paper seeks to focus on the Act's impact on minority, ethnic users of health and social care services.

The paper reviewed recent policy and academic papers as well as legislative and government initiatives since the Act's implementation in 2000. It also looked at user surveys and evidence submitted to Parliament and public inquiries. A critical synthesis and analysis of the data was attempted.

The paper makes the argument that the original intentions behind the HRA have not been materialised. The paper attributes this failure to issues of misunderstanding around the Act and human rights. The paper also argues that by focusing more on mainstreaming the principles underlying the Act and less on its legalistic interpretation, human rights will be seen more relevant by both users and providers of health and social care services.

An original analysis and interpretation of what these principles encompass is attempted whilst brief recommendations for policy and practice are posited.

The purpose of this paper was to identify whether artificial intelligence (AI) products can possess human rights, how to define their rights and obligations and what ethical standards they should follow. In this study, the human rights ethical dilemma encountered in the application and development of AI technology has been focused on and analyzed in detail in the light of the existing research status of AI ethics.

In this study, first of all, the development and application of AI technology, as well as the concept and characteristics of human rights ethics, are introduced. Second, the human rights ethics of AI technology are introduced in detail, including the human rights endowment of AI machines, the fault liability of AI machines and the moral orientation of AI machines. Finally, the approaches to human rights ethics are proposed to ensure that AI technology serves human beings. Every link of its research, production and application should be strictly managed and supervised.

The results show that the research in this study can provide help for the related problems encountered in AI practice. Intelligent library integrates human rights protection organically so that readers or users can experience more intimate service in this system. It is a kind of library operation mode with more efficient and convenient characteristics, which is based on digital, networked and intelligent information science. It aims at using the greenest way and digital means to realize the reading and research of human rights protection literature in the literature analysis method.

Intelligent library is the future development mode of new libraries, which can realize broad interconnection and sharing. It is people-oriented and can make intelligent management and service and establish the importance of the principle of human rights protection and the specific idea of the principle. The development of science and technology brings not only convenience to people's social life but also questions to be thought. People should reduce its potential harm, so as to make AI technology continue to benefit humankind.

The applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in different sectors have become agendas for discussions in the highest circle of experts. The applications of AI can help society and can harm society even by jeopardizing human rights. The purpose of this study is to examine the evolution of AI and its impacts on human rights from social and legal perspectives.

With the help of studies of literature and different other AI and human rights-related reports, this study has taken an attempt to provide a comprehensive and executable framework to address these challenges contemplated to occur due to the increase in usage of different AI applications in the context of human rights.

This study finds out how different AI applications could help society and harm society. It also highlighted different legal issues and associated complexity arising due to the advancement of AI technology. Finally, the study also provided few recommendations to the governments, private enterprises and non-governmental organizations on the usage of different AI applications in their organizations.

This study mostly deals with the legal, social and business-related issues arising due to the advancement of AI technology. The study does not penetrate the technological aspects and algorithms used in AI applications. Policymakers, government agencies and private entities, as well as practitioners could take the help of the recommendations provided in this study to formulate appropriate regulations to control the usage of AI technology and its applications.

This study provides a comprehensive view of the emergence of AI technology and its implication on human rights. There are only a few studies that examine AI and related human rights issues from social, legal and business perspectives. Thus, this study is claimed to be a unique study. Also, this study provides valuable inputs to the government agencies, policymakers and practitioners about the need to formulate a comprehensive regulation to control the usage of AI technology which is also another unique contribution of this study.

This paper aims to respond to increasing interest in the intersection between accounting and human rights and to explore whether access to information might itself constitute a human right. As human rights have “moral force”, establishing access to information as a human right may act as a catalyst for policy change. The paper also aims to focus on environmental information, and specifically the case of corporate water‐related disclosures.

This paper follows Griffin and Sen, who suggest that a candidate human right might be recognised when it is consistent with “founding” human rights, it is important and it may be influenced by societal action. The specific case for access to corporate water‐related information to constitute a human right is evaluated against these principles.

Access to corporate water‐related disclosures may indeed constitute a human right. Political participation is a founding human right, water is a critical subject of political debate, water‐related information is required in order for political participation and the state is in a position to facilitate provision of such information. Corporate water disclosures may not necessarily be in the form of annual sustainability reports, however, but may include reporting by government agencies via public databases and product labelling. A countervailing corporate right to privacy is considered and found to be relevant but not necessarily incompatible with heightened disclosure obligations.

This paper seeks to make both a theoretical and a practical contribution. Theoretically, the paper explores how reporting might be conceived from a rights‐based perspective and provides a method for determining which disclosures might constitute a human right. Practically, the paper may assist those calling for improved disclosure regulation by showing how such calls might be embedded within human rights discourse.

This paper addresses the social forces, such as cultural traditions, economic structures, and legal systems, affecting animal (human and nonhuman) rights. Also considered are the cross‐cultural degrees of societal advancement on rights, as illustrated by cultures that are stagnant on rights, progressive on rights, and regressive on rights. The definition of “advanced” versus “primitive” cultures is somewhat complicated with the argument being that technologically and materially advanced cultures can be primitive on rights issues, as found in the present‐day US. The right‐wing Bush administration, greatly aided by the “war on terrorism”, has devolved human rights by reducing civil liberties, freedom of assembly, educational opportunities, and economic equality. This repression of human rights has repercussions for environmental protection and nonhuman rights, as demonstrated herein.