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Human Dignity and the values at the core of democracy
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Analyse Section 39 (1) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996
Section 39(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (hereafter referred to as the Constitution) serve as a metric for interpretation in relation to three other rudiments based international ideologies.
Section 39 (1)(a) states that when a court, tribunal or forum interprets the Bill of Rights as it is presented in the Constitution, it must promote the values that underlie an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom. These three elements are the globally-acknowledged, conventional essentials that constitute the necessary requisites that should be given to every single human being; even more so in South Africa, being a young democratic country, aspiring to give to every person that which has not been granted to him or her in the past. Promotion in this context would then imply that when the Bill of Rights is used to set up, impose, and interpret laws, human rights and its endorsement should always be kept into consideration. Human dignity infringements ar...
From five states arose delegates who would soon propose an idea that would impact the United States greatly. The idea was to hold a meeting in Philadelphia called the Constitutional Convention in 1787 meant to discuss the improvements for the Articles of Confederation and would later be called the United States Constitution. The United States Constitution was greatly influenced by Ancient Rome, the Enlightenment, and Colonial Grievances.
Federalist #78, written by Alexander Hamilton, is an essay to argue for the proposed federal courts, their powers, and means of appointing judges. In the essay, Hamilton claims that the judiciary will be the “least dangerous to the political rights of the Constitution.” He says it will be the least , dangerous because the branch will be the least in abundant use. This implies that the other two branches will be used more. The executive branch not only “dispenses the honors”, but also enforce the laws over the entire country. The legislative branch holds the budget for the country and creates the laws in which the citizens must abide by. The judiciary, he says, will have no power over the executive and legislative branches. He also writes that it cannot move forward the society in wealth and in strength, and cannot resolve any active problems that the country is facing in any circumstances. According to Hamilton, the judiciary could be said to have “neither force nor will, but merely judgment,” and that it must depend on the executive branch, even to make their judgments more effectiv...
The reasoning behind the writing of federalist paper #39 was the conformity of the plan to the republican principles. Federalist paper #39 was attempting to address to the new Constitution that the government should not be mostly national or federal, which is verified to, “be found to depart from the republican character, its advocates must abandon it as no longer defensible”. The paper is organized excellently, James Madison asks his audience what are the potential characteristics of a Republican form of government however, elaborating his question by conveying the aspects of one not simply finding that answer reading republican related books. This paper fits into the larger aspects of the Federalists papers by portraying his propositional
The passage of the 13th amendment seems simple. Lincoln declared the emancipation proclamation and set the majority of the slaves free. General opinion was already shifting toward abolition and a bill like the 13th amendment seemed inevitable. This is the well-known but extremely overgeneralized view of national abolition. Leonard L. Richards attempts to correct this general perspective in Who freed the slaves?. He argues that abolitionists were actually fighting an uphill battle throughout the civil war. Not only was there opposition from Democrats, the majority of Republicans was also against abolition. This only changed near the end of the civil war with countless endeavors to change public opinion and heavy secret bargaining.
The constitution was a document that embodies the fundamental laws and principles by which the U.S is governed. The constitution states basic rights for its citizens. Delegates signed the constitution on September 17, 1787. There is a total of 27 constitutional amendments. The reasoning for writing it was for a stronger federal government - legislative, executive and judicial. The constitution was a break with a past of ‘unfair’ taxes, wars and ‘unfair’ treatment.
In The Federalist No. 78, the conception of judiciary is introduced as a system of checks and balances to protect the civil liberties of the citizens from the other branches of government. At the same time, the judiciary concept is considered to have the least amount of power of the three branches. It is stated by Hamilton in this section of the Federalist Papers, “The Judiciary has no influence over either the sword or the purse; no direction either of the strength or of the wealth of the society, and can take no active resolution whatever. It may truly be said to have neither force nor will” (The Federalist No. 78). The judicial system serves as a barrier in preventing the other branches of power from making decisions that infringe upon their
Critical Review: Federalist Paper #10 The Federalist Paper number ten was an essay written by James Madison to support the ratification of the U.S. Constitution. Its content deals with factions and how the effects of factions can be minimized. There were two options given: to do away with liberty, or create a society with the same opinion. Eliminating liberty was out of the question.
According to the Fourth Amendment, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated.” Without the Fourth Amendment, people would have no rights over their own personal privacy. Police officers could just enter people’s houses and take anything that they could use as evidence and use it against them. With the advancement in today’s technology, it is getting more and more difficult to define what exactly privacy is to us, and whether or not the Fourth Amendment protects it.
Ratifying the 18th Amendment, was a good decision made by Congress; the reason being that at the time that it was ratified there was a high percentage of poverty in the United States, as well as horrid working conditions for people that worked in the meat packing or manufacturing industries. Thus, living in poverty and working in a bad environment would cause many people to stress out and push those individuals to look for a way to destress, which was through drinking alcohol. Some of those people would make it a habit and spend money on alcohol that they could not afford to spend. Therefore, adding more problems to their family life because there would not be enough money to take care of their children's health or maybe buy enough food for
...f South African language and culture, acknowledgement of the racial oppression in South Africa, past and present, that it was wrong and positive action is required to make it right, and finally that all South Africans are legitimate and enjoy full moral equality (“About – DA”). In order for all this to be possible, the state must ensure it does not compromise the freedom of the individual (“About – DA”).
Declaration of Human Rights: Dignity and Justice for All of Us. Accessed on October 29,
The Constitution is the greatest document in American history. It has pushed for progressiveness and equality. The Constitution is basically the supreme law of the United States. The Constitution was written to organize a strong national government for the American states. Before the Constitution, the nation's leaders had established a national government under the Articles of Confederation. The Articles gave independence to each state; the states lacked authority, the ability to work together, and to solve national problems. The U.S. Constitution established America's national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed certain basic rights for its citizens using five big ideas and this shaped today's America.
Wemmers (1996) highlights that an effective criminal justice system also protects human rights. Victims are gradually being seen as the notable possessors of such rights that lead to reviews in our domestic system and also by international bodies. The protection of said rights, such as in South Africa where less express definitions between ‘victim’ and ‘human’ rights are being made by policy m...
Declaration of Human Rights: Dignity and Justice for All of Us. Accessed on October 29,
On December 10th 1948, the General Assembly adopted a Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This declaration, although not legally binding, created “a common standard of achievement for all people and all nations.to promote respect for those rights and freedoms” (Goodhart, 379). However, many cultures assert that the human rights policies outlined in the declaration undermine cultural beliefs and practices. This assertion makes the search for universal human rights very difficult to achieve. I would like to focus on articles 3, 14 and 25 to address how these articles could be modified to incorporate cultural differences, without completely undermining the search for human rights practices.