Text 4: The Court's Decision on the Tyrer Case

 

THE COURT

 

1. decides unanimously not to strike the case out of its list;

2. holds by six votes to one that the judicial corporal punishment inflicted on Mr. Tyrer amounted to degrading punishment within the meaning of Article 3;

3. holds unanimously that in the present case there are no local requirements within the meaning of Article 63 Para.3 which could affect the application of Article 3;

4. holds by six votes to one that the said punishment accordingly violated Article 3;

5. holds unanimously that it is not necessary to examine the question of a possible violation of Article 3 taken together with Article 14;

6. holds unanimously that it is necessary to apply Article 50 in the present case.

Done in English and French, the English text being authentic, at the Human Rights Building, Strasbourg, this twenty-fifth day of April, one thousand nine hundred and seventy-eight.

Signed: Giorgio Balladore Pallieri

President

 

As you can see, the Court's decision on Article 3 was not unanimous. In fact, the British judge, Sir Gerald Fitzmaurice, dissented. In his separate opinion, he explained that in his view corporal punishment, when inflicted on a juvenile, is no more degrading than any other form of punishment. He remembers that corporal punishment was quite normal when he was at school. In fact, boys preferred it to some other forms of non-violent punishment, and the boy punished did not feel degraded. For these reasons he does not consider that Tyrer's punishment amounted to degrading punishment within the meaning of Article 3.

 

§ Vocabulary notes

 

unanimously	[ju:'n{nIm@slI]	единогласно
to strike out (struck, struck)		вычеркивать
to hold		считать, полагать
to amount to smth		составлять, означать
What does it amount to?		Что это означает?
to dissent	[dI'sent]	расходиться во мнениях

 

Word study

 

a Choose the synonyms from the box:

usual, to impose, to disagree, to cross out, to break, decision, obligatory, to be equal to, to influence, real

to dissent................................. to violate.......................................

to strike out............................ necessary.......................................

to inflict.................................. authentic.......................................

to amount to......................... normal............................................

to affect.................................. judgement......................................

 

b Write down a few word combinations with following words:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Suggested activities

 

с Write down all the unanimous decisions of the judges.

d Translate the other two decisions into Russian.

e Repeat what the opinion of the British judge was.

f What's your opinion?

 

 

g Agree or disagree and substantiate your point of view: The Tyrer case seems to be a storm in a tea-cup.

 

h Discussion in class. Be ready to discuss with your group mates the following topics:

 

• The most important human rights.

• International organisations defending human rights.

 

Section 2: The 50^th Anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights

Text 1

 

December 10 1998 marked the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Since 1948, the idea embodied in that document helped accelerate the independence movements in the developing world and triggered the civil rights revolution in the Western world. It provided legitimacy for the struggle against tyranny all over the world and played a crucial role in bringing down some undesirable regimes. Not a bad record for one idea. Only the concept of individual liberty at the end of the 18th century and of equality 100 years later have exerted a comparable impact on mankind. And whereas the political application of the original ideas of liberty and equality resulted in more exploitation, dictatorships and bloodshed, the idea of human rights secured for a great part of mankind orderly freedom, equality before the law and more equal opportunities than humanity had ever had before.

And yet a funereal aura hovered about that year's celebrations. For the industrialized West, expanding exports to China seem to be more important than defending the human rights of its citizens. In the post-communist world many former dissidents who entered politics have traded their interest in human rights for support of "law and order" and, quite often, populist, anti-minority positions. Even in the United States a growing number of politicians perceive human rights as a subversive liberal idea fueling to many demands for guaranteed benefits and for toleration of nonconformist behaviour at home and resulting in too many costly adventures abroad.

The very idea of human rights is complex. In fact, an international consensus has never formed as to what the concept includes. During the cold war, the West stressed civil liberties and political rights enforceable by courts. Communist regimes emphasized social and economic rights. It seemed for a while that the political definition had emerged victorious, but in the past decade leaders of third world countries have formulated a new variant - the «right to development», which consists of a claim to the transfer of resources, capital and technology from rich Northern countries to poor Southern ones.

 

§ Vocabulary notes

 

human	['hju:m@n]	человеческий, свойственный человеку
humane	[hju:'meIn]	гуманный, человечный
humanity		человечество
human rights		права человека
human race		человеческий род
to embody	[Im'bodI]	воплощать, осуществлять, объединять, включать
to accelerate	[@k's@l@reIt]	ускорять (ся)
to trigger		начинать, вызывать, приводить в движение
trigger		спусковой крючок, курок
crucial	['kru:S@l]	решающий, критический
record	['reko:d]	1) рекорд; 2) запись, отчет, протокол; 3) факты, данные, характеристика; 4) документ, дающий право на владение
bloodshed	['blödSed]	кровопролитие
funereal	['fju:n@r@l]	похоронный, мрачный, траурный
to hover	['houv@]	парить, нависать
subversive	[s@b'v@:sIv]	разрушительный, гибельный
fuel		топливо, горючее
adventure		1) приключение; 2) рискованное предприятие, риск, авантюра; 3) событие, переживание
definition		1) определение; 2) ясность, четкость

 

Word study

 

a Form nouns from the following verbs:

to declare –.................................... to develop –.........................................

to help –......................................... to trigger –............................................

to accelerate –............................... to legitimate –.......................................

to move –....................................... to support –..........................................

 

b Match the English and Russian equivalents:

 

to exert	воспринимать
to perceive to secure	оказывать расширять (ся)
to hover	начинать
to embody to trigger to expand	парить гарантировать воплощать

 

с Form the adjectives with the negative meaning:

desirable –........................... comparable -...........................................

dependent –......................... equal –....................................................

human –.............................. orderly –...............................................

 

d Underline the roots of the following words:

 

tyranny mankind	victorious to fuel
bloodshed nonconformist	costly populist

 

e Translate the following word combinations, starting with the last word, into Russian:

 

the independence movements...............................................................................................................................

the civil rights resolution......................................................................................................................................

that year's celebrations.........................................................................................................................................

anti-minority positions.........................................................................................................................................

f Underline the Participles, write down what Participles they are and translate the following into Russian:

 

the idea embodied in the document.................................................................................................................

expanding exports............................................................................................................................................

a growing number of politicians......................................................................................................................

guaranteed benefits..........................................................................................................................................

the developing world.......................................................................................................................................

g Encircle the ing-forms, write down what parts of sentences they are and translate the sentences into Russian:

 

1 It played a crucial role in bringing down some undersirable regimes............................................................

.............................................................................................................................................................................

2 For them exports to China seem more important than defending the human rights of the country................

.............................................................................................................................................................................

3 Even in the USA many politicians perceive human rights as a subversive liberal idea fueling too many demands for guaranteed benefits...............................................................................................................................

 

h Underline the predicates, write down the forms (Tense, Voice) of the verbs and translate the sentences into Russian:

 

1 The concepts of individual liberty and equality have exerted a comparable impact on mankind.....................

..............................................................................................................................................................................

2 The idea of human rights secured more equal opportunities than humanity had ever had before...................

..............................................................................................................................................................................

3 Many former dissidents have traded their interests in human rights for support of «law and order»..............

..............................................................................................................................................................................

4 An international concept has never formed as to what the concept of human rights include..........................

..............................................................................................................................................................................

 

i Explain the meaning of the following in English:

 

• to trigger a revolution

• a funereal aura hovered about that year's celebrations

• this idea fuels too many demands

 

§ Suggested activities

j Write out all the positive effects of the Declaration.

k Write down the drawbacks the Declaration has, to your mind:

 

1..........................................................................................................................................................................

2..........................................................................................................................................................................

 

l Act out a short discussion with your group-mates of the concept of human rights.

Text 2

 

The problem is that the right to development not only won't work, the demand for it also serves to blur responsibility for the economic deprivation of nations. In Africa, dictators and military leaders used the idea of traditional supremacy of society over an individual to destroy local communities, to rob their own populations and turn great parts of the continent into never-ending tribal wars zones.

The right to development has the support of the majority of members of the United Nations, so it is no wonder that many people in the West want to take human rights off the international agenda. The very idea of human rights becomes meaningless when rights are confused with needs, claims with entitlements, judicial processes with the goals of public policy, and individual rights with demands made by state leaders on the international community.

Disposing of the idea of human rights would be one way of dealing with confusion. But what to do then about the continued mass violation of human rights in much of the non- Western world? A better approach would be to return to the original meaning of human rights and accept that not every claim that invokes that phrase should come under the purview of an international rights protection regime.

What should be claimed as universal human rights are the minimum standards that can assure personal dignity regardless of cultural differences. Freedom of conscience and expression, freedom from arbitrary deprivation of liberty; freedom from torture, some guarantees of due process, right to assembly and freedom of association are obvious. Once the short list is ready, adherence to it should become the absolute prerequisite of behaviour required for membership in the international community of nations and for eligibility for all foreign aid-induding assistance from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Victims of abuse should be heard worldwide and receive international help. Sanctions could be imposed in cases of obvious violations. And when violations border on genocide the international community should be able to intervene.

 

Vocabulary notes

 

to blur		затуманить, затемнить
deprivation		потеря, лишение
to destroy		разрушать, уничтожать
tribal		племенной, родовой
it is no wonder that		неудивительно, что
agenda	[@'³end@]	повестка дня
on the agenda		в повестке дня
to take smth off the		снять что-либо с повестки дня
agenda
to confuse		1) смешивать, спутывать; 2) приводить в замешательство
entitlement	[In'taItlm@nt]	1) право; 2) документ о праве; 3) предоставление права
	goal		цель, задача
	to invoke		призывать, взывать
	purview	['p@:vju:]	1) часть статута, заключающая самое постановление; 2) сфера компетенции, область (действия)
	to assure	[@'Su@]	1) уверять, заверять; 2) гарантировать, обеспечивать
	due		должный, надлежащий, соответствующий
	obvious	['obvI@s]	очевидный, явный, ясный
	adherence	[@d'hI@r@ns]	1) приверженность, верность; 2) строгое соблюдение (правил, принципов и т.п.)
	prerequisite	[,prI:'rekwIzIt]	предпосылка
	eligibility	[,elI³@'bIl@tI]	1) право на избрание; 2) приемлемость
	assistence		помощь, содействие
	to render assistence		оказывать помощь

 

Words and Grammar

a Mark the meaning in which the following words are used in the text, with a tick:

 

 

b Explain the meaning of the following in English:

 

• to blur responsibility

• traditional supremacy of society over an individual

• to take human rights off the international agenda

• much of the non-Western world

• adherence to this list should become the absolute prerequisite of behaviour required for membership

• victims of abuse should be heard worldwide

 

с Write down if to is a preposition or a particle, used with infinitives, and translate the sentences into Russian:

 

1 The problem is that the idea of the right to development won't work.............................................................

..............................................................................................................................................................................

2 It serves to blur responsibility for the economic deprivation of nations.........................................................

..............................................................................................................................................................................

3 The dictators used the idea of supremacy over an individual to destroy local communities...........................

..............................................................................................................................................................................

4 But what to do then about the continued mass violation of human rights in the non-Western world?..........

..............................................................................................................................................................................

5 A better approach would be to return to the original meaning of human rights..............................................

..............................................................................................................................................................................

 

d Write down a few short sentences with the following word combinations on the basis of the text:

 

to rob their own populations...............................................................

never-ending tribal wars zones...........................................................

it is no wonder that..............................................................................

the idea becomes meaningless............................................................

to claim smth as universal human rights.............................................

 

e Write out all the words and word combinations associated with human rights, from the text.

 

Suggested activities

 

f Write down a few sentences about two different approaches to the right to development, basing on the text.

g Sum up what article says about:

 

• confusion of notions

• the original meaning of human rights

• sanctions and intervention

 

h Say what you know about these famous human rights advocates and the contributions they made in fight for human rights:

Andrey D. Sakharov, a prominent scientist

Alexander J. Solzhenitsyn, a gifted contemporary writer, a Nobel prize winner

Anatoly F. Marchenko, a talented writer who died in prison in 1986 after 19 years of imprisonment on political charges

Sergei Kovalev, a well known political figure in Russia, who was the first human rights adviser to the President of Russia.

 

 

Part I. Impeachment

 

Text 1: What is Impeachment

Text 2: This is Why We Have impeachment

 

Text 1: What is Impeachment

 

Here is an extract from the brochure High Crimes and Misdemeanors written by Robert Barr:

Rep. Barr (R., Ga.) serves on the House Judiciary and Government Reform Committees. He was the U.S. attorney in the Northern District of Georgia under Presidents Reagan and Bush.

The American Constitution provides that the «President and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors». Thus, impeachment is the constitutional remedy – the only one, addressed to serious offenses against the system of government and the public trust. The impeachment procedure, outlined in the Constitution, has been given content over the two centuries since its adoption. What conduct justifies impeachment has been the subject of some controversy among legal scholars. One cause of the controversy is the political nature of impeachment. As constitutional scholar Michael Gerhardt has noted, «Impeachment is by nature, structure, and design an essentially political process». Our Founding Fathers adopted this view of impeachment from English law and made it uniquely their own. Its a scope confined to political officials; it charges only «political crimes» and imposes purely «political punishments».

Thus, impeachment is not a criminal proceeding dependent on proof of a criminal infraction. An inquiry of impeachment examines the «undermining of the integrity of office, disregarding of constitutional duties and oath of office, arrogation of power, abuse of governmental process, and adverse impact on the system of government».

Impeachment was intended to be a «safety valve, a security against an oppressive or corrupt President and his sheltered ministers». Our Founding Fathers were familiar with the despotic rule a too-powerful executive could impose. Consequently, they constructed a safeguard against the executive abuse and usurpation of power that might occur in the separate executive branch they fashioned. James Wilson, a member of the Pennsylvania ratifying convention, noted that the President is «placed high, and is possessed of power far from being contemptible, yet not a single privilege is annexed to his character; far from being above the laws, he is amenable to them in his private character as a citizen, and in his public character by impeachment».

James Madison noted that impeachment was «indispensible» to protect the state from «the incapacity, negligence or perfidy of the chief Magistrate» and «as a supplementary security for the good behaviour of the public officers».

Our Founding Fathers conceived of impeachment as a device to preserve constitutional government, designed to address actions by an official that subvert the structure of government and impugn the integrity of office.

There are three major duties imposed on the President by the Constitution and his oath of office. His first duty is «to take care that the laws be faithfully executed». The other two duties – «to faithfully execute the office of President of the United States» and to «preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States» – are included in the oath of office. The power of impeachment serves as a guarantee that these duties are performed.

 

§ Vocabulary notes

 

	impeachment	[im'pI:tSm@nt]	1) порицание; 2) обвинение; 3) привлечение к суду (особенно за государственное преступление)
	misdemeanor	[,misdi'mi:n@]	судебно наказуемый проступок, преступление
	Rep. = representative		член палаты представителей в Конгрессе США
	R. = Republican		член Республиканской партии
	Ga. = Georgia		Джорджиа, один из южных штатов США
	treason		1) измена, предательство; 2) государственная измена
syn. high treason bribery	[‘braIb@rI]	подкуп
remedy		средство судебной защиты, средство защиты
trust to have/put/ repose trust in smb a position of trust breach of trust		права 1) доверие, вера; 2) ответственность доверять кому-либо ответственный пост нарушение доверенным лицом своих обязательств
to outline content	[k@n'tent]	излагать чувство удовлетворения, дать согласие на что-либо
to give content to smth conduct	['kondökt]	поведение, образ действий
syn. behaviour to conduct oneself controversy without/ beyond controversy scholar	[k@n'dökt] ['kontr@v@:si]   ['sko:l@]	вести себя спор, дискуссия, полемика     бесспорно
cause		ученый причина, основание, мотив
syn. reason scope a mind of wide scope It is beyond my scope.		границы, рамки, пределы человек широкого кругозора Это вне моей компетенции.
to be confined to		быть ограниченным чем-либо
to be confined to bed		быть прикованным к постели
	infraction		нарушение (правша, закона)
	arrogation		требование, претензия
	arrogant		высокомерный
	valve		1) клапан; 2) электронная лампа
	shelter		1) приют, кров; 2) прикрытие
	safeguard	['seifga:d]	1) гарантия, охрана;
			2) охранное свидетельство; 3) предосторожность
	contemptible	[k@n'tempt@bl]	презренный
	contempt		презрение, неуважение (к власти)
	contempt of court		неуважение к суду
	amenable	[@'mI:n@bl]	ответственный, подсудный
	amenable to law		ответственный перед законом
	indispensible		необходимый, обяза- тельный, не допускающий исключений (о законе и т.п.)
	perfidy	['p@:fIdI]	вероломство, измена,
	to subvert	[söbv@:t]	предательство свергать, ниспровергать, разрушать

 

Words and Grammar

 

a Translate the following words into Russian:

misdemeanor........................ oath.....................................

treason................................... scholar...............................

bribery.................................. controversy........................

offense................................... conviction.........................

 

b Match the English and Russian equivalents:

 

Founding Fathers	коррумпированный президент
high crimes	прикрываемые им министры
civil officers	гражданские служащие
the public trust	преступления в высших эшелонах власти
criminal proceedings	основатели государства
constitutional duties	доверие общественности
a corrupt President	уголовное расследование
his sheltered ministers	обязанности, указанные в конституции

 

с Add as many nouns as possible to the following adjectives:

 

an oppressive President, chief.......................................................................................................

adverse impact, influence.............................................................................................................

despotic rule, person.....................................................................................................................

legal trust, system..........................................................................................................................

political crimes, figures.................................................................................................................

governmental process, sources......................................................................................................

constitutional scholar, rights.........................................................................................................

 

d Complete the sentences with the following words:

infraction, arrogation, abuse, proceeding, impact

 

Impeachment is not a criminal.....................dependent on proof of a criminal.....................

An inquiry of impeachment examines the undermining of the integrity of office disregarding of.....................of power,..............................of governmental process and adverse.....................on the system of government.

 

e Write a few short sentences with the following word expressions, based on the text:

 

to charge political crimes...........................................................................................................................

to impose political punishments.................................................................................................................

to undermine the integrity of office...........................................................................................................

to impugn the integrity of office................................................................................................................

to subvert the structure of government......................................................................................................

 

f Insert the correct prepositions and write a few short sentences with the following:

 

1 to remove...............office on impeachment...............treason

2 to adopt this view of impeachment...............English law

3 to be dependent...............proof of a criminal infraction

4 to be familiar...............the despotic rule

5 offenses...............the system of government

g Underline the predicates, say in what forms the verbs are used and translate the sentences into Russian:

 

1 The impeachment procedure has been given content over the two centuries.

2 It has been the subject of some controversy.

3 They constructed a safeguard against the executive abuse.

4 Impeachment was intended to be a safety valve.

5 It is a device to preserve constitutional government.

 

§ Suggested activities

 

h Write short sentences describing the idea of impeachment, on the basis of the text. Translate these sentences into Russian.

 

i Compare the above description with:

 

• James Wilson's words

• James Madison's words

 

j Agree or disagree and substantiate your viewpoint:

 

1 The idea of impeachment can easily be-expressed in one sentence.

2 The last paragraph of the text is the most important one.

3 When Robert Barr wrote «our Founding Fathers» he meant «the American Constitution».