New Delhi
June 28, 2022
Study shows that India’s performance in granting social and economic rights to its citizens in South Asian countries is below average. India has performed poorly in terms of civil and political rights compared to 37 other countries, including the UK, US, China, South Korea and Malaysia. According to a study by the Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI), a global organization, India lags behind all other countries except for one in 13 indicators. It only excelled in commuting the death penalty.
The assessments were based on education, food, health, housing, right to work, unilateral arrest, disappearance, death penalty, unlawful execution, torture and ill-treatment, and the right to freedom of association and expression.
According to pre-Kovid statistics for 2019, living standards in India are below average compared to other South Asian countries. India’s score in this category is 65.1. ‘Lacking a maximum score of less than 100 under international human rights law is a measure of the country’s failure to fulfill its obligations to its citizens. According to the HRMI report, India has a long way to go to meet its economic and social obligations. Only Pakistan is ahead of India in this regard. Pakistan’s score is 63.3.
While Bangladesh performed close to the average of 73.5 with a score of 86.4, Sri Lanka was better than average (86.4 per cent) in providing basic rights to its citizens. Nepal was at 74.9 and Bhutan at 75.8. The organization did not evaluate the performance of Afghanistan. India ranks 102nd out of 117 countries in the 2019 Global Hunger Index, behind neighboring Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh. In 2021, the rank dropped to 101 out of 116 countries.
The domestic security score is only 4.6 out of 10. The report states that people are not safe for a variety of reasons, including unilateral arrests, state persecution, ill-treatment, and extrajudicial killings. India’s performance is below average in terms of freedom of expression, association and democratic rights. The score is 4.5 out of 10.
Individuals and organizations that speak out against the government or fight for their rights or for others are under threat of illegal arrest. This category includes human rights activists, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Dalits, religious minorities, non-violent protesters (including anti-CAA and agrarian illegal protesters), job seekers, students and journalists.
In domestic security, the UK scored 7.6 out of 10, the US 4.3, China 2.8, South Korea 8.3, Malaysia 6.9.
English Summary: Study shows that civil rights are minimal in India: no freedom of expression
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