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Rights at risk: older people and human rights
- Author:
- HARDING Tessa
- Publisher:
- Help the Aged
- Publication year:
- 2005
- Pagination:
- 25p., bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- London
The human rights now enshrined in legislation should affirm the 'equal dignity and worth' to which we are all universally entitled. But the human rights of one sector of society are daily and routinely violated. This penetrating review reveals how deeply embedded age discrimination casually deprives the older generation of rights that the rest of us take for granted.
“Taking it on the chin”: older people, human rights and COVID-19
- Author:
- WILLIAMS John
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Adult Protection, 23(2), 2021, pp.86-97.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this article is to discuss the implications of government responses to COVID-19 for older people. Governments in England and in Wales faced complex decisions when responding to COVID-19. This paper considers the impact of their actions on the human rights of older people. It argues that there is a case to answer of potential breaches of the European Convention on Human Rights. Although it is too early to come to firm conclusions as more scientific and medical evidence is required, some actions by governments seem to be based on using age as a basis for decision-making. Human rights are complex, and it is important that claims of violations satisfy the Convention, the Human Rights Act 1998, the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights and other international instruments. Design/methodology/approach: The paper considers the legal framework of the European Convention and its relevance to Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19) and older people. Case law, academic research, guidance and media coverage form the basis of the research. Findings: The governments have a strong case to answer. In defending their positions against allegations of discrimination against older people, they need to produce strong and convincing evidence including medical and scientific evidence that formed the basis of their decisions. Originality/value: This paper is based on original research into human rights, older people and COVID-19. (Edited publisher abstract)
Older people in the context of COVID-19: a European perspective
- Authors:
- PENTARIS Panagiotis, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 63(8), 2020, pp.736-742.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
The Coronavirus pandemic and associated measures for the protection of the public have impacted differently on different parts of the population and across different nations. In many areas, COVID-19 has also either exacerbated already existing or created new inequalities in relation to specific parts of the population. Older individuals are one group in society that has been widely impacted, while social isolation/shielding measures have placed them in higher risk of loneliness, isolation, financial deprivation and mental health challenges, to name a few. This commentary reflects on such inequalities across four European nations (the United Kingdom (UK), Republic of Ireland, Finland, Spain) and draws attention to the critical role of Gerontological Social Work (GSW), while emphasizing the ways in which social work can intervene. First, we identify common concerns for the rights of older people that span across all four nations, and second, we identify significant roles for GSW practitioners at the individual, community and policy levels and conclude with a call for GSW in these four nations to be reimagined in a time of global crisis. (Edited publisher abstract)
Equality, human rights and good relations: the age dimension
- Author:
- AGE CONCERN
- Publisher:
- Age Concern
- Publication year:
- 2007
- Pagination:
- 30p.
- Place of publication:
- London
This Age Concern briefing summarises evidence relating to older people that is relevant to the four areas of work of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC): eliminating discrimination, reducing inequality, promoting human rights and securing good relations. Age Concern believes that addressing ageing issues will help the EHRC achieve these aims.
Policies for the aged in the 21st century: more 'structured dependency' or the realisation of human rights?
- Author:
- TOWNSEND Peter
- Journal article citation:
- Ageing and Society, 26(2), March 2006, pp.161-179.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
By the late 20th century, the plight of millions of older people in many developed countries was regarded as serious and was acknowledged to require concerted cross-national remedial action. Sociologists and social gerontologists only then were beginning to put together explanations rooted in the evolution of social policy and its corresponding institutions. One thesis that attracted support was that the dependency of the aged had been ‘structured’ by long-term economic and social policies. During the final decades of the 20th century, older people were perceived and treated, according to accumulating research evidence, as more dependent than they really were or needed to be. This had been fostered by the emerging institutions of retirement, income maintenance, and residential and domiciliary care. This development had been the responsibility primarily of the State, which tried to deliver welfare but also to accommodate the market. Forms of discrimination against older people had become, or continued to be, as deep as forms of discrimination against women and ethnic minorities. Such ‘institutionalised ageism’ had to be countered. Hopes were invested in anti-discriminatory policies that reflected good reciprocal relationships between the generations in many families and the rights of individuals of any age to human dignity and opportunities to practise their skills. The globalisation of the market and affiliation to neo-liberal policies, together with the simultaneous passage of various instruments of human rights, have changed the nature of the problem, and therefore the debate, during the early 21st century. This paper argues that the release and implementation during and after the Second World War of collective liberal egalitarian values, expressed in many countries in international statements on human rights, as will be shown, had a big impact on the design of public services, including those for older people. If the claims for the elderly in the welfare states of 50 years ago were exaggerated, the claims for older people today are even more exaggerated – at a time of heightened emphasis on individual rights and individual market powers. The various problems of ‘structured’ dependency persist, and seem set to grow in many parts of the world. Human rights offer a framework of rigorous analysis and anti-discriminatory work. Success depends on good operational measurement, and the incorporation of international and national institutions and policies that reflect those rights.
Strengthening older people's rights: towards a UN convention
- Author:
- HELPAGE INTERNATIONAL
- Publisher:
- HelpAge International
- Publication year:
- 2010
- Pagination:
- 11p.
- Place of publication:
- London
Older people are not recognised explicitly under the existing international human rights laws. This publication aims to strengthen understanding and awareness of the need for a Convention on the Rights of Older Persons. The authors outline why it is important to promote and protect the rights of older people and the connection between ageism, age discrimination and older people’s rights. The numerous ways in which older people’s rights are violated are highlighted. The authors argue that protection under existing international law is inadequate and that there is a need for a Convention on the Rights of Older Persons. This publication is intended to provide the arguments and tools for engaging stakeholders across the globe in debate about older people’s rights and the role of a convention.
Critical perspectives on ageing societies
- Editors:
- BERNARD Miriam, SCHARF Thomas, (eds.)
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- Publication year:
- 2007
- Pagination:
- 185p., bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- Bristol
The book brings together some of the best known international scholars working within a critical gerontology perspective. Together, they review and update understanding of how the field has developed over the last twenty-five years and, through the lens of 'passionate scholarship', provide a challenging assessment of the complex practical and ethical issues facing older people, and those who conduct research on ageing, in the 21st century. The contributions extend the critical gerontological approach conceptually, methodologically and practically. They offer close and scholarly analysis of policies affecting the lives of older people and provide insights into why research is done in particular ways. Special attention is paid to feminist contributions and new approaches to working in partnership with older people; age discrimination and ageism; the impact of neo-liberal policies and the passage of various human rights instruments; the re-medicalisation of later life; the participation of older people in research; and justice between generations.
Human rights enforcement agencies and the protection of older workers against discrimination: the case of the Quebec Human Rights Commission
- Author:
- FIRBANK Oscar E.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Aging and Social Policy, 12(3), 2001, pp.65-86.
- Publisher:
- Routledge
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
The article provides insight into the way a human rights enforcement agency, the Quebec Human Rights Commission in Canada, implements legal dispositions prohibiting age discrimination in employment. Drawing on data from claims filed before the Commission, the article establishes a quantitative profile of cases and examines the factors that are involved in the decisions made by the Commission. It is argued that (1) the Commission's approach in investigating age discrimination cases and (2) the burden of proof put on respondents are main contributing factors to a very limited number of cases being validated. However, despite apparent shortcomings, the Commission still fulfills an important role in defending and promoting older workers' rights. Its overall impact can be assessed only in connection with other social and employment policies geared at older workers. In conclusion, some recommendations to improve the functioning of the Commission are made.
From exclusion to inclusion in old age: a global challenge
- Authors:
- SCHARF Thomas, KEATING Norah C.
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- Publication year:
- 2012
- Pagination:
- 192p.
- Place of publication:
- Bristol
Accumulating evidence of widening inequalities in later life is raising concerns about the ways in which older adults might experience forms of social exclusion. These concerns are evident in all societies coming to terms with the ageing of their populations. Taking a broad international perspective, the editors examine the patterns and processes that either place groups of older adults at risk of exclusion or are conducive to their inclusion. Chapters by leading international experts challenge traditional understandings of exclusion in relation to ageing. They also present new evidence of the interplay between social institutions, policy processes, personal resources and the lived contexts of individual ageing to show how this shapes inclusion or exclusion. Among the topics discussed are: globalisation, new patterns of exclusion and inclusion, age discrimination, human rights and ethics frameworks, intergenerational relationships, poverty, developing economies, built environments, and migration.
The Human Rights Act: what are the implications for older people?; a Help the Aged seminar at Westminster on 13th September 2000
- Author:
- HELP THE AGED
- Publisher:
- Help the Aged
- Publication year:
- 2001
- Pagination:
- 14p.
- Place of publication:
- London
Describes a Help the Aged seminar held at Westminster on the thirteenth of September, 2000. Delegates agreed on the need for a greater awareness of the provisions of the Human Rights Act, and extensive training with specific guidelines for those working with older people. Topics addressed included; key concepts; implications of the Act; how the Act can help in practical situations; the role of Help the Aged.