comparative frame analysis of state party reports related to the international covenant on civil and political rights

Abstract

Globalization is characterized by the growing interconnectedness between states and societies, which facilitates transnational flows, networks, and fundamental movements that transform the meaning of nation-states (Aas, 2013: 227). It is important to understand the impact of these processes on international policy and law. One area of international law impacted by globalization are laws pertaining to human rights. These laws have been established in the form of various treaties and human rights institutions, which articulate a global human rights standard. There is much debate about human rights standards, including the charge that these laws propagate western ethnocentric values and that this universal implementation is problematic. This study explores cultural contexts and the implementation of human rights law through a comparative frame analysis of International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights state party reports. This comparative analysis utilizes the most recent state party reports for the United States, Turkey, and Namibia. Findings suggest that these state party reports reflect a process of cultural framing and that the responses within the reports can be characterized as primarily symbolic in nature. It is concluded that differing cultural contexts for each country analyzed produce reports that reflect a legally cynical response to the human rights standards set forth by the ICCPR.