Social Work: A controversial Human

Rights Profession

Prof. Dr. Nivedita Prasad

Social Work: one of many Human Rights Professions

UN-Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004), Key professional groups: teachers; social workers; the medical profession; the media and

journalists; and the legal profession; (d) Organizations and groups: (i) women's organizations; (ii) indigenous peoples; (iii) minority groups; (iv) trade unions; (v) development agencies (UN 1997: para.39)

These groups are very likely to have contact to vulnerable groups and they are at risk to violate the human rights of these group in their working hours

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Social Work as a Human Rights Profession

1. Human Rights as a frame of reference

1. on the level of the profession

2. In order to define core elements of the profession

2. Human Rights as an instrument for analysing

a. to evaluate the living situation of a vulnerable group

b. As an orientation in conflicts of mandates

c. Human rights violation in the profession

d. Dealing with Dilemmas: differentiation between legal and legitimate

3. The use of the UN human rights protection system as a method in professional Social Work

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1. Human Rights as a frame of reference

On the level of the profession

In order to define core elements of the profession

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History of referring to Human Rights

Silvia Staub-Bernasconi has tracked the reference to Human Rights up to Jane Addams 1902 (Staub-Bernasconi 2017) and proved, that the idea of Social Work as a Human Rights Profession has historically been developed by many pioneers of Social Work, such as: : Janusz Korczak, Eglantine Jebb etc.

Madhav Gore explicitly connected Social Work to the UDHR in a talk at the “International Conference on Social Welfare” in Helsinki in 1968

International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW 1988): Social Work is from its core a Human Rights Profession

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Core documents of the profession leave no doubt:

1. Reference to Human Rights (not national legislation) is not a question of choice – rather a fundamental element of the profession

2. Also Social Work itself has to fulfil Human Rights' standards, such as antidiscrimination

3. Social Work has a political Mandate

4. Social work has a mandate for individual support AND structural change

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Human Rights: Interpretating core Elements of Social Work – some examples

Human Dignity– see z.B. Lecraft vs. Spain (ICCPR 1493/2006)

Participation – see Art. 12, 13, 14,15 CRC and General Comment nr. 12 CRC

Inclusion - see ICRPD – General Comment nr. 4, where the differentiation between Exclusion, Segregation, but also Integration und Inclusion are defined

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2. Human Rights as an instrument for analysing

a. to evaluate the living situation of a vulnerable group

b. As an orientation in conflicts of mandates

c. Human rights violation in the profession

d. Dealing with Dilemmas: differentiation between legal and legitimate

Examples: evaluating living circumstances Housing situation of: homeless people, Asylum seekers, people with disabilities, poor people…

vs. Right to adequate housing

Art. 11 ICESCR

Schooling situation of children with (psy.) Disabilities, undocumented children , refugee

children from so-called “safe countries of origin” … vs. Right to education

Art. 13 ICESCR, Art. 24

ICRPD, Art. 28 CRC

Deficits in violence protection, especially for women, LGTI* and children, vs. Right to be free

from violence

CEDAW und CRC

Reduction of Social Security money to a minimum, people living of the Asylum Seekers

Benefits Act … vs. Right to an adequate standard of living

Art. 9, 11 ICESCR

Poor people, homeless people, undocumented migrants, not yet acknowledged Asylum seekers,

… vs. Right to health

Art. 12 ICESCR

Denial of Methadone in prisons, fixation of people in psychiatries, „genderadjusting”

operations on children… vs. the right to be free from cruel/degrading treatment

CAT

As an orientation in conflicts of mandates&

Human Rights violations in Social Work

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Staub-Bernasconi: from a double to a triple mandate in Social work

Is it understood as „only“ working with clients on an individual level?

Or according to the global definition of the IASSW/IFSW as: a profession […] that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the

empowerment and liberation of people. Principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities are central to social work […] (IASSW/IFSW 2014)

Many Social workers have a professional understanding within which they operate with a double mandate; i.e. one mandate from the addressees and the other by their employer

Social Work as a human Rights Profession means operating with a triple mandate, which consists of scientific-based methods of intervention and the code of ethics of the profession (which includes Human rights as a core element)

A triple mandate can help to legitimate the acceptance or denial of duties and gives Social workers the possibility to define their own duties (Staub-Bernasconi 2007)

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Risk of violating peoples rights in Social Work practise

In some areas of Social Work, there is some concern, that the mandate from the state is overconsidered, especially in social work settings in „total institutions“ (see Goffman 1961 and Täubig 2009)

How do Social Workers deal with mandates from the clients, especially if these contradict the mandate of the state?

It is unclear how Social Workers serve the mandate from the side of the clients, especially when these are contradictory??

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Examples for claims/actions that contradict the mandate of SocialWork

(random) roomcontrols

Right to privacy (Art. 17 ICCPR)

Controlling the ingestion of medicine

Art. 25 (d) ICRPD: Right to heath care based on informed consent ….

Putting conditions in order to get food, toilet paper etc.

Human Dignity ?

Involvement in deportation or their preparations

See Code of ethics (para.5.2.)

The denial to give comprehensive information to pregnant women

Informed consent?

Examples for claims/actions that contradict the mandate of SocialWork

Reporting „Wrongdoings“ to authorities, with the consequence, that social security help is reduced

Right to an adequate standard of living (Art. 11 ICESCR)

Removal of headscarves as a condition in a women‘s shelter prior to counselling

Lobbying for a head scarf prohibition for girls

Art. 18 ICESCR: Freedom of religion

CRC: the right of parents

Dealing with Dilemmas: differentiation between legal and legitimate

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Not everything that is legal seems legitimate, not everything that we consider legitimate

is legal

What if:

Your law ask you to do things that you (and others) consider illegitimate?

Who/what decides what is legitimate?

Human rights can be ONE (widely accepted and state acknowledged) possible orientation

in these conflicts

Social workers in a problematic situation as they usually decide on their own, whether

they can comply to the legal framework or if there ignore this as an illegitimate claim.

They also carry the consequences of this as individuals!

Legitimate vs. legal

How do Social Workers deal with problematic demands

Some actively agree

Same just fulfil these demands

Others feel uncomfortable and try to avoid them; they secretly resist but are not actively challenging these demands and not protecting their professional standards

Very few cases documented in which demands that are not compatible with the mandate of Social Work were contradicted by using the International Code of Ethics/ Human Rights etc.

Very little Whistle Blowing, Public Awareness Work and strategic Litigation on these issues

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Fazzi: Social work under right wing populist policies

Supporters of these new policies

The Frustrated

The Pragmatist

The Activists (Professional Profile):

work mainly in municipalities of medium to large size

medium–high specialist training (continuous professional updating in the past

three years)

more advanced professional skills

professional experience in several services

more accustomed to working in teams

have greater experience of working with local associations and community

networks (Fazzi 2015: 601).

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The use of the UN human rights protection system as a method in professional Social Work

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The UN System of Human Rights Protection sets out five possibilities for filing complaints for individual and/or structural changes

A review of complaints and responses by the UN Committees shows that many case configurations overlap with each other.

Social workers can use the complaints of others as useful support material for their own cases, as long as the general parameters are comparable, see for e.g.: Lecraft vs Spain (ICCPR 1493/2006) or

González Carreño vs Spain (CEDAW 47/2012)

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Social Work: A controversial Human Rights Profession

Referring to eurocentric values?

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Knowledge neglected in hegemonic discourses

B.C. 300 : Menzgi, Successor of Confucius, who explicitly mentioned Human Dignity (Klingst 2016: 31)

kyros cylinders, B.C 538, Iran, a clay cylinder some see is as a declaration of human rights

Ibn Sina, 980-1037, Iran, physician, astronomer, thinkers and writer, ethics….

Ibn Rushd, 1126–1198, Spain and Morocco, Philosph, Doctor, mentioned freedom of religion and freedom of speech

1255 Mali: Charta von Mandén, has been passed on as a piece od oral history; the UNESCO has declared it to be world cultural heritage (Klingst 2016: 14), probably the oldest constitution, mentions the inviolability of human life, is egalitarian, and against war and slavery

Ibn Khaldun, 1332–1406, Andalusia, Tunis and Cairo

Zar'a Ya'eqob (1599–1692) who raised issues of gender equality in Ethiopia.

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Implicit contributions to the development of human rights

Bartolomé de las Casas, Antonio Vieira, Audre Lorde, Waman Puma de Ayala, Elahuda Equiano, Quobna Ottobah Cugoano, Toussaint L’Ouverture , Janusz

Korczak, Bolívar Frederick Douglas, Soujourner Truth, WEB du Bois, Martin Luther

King, Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, Frantz Fanon, Dalai Lama, Ariel Dorfman, Rigoberta Menchu….

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Human Rights : Eurocentric or a eurocentristic narrative? Example: UDHR

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Human Rights : Eurocentric or a eurocentristic narrative? Example: UDHR

Contributors to the UDHR

Roosevelt: Chairperson of the commission, which consisted of delegates form 18

nation-states for e.g.:

Hansa Mehta (India) : Genderneutrality

Peng Chun Chang (China): no reference to god/nature

Hernan Santa Cruz (Chile): socioeconomic rights

Carlos Romulo (Philippines ): Rights for colonised people

Karim Azoul (Lebanon) and the Jewish Worldcongress: unconditional right to

asylum (vgl. Joas 2011: 265ff., Joas 2011: 71ff.; Davy 2015).

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Unsolved conflicts or „Conflicts in Progress“?

Some very problematic performances of politicians, declaring themselves to be „anticolonial“ : Culturalisation by authoritative leaders, for e.g.:

Debate on „asian values“ by Lee Kuan Yew, President of Singapore vs. other „Asian voices“ , such as Kim Dae Jung, a south Korean politician: Asian values serve ideological purposes (von Albertini Mason 2004: 112)

„Imperialism ‚disguised‘ as Human Rights Politics “ (Pollmann 2012: 333)

Critique on Migrationregimes of the West

Conflict: Universality vs. Cultural relativism, especially on the women's rights issues

Theoretical reference: needs vs. wishes ( Obrecht)

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Social Work: A controversial Human Rights Profession

Critical voices from within the profession

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Critical voices from within the profession

overburdens practitioners

Yes, if curricula remain as they are

Internalized picture of Social work as a simple job?

Social workers will be disappointed, as the way to the UN is very complicated

Individual complaints yes. But not passive use

Other complaint mechanisms easier accessible

social justice is the more relevant frame of reference for the profession

What about the invisibility of human rights and its core values??

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Critical voices from within the profession

This (third mandate) is a pretension Which mandate does social work have?

For sure its is not easy and not be done just by the way…

But it enables people without access to rights to realistically try to get rights and

Helps social workers survive the assumed hopelessness…

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Implication of a Human Rights Based Approach to Social Work

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Fazzi: Strategies of resistance

1. exploitation of the margins of discretion

2. an increase of trade union political commitment. Some cases of hindering or obstructing the implementation of political decisions. (cf. Fazzi 2015: 603)

3. construction of alliances with the third sector and civil society.

4. an attempt to establish dialogue with the new political administrators in order to separate the symbolic dimension of discriminatory politics from the practical one (Fazzi 2015: 603)

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Implications in the field

Implementation in practice:

The identification of human rights violations suffered by their target groups and

(non-discriminatory) Public debates on these issues,

Showing structural side of the problem

Looking for individual AND structural solutions

Considering human right decisions

(public) refusal of unethical (and/or human rights violating) practices

Maybe a renaissance of acts of civil disobedience

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Implication for universities

Putting all this in curricula!

education on human rights

education through human rights

and (education for human rights).

Strengthening the Political mandate of social work, also teaching methods such as:

Lobby, advocacy, strategic litigation, whistle blowing…

Supporting social workers and target groups

Position papers

Critical monitoring

Utopia: A Redressal Commission for complaints against Social workers

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Literature

Allgemeine Bemerkung Nr. 12 des Kinderrechtsausschusses. Eine deutsche Übersetzung der ganzen Allgemeinen Bemerkung findet sich bei: http://www.national-coalition.de/pdf/PDFs_23_11_10/GC12_DEU.pdf

Davvy, Ulrike (2015): Der „Universalismus der Allgemeinen Erklärung der Human Rights . Die Arbeit am Konsens 1946 –1948. In: Heintz/Bettina/Leisering, Britta (Hrsg.): Human Rights in der Weltgesellschaft. Frankfurt/New York: Campus

DIMR (2012): was ist Inklusion? Berlin: DIMR

Fazzi, Luca (2015): Social work, exclusionary populism and xenophobia in Italy. In: International Social Work 2015, Vol. 58(4) 595– 605

Goffman, Erving (2012)[1961] : Asyle. Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp.

Gore, M.S. (1969) ‘Social Work and its Human Rights Aspects’, in Social Welfare and Human Rights, Proceedings of the Fourteenth International Conference on Social Welfare (August 1968, Helsinki, Finland), pp. 56–68. New York: Columbia University Press for ICSW

Großmaß, Ruth (2010): Social Work - eine Human Rights Profession? : zur ethischen Dimension der beruflichen Praxis. In: Geißler-Piltz, Brigitte/Räbiger, Jutta (Hrsg.): Social Work grenzenlos. Opladen: Budrich UniPress

ICRPD (2016): General comment No. 4 on the right to inclusive education

IASSW und IFSW (2004): Ethics in Social Work. Adelaide; für eine deutsche Übersetzung siehe: Deutscher Berufsverband für Social Work e.V. (DBSH): Grundlagen für die Arbeit des DBSH, Berlin, 2009

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Literature

IASSW und IFSW (2004a): Global standards for the education and training of the Social work profession, Adelhaide

IASSW/IFSW und ICSW (2010): Global agenda

IASSW und IFSW (2014): Definition Social Work

International Federation of Social Workers, Europe: Standards in Social work practice meeting human rights (2010), Berlin

Möhring-Hesse, Matthias (2010): Wie Gerechtigkeit in die Social Work kommt. In Blätter der Wohlfahrtspflege, 1/2010 S. 12-14

Pollmann, Arndt (2012): Kontroversen. Universalismus, Kulturalismus, Relativismus. In: Pollmann, Arndt/Lohmann, Georg (Hrsg.) (2012): Human Rights . In Interdisziplinäres Handbuch. Stuttgart & Weimar: J.B. Metzler

Joas, Hans (2015) : Sind die Human Rights westlich. München: Kösel

Joas, Hans (2011): Die Sakralität der Person. Eine neue Genealogie der Human Rights , Berlin: Suhrkamp

Klingst, Martin (2016): Human Rights . 100 Seiten. Stuttgart: Reclam

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Literature

Rabe, Heike (2014):CEDAW-Ausschuss zum Verhältnis von Schutz vor häuslicher Gewalt und Umgangsrecht – Rüge für Spanien wegen Verletzung der Konvention, 20.8.2014 http://www.institut-fuer-Human Rights.de/aktuell/news/meldung/article/cedaw-ausschuss-zum-verhaeltnis-von-schutz-vor-haeuslicher-gewalt-und-umgangsrecht-ruege-fuer-s.html

Staub-Bernasconi, Silvia (2007): Vom beruflichen Doppel- zum professionellen Tripelmandat – Wissenschaft und Human Rights als Begründungsbasis der Profession Social Work, In: Sozialarbeit in Österreich (SIÖ), H. 2, 2007, S. 8-17.

Staub-Bernasconi (2017): Human Rights in der Sozialen Arbeit – ein historischer Überblick. In Alice SoSe2017. S. 26-27

Staub-Bernasconi, Silvia (im Erscheinen): Social Work und Human Rights

Spatschek, Christian/Thiessen, Barbara (Hrsg.) (2017): Inklusion und Social Work. Opladen/Belrin/Toronto: Barbara Budrich Verlag

Täubig Vicki (2009): Totale Institution Asyl. Empirische Befunde zu alltäglichen Lebensführungen in der organisierten Desintegration, Weinheim: Juventa Verlag

United Nations (1997): United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004) and public information activities in the field of human rights. A/52/469/Add.1

Von Albertini Mason, Babetta (2004) : Human Rights aus westlicher und asiatischer Sicht. Genf: Schulthess

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Alice Salomon Hochschule Berlin

University of Applied Sciences

Thank you very much for your attention!

Prof. Dr. Nivedita Prasad

Alice Salomon Hochschule

Alice-Salomon-Platz 5

D-12627 Berlin

Prasad@ash-berlin.eu

www.ash-berlin.eu