Civil Human Rights: North Korea Vs Canada
Canada as a nation is very well known for its respected democracy. Many of the problems the rest of the world suffers from do not occur in Canada because of one enactment. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms is thought to be one of the best things in the entire world to be created. It ties in with democracy and provides all Canadians with rights to make everyone respected in a democracy as they should be. Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms is what people look up to as a proper democracy as it states necessary human rights that complete the definition of a unified country. The Charter was put into action in April 17, 1982, consisting of seven categories that are meant to allow citizens to have a role in the government system. Fundamental, democratic, language, mobility, minority language educational, legal, and equality rights all separate into multiple highlights that gave every citizen an infinite amount of civil liberties. The Constitution Act that had started Canada off as a country was replaced with this new Charter. The current Prime Minister at that time, Pierre Elliot Trudeau believed that the protection of citizens was important to how the country is run and developed the Charter that guaranteed rights and freedoms to every citizen. Queen Elizabeth II signed the Charter in 1982 and it was official. The Charter did not start off perfect, but it’s small pathway of progress, care, and dedication to its citizens is a factor not all countries take into account. For instance, North Korea to the rest of the world is shown as a communist country where the people are forced to live under the shadow of the government. There is no such thing as freedom to any of its citizens. The needed human rights are not possible to be given as the government has created a wall between them and the rest of the world. Their fundamental right of media and equality rights as discrimination has no means in any of the knowledge they have, as they live under only one right, the government.
In the eyes of the rest of the world, North Korea is almost completely closed off. The whole role of the right for media to report on anything is non-existent in North Korea. This fundamental right is for media to not have any restrictions or censorship in what they report on. It is a source of communication to the rest of the world. It is very hard for even one message to go through from a neighboring country. This example was shown in the documentary made by National Geographic. When a simple message cannot go through, the only form of communication is cut off. The government of North Korea uses the limit of education about the rest of the world in the country to take control over his totalitarian government type. A totalitarian government is one that takes control of everything their citizens do. Controlling how much media is spread across the country is another source to indicate the amount of power he has. The amount of power he has over the citizens of North Korea emphasizes the fear and can make sure that the people are under his control and follow every instruction he asks. This fear that the government has is shown through the video when the people who were cured of their blindness made a big show for their gratitude towards the government instead of the eye doctor who was the one who really cured their sight. Throughout this ceremony, the documentary mentioned that these extreme levels of thanks is to indicate whether the citizens are truly thankful for the government or are acting in a sense of fear. If the government were to lose this source of control over the citizens, then the power shown through government control would be gone. Therefore making a harsh communist country the Kim family has tried so hard to take control of lost power. In addition, many North Koreans do not know what is happening in the outside world. If the wall is shut, then both sides of it lose the source of communication and awareness. As the government is in control of what every citizen does, he also controls everything that the North Koreans can and can not watch. An article from BBC states that because North Korea is a communist country, “All TVs and radios are tuned to state channels and people caught listening to foreign broadcasts face harsh punishments.” However, because North Korea is a third-world country, many of its citizens can not afford any TVs to get any of the news. This is a move that I believe is played by the government. If the citizens can not get the main source of communication, then no dangerous communication or knowledge of something will be delivered. Letting media be able to report on anything without censorship is crucial in a democracy is that everyone knows what is going on. No false accusations or any hiding of information can happen. Lying to the citizens about something when they need to have full access to what knows everything that is happening, as they are the ones who technically control what decisions should be made in a democracy. A democracy's main factor is the active participation of citizens, without understanding any problems occurring, then actions upon that matter is unable to happen.
North Korea has inflicted upon another human right which are equality rights. According to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, this right in Canada allows us to ensure that no one is discriminated against based on race, background, religion, gender, age, or mental or physical ability. Essentially everyone is treated equally without biases. The common stereotypes that people may have with others are ignored and everyone is given an equal chance. This right is important to a democracy as proper decisions can be made without thinking of minorities or other ways to judge a person. Everyone has a chance of sharing opinions. A form of discrimination is seen very often in North Korea athrough children, women, and people with disabilities. North Korea lives by stereotypes of women not being as useful as men. This is shown by the level of discrimination women have to deal with such as rape and malnutrition. Many women do not have the privilege to have an education or jobs. Most of them rely on their husbands and marry early. Due to their low status in society, they are very vulnerable and many bad problems are involved. This separation in class systems show that it is discrimination as women are not treated as well or respected as men. This is a violation of human rights in the Charter. Another example is through children as they suffer from forced labor, abuse, and harsh punishments in school. Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch says, “Forcing children to work is an egregious human rights abuse condemned worldwide, but for many North Korean students, it’s a part of their everyday life.” Children are still humans, therefore they need to be treated like humans as well. The Charter explains that discrimination against age is not tolerable, yet in North Korea, there is no right against that. Children in Canada do not have to suffer from mistreatment like the ones in North Korea. Surprisingly, there are many pictures of Kim Jong Unhappily with children, as it is a way for their country to represent a positive reputation. In Korea, children must pay for school, but because of many poor families, many cannot afford and young girls often have to give up school and start working to earn money. It is not fair how boys and children are treated this way in order to live. The government only treats the children and women this way is to separate those within the high-class system to the low. It is to create a boundary that is very hard to get out of. The government does this as a way to protect those who have more power and ensure that the amount of respect the higher classes get can help the lower classes look upon the government. If everyone were to be a high class like the government, then the amount of power Kim Jong Un has does not matter to anyone, as everyone can make their own decisions and be treated the same.
When comparing two countries such as Canada and North Korea, there are many differences as one country supposedly cares for its citizens while the other does not. Based on the terrible incidents that have happened in North Korea, we can safely assume that the human rights of people are not met and many are struggling. However, in Canada, citizens such as myself are to live in a peaceful community with rights that back up our human necessities. Based on the two reputations of each country, it is safe to say that the standard of living in Canada for anyone is much higher than in North Korea. I believe this difference between the countries mainly revolves around one difference, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Charter is there to help support citizens and protect them from any sort of suffrage. Without the Charter to help make citizens become people, then Canada can become a nation like North Korea. North Korea does not have any sort of rights like the Charter does, and citizens must live under government control, not citizen control. This means that North Korea is a communist while Canada is a democracy. Democracies have many more all-around benefits than communists do. For instance, every single person in the country has a role in the governing system. This form of government considers everyone’s beliefs and opinions, unlike communists where all the benefits go towards the government, not the citizens. Citizens should be a top priority as, without them, there wouldn’t be any governing system. For the sake of democracy, the Charter is very important as it contains its respect to everyone and citizens to have permanent rights and freedoms to make a democracy one of the best types of government systems today. Without the Charter, suffering in North Korea can occur in Canada and there would be no such thing as a democracy. Living in a country like Canada is something many of its large population take for granted. The younger generations who are born and raised in the good conditions of Canada have never experienced what it would be like without a Charter to protect their freedoms. The pain and difficulty that many of the poor, communist countries like North Korea have to deal with, is something that has never been experienced. Having to live with an unsatisfactory amount of life supplies, dirty living conditions, and being forced to live in fear 24/7 is something the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is able to refrain from happening. However, to help those people who do have to live in those conditions, the much-needed help that can be given or needed needs to be given. An example for North Korea to solve their problems can be to create a food aid that can be sent directly to the citizens in North Korea, not the government. It ensures that the citizens can get the food instead of the government taking it all. This form of aid is needed in North Korea as many of its people, especially children are malnourished. To raise awareness about the situation, the event can invite more well-known celebrities to share the information to more people. Once more people know about it, or their fans can see, they can make the choice the hep and do what their idols do as they look up to them. More people can participate in the fund and more amounts of aid can be given. This form of food aid is crucial in the help of North Korea because the main two problems North Koreans struggle with is either starvation or punishment from the government. Providing food and stopping starvation can help as it gives the North Koreans a form of human rights. A human right is to make sure that all citizens can get what they need (equality rights). Providing this aid can deliver the missing human rights that the North Koreans need.
