HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY: GLOBAL THREATS

Abstract

The article is devoted to the analysis of the state of restriction of human rights in a democratic

society in the context of globalization changes of modern times and their impact on social and legal reality. The modern paradigm of public policy in democratic states is based on the idea that human rights are legally binding on member states through international treaties and national legislation. State institutions and persons acting on behalf of the state are obliged to respect, protect, and fulfill human rights regardless of socio-political circumstances. It is noted, that until recently, democracy as a form of public-governing relations has spread in most countries worldwide, but the pandemic threat has transformed the law. Globalization affects all spheres of society, migration processes, the threat of a pandemic, and now military conflicts have caused a significant limitation of the entire system of human rights. It has been proven that the change of legal factors to ensure public health demonstrated an unprecedented problem - a significant restriction of human rights in all states, spheres and at all levels. Democracy is under serious threat once again. Governments' legal policies, connected with the pandemic were similar to martial law, characterized by measures that severely curtailed the enjoyment of personal liberties to a level unprecedented in peacetime democracies. Also, political rights at the state level were "postponed". However, not only the social-communicative or labor sphere predicted the limitation of human rights. It has been proven that the democratic values developed by humanity over the years at the current stage of the development of the international legal system should be transformed and limited. The pandemic threat has become a challenge for the realization of the political rights of citizens, and the experience of many states proves a significant gap in legal regulation and balanced policy. The threat to public health is used as a factor to ensure the power interests of the ruling elite, provokes the impossibility of the proper realization of the rights and freedoms of citizens, and creates informational closure of public authorities. Therefore, proper regulation of crisis phenomena and the development of common standards are essential for the ability to counter future threats of a global nature.