Implementing Human Rights and the Societal Impediments to Sustainable Change in Latin America

This article deals with the importance and difficulty of implementing and enforcing human rights values, standards, and norms to protect people from abuse by state institutions. The responsibility of the state in maintaining order and implementing the rule of law is acknowledged. This is then extended to one of the state agencies charged with the maintenance of public order: the police. Police compliance with human rights standards is imperative if human rights are to be protected. This article discusses what police compliance with certain rights could entail. This is followed by a look at the role of the police in society and the societal and institutional realities that impede the implementation of police human rights strategies in Latin America. The implementation of these strategies have sparked debates on the implementation of human rights, inequality, security, and the hurdles to police reform in Latin America.