Sanctions and Human Rights

Economic sanctions have been effective in a number of cases in which they have been imposed solely for the purpose of promoting human rights and they have been sustained for substantial periods and modified from time to time to reflect changes in the human rights situation in the target countries. The essay cites Myanmar, South Africa and Poland as countries in which sanctions met these criteria. It also cites Cuba and China as targets of sanctions that did not meet those criteria and where countries failed to promote human rights.