Non-person Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
The term non-person is used in situations where actual persons lack, lose or are forcibly denied or stripped off their identity and very often denied their most basic human rights or other person oriented services and treatments.
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There are many possible meanings associated with the term "non person", with some being more dramatic than others.
It can be argued that many people born (and deceased) in some of the so-called
"Third World" countries have never had their birth or death registered by any official (statal or other) institution and thus those people never
"figured out" anywhere, which is almost equivalent to non-existence and thus it would be very difficult to grant them what would be considered as basic human rights, human dignity etc.
Though rare, there are examples of "non-persons" even in the
so-called "western" industrialized countries. In general, a person not showing out on any official document, not economically or socially active or living outside of what is defined the "productive system" or "organized society" could classify as a non-person, as it would be
very hard or even impossible for that person to claim any political, legal or constitutional rights (as well as being apparently unbound by any legal duties
or obligations). This is often the case of homeless and marginal people in general such as "hobos", "tramps" etc.
Also, some legally detained prisoners can be considered to be in a quasi non-person status, temporarily or indefinitively, to different extents depending on the reasons and conditions of detention. For example, in most countries ordinary prisoners are denied any political rights like voting while in the most severe cases total or partial isolation from the outside world can be inflicted.
The "non person" status can also be consciously or unconsciously applied to
unwanted persons (demonizing them) by their surrounding society. Such can be the case of a state versus homeless or marginal people or it can be extended and applied versus an entire nation or ethnic group, as it often happens in wars or other conflicts.
This was the case for example of the Nazi state versus the Jews or of most societies versus the Gypsies, but it is often applied in times of war versus the enemy nation, by stripping its people of their "person status" and demonizing them, making them appear like monsters (not humans) and thus indirectly justifying any excess or abuse committed against them.
It can be argued that the "non-person" status, apart from the Nazi camps, can be found in its most literal form when considering certain prisoners of war, especially if they are or are considered to be illegal combatants. An example of that could be the
Guantanamo bay prison where several people from all over the world are supposedly held without precise charges against them, are denied any form of access to the outside world (and viceversa) and are in an unclear/controversial legal status, apart from partial or total anonymity. This is an Article on Non-person. Page Contains Information, Facts Details or Explanation Guide About Non-person Cases
The case of prison camps
One example are the Nazi extermination camps, in which the
Jewish prisoners were treated as "non persons", since the purpose of these camps was to anonymize, use and dispose of the "unwanted elements" in the most "efficient" way possible. This was required as the "non person" status easily removes moral and social obstacles for committing questionable acts of violence, crime and abuse.The case of the "Third World"
The case of the "civilized" world
Demonization