With the rapidly increasing interdependence of all people who inhabit the planet Earth, it has become widely accepted that the ways in which a country acts toward its own citizens may also have important consequences for citizens of other countries. More particularly, a state that systematically represses the fundamental rights of its own subjects is apt to be viewed as a potential threat to the peace and security of other states as well. This view is supported by the United Nations Charter, which expressly links the cause of human rights with the cause of world peace.