What Should States Not Do?

States exercise a certain amount of power, but there are also certain limits on this power. Limits have been created by "social norms and expectations," and one of these social norms is that violating human rights is unjust. Thus, a state's power must be limited so it will not violate its citizens' or other people's rights.

We know that the violation of human rights is unjust and a problem because organizations like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch exist. Philosophers, like John Locke, have provided the basis that all humans are entitled t0 the basic rights of life, liberty, and property. States often exercise too much power and this results in the violation of human rights. For example, 83 Zimbabwe activists were "arbitrarily" arrested at a peaceful demonstration outside the Zimbabwean Parliament, according to Amnesty International. The arrests were deemed "arbitrary" because they were "aimed at restricting the rights to freedom of expression and assembly," according to Michelle Kagari, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s Africa Program; the demonstrators were not instigating violence. The Zimbabwean police's power and more generally, the state's power were not limited in this case and it resulted in the violation of the Zimbabwean citizens' right to assembly and freedom of speech.

Therefore, states should not violate human rights. A state's power should be limited, so that the state's citizens' rights are not infringed upon and other state's citizens' rights are not violated either.

http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/zimbabwe-must-release-83-activists-detained-peaceful-demonstration-2010-09-20