To counteract/reduce the very few people who would try to apply barbaric traditional practices like 'honor killings', make all people who want to enter the country do a test on 'human rights' (the UN Declaration of Human Rights).
It shall have questions that ask the testees what they would do/think in a particular event. (e.g. their child is gay or different from their cultural background )
This is better than 'citizenship test' as a country's value is subjective and is dependent on a person's politics. Human rights on the other hand is meant to be universal.
If they are accepted but ends up committing hate crimes ( e.g. honor killings ), then they will not just get prosecuted, but also have to stand in front of a committee to determined if their citizenship should be revoked (doing the test is equivalent to signing a contract of understanding/acceptance of the clauses in human rights).
p.s. Wonder if normal home grown citizens should have similar tests.-- mofosyne, Dec 21 2011 UN Declaration on Human Rights http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/How many of the 30 articles do you know? [DrBob, Dec 22 2011] This would work flawlessly.-- MaxwellBuchanan, Dec 21 2011 I have seen people rambling about Sharia law coming to America on the news, but I didn't expect to find any of them on the halfbakery.-- DIYMatt, Dec 22 2011 I heard that immigrants from non-Christian countries weigh the same as a duck.
The point being that if people are coming into your country to live, it's highly likely that your country will have a well-developed criminal justice system, which should be the key plank in deterring and preventing people acting other than in accordance with the law. There is no crime in thinking that honour killings are a legit parenting technique. The crime lies in carrying them out. Weeding people out on the basis of beliefs means that you establish the beginnings of a state moral philosophy that goes beyond protection of property and, as I understand it, the US constitution is drafted in a way that seeks to preclude this.-- calum, Dec 22 2011 I would ask the question " Do you believe people should be excluded from entering this country on the basis of their beliefs?"-- hippo, Dec 22 2011 hippo - if their belief includes going against the "UN Declaration of Human Rights" then it should count against them entering.
21 Quest - If they lie, we can show them that they are acting like a hypocrite if they completed the test. This is since the test is essentially to see if they understand and can comprehend what is "human rights" and how it apply to life.
Btw "UN Declaration of Human Rights" is universal and is ratified in most countries. If governments are beholden to that charter, then why not individuals?-- mofosyne, Dec 22 2011 //barbaric traditional practices // What, like 'waterboarding' you mean?-- DrBob, Dec 22 2011 Which language would the exam be give in?
This should be a requirement to be allowed to vote. We'd have to throw at least one political party of citizens out.-- RayfordSteele, Dec 22 2011 [A Kimbo] Yes, or a belief that others should be excluded on the basis of their beliefs is in itself a sufficient belief to exclude that person from the country.-- hippo, Dec 22 2011 What about the internet practice of honor flaming? Hmm, that seemed funny when I wrote it, but it doesn't any more. Sorry, cold medication.-- normzone, Dec 22 2011 //cold medication// Try warming it in your hand before inserting.-- spidermother, Dec 23 2011 Which I believe is one of the exams immigrants must undergo.-- Alterother, Dec 23 2011 random, halfbakery