International Human Rights in a Nutshell
Authors:
Buergenthal, Thomas / Shelton, Dinah / Stewart, David P. / Vazquez, Carlos M.
Edition:
5th
Copyright Date:
2017
15 chapters
have results for human Rights
Chapter 7. Non-State Actors 82 results (showing 5 best matches)
- The International Service for Human Rights
- Sets of relevant principles have been adopted by human rights bodies, trade associations, and economic organizations. In 2011, the UN Human Rights Council endorsed the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which were developed by John Ruggie, the Special Representative of the Secretary General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations. The first formal set of guidelines endorsed by the UN, the Principles speak broadly to the role human rights should play in business. They address the obligations of business entities as well as states, providing for example that “[b]usiness enterprises should respect human rights. This means that they should avoid infringing on the human rights of others and should address adverse human rights impacts with which they are involved.” (Principle 11.) They also encourage the establishment of various dispute (grievance) resolution mechanisms. Although nonbinding, the Guiding Principles have made a very
- The term “NGO” is generally understood to exclude entities established by governments or through intergovernmental agreements, as well as private for-profit enterprises. Nevertheless, human rights NGOs come in all sizes and varieties. They can be classified in several categories. On the one hand, generalist NGOs have broad mandates and agendas, covering all categories of human rights, i.e., civil and political, economic, social and cultural rights ( Human Rights Watch or the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)). They may act domestically or internationally. By contrast, specialized NGOs have specific mandates, for example covering a particular human rights treaty (the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights) or a specific right (the right to health or water or housing or a clean environment) or the rights of a specific category of persons (such as women, children, persons with disabilities, minorities, indigenous peoples ( ...Rights Group International). Some NGOs...
- At its origins, international human rights law addressed the relationship between governments and their citizens, and in consequence it focused primarily on the duties and responsibilities of states and state entities. Over time, however, the development of international norms, institutions and procedures for the promotion and protection of human rights has gone hand in hand with an expansion in the scope of application of human rights principles. As a result, the field of international human rights law today encompasses a wide variety of non-state actors.
- Even in 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognized that governments and individual citizens are not the only human rights stakeholders. It describes human rights as
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Preface 4 results
- At the same time, the international community continues its efforts to strengthen the normative and institutional framework for dealing with human rights problems. The United Nations adopted new agreements addressing forced disappearances and protecting the rights of migrant workers and the disabled. At the regional level, the Council of Europe adopted a Convention against Trafficking in Human Beings, while the African system concluded agreements on the rights of women and the rights and welfare of children. The revised Arab Charter on Human Rights entered into force, while the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) adopted a basic treaty containing human rights provisions and also adopted a convention on migrant workers. Institutionally, the United Nations human right treaty bodies have continued to strengthen their monitoring functions while the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has further promoted the world-wide enjoyment of human rights through the...
- The fifth edition of this book follows the basic format of the previous editions. The purpose of the book remains the same: both to serve as a self-contained introduction to the international law of human rights and to complement other course materials by providing the reader with a concise overview of human rights norms and the institutional context within which they evolve. The book continues to grow in size, however, to take account of many new developments in the field.
- The fourth edition was published in 2009. While the geo-political changes that have occurred in the past seven years have been less dramatic than those that took place during the interval between the first and second editions (which saw the collapse of the Soviet empire, the end of the Cold War, and the abolition of apartheid in South Africa), they are nonetheless important in the evolution of international human rights law. As was the case for the interval between the third and fourth editions, continuing internal and international armed conflicts have brought increased attention to the interaction of humanitarian law and international human rights law. In particular, the disastrous civil war in Syria and other conflicts in the Mid-East, Africa and Central Asia) have created humanitarian crises unparalleled since the end of World War II. Human rights and fundamental freedoms remain under threat in every corner of the globe, and the international community continues to struggle to...
- As with the fourth edition, the length of this book has unavoidably grown in order to take account of the continuing expansion of international human rights norms and institutions. Some chapters have been extensively revised, especially those on the United Nations and the regional systems. The chapter on domestic implementation of human rights law in the United States has similarly been updated. We have chosen to omit the discussion of international humanitarian law in preference to a more extensive discussion of the role of non-state actors, particularly non-governmental organizations, in the international field. In short, the revisions take account of many developments and institutions that are new or that have gained greater importance since the publication of the fourth edition.
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Chapter 2. The United Nations Human Rights System 224 results (showing 5 best matches)
- The International Bill of Human Rights consists of the human rights provisions of the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the two International Covenants on Human Rights. , “The International Bill of Rights:
- In addition to the supervisory bodies that have been established under UN human rights treaties, there also exist within the UN framework various institutions and procedures which have their constitutional basis in the Charter of the United Nations itself. This is true of such major human rights organs as the UN Human Rights Council, the Commission on the Status of Women, and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Indeed, it is true of all the main organs of the United Nations, which over time have expanded their consideration of human rights issues. This section describes the institutions and the procedures for addressing human rights under the Charter, especially in regard to so-called gross violations of human rights. For a more comprehensive overview,
- ) promote human rights education and advisory services, technical assistance and capacity-building; ( ) discuss thematic issues on all human rights; ( ) make recommendations to the General Assembly for the further development of international law in the field of human rights; ( ) promote the implementation by States of their human rights obligations and commitments made at United Nations conferences and summits; ( ) undertake a universal periodic review of each State’s implementation of its human rights obligations and commitments; ( ) act to prevent human rights violations and respond promptly to human rights emergencies; and ( ) make recommendations with regard to the promotion and protection of human rights. One year after holding its first meeting, on 18 June 2007, the Council adopted its “Institution-building package” providing elements to guide it in its future work.
- Alston, “The Commission on Human Rights,” , at 138. Resolution 1235 permitted the Commission to examine publicly certain gross violations of human rights that came to its attention, whereas Resolution 1503 established a limited confidential petition system for dealing with communications that “reveal a consistent pattern” of such violations. In establishing “standards and criteria” for the admissibility of human rights complaints, Sub-Commission Resolution 1 (XXIV) of August 13, 1971, referred to “the relevant principles of the Charter, of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and of other applicable instruments in the field of human rights.” Res. 1 (XXIV) at para. 1(a). The General Assembly resolution creating the Human Rights Council expressly authorized it to continue examining gross violations of human rights. Human Rights Council Resolution 5/1, establishing the HRC’s new complaints procedure, is modeled on Resolution 1503.
- The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, created in 1945, includes human rights within its mandate to promote education, science and culture. , “UNESCO Procedures for the Protection of Human Rights,”
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Chapter 1. Historical Antecedents of International Human Rights Law 38 results (showing 5 best matches)
- The question of human rights obligations of other non-state actors, especially intergovernmental organizations and business entities, has emerged in recent years as these actors have become more active and powerful. , “The UN Human Rights Norms for Corporations: The Private Implications of Public International Law,” 6 Hum. Rts. L. Rev. 477 (2006); . While only states are party to human rights treaties, the obligations contained in these agreements usually require the parties to act with due diligence to protect human rights not only against state action, but also against private conduct that violates the guaranteed rights. Velásquez Rodríguez v. Honduras , 4 IA Ct.H.R. (Ser. C)(1988). In 2011, the UN Human Rights Council endorsed the “Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights,” which were developed by John Ruggie, the Special Representative of the Secretary General on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations. While recognizing that states have the primary duty...
- This chapter describes the principal historical antecedents of the modern international law of human rights. As used in this book, the international law of human rights is defined as the law concerned with the protection of individuals and groups against violations of their internationally guaranteed rights, and with the promotion of these rights. This branch of the law is sometimes also referred to as the international protection of human rights or international human rights law. Although scholars might disagree over whether one or the other of these labels is more appropriate, they are used interchangeably in this book.
- Although humanitarian law predates the development of international human rights law and had some influence on it, common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, various provisions of the most recent Protocols mirror the principles underlying modern international human rights instruments.
- As we shall see in the chapters that follow, modern international human rights law differs most significantly from its historical antecedents in today recognizing that individual human beings have internationally guaranteed rights as individuals and not as nationals of a particular state. A growing number of international institutions now have jurisdiction to protect individuals against human rights violations committed by their state of nationality as well as by any other state. Although the remedies often remain inadequate or ineffective, the vast body of international human rights law now in existence—as well as the great increase in the number of international institutions designed to implement that law—have internationalized the subject of human rights beyond all expectations. This development has in turn produced a political climate in which the protection of human rights has become one of the most important items on the agenda of contemporary international political discourse...
- Traditional international law developed various doctrines and institutions designed to protect different groups of human beings: slaves, minorities, certain native populations, foreign nationals, victims of massive violations, combatants, etc. That law and practice provided the conceptual and institutional underpinnings for the development of contemporary international human rights law. Moreover, many of the older institutions and doctrines continue to exist side-by-side with, or form an inherent part of, the modern international law of human rights. For certain matters, that law has been profoundly influenced by its antecedents. An awareness of the historical roots of modern international law of human rights will consequently give the reader a deeper understanding of that law.
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Chapter 5. The African and Other Regional Systems 92 results (showing 5 best matches)
- The African Human Rights Judicial System: Streamlining Structures and Domestication Mechanisms Viewed From the Foreign Affairs Power
- The second major development was the decision of the League’s Council in 2014 to adopt a Statute for an Arab Court of Human Rights, providing for the first time an institution to hear claims of human rights violations. . The Statute confirms “that Arab Conventions on human rights to which relevant States are party, including the Arab Charter on Human Rights, constitute the legal framework for the human being in the Arab States to enjoy and practice his/her rights,” and that “the setting up of an Arab Court of Human Rights will help to achieve the purposes and objectives of the Arab Charter on Human Rights.”
- The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights—sometimes referred to as the “Banjul Charter”—was adopted in 1981 and entered into force on October 21, 1986. It established a system for the protection and promotion of human rights that was designed to function within the institutional framework of the Organization of African Union (OAU), a regional intergovernmental organization that came into being in 1963. In particular, the Charter created the African Commission of Human and Peoples’ Rights (“African Commission”), which since its inauguration in 1987 has served as the principal regional human rights mechanism. The eleven-member Commission sits in Banjul, The Gambia and has responsibility for the protection and promotion of human and people’s rights and the interpretation of the Charter.
- While the Constitutive Act makes no explicit reference to the African Commission and no provision for any new human rights bodies, it does give a more prominent place to human rights. Member States express that they are “determined to promote and protect human and peoples’ rights, consolidate democratic institutions and culture and to ensure good governance and the rule of law.” The AU Objectives (Article 3) and Principles (Article 4) include the need to “promote peace, security and stability on the continent” with a recognized need to “encourage international co-operation, taking due account of the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights” and to “promote and protect human and peoples’ rights in accordance with the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and other relevant human rights instruments.” States should promote gender equality, have “respect for democratic principles, human rights, the rule of law and good governance, respect the...
- The powers conferred by Article 45 gain special importance because of the unusual lawmaking mandate embodied in Articles 60 and 61 of the Charter. Article 60 declares that “the Commission shall draw inspiration from international law on human and peoples’ rights. . . .” It then lists, by way of illustration, the normative sources of that law, making specific mention of the UN and OAU Charters, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, African instruments on human and peoples’ rights and “other instruments adopted by the United Nations and by African countries in the field of human and peoples’ rights as well as from the provisions of various instruments adopted within the Specialized Agencies of the United Nations of which the parties to the present Charter are members.” This provision is amplified by Article 61, which permits the Commission “to take into consideration, as subsidiary measures to determine the principles of law,” various other human rights agreements to which the...
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Chapter 3. The European System for the Protection of Human Rights 156 results (showing 5 best matches)
- The sections that follow review the evolution of the European human rights system. They also examine the impact of the European Convention of Human Rights on the human rights actions of the European Union and describe the human dimension component of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
- Law of the European Convention on Human Rights
- The Council also has promoted human rights through activities undertaken without the need to conclude additional treaties. It created the post of Commissioner for Human Rights on May 7, 1999. The Commissioner is elected by the Parliamentary Assembly from a list of candidates drawn up by the Committee of Ministers and serves a non-renewable six-year term. The Commissioner serves independently and impartially as “a non-judicial institution to promote education in, awareness of and respect for human rights, as embodied in the human rights instruments of the Council of Europe.” The functions of the Commissioner are thus primarily promotional and preventive; she cannot accept communications from individuals or groups. Committee of Ministers Resolution (99) 50 on the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights. The successive Commissioners have undertaken fact-finding missions, ...in Chechnya, the treatment of migrant workers and the Roma in Italy, and the situation of human...
- The Council’s human rights system began with the adoption of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms on November 4, 1950 guaranteeing some core civil and political rights and creating monitoring institutions. Commonly referred to as the European Convention on Human Rights, this Convention remains the centerpiece of the European human rights system. Fourteen protocols to the Convention have lengthened the list of guaranteed rights and strengthened the institutional framework to supervise implementation and compliance by the Contracting Parties; two further protocols, adopted in 2013, are not yet in force. The Council proclaimed economic and social rights in the 1961 European Social Charter and later protocols.
- The 1992 Treaty of European Union made human rights an obligation of the Union, Consolidated Version of the Treaty on the European Union, O.J. C 321 E/1 (2006). The 1999 Treaty of Amsterdam formally incorporated human rights by requiring that the “union shall respect fundamental rights, as guaranteed by the European Convention. . .as general principles of Community law.” Treaty of Amsterdam, O.J. C 340/1 (1997), art. 6. In addition, human rights clauses are included in over fifty community trade or aid agreements with foreign states.
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Chapter 4. The Inter-American Human Rights System 105 results (showing 5 best matches)
- The Charter-based human rights norms and institutions of the inter-American system have evolved over nearly seventy years. Legal and political events contributed to its evolution. The major legal developments include the promulgation of the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man (“Declaration”), the establishment of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (“Commission”), the 1970 amendment of the OAS Charter, and the entry into force of the American Convention on Human Rights.
- As a Charter organ, the Commission (IACHR) performs a variety of functions, including promotional and consultative activities. It has helped draft OAS human rights instruments, including the American Convention on Human Rights, and it is regularly consulted by the OAS Permanent Council and the General Assembly on human rights issues. It also sponsors conferences and publishes human rights documents and pamphlets.
- On different occasions during its existence, the Commission has played an important role in mediating and protecting human rights during internal and international armed conflicts and hostage seizures. IACHR, “Reports of the Activities of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in the Dominican Republic (June 1 to August 31, 1965 and September 1, 1965 to July 6, 1966),” in
- , “The Inter-American Human Rights System,” in H. Hannum
- The Convention provides for the establishment of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IA Ct.H.R.), and confers on them “competence with respect to matters relating to the fulfillment of the commitments made by the States Parties” thereto. Art. 33. , “Implementation Procedures of the American Convention on Human Rights,” 26 Germ. Y.B. Int’l L. 238 (1983); Buergenthal , “Implementation in the Inter-American Human Rights System,”
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Chapter 6. Incorporation and Application of Human Rights in the United States 97 results (showing 5 best matches)
- This chapter examines the laws and governmental policies of the United States as they relate to the domestic incorporation and application of international human rights law. It addresses questions relating to U.S. ratification of human rights treaties, congressional legislation designed to promote human rights abroad, and the application of international human rights law by U.S. courts. Unlike many other countries, the United States lacks a single national institution (in either the executive or legislative branches) with responsibility for overseeing the implementing of its human rights obligations, so that the function is more diffuse than in many other countries and has fallen largely to the courts.
- Overall, the United States position on respecting international human rights has been marked by contradictions. On the one hand, protection of individual rights and liberties has been a guiding national principle since the nation’s founding. The United States was among the strongest proponents of the human rights movement and a leader in the formulation of the essential human rights instruments in the period following World War II, and it has continued to advocate strongly for human rights at the international level. On the other hand, it refused for decades to ratify any major international human rights treaty and, although it has adhered to a number of them in recent years, it still lags behind most Western democracies.
- The legislative and bureaucratic underpinnings of contemporary U.S. human rights foreign policy have their origin in the efforts of the Fraser committee and the policies of President Jimmy Carter, who was elected in 1976. The latter enthusiastically espoused many of Congressman Fraser’s recommendations and made the promotion of human rights the cornerstone of his administration’s foreign policy. , “Human Rights Legislation and U.S. Foreign Policy,” 7 Ga. J. Int’l & Comp. L. 231 (1977); Schneider , “A New Administration’s New Policy: The Rise to Power of Human Rights,” in P. Brown
- Here it is important to note that the legislation requires the State Department, in determining whether a state is a gross violator of human rights, to take into account, among other considerations, “the relevant findings of appropriate international organizations, including nongovernmental organizations, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross. . . .” Section 502B(b)(1). Similar language is found in § 116(c)(1). Both laws also attach considerable weight to the extent to which the particular country cooperates with and permits such organizations “an unimpeded investigation of alleged violations of internationally recognized human rights.” § 116(c)(1) and § 502B(b)(2). These requirements strengthen the effectiveness of public and private human rights institutions that investigate and judge violations. Hence, findings—for example, by the UN Human Rights Council or a regional human rights body such as the Inter-American Court or Commission on Human Rights—that a...
- Oversight of State Department Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1992 and U.S. Human Rights Policy (Hearing before the Subcommittee on International Security, International Organizations, and Human Rights, 103rd Cong., 1st Sess., March 4, 1993), which also contains testimony by various human rights organizations criticizing the Executive Branch’s performance in specific cases.
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Index 191 results (showing 5 best matches)
Table of Cases 20 results (showing 5 best matches)
- Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights and the Institute for Human Rights and Development v. Republic of Zimbabwe, 384
- Institute for Human Rights Development in Africa v. Republic of Angola, 387
- International Federation of Human Rights Leagues (FIDH) v. France, 244
- International Federation of Human Rights v. Greece, 244
- International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) v. Bulgaria, 245
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Foreword 2 results
- When the first edition of this book was published in 1988, only a handful of American law schools offered courses or seminars on International Human Rights Law. Today a majority do. This development is due to the recognition of the ever more pervasive impact International Human Rights Law has on contemporary international relations and the behavior of states; on the rights of individuals and non- state entities; on international treaties and international legislation as well as customary international law; on the law of international and regional organizations; on the growth and legal status of non-governmental international organizations; on the domestic implementation of international law; and on related subjects. Although International Human Rights Law once played a minor role on the international scene, it has over the years become a major branch of public international law and transformed it and international relations to an extent not previously imagined.
- This edition of the book will also be my last one. I have made this decision because I have retired from teaching and because of my age which, to my surprise, has been advancing from edition to edition. This Nutshell has been the love of my academic publications because of my lifelong commitment to the promotion of international human rights through education and scholarship. I know that my co-authors will continue to produce subsequent editions of this book with the same commitment to high quality scholarship and sound educational standards. I wish them well and thank them for their friendship and kindness.
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Outline 62 results (showing 5 best matches)
Title Page 3 results
Acknowledgments 2 results
- Dinah Shelton would like to thank persons at the Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights who provided information on recent developments in the European system. Particular thanks are owed to Andrew Drzemczewski, Michael O’Boyle, Caroline Ravaud and Hans Christian Kruger. Similar gratitude must be expressed to Carlos Villan Duran of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and to Martin Oelz and Lee Swepston of the International Labour Organization.
- Carlos M. Vázquez would like to thank Yateesh Begoore Shivaswamy for excellent research assistance, as well as Marie-Joseph Ayissi of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and Gerald Neuman of Harvard Law School for helpful comments.
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- Publication Date: July 18th, 2017
- ISBN: 9781634605984
- Subject: International Human Rights
- Series: Nutshells
- Type: Overviews
- Description: An updated and expanded edition of the widely used overview of international human rights law for students, practitioners, and professors. Provides a comprehensive overview of the international, regional and domestic human rights systems. Reviews recent developments in the field, including in the UN, European, OAS and African human rights systems and the adoption of new conventions such as those on forced disappearances and persons with disabilities. Includes chapters on the treatment of human rights treaties and norms within the U.S. legal system as well as on the role of non-governmental human rights organizations. Discover the history behind international human rights, including the institutional context from which they evolved. An unparalleled resource for beginning students as well as more experienced practitioners.
