In 1953 the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms came into force. It was born of the shared conviction that breaches of the most elementary human rights, such as had been experienced in the 1930s and 40s, should never be allowed to occur again. The Convention and the control bodies responsible for ensuring the observance of the engagements undertaken by the contracting States have had a profound influence on democratic European society in the latter half of this century, and have had repercussions outside Europe too; indeed the European system of human rights protection has served as a model or basic reference text for other regional systems. "The European System for the Protection of Human Rights" is a collection of essays by scholars and practitioners in the field of European Human Rights. Its aim is not only to sum up 40 years of European experience in the collective endeavour to protect human rights, but to stimulate critical thinking about that experience and to review whether the Convention system as it stands is still fitted to meet the needs of European society in the coming millennium.

This volume offers a history of one of the most important issues of our age. It begins with an analysis of the characters of Adolf Eichmann and Heinrich Himmler, the two men in charge of "the Final Solution". It moves on to look at the role played by some of Africa's war criminals and also offers portraits of alleged war criminals from the Western world, including the self-confessed war criminal Robert McNamara who led the war in Vietnam on behalf of Presidents Kennedy and Johnson. The book also tracks the wars and genocide in, and subsequent international criminal law trials relating to Cambodia and the former Yugoslavia. In a final chapter, it asks the question: can human rights be pursued by making war?

Protecting the Property Rights of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons: Beyond Restitution pursues a rigorous examination of the various ways in which the protection of housing and property rights can contribute to durable solutions to displacement. The focus of most of the international community's recent protection efforts has been on returning displaced persons to their homes following armed conflict. However, this focus on return has come at the expense of considering other possible durable solutions, particularly in cases of protracted displacement. In this book, Anneke Smit chronicles the failure of the international community's attempts to promote widespread return through establishing housing and property restitution mechanisms. Drawing on a variety of displacement situations, and referring throughout to international human rights and refugee law, property law and theory, and sociological and anthropological literature on displacement and the meaning of home', she argues that a housing and property policy which supports integration in the communities where refugees and internally displaced persons find themselves after conflict is likely to represent a more effective and sustainable approach than a singular focus on return. Protecting the Property Rights of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons is based on extensive academic research, including fieldwork, as well as more than a decade of the author's practical experience working on displacement issues with government, international organisation and NGO actors. It will be of considerable interest to those with academic and policy interests in the rights of refugees and displaced persons.

This multi-disciplinary book addresses the ever-expanding notion of human rights within the 21st century. By analyzing the global dynamics of the mobilization of new actors, claims, institutions and modes of accountability, Brysk and Stohl assess the potential and limitations of global reforms. Expanding Human Rights gives a comprehensive overview of current human rights issues and the outlook for the future. The contributors present evidence of new methods for enforcing existing rights and new strategies for further development through in-depth analysis of campaigns and reforms from Eastern Europe, Japan, India, Africa and the US. These include rights of indigenous peoples, food and water rights, violence against women, child mortality and international financial and corporate responsibility. This book will interest academics and advanced students in human rights, international affairs, political science and law. Policy makers and global human rights activists will find the analyses and insights concerning the expansion of rights and the often accompanying backlash to be of great use when approaching their next human rights campaign. Contributors include: J. Alley, C. Apodaca, P. Ayoub, M. Baer, A. Brysk, S. Hertel, R. Howard-Hassmann, V. Hudson, F.G. Isa, H. Jo, W. Sandholtz, C. Stohl, M. Stohl, K. Tsutsui

Examining the erosion of people's democratic rights and the potential catastrophic dangers of neglecting civil liberties, this book explores the endemic danger of the enlarged power of the state and the central role of Government in undermining personal freedoms through the use of state force in the name of the protection of security.

Trafficking in persons is a serious crime that affects the human rights, dignity and integrity of all its victims including women, men, and children in the Association of Southeast Asia Nation (ASEAN) region. ASEAN has made efforts to fight human trafficking through inter alia the establishment of regional counter-human trafficking laws and human rights bodies to establish best norms and practices for its member countries. Nevertheless, the International Labour Organization (ILO) recently declared that there are more than 11.7 million forced labor victims in the Asia-Pacific region encompassing the biggest concentration of forced labour victims in the world.

The Human Right to Water and Its Application in the Occupied Palestinian Territories provides an overview and examination of the human right to water as determined under international human rights law. This is a highly topical issue, with the UN General Assembly having passed a resolution which declares access to clean water and sanitation a human right (New York, Jul 28 2010), the recent appointment of the UN Independent Expert on the issue of human rights obligations related to access to safe drinking water and sanitation, and movement within the NGO community for an international water treaty. Amanda Cahill Ripley analyses the current legal status, substantive content, and obligations correlative to the right, and examines the relationship between other economic, social and cultural rights related to the right to water. The book goes on to look more specifically at the application of the human right to water in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Using innovative methodology, Cahill Ripley combines legal analysis with a qualitative social science empirical case study to explore the enjoyment of the right 'on the ground'. The wider implications of the case study findings are then considered, looking at what can be done to strengthen the right legally in terms of its status and codification, and what remedy can be found for violations of the right, both specifically in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and in a more general context. The book will be of interest to students, academics and practitioners within the fields of international human rights law and international humanitarian law, as well as those concerned with international relations and conflict resolution within Israel/Palestine and the wider Middle East region.

With the proliferation of international organisations and their ever increasing role in a wide range of policy fields, situations multiply in which human rights are threatened or violated through the actions, operations or policies of such organisations. The present book, with carefully selected contributions from many prominent scholars and practitioners, is the first to explore these problems in a comprehensive manner and to examine the accountability mechanisms that are available. In a first, cross-cutting part, the contributions study general concepts, such as the accountability of international organisations as an evolving legal concept, international organisations as independent actors, the logic of sliding scales in the law of international responsibility and the relations between the international organisations and their Member States in regard to their respective obligations and responsibilities. The subsequent parts of the book focus on the accountability for human rights violations attributable to international organisations in four areas: (i) peace and humanitarian operations; (ii) international civil administration; (iii) economic governance; and (iv) staff of international organisations.

Seeing the role of transitional justice as an area of contestation, this book focuses on the principle of equality guaranteed in the access to transitional justice mechanisms. By raising women's experiences in dealing with the law and policies as well as the implications of community and family practices during post-conflict situations, the book shows how these mechanisms may have been implemented mechanically, without considering the different intersections of discrimination, the public and private divides that exist in the local context or the stereotypes and values of international and national actors. The book argues that without unpacking the barriers in the administration of transitional justice, the different mechanisms that are implemented in a post-conflict situation may set a higher threshold for the participation of women. Moreover, by taking into account women's perceptions of justice, it further argues that scholars have paid insufficient attention to the welfare structures that are produced after a conflict, particularly the pensions of veterans. Going beyond the focus on sexual violence, a relationship between the violations and post-conflict economic justice may have longer-term consequences for women since it perpetuates their inequality and lack of recognition in times of peace. The use of transitional justice may thus exacerbate the invisibility of and discrimination against certain sections of the population. Inspired by the work of Hannah Arendt and based on extensive field research in Timor-Leste, the book has larger implications for the overarching debate on the social consequences of transitional justice.

This major study examines the successes and failures of the full transitional justice programme in Sierra Leone. It sets out the implications of the Sierra Leonean experience for other post-conflict situations and for the broader project of evaluating transitional justice.

This book examines the extent to which international law places obligations directly on corporate entities. It is often argued that corporations are bound by, inter alia, the same human rights and environmental obligations that states have. This book examines the source of these supposed obligations in treaty law, international custom, and in internationalized contracts, to determine whether they really can be transposed to corporations so easily. The focus of the book is on the regulation by international law of private corporate conduct. It examines whether corporate obligations, namely obligations binding directly upon a corporation under positive international law, have indeed emerged, and if so, whether corporations may be systemically included in the predominantly state-centric framework of international law. It investigates the challenges facing international law as a result of the potential emergence of corporate obligations, and engages in a structural analysis of what corporate obligations under international human rights law might entail. Ultimately, it warns against conceptualizing corporations as both holders and potential violators of human rights, explaining why they are not automatically bound by the same obligations that are imposed on states.

This is the first attempt to provide an in-depth moral assessment of the heart of the modern human rights enterprise: the system of international legal human rights. It is international human rights law-not any philosophical theory of moral human rights or any "folk" conception of moral human rights-that serves as the lingua franca of modern human rights practice. Yet contemporary philosophers have had little to say about international legal human rights. They have tended to assume, rather than to argue, that international legal human rights, if morally justified, must mirror or at least help realize moral human rights. But this assumption is mistaken. International legal human rights, like many other legal rights, can be justified by several different types of moral considerations, of which the need to realize a corresponding moral right is only one. Further, this volume shows that some of the most important international legal human rights cannot be adequately justified by appeal to corresponding moral human rights. The problem is that the content of these international legal human rights-the full set of correlative duties-is much broader than can be justified by appealing to the morally important interests of any individual. In addition, it is necessary to examine the legitimacy of the institutions that create, interpret, and implement international human rights law and to defend the claim that international human rights law should "trump" the domestic law of even the most admirable constitutional democracies.

This book will be an important resource for scholars and practitioners alike in the emerging field of business and human rights. Simon Baughen's careful and comprehensive analysis of the US and UK case law on corporate responsibility for human rights abuses is invaluable.' - Claire Methven O'Brien, The Danish Institute for Human RightsThe effects of globalisation, together with the increase in foreign investment and resource development within the developing world, have created a context for human rights abuses by States in which transnational corporations are complicit. This timely book considers how these 'governance gaps', as identified by Professor John Ruggie, may be closed. Simon Baughen examines the status of corporations under international law, the civil liability of corporations for their participation in international crimes and self-regulation through voluntary codes of conduct, such as the 2011 UN Guiding Principles. The book includes in-depth analysis of the key legal issues and examines a variety of scenarios including: the Alien Tort Statute litigation against transnational corporations (TNCs) in the US; the use of customary international law as a cause of action in jurisdictions outside the US; and tort litigation against TNCs in the US and UK. The author evaluates how governance gaps may be closed, building on a critical analysis of the place of home States, host States and TNCs under international law and of the UN Guiding Principles and other 'soft law' initiatives. This book will be essential reading for postgraduate students and academics in human rights and corporate governance. It will also provide comprehensive insights for practitioners in NGO.

This volume discusses the impact of human rights law on other fields of international law. Does international human rights law modify other fields of international law? Contributions focus on possible spillover effects of human rights on international economic or international criminal law. Does international human rights law have a streamlining effect on international law as a whole? This might be identified as a process of constitutionalisation. In this book, human rights can be understood as one of the core principles of international legal order and thus have an effect on the general law of treaties or on the settlement of disputes. Although human rights law is a relatively young field of international law, its content and core values today are of major importance for the interpretation of international law as a whole. As we witness a redefinition of sovereignty as a responsibility of states towards the people and a shift to greater relevance of the individual in international law in general, it is a logical consequence that human rights have an impact on other areas of international law.

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This authoritative Research Handbook brings together leading international scholars and practitioners to provide in-depth analysis of some of the most hotly debated topics and issues concerning the interface of human rights and business. In addition to offering critical insights on the historical evolution of the business and human rights field and its relationship with the domain of corporate social responsibility, contributions to this comprehensive Research Handbook are split into several thematic parts to facilitate cohesive analysis. Chapters explore the themes of corporate human rights due diligence, regulatory role of states, human rights intersection with trade, investment and finance, heightened risks for certain groups and contexts, and corporate accountability. Containing a detailed examination of the challenges and the potential solutions in the field, the Research Handbook on Human Rights and Business will be an indispensable resource for scholars, researchers, policymakers and practitioners working at the intersection of business and human rights. Contributors include: D.D. Bradlow, H. Cantu Rivera, D. Cassel, L. Cata Backer, D. Chimisso dos Santos, J. Coleman, K.Y. Cordes, S. Deva, N. Jagers, L. Johnson, J. Kolieb, M. Krajewski, J. Kyriakakis, J. Letnar ernic, R. Mares, J. Martin, O. Martin-Ortega, C. Methven O Brien, A. Naude Fourie, J. Nolan, M.M. Rahim, J.G. Ruggie, S.L. Seck, B. Stephens, M.B. Taylor, T. Van Ho, M. van Huijstee, F. Wettstein, J. Wilde-Ramsing

This thought-provoking book critically analyses how the implementation of the EU-Turkey Statement on Refugees affects the rights of refugees and asylum seekers. Bringing together an in-depth examination of both EU and Turkish law and fieldwork data within a theoretical human rights framework, Hulya Kaya discusses the operational realities and failures of the agreement between Turkey and the EU from a socio-legal perspective. This timely book provides important evidence that refugee protection in the region of origin is not an effective solution to the refugee protection crisis, and casts doubt on the capacity of the agreement to contribute to fair burden sharing between states. Kaya illuminates the practical and legal difficulties that refugees experience, and draws upon the political theory of Hannah Arendt to argue that the situation constitutes a further form of violence against refugees by hindering their ability to claim and exercise their fundamental human rights. Scholars and doctoral students specialising in refugee law and migration studies, as well as human rights lawyers, will find this book to be crucial reading. It will also be of interest to human rights advocates and those working in international organisations and NGOs in this area, alongside policy makers in the EU and Turkey.

Did the Bush administration fundamentally harm the international human rights system through its rejection of human rights norms? This is the central question explored within US Human Rights Conduct and International Legitimacy, which analyses the practices of legitimacy between the Bush administration, states, and international organizations in cases of torture, habeas corpus, and rendition. Vincent Keating argues that despite the material power of the United States, there is little evidence that the Bush administration gravely damaged international norms on torture and habeas corpus as few nations have followed in America's footsteps, and that the Bush administration's deviation from international norms has served to reaffirm worldwide commitment to human rights.

In The Rights of Victims in Criminal Justice Proceedings for Serious Human Rights Violations, Juan Carlos Ochoa offers a systematic analysis of international and comparative domestic law on the position of the victim in the prosecution of these infringements, points to the deficiencies of the current state of customary international law, and proposes specific reforms.

This collection of essays explores the notion, tools and challenges of human rights diplomacy, which is understood as the utilisation of diplomatic negotiation and persuasion for the specific purpose of promoting and protecting human rights. Theoretical reflections are combined with first-hand accounts from a range of policy-makers involved in human rights diplomacy at the bilateral, regional and multilateral (UN) level. Contributors include inter-governmentally appointed office-holders, human rights ambassadors, members of UN human rights treaty bodies and representatives of inter-governmental organisations, national human rights organisations and non-governmental organisations. Their analysis shows that skilful and principled diplomacy can become a crucial part of a holistic approach to human rights protection, complementing other means such as legal remedies, public advocacy, political pressure and technical assistance. This book builds on discussions at a high-level workshop on the topic, organised by the University of Nottingham Human Rights Law Centre, the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation and the Adam Mickiewicz University of Pozna .

In EU Environmental Law, International Environmental Law, and Human Rights Law: The Case of Environmental Responsibility, Armelle Gouritin offers a critical appraisal of EU environmental responsibility law and asserts a new rights-based approach to international environmental law. This book addresses environmental damage, environmental harm, the grounds for environmental responsibility and the exceptions to the responsibility principle. A critical appraisal of EU Directives 2004/35 and 2008/99 is complemented by an analysis of the input of the European Court on Human Rights and international environmental law with a view to filling the gaps identified in the Directives. Gouritin offers a full analysis of the potential and limits of the rights-based approach applied to environmental responsibility.

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Children and young persons are increasingly being targeted for trafficking, sexual exploitation, recruitment as child soldiers, and other abuses. Children prove to be particularly vulnerable in situations of armed conflict, such as Darfur, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Philippines, Nepal, and Colombia. A rich combination of practitioners (including ICC, ICTY and SCSL prosecutors) and academics explore to what extent international law instruments and international criminal accountability mechanisms are useful for countering violations of children's rights during and after armed conflicts. They also analyze to what extent the tendency of profiling children's rights much more strongly than before (mainly under the umbrella of the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and in the form of child rights-based approaches) converges with the features of international criminal accountability mechanisms such as the International Criminal Court, the Yugoslavia and Rwanda Tribunals, and the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

In 2010, the United Nations General Assembly and the Human Rights Council recognized the human right to water. This formal recognition has put the issue high on the international agenda, but, by itself, leaves many questions unanswered. This book addresses this gap and clarifies the legal status and meaning of the right to water through a detailed analysis of its legal foundations, legal nature, normative content, and corresponding State obligations. The human right to water has wide-ranging implications for the distribution of water. Examining these implications requires putting the right to water into the broader context of different water uses, and analyzing the linkages and competition with other human rights that depend on water for their realization. Water allocation is a highly political issue reflecting societal power relations, with current priorities often benefitting the well-off and powerful. Human rights, in contrast, require prioritizing the most basic needs of all people. The human right to water has the potential to address these underlying structural causes of the lack of access to water, rooted in inequalities and poverty by empowering people to hold the State accountable to live up to its human rights obligations and to demand that people's basic needs are met with priority. *** "Overall, Winkler provides a thorough, if somewhat aspirational, description of the international human right to water. She does an excellent job of addressing potential criticisms to her conclusions... This work is highly recommended for anyone with an interest in the content and continued evolution of international human rights law." - Saskatchewan Law Review, Vol. 76, 2013

International human rights law grants individuals both rights and responsibilities. In this respect international criminal and international humanitarian law are no different. As members of the public international law family they are charged with the regulation, maintenance and protection of human dignity. The right and duty to disobey manifestly illegal orders traverses these three schools of public international law. This book is the first systematic study of the right to conscientious objection under international human rights law. Understanding that rights and duties are not mutually exclusive but complementary, this study analyses the right to conscientious objection and the duties of individuals under international law from various perspectives of public international law.