The International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, as a Victim-Oriented Treaty

Author(s):  
Emmanuel Decaux

The chapter is a presentation of the newest international human rights treaty, which entered into force in 2010. It is a very innovative and modern instrument, with a precise definition of the victim of a crime of enforced disappearance, as an autonomous crime, and a broad codification of the ‘right to truth, to justice and to reparation’ enshrined in article 24 of the treaty. As the ILC is working on the draft of an international convention for the prevention of crimes against humanity, it is important to avoid watering down the key legal progress enshrined in the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.

1998 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-95
Author(s):  

AbstractWhile the notion of a prescribed set of `reproductive rights' has been advanced in various contexts, particularly in the agendas for action adopted at the United Nations conferences held in Cairo (1994) and Beijing (1995), these rights as a group remain controversial. This can be partly explained by their poor definition and often tenuous legal grounding, opening the door to easy criticism. Clarification of the essential content and scope of protection offered under existing international human rights law would be helpful. In this article, the definition of reproductive rights in the Beijing Platform for Action is critically scrutinized, leading to the conclusion that only four of the so-called `reproductive rights' are provided in existing international human rights instruments. These four may be seen as forming a bundle of inseparable rights which the author refers to as the composite right to reproductive choice. The special conflict which can arise between two members of a couple who, while bearing equal rights to reproductive choice, may hold differing views and have opposing desires regarding reproduction is also examined, specifically in relation to the role of the State in resolving the potential for the violation of one individual's right to reproductive choice by another individual.


Author(s):  
Henry J. Steiner

What kinds of limits on observance or enforcement of international human rights inform this field? What, why, and how do they limit? This chapter explores the variety of these limits through three illustrations. (1) The very treaty definition of the right may set forth justifications for limiting its application. (2) A comparison of international human rights with more traditional treaty subjects like trade or commerce suggests the distinctive problems in trying to ensure that treaty parties observe their commitments to respect rights. Such difficulties limit and lengthen the processes of enforcement of rights. (3) Economic and social rights draw growing attention in a number of states, either by their incarnation in a leading Covenant or by their influence in state constitutions. Current debates inquire as to whether courts can play a larger role in their enforcement, or whether traditional notions of democracy may block certain types of recourse to the judiciary and thus limit paths towards enforcement.


2020 ◽  
Vol 69 (3) ◽  
pp. 521-556
Author(s):  
Michael Hamilton

AbstractInformed by the ‘assembly’ jurisprudence of the United Nations Human Rights Committee, this article addresses fundamental questions about the meaning and scope of ‘assembly’ in Article 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). In seeking to determine when the right of peaceful assembly might properly be engaged, the article explores the interrelationship of assembly with expression and association and proposes a definition of ‘assembly’—for the purposes of its protection—as ‘an intentional gathering by two or more people (including in private and online/virtual spaces)’. Such definitional reflection is particularly timely in light of the Human Rights Committee's drafting of General Comment No 37 on Article 21.


Author(s):  
Catarina de Albuquerque

This chapter analyses the right to sanitation from a human rights perspective. It provides an understanding of when, how, and why the right to sanitation originated in the international human rights arena and how it has developed under international human rights law. It begins by highlighting the enormity of the sanitation crisis, briefly examines existing definitions of sanitation, and goes on to explain the inextricable links between sanitation and a wide variety of human rights. The final section offers a definition of sanitation in human rights terms and explores the scope and content of human rights obligations related to sanitation. The conclusion emphasizes the need to further focus on steps that will make the right to sanitation a reality particularly for the most stigmatized and marginalized in society.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2019 (4) ◽  
pp. 241-254
Author(s):  
Georg Lohmann

AbstractThe paper clarifies first a critical understanding of “progress”. Progress implies a development for the better, the comprehensive definition of which must be a conception of justice if progress is to justify global developments and political rule. Therefore a somewhat minimal but complex definition of “human rights justice”, as formulated in the international human rights pacts since 1948, is explained. Through this, the different but systematically interrelated human rights (liberty rights, justice rights, political rights, economic, cultural and social rights) can allow for reflected and more comprehensive assessments of progress in different areas of development. But it is also necessary to integrate the specific progress developments into a comprehensive conception of human rights justice, the precise definition of which requires not only the observance of social but ultimately of all human rights, and in particular political participation rights. In the final section some problems of this approach will be discussed.


1993 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ved P. Nanda

The International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families reflects a compromise between guaranteeing migrants international human rights and acknowledging state sovereignty. Notwithstanding a laudable attempt to provide in the Convention a comprehensive international regime for the protection of the migrant workers, the Convention is not an unmixed blessing. To illustrate, while the Convention creates new rights, it also limits some rights migrant workers already had under existing international human rights instruments. Also, the Convention's terminology and language suffer from ambiguities and are likely to cause uncertainty due to varying interpretations.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-286
Author(s):  
Ignatius Yordan Nugraha

Abstract The goal of this article is to explore the clash between international human rights law and a legal pluralist framework in the case of the noken system and also to investigate potential solutions to the clash. Elections in Indonesia are generally founded on the principle of direct, universal, free, secret, honest and fair voting. There is a notable exception in the Province of Papua, where tribes in the Central Mountains area are following the noken system. Under this system, votes are allocated to the candidate(s) based on the decision of the big man or the consensus of the tribe. The Indonesian Constitutional Court has accepted this practice as reflecting the customs of the local population. However, this form of voting seems to be contrary to the right to vote under international human rights law, since article 25(b) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights stipulates that elections shall be held genuinely by universal suffrage and secret ballot to guarantee the free will of the electors. Consequently, the case of the noken system in Papua reflects an uneasy clash between a legal pluralist approach and universal human rights.


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