South and North Korea Human Rights and The Universal Periodic Review Cooperation Plan

This article examines the evolution of the United Nations� (UN) human rights agency from the UN Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) into the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC). It explains that UNHRC was created in March 2006 to replace the UNCHR and become the world�s premier human rights body. It evaluates the effectiveness of the UNHRC�s peer-review human rights mechanism called the Universal Periodic Review. This article also offers some suggestions on how to improve the performance of the UNHRC including changes in size and distribution of membership, membership criteria, voting patterns and participation of non-state actors.

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Conclusion

10.1093/oso/9780192845696.003.0012 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 341-346

Author(s):

William A. Schabas

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Customary Law ◽

Periodic Review ◽

Customary International Law ◽

Universal Periodic Review ◽

Human Rights Treaties ◽

Treaty Law ◽

Recent Developments ◽

Review Mechanism ◽

The Right

Custom poses challenges for its identification but at the same time it offers a potential for dynamism that may often be superior to that of treaty law. Recent developments, most importantly the near-universal ratification of major human rights treaties and the Universal Periodic Review mechanism of the Human Rights Council, greatly facilitate the identification of customary law. It is clear that most of the rights in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are unquestionably part of customary international law. Doubts may persist about a few rights, such as the right to property. Customary law also extends to ‘solidarity rights’ or ‘peoples’ rights’, whose reflection in treaty law is not so universal. Recognition of rights does not ensure that there are effective mechanisms for their enforcement and implementation.

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Universal Periodic Review Procedure: Human Rights Council

10.1093/law-mpeipro/e1611.013.1611 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Tomuschat Christian

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Periodic Review ◽

Universal Periodic Review ◽

Human Rights Council ◽

Review Procedure

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3. Human rights foreign policy and the role of the United Nations

10.1093/actrade/9780198706168.003.0003 ◽

2015 ◽

Author(s):

Andrew Clapham

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Foreign Policy ◽

United Nations ◽

International Law ◽

Review Process ◽

Periodic Review ◽

Universal Periodic Review ◽

High Commissioner ◽

The United Nations

How are human rights put into practice? What does it mean when governments announce that their foreign policy is concerned with promoting and protecting human rights? Where is the enforcement of these rights? ‘Human rights foreign policy and the role of the United Nations’ considers human rights in terms of foreign policy and international law and examines the UN’s Universal Periodic Review process and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. It is only recently that governments have actively involved themselves in how another state treats its nationals, but enthusiasm for human rights in foreign policy ebbs and flows.

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The Role and Influence of Non-governmental Organisations in the Universal Periodic Review—International Context and Australian Case Study

Human Rights Law Review ◽

10.1093/hrlr/ngx020 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 17 (3) ◽

pp. 421-450 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Fiona McGaughey

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

United Nations ◽

Periodic Review ◽

International Context ◽

Universal Periodic Review ◽

Monitoring Mechanism ◽

Australian Case ◽

Review Mechanism ◽

United Nation

Abstract Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) play an important, albeit limited, role in the United Nations most recent human rights monitoring mechanism, the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). Drawing on empirical data from an Australian case study and interviews with international stakeholders, the study explores the NGO role and influence in this state-centric, peer review mechanism. Case study findings indicate that recommendations made by NGOs, in particular a coalition of domestic NGOs, correlate closely with many UPR recommendations but that United Nations sources are more influential. This suggests that other United Nation human rights mechanisms complement the UPR, so that NGOs should continue to engage with both these and the UPR.

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