Module LAW52545: International Law of Human Rights

Department: Law

LAW52545: International Law of Human Rights

Prerequisites

• None

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• to provide students with:
• (i) an introduction to the structures and objectives of the mechanisms for the protection of human rights within the international legal system at a global level;
• (ii) an advanced understanding of selected substantive rights and the mechanisms for their protection under international law;
• (iii) an advanced understanding of the obstacles, theoretical, political and technical, which lie in the way of making such protection effective.

Content

• The syllabus covers the following matters:
• (1.) The sources of international law, treaties and reservations;
• (2.) The philosophical basis of international human rights law;
• (3.) Challenges to the universal claims of human rights and the implications for the effectiveness of international human rights law;
• (4.) The position of the individual in international law and an appreciation of how regimes for the protection of individuals are established in international law;
• (5.) The debate between the claims for unilateral State action for the protection of human rights and the assertion of community competence in this area;
• (6.) The role played by the United Nations in norm creation, interpretation, implementation and enforcement;
• (7.) Humanitarian Intervention;
• (8.) Civil and political rights and the UN Human Rights Committee;
• (9.) Economic, social and cultural rights and the UN Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights;
• (10.) The rights of indigenous peoples and minorities including the work of the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities;
• (11.) Children's rights and the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child;
• (12.) Women's rights and the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women;
• (13.) Human rights and International Criminal Law;

Learning Outcomes

• detailed knowledge and understanding of the structures and objectives of the mechanisms for the protection of human rights within the international legal system;
• detailed knowledge and understanding of a range of substantive rights and the mechanisms for their protection under international law;
• a critical understanding of the effectiveness of international law as a means of protecting human rights given the legal, political, economic, social and cultural context in which it operates.

• in light of that understanding and with particluar reference to a selected range of substantive rights, students will be able to evaluate critically why one strategy may be better than another and to determine where the limits of the international protection of human rights lie;
• the ability to engage in independent analysis of a range of primary legal materials;
• the ability to critically evaluate the views of legal commentators drawn from a range of disciplines and to adopt and defend a reasoned position on the issues explored;
• the ability to engage in independent research on complex legal problems.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Students will learn enough of the fundamentals of international law to know how human rights are understood in international law, how the protection of human rights is provided for, and why it takes the form it does. Within each segment of the module, the students will be faced with case-studies to see how the general principles apply in practice.
• Lectures will be used at the beginning of the module to provide students with a solid grounding in the structures and objectives of the mechanisms for the protection of human rights. The level of guidance provided by the course leader at this stage of the module should ensure all students acquire the required level of understanding of the core fundamental principles before they move on to examine the substantive rights and problems in greater detail.
• Seminar teaching will build on the earlier lectures and, with its much greater emphasis on full class participation, will be typically used in the later stages of the course to explore particular topics in much greater depth and to encourage students to develop confidence in formulating and articulating their own ideas and perspectives on the issues.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

One assignment of approximately 2,000 words to be submitted at the beginning of Epiphany Term.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University