Introduction to International Human Rights Law - LW451

Introduction to International Human Rights Law - LW451

Irish Centre for Human Rights

Introduction to International Human Rights Law LW451

- Course Outline –

• Be able to conduct effective research in the field of international human rights law.
• Be familiar with the major universal and regional systems of human rights law, their relationships to each other, and the legal value and authority of declarations, decisions, judgments and other materials generated by them.
• Be comfortable with general concepts of public international law, to the extent that they are relevant in the field of human rights.
• Develop an awareness of the primary areas of concern within the field of international human rights law and other relevant branches of international law, and the ways in which human rights are promoted and protected.

Background reading:

Students are encouraged to begin developing a library in international human rights (if they have not already started doing so). It is hoped that in the course of the session they will acquire a number of relevant books in the field.

For teaching purposes, readings will be assigned regularly from:

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. ISBN: 978-0-19-957872-6

Susan Marks & Andrew Clapham, A Lexicon of Human Rights, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.

It is also strongly advised that students consult a textbook in public international law. Dixon’s Textbook on International Law (OUP) and Antonio Cassese’s book (OUP) are particularly recommended.

The books have been ordered at the campus book store. They can also be ordered direct from the publishers, or from Amazon, etc. There is also a limited number of copies in the Library.

• Legal instruments

All relevant legal instruments are available on the CD-ROM, as well as on the internet. A number of websites provide access to these documents. If students wish to purchase a volume of documents, they may consider:

Ian Brownlie, Basic Documents on Human Rights, Oxford: .Clarendon Press, 2006.

Also, please note that there is an annex containing the principal documents in the Alston and Steiner volume.

• Law Reports

Virtually all relevant case law in the field of international human rights is available on the websites of the various tribunals, courts and committees. These can be accessed through the various gateways that can be found on the Centre’s website.

For the European system, many of the cases have been published in the European Human Rights Reports, which is available in the university library, and in the official publications of the Council of Europe.

Documents of the United Nations and Inter-American systems are available in hard copy or on microfiche at the university library.

• Law Journals

The principal journals in the field of international human rights are:

Human Rights Quarterly

Human Rights Law Journal

Netherlands Quarterly of Human Rights

Human Rights Law Review

Many relevant articles appear in academic journals in the field of public international law, such as:

American Journal of International Law

International and Comparative Law Quarterly

Leiden Journal of International Law

European Journal of International Law

These periodicals are available in the university library. The collection is supplemented with on-line journals available through J-Store, Hein On-Line and Lexis-Nexus, to which all registered students should have access via the website. The documentary material which is on the recommended reading list can be found on the CD-ROM, together with many other relevant and useful primary materials.

Course outline by week:

The following is the outline and dates for all the lectures including those that are part of the first introductory week.

Week 1

The first lectures of this course are scheduled to take place during the opening week of the LLM programme. There will be a number of lectures in this week, all of which are an integral and fundamental part of the course, and attendance is obligatory. This first week’s timetable will be distributed separately. The remainder of the Introduction to Human Rights classes will take place 1 time per week from 5:15 to 8 p.m. beginning on Tuesday, September 24th. For the 2 weeks prior, please refer to the schedule listed below.

The lectures in the first week are also attended by students from the LLM programmes in peace operation operations, humanitarian law and conflict, and ICL, but the following weekly classes will be only for those taking the human rights module. Other students are also welcome to sit in. During the first introductory week, lectures take place in the Siobhan McKenna, Arts Millennium Building. Thereafter, all lectures take place in the Martin Ryan Marine Institute Annex, Lecture Theatre 201.

Tuesday Sep. 3th

9:30-12:30:

Introduction to Public International Law

Lecturer: Dr. Shane Darcy

Recommended reading:

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. Pages: 58-119.

1:30-4:30:

The Foundations of Human Rights

Lecturer: Dr. Noelle Higgins

Topics covered:

• Conceptual and theoretical foundations of human rights
• History and development of international human rights law

Recommended readings:

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. Pages 120-154.

Universal Declaration of Human Rights available at:

Wednesday Sept. 4th

10:00-1:00

United Nations Treaty Based System

Lecturer: Dr. Ekaterina Yahyaoui,

Topics covered:

• Treaty mechanisms
• The main human rights treaties
• The treaty bodies

Recommended readings:

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. Pages 762-844.

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, available at:

International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, available at:

14:00-15:30Group 1

Library Training(Legal Research Tools)Hugo Kelly

15:30-17:00Group 2

Library Training(Legal Research Tools)Hugo Kelly

Thursday Sept. 5th

10:00-12:00

Guest Lecture: Alice Edwards

The Gender Wars:

gender related prosecution & the protection of refugees

Alice Edwards, Senior Legal Coordinator, Division of International Protection, at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva, Research Associate, Refugees Studies Centre, Oxford University.

13:30-16:30

Guest Lecturer:Gabor Gombos

Contemporary Issues in Disability Law & Policy

Gabor Gombos is a world renowned independent disability rights defender and until 2012 was a member of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Friday Sept. 6th

9:30-10:30

Research and Methods

Lecturer: Dr. Ronan Kennedy

This session will go over what will be required for your essays, some basic methods and writing skills, address questions regarding citations and plagiarism. All students are requested to attend.

11:00-13:00

Peacekeeping & Human Rights

Lecturer: Prof Ray Murphy

No readings

Week 2 and onwards:

(Classes will take place in the Martin Ryan Marine Institute Annex, Theatre 201. Please note that the Martin Ryan Annex is located right next to the main Martin Ryan building and is close to the Centre. Normally these classes will be once a week on Tuesday 17:15-20:00; for Week 2 ONLY, this lecture will take place on Thursday, September 12th from 6-8 p.m.)

Thursday Sept. 12th, 18:00-20:00 [please note that this class meets one hour later than usual]

Mechanisms of the United Nations Charter

Lecturer: Prof. Michael O’Flaherty

Topics covered:

• UN structure
• UN Charter
• General Assembly
• Security Council
• ICJ
• UN Charter human rights mechanisms
• Human Rights Council
• Special Rapporteurs and procedures

Recommended readings:

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. Pages: 685-761.

Browse through

Tuesday, Sept. 17th, 17:15-20:00

Regional Mechanisms & Discussion of Projects

Lecturer: Dr. Kathleen Cavanaugh

Topics covered:

• Europe
• Africa
• Inter-American
• The mechanisms
• Key cases

Recommended Readings:

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. Pages: 889-1044

European Convention on Human Rights, (1955) 213 UNTS 221, as amended, and protocols, available at:

Charter of Fundamental Rights, OJ C 364/1, 18 December 2000 available at

American Convention on Human Rights, (1979) 1144 UNTS 123, available at

African [Banjul] Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights, adopted June 27, 1981, OAU Doc. CAB/LEG/67/3 rev. 5, 21 I.L.M. 58 (1982), entered into force Oct. 21, 1986. Available at:

Hilaire, Constantine and Benjamin et al. v. Trinidad and Tobago, Judgment and concurring opinions, 21 June 2002, available at:

Antonio Augusto Cançado Trindade, “Reporting in the Inter-American system of human rights protection”, in Philip Alston & James Crawford, The Future of UN Human Rights Treaty Monitoring, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000, pp. 333-346

Eric Tistounet, “The problem of overlapping among different treaty bodies”, in Philip Alston & James Crawford, The Future of UN Human Rights Treaty Monitoring, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000, pp. 383-402

Dinah Shelton, “The Promise of Regional Human Rights Systems”, in Burns H. Weston & Stephen P. Marks, The Future of International Human Rights, Ardsley, New York: Transnational Publishers, 1999, pp. 351-398N.

J. Udombana, “Can the Leopard Change its Spots? The African Union Treaty and Human Rights,” (2002) Vol. 17 American University International Law Review, 1177.

Christof Heyns, “Civil and political rights in the African Charter,” in Malcolm Evans and Rachel Murray, eds., The African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights: the system in practice 1986-2000 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002).

Rachel Murray, “Decisions by the African Commission on Individual Communications under the African Charter on Human and People's Rights,” (1997) Vol. 46 International and Comp. Law Quarterly, 412.

Frans Viljoen, “A Human Rights Court for Africa, and Africans” (2004) Vol. 30 Brooklyn Journal of International Law, 1

Evans and Murray, “The special rapporteurs in the African system,” in Evans and Murray.

Tuesday Sept 24th, 17:15

Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

Lecturer: John Reynolds

Topics covered:

• Introduction to Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
• Historical evolution of rights
• State obligations

• Developments in regional systems
• Developments in domestic systems
• Optional Protocol on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

Recommended readings:

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. pp. 277-382

Asbjorn Eide, ‘Economic, Social & Cultural Rights as Human Rights’ in Asbjorn Eide, Catarina Krause & Allan Rosas (eds.), Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Martinus Nijhoff, 2nd edn., 2001)

Tuesday Oct. 1th: 17:15

Civil & Political Rights - Part I

Lecturer: Dr. Kathleen Cavanaugh

Topics covered:

• Civil & political rights
• Focus on right to life
• Focus on freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
• Focus on freedom of expression

Recommended readings: [Please note that when reading the case law for this class, you are not expected to remember every detail and memorise who says what in which paragraph. Your objective is to understand the primary issues at stake in the case, and the main arguments which determined the outcome]

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. Pages: 157-276.

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (European Convention on Human Rights).

Human Rights Committee, General Comment 31, Nature of the General Legal Obligation on States Parties to the Covenant, U.N. Doc. CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.13 (2004).

Suheyla Aydin v. Turkey, European Court of Human Rights, Judgment (2005) 49

McCann v. United Kingdom, European Court of Human Rights, Judgment of 5 September 1995

Osman v UK European Court of Human Rights Judgment 1998

Guerrero v. Colombia Human Rights Committee, Communication No.R.11/45, Views, 31March1982, UN Doc. Supp. No. 40(A/37/40). 1 13.2.

Gulec¸ v. Turkey, European Court of Human Rights, Judgment of 27 July 1998

Armado Alejandre Jr. and Others v. Cuba (Brothers to the rescue), Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Case No. 11.137, Report No.86/99, 29 September 1999

Human Rights Committee, General Comment 20, concerning prohibition of torture and cruel treatment or punishment, U.N. Doc CCPR HRI/GEN/1/Rev.1 at 30 (1994).

Section on ‘Torture’ in Susan Marks & Andrew Clapham, A Lexicon of Human Rights

Human Rights Committee, General Comment 34, on Article 19: Freedom of Opinion and Expression, U.N.DocCCPR/C/GC/34.

Section on the ‘Media’ in Susan Marks & Andrew Clapham, A Lexicon of Human Rights

Jersild v. Denmark, European Court of Human Rights, Judgment of 23 September 1994.

Faurisson v. France, 8 November 1996, ICCPR Human Rights Committee, Communication No. 550/1993

On Torture:

Paul W Kahn, Sacred Violence: Torture, Terror and Sovereignty (University of Michigan, 2008). (Chapter III, The Current Debate: Torture in the War on Terror)

Tuesday Oct. 8th :No Class

Please take this week to catch up on the readings from the first introductory week and to meet with your project groups.

Tuesday Oct. 15th, 17.00

Civil & Political Rights -Part II: States of Emergency

Lecturer: Dr. Kathleen Cavanaugh

Topics covered:

• What constitutes a public emergency
• Norms applicable in situations of emergency
• Non-derogable rights
• ‘Permanent’ state of emergency

Recommended readings:

Human Rights Committee, General Comment 29: States of Emergency (Article 4), CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.11.

Lawless v. Ireland (no 3 merits), (App. No. 332/57) ECHR 1 July 1961

A and Others v. The United Kingdom, (App. No. 3455/05) ECHR 19 February 2009

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. pages 383-485

European Journal of International Law, April 2003 (entire journal). [This is a special edition which deals entirely with human rights law post September 11th and in the context of the ‘war on terror’].

Tuesday Oct. 22th, 17.00

Framing Human Rights: Debates and Challenges

Lecturer: Dr. Kathleen Cavanaugh

1. Freedom of Religion

Recommended readings:

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. Pages: 582-627

Gunn, T. Jeremy, ‘The Complexity of Religion and the Definition of Religion in International Law’, 16 Harv. Hum. Rts. J. 189 (2003)

The Case of Lautsi and Others v Italy

Leyla Sahin v. Turkey, App. No. 44774/98, Eur. Ct. H.R. (2004)

II.The Cultural Relativity vs Universality Debate

Recommended readings:

Philip Alston & Ryan Goodman, International Human Rights, Oxford University Press, 2012. Pages 531-582

Isabell Gunning, Arrogant Perception, World Traveling, and Multicultural Feminism: The Case of Female Genital Surgeries" in 23 COLUMBIA HUMAN RIGHTS LAW REVIEW 189 (1992)

Constructing the Other

Recommended readings:

Christina Pantazis & Simon Pemberton, From the Old to the New Suspect Communities, BRIT. J. CRIMINOL. (2009) 49, 646–666

Tuesday Oct. 29th, 17:15

Class Project Presentations

Week of Nov. 4th

Exam Review week These reviews will be done in smaller groups in the seminar room of the ICHR.

2-3 Monday November 4th

5-6 Monday November 4th [preference given to those who travel or are working]

11-12 Tuesday November 5th

1-2 Tuesday November 5th

Tuesday 19th November, 14:00-17:15

Exam

Students who have English as a second language will need to turn in their dictionaries by no later than Monday the 18th at 4 p.m. They will be returned to you at the lecture.

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