International Human Rights Law Lectures
University of Groningen
Lectures written in 2021-2022. Professor Antenor Hallo de Wolf. University of Groningen.
Typed out lectures of what the professor said + case law.
Week 1-1: History, philosophy, legal framework, sources, typology of HR and
interpretation
Week 1-2: HR: obligation holders, typology of obligations, scope of application and
other relevant concepts
Week 2-1: International and European HR protection mechanism
Week 2-2: Americas, Africa, Asia and the Muslim world
Week 3-1: Monitoring rights: state reporting and individual complaints
Week 3-2: Limits to HR
Week 4-1: Right to life
Week 4-2: Freedom of expression v Privacy and religion
Week 5-1: Freedom of Assembly & Association
Week 6-1: HR in times of conflict and terrorism
Week 6-2: Non-state actors and HR
Week 7-1: National institutions and the protection of HR
Week 7-2: HR in movies (Okja, Brazil, The dancer upstairs and Her)
,Lecture 1A: History, philosophy, legal framework, sources, typology of human rights and
interpretation
What are human rights? norms that stem from, and directly relate to the protection of the
dignity of the human person, can also say inherent, inalienable, and universal.
So, we have different definitions of human rights, not one definition per se. Human rights
are diverse, there are a lot of Human rights and still evolving.
Why bother about historical and philosophical background of human rights? So, we
understand where it comes from etc. We need to secure an intellectual standing, these
claims mean we will be intruding into the realm of a strong institute, namely the state. So,
we need a solid justification of an intrusive action.
History of Human rights (HR)
Historical development on NATIONAL level
Hammurabi laws = one of the first legal written codes.
Magna Carta = England, minimum set of rights for people with land
Bill of Rights UK = a small catalogue of rights
US Declaration of Independence = contained rights influences other developments in
France for example
French declaration of the rights of men and citizen
Phases; INTERNATIONAL level:
Abolition of slavery = Christian thoughts
Diplomatic protection; protection of individuals of one country, residing in another
country. The home country can help them with things, for example diplomatic
assistance, for example bring up a claim.
Efforts to ameliorate consequences of war
Protection of minorities after WW1/Labour movement
Post WWII
Philosophy behind Human Rights
Influence of religious philosophies (for example Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam);
sacredness/equality/dignity of human beings
Natural law; nature of as person is supposed to be good, these rights are inherent in the
human persons. Thomas Aquinas famous.
Political liberalism/Enlightment:
Influences from the Magna Carta and the Bill of Rights.
Natural rights; life, liberty and property. Locke
Inalienable rights – social contract necessary to protect individual/limit government
(Rousseau).
Examples: French declaration and US independence declaration.
,Theories
Positivism: Deontological theories Utilitarianism:
Denial of a e priori source of (Kant): Governments should
rights, Categorical maximize the total net sum
duties/imperatives of the happiness of all their
Authority of the state to subjects (Jeremy Benthem).
issue laws; rights are created Respect for persons as ends
by entities (mainly states), in themselves: respect Maximize everybody
so not that everybody humanity of others, if we welfare.
naturally has these rights! treat others good, others
will treat us good.
Marxism: Teleological Mixed:
Strong, Parental state Promotion or protection of Autonomy/choice, Liberty,
necessary to transform certain virtues/goods minimum material provision
society, no emphasis on (Griffin) minimum resources
individual looks for the reason of to help us achieve the
exitance for certain rules autonomy
Emphasis on collective and and what they try to
economic rights. achieve, mostly a common Justice theory (Rawls)
good original position of virtual
Protect workers against equality to everyone. (1)
bourgeois. have a list of rights
acceptable to everyone and
(2) everybody should be
equal to have possession
and equal workspace
‘Human rights as inherent tot human dignity, somehow pre-existing as a matter of nature’.
® Critique:
o ‘Rights are the child of law; from real law come real rights, but from imaginary law,
from ‘law of nature’, come imaginary rights. Natural rights is simple nonsense;
natural ... rights, rhetorical nonsense, nonsense upon stilts’ (Jeremy Benthem).
‘Inalienability’ of human rights = idea that rights cannot be taken away, they belong so
much to us. In the Wackenheim case, para 7.4. The case was about a ban on dwarf-tossing
in France. We can think dwarf-tossing is degrading etc. but this was the only way this man
earned his money; he could not find any other job. Case went to Human Rights Committee.
The HRC agreed with France. ‘Was necessary to protect public order’. So even if an individual
himself wants to be exposed to this, we as a society have a role to protect him from losing
his dignity. It is alienable, you as a person cannot through that away.
, Universality of human rights
Both philosophical (everyone should enjoy HR) and spatial (everyone in this planet) meaning.
Critique of cultural relativist: Western bias? Not universal, mostly a western construction.
Response to the critique = also quite strong. Practical reaction to the critique: taking local
sensitivities into account at the stage of interpretation of human rights norms to ensure
their maximum relevance (margin of appreciation left to states) particularity?
Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (1993):
® ‘All rights are universal, indivisible and interdependent and interrelated.’
Other critiques/philosophies
Feminism: Capabilities approach:
HR are mainly male oriented. Mostly the Looking at HR as tools to achieve certain
wording for males, so not gender neutral. goals. So not looking at where they come
But even feminism is too broad and different from. Improve their capabilities, their life.
branches of feminism.
Post-colonial critique/third war approach: Interest and law and economics:
HR benefit mostly the rich countries. Colonial Eric Posner. HR are seen as claims, HR
powers trying to extend their colonial system will in the end collapse, because too
imperium. many claims.
Dembour 4 schools of thought
Natural school Deliberative School
Everybody has rights, source is nature (does Similar to positivists. rights guide action of
not necessarily have to be God), nature is by states, sources of rights are agreements
legal consensus. between states.
Protest School Discourse School
You need HR for action, to change things. To Skeptical of HR altogether. HR are there
fight against injustice, source of rights are because we talk about them, rights don’t
historical entitlements, for example colonial exist and no proper source.
empire.
Sources of HR
Article 38 ICJ Statute:
International treaties
International customary law (state practice + opinion juris)
General principles of law
Judicial decisions/writing of publicist
Other sources: decisions of IO’s, resolutions of GA and SC for example. Not legally binding
but can be of valuable = soft law. Note, some SC resolution can be legally binding, depends
on the language.
