International Human Rights & Justice

From their classical origins in the natural law theory of Greek and Roman philosophers and jurists to natural rights culminating in the American and French revolutions of the late 18th century, contemporary human rights have been universally recognized by the United Nations in the International Bill of Human Rights compromising the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 and the Twin Covenants of 1966. A wide array of special human rights treaties protecting racial and ethnic minorities, women, children and persons with disabilities have now been recognized and are monitored in their implementation by treaty committees, special rapporteurs and the UN Human Rights Council. The human rights expansion process continues. International Human Rights and Justice offers a scholarly and eclectic examination and analysis of topical and indeed controversial human rights, equality and protection issues which confront our world today. The intended audience includes legal scholars and practitioners, human rights advocates and students who wish to increase their knowledge of (and passion for) the human rights field. The contributors include senior university academics and administrators, human rights researchers and policy-makers, philosophers, political scientists, United Nations officials and NGO representatives spanning North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Australia. They have examined a wide range of human rights applications which evidence their inherent pervasiveness and dynamism in everyday life. These include: The scope of the human right to benefit from scientific progress; Recent undermining of the protective mechanisms of the European Convention on Human Rights (at a time of mass refugee flows into southern Europe); Human rights, well-being and the case for equality in the post-2015 development agenda; Equality of access to justice in American courts as a human right; The protection of the reproductive rights of African women in a cultural context; The potential for United Nations human rights norms and protective mechanisms to advance the constitutional recognition of Australian Aboriginal human rights; Freedom of expression as a fundamental international human right and South African constitutional right; The destruction of the cultural heritage of humanity in armed conflict as a breach of human rights; MNCs, governments and the development of human rights infrastructure post-Washington Consensus; The contribution of cultural practices to ensure greater protection of the human rights of African children; The reindeer herding right in Norway and Sweden as a protected right under the European Convention on Human Rights; Ensuring justice for the accused in criminal proceedings under the European Convention on Human Rights through the delivery of adequate interpretation and translation services.