Read complete books and articles on: Human Rights and Europe

Human Rights - universal rights held to belong to individuals by virtue of their being human, encompassing civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights and freedoms, and based on the notion of personal human dignity and worth. Conceptually derived from the theory of natural law and originating in Greco-Roman doctrines, the idea of human rights appears in some early Christian writers' works and is reflected in the Magna Carta (1215). The concept winds as a philosophical thread through 17th- and 18th-century European and American thought, including the Declaration of Independence (1776) and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen (1789). The United Nation's Commission on Human Rights, with Eleanor Roosevelt as chair, created the UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), which reasserted the concept of human rights after the horrors of World War II. Human rights have since become a universally espoused yet widely disregarded concept.

Organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch promote human rights and denounce human-rights abuses. In addition, such abuses around the world are monitored and documented by independent investigators ("special rapporteurs") appointed by the UN Human Rights Commission, which, in turn, rebukes cited nations for their human-rights failures. The charging in 1998 by a Spanish court of former Chilean president Augusto Pinochet with human-rights violations and the 1999 British ruling that he could be extradited to Spain, as well as the indictment and arrest (2000) in Senegal of former Chadian president Hissène Habré for human-rights violations during his presidency (although charges were later dropped), were regarded as steps forward in the international protection of human rights.

See M. A. Glendon, A World Made New: Eleanor Roosevelt and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (2001).

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12 of the Best Books and Articles on: Human Rights and Europe

as selected by Questia librarians

1.

European Human Rights Convention in Domestic Law: A Comparative Study » Read Now
by Andrew Z. Drzemczewski. 378 pgs.

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This is the first investigation of the legal status of the European Human Eights Convention and its influence and authority in domestic courts of all state party to the Convention. Drzemczerski approaches the problem from the standpoint of comparative law, using materials previously unavailable in this continuing debate.
2.

Regional Human Rights: A Comparative Study of the West European and Inter-American Systems » Read Now
by A. Glenn Mower Jr. 182 pgs.

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Mower evaluates the effectiveness of the regional systems for promotin human rights developed by the Council of Europe and the Organization of American States, examining their structure and performance during the 1980s, specifically the degree to which each region's needs were met by the...
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Mower evaluates the effectiveness of the regional systems for promotin human rights developed by the Council of Europe and the Organization of American States, examining their structure and performance during the 1980s, specifically the degree to which each region's needs were met by the establishment of working agencies and the enactment of appropriate programs. The comparison of these agencies, analyzed within the framework of their respective economic, social, and political environments, affirms the link between increased awareness of human rights and the necessity for a continually flexible official response.
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3.

Human Rights in the Private Sphere (Part I "The Different Ways in Which the European Convention on Human Rights Is Relevant, or May Become Relevant, in the United Kingdom Courts") » Read Now
by Andrew Clapham. 386 pgs.

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The application of international human rights law to the private sphere has implications for the worlds of labor relations, race relations, discrimination and violence against women, and for victims of indignities everywhere. This study shows that respect for privacy need not mean excluding wrongs...
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The application of international human rights law to the private sphere has implications for the worlds of labor relations, race relations, discrimination and violence against women, and for victims of indignities everywhere. This study shows that respect for privacy need not mean excluding wrongs in the private sphere from the world of human rights. Concentrating on the rights contained in the European Convention on Human Rights, and their enforcement in the courts of the United Kingdom, it develops a coherent approach to human rights in the private sphere. In particular it challenges the presumption that the fundamental rights and freedoms contained in the European Convention on Human Rights are irrelevant for cases which concern the sphere of relations between individuals.
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4.

Human Rights in a Pluralist World: Individuals and Collectivities ("European Culture, Individual Rights, Collective Rights" begins on p. 149 and "Societal Change, Human Rights and the Welfare State in Europe" begins on p. 189) » Read Now
by Jan Berting, Peter R. Baehr, J. Herman Burgers, Cees Flinterman, Barbara de Klerk, Rob Kroes, Cornelis A. van Minnen, Koo Vanderwal. 268 pgs.

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...Enlightenment 145 European Culture, Individual Rights, Collective Rights...Socialist Conception of Human Rights: The Polish Perspective...and the Welfare State in Europe...
5.

The International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights: A Perspective on Its Development » Read Now
by Matthew C. R. Craven. 420 pgs.

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Despite their formal legal recognition in a number of international instruments since 1945, economic, social and cultural rights have long been marginalised and ignored as a category of human rights. This is particularly apparent with respect to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and...
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Despite their formal legal recognition in a number of international instruments since 1945, economic, social and cultural rights have long been marginalised and ignored as a category of human rights. This is particularly apparent with respect to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), which was intended to form part of the `International Bill of Rights' alongside its sister covenant `The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights'. This study represents the first detailed examination of the origins and development of the ICESCR, drawing in particular upon the work of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The author addresses in detail particular aspects of the Covenant such as the role of the Committee in the supervision process, the nature of state obligations, the principle of non-discrimination, and the rights to work, to join and form Trade Unions, to housing, and to food. This original and scholarly work offers a timely examination of an increasingly significant human rights instrument, and will be of value to all those interested in Human Rights and International Law.
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6.

Human Rights in the United Kingdom » Read Now
by Richard Gordon, Richard Wilmot-Smith. 148 pgs.

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Central to any discussion of the present status of the idea of human rights in the United Kingdom is the incorporation of the European Convention of Human Rights. Incorporation has widespread support, and such support should be accompanied by informed debate. In this stimulating collection of...
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Central to any discussion of the present status of the idea of human rights in the United Kingdom is the incorporation of the European Convention of Human Rights. Incorporation has widespread support, and such support should be accompanied by informed debate. In this stimulating collection of essays, contributors such as Lord Bingham, Lord Lester QC, Andrew Marr of The Independent, and Ronald Dworkin, the highly respected legal theorist, present their arguments in favour of incorporation. The expression of their informed opinions and points of view results in a lively and readable book.
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7.

The Impact of the Human Rights Bill on English Law, Vol. Three » Read Now
by Basil S. Markesinis. 194 pgs.

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This year a much anticipated Bill of Rights is to be submitted to the British House of Lords. This work examines the effect such a piece of legislation will have on various aspects of English law, including its potential influence on company and commercial law, freedom of speech, and criminal law.
8.

Migrant Workers in International Human Rights Law: Their Protection in Countries of Employment (Part III "Case Study of the Regional Protection of the Rights of Migrant Workers and Their Families in Europe") » Read Now
by Ryszard Cholewinski. 474 pgs.

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Migrant workers and their families outnumber refugees and displaced persons, but are given far less attention when it comes to the international protection of their rights. Indeed, to be an economic migrant today carries with it a stigma in a word where barriers to voluntary international migration...
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Migrant workers and their families outnumber refugees and displaced persons, but are given far less attention when it comes to the international protection of their rights. Indeed, to be an economic migrant today carries with it a stigma in a word where barriers to voluntary international migration are growing ever higher. This timely work evaluates the international protection of the rights of migrant workers and their families in countries of employment focusing on their economic, social, cultural, political, and residence rights. The book begins with an overview of international labour migration and its relationship to the right to development. It examines the rights of migrant workers as aliens in general international human rights law as well as the specific efforts and measures of the International Labour Organization and the United Nations. The final part contains a comprehensive case study of the multifarious standards adopted under the auspices of the Council of Europe and the European Union to protect this increasingly vulnerable group of human beings.
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9.

Human Rights and Comparative Foreign Policy (Chap. 3 "Trials and Errors: The Netherlands and Human Rights," Chap. 4 "British Foreign Policy and Human Rights: From Low to High Politics," and Chap. 9 "Human Rights and Foreign Policy in Central Europe: Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Poland") » Read Now
by David P. Forsythe. 370 pgs.

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Human Rights and Comparative Foreign Policy is the first book in English to examine the place of human rights in the foreign policies of a wide range of states during contemporary times. The book is also unique in utilizing a common framework of analysis for all 10 of the country or regional studies...
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Human Rights and Comparative Foreign Policy is the first book in English to examine the place of human rights in the foreign policies of a wide range of states during contemporary times. The book is also unique in utilizing a common framework of analysis for all 10 of the country or regional studies covered. This framework treats foreign policy as the result of a two-level game in which both domestic and foreign factors have to be considered. Leading experts from around the world analyze both liberal democratic and other foreign policies on human rights. A general introduction and a systematic conclusion add to the coherence of the project. The authors note the increasing attention given to human rights issues in contemporary foreign policy. At the same time, they argue that most states, including liberal democratic states that identify with human rights, are reluctant most of the time to elevate human rights concerns to a level equal to that of traditional security and economic concerns. When states do seek to integrate human rights with these and other concerns, the result is usually great inconsistency in patterns of foreign policy. The book further argues that different states bring different emphasis to their human rights diplomacy, because of such factors as national political culture and perceived national interests. In the last analysis states can be compared along two dimensions pertaining to human rights: extent to which they are oriented toward an international rather than national conception of rights; and extent to which they are oriented toward international rather than national action to protect human rights.
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10.

Human Rights in Crisis: The International System for Protecting Rights during States of Emergency ("The Council of Europe" begins on p. 193 and "The Future for Europe" begins on p. 205) » Read Now
by Joan Fitzpatrick. 282 pgs.

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11.

International Human Rights (Chap. Seven "War and Genocide in the Former Yugoslavia") » Read Now
by Jack Donnelly. 224 pgs.

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"Human rights" as we know them did not exist (as a cultural and political force) before 1945. Author Jack Donnelly traces the rise of human rights issues coming out of World War II and shows their transformation in the intervening years, including the post-Cold War agendas that have emerged since...
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"Human rights" as we know them did not exist (as a cultural and political force) before 1945. Author Jack Donnelly traces the rise of human rights issues coming out of World War II and shows their transformation in the intervening years, including the post-Cold War agendas that have emerged since 1989. Includes figures, tables, documents, suggested readings, photos, and more.
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12.

Prosecuting Human Rights Violations from a Previous Regime: The East European Experience, in East European Quarterly » Read Now
by Mark Gibney. 18 pgs.

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