International Human Rights Law: Returning to Universal Principles

by Mark Gibney

This clear and compelling book challenges the reader to rethink the entire basis for human rights, providing a vastly different vision of a way forward out of our current quagmire. Mark Gibney persuasively advocates for a much broader reading of the law on state responsibility, arguing that current law misses most of the ways in which states fail to protect human rights. He also challenges the notion adopted by all states that human rights obligations extend no farther than their own territorial borders by critiquing cases from the U.S. Supreme Court, the International Court of Justice, and the European Court of Human Rights. Finally, the author takes up the issue of human rights enforcement. Under the current system, the state that carries out human rights violations is expected to enforce this law against itself! Decades of sweeping human rights violations have shown that this system of protection simply cannot work. Calling for other measures to provide victims the 'effective remedy' that international human rights law promises, Gibney sets forth a series of practical steps that would profoundly change the nature of human rights protection.

162 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Puri Kencana Putri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gibney believes that human rights in not complicated, nor should they made to be complicated. However the notion of state sovereignty has been lingering for decades. International human rights treaties have also defined by the governments as safe haven guidelines merely mechanism. Gibney wants to bring the ball forward. There is a need to revitalize state interpretation on treaties by having multi-various accountable avenues. Could it happen?

[Mulki Makmun · Rating 4 out of 5]

The flaws and hee-haws on how international treats its human rights law into failure or even nightmare.