Human Rights: Thought and Practice in the Contemporary World

The experiences of the Second World War and the Holocaust led to the unanimous adoption of the 'Universal Declaration of Human Rights' (UDHR) by the UN General Assembly in 1948. Human rights principles had long formed part of modern constitutions all over the world, but the UDHR was the first international instrument to make a wide range of civil and political rights, as well as a number of social, economic and cultural rights part and parcel of the contemporary notion of democracy.

The UDHR was followed by a considerable number of human rights instruments adopted by various UN bodies and regional organisations. Respect for human rights is one important item on the international agenda. What has remained problematic is what can and should be done at international or regional level if governments are unwilling to protect the civil and political rights of their peoples or they do not have the resources to provide for all their citizens a decent level of welfare. International diplomacy is mostly ineffective, international aid is difficult to carry out even when the host country wants it, and humanitarian intervention is very controversial, especially when it involves military action.

The conference will discuss issues such as (the following list not being exhaustive):

• How many aspects does the concept of'human rights' have? And what is the order of significance among these aspects? Should civil and political rights be given priority over social, economic and cultural rights, for example?
• What does it mean to make this assertion of rights, and what legal, political and social mechanisms have to be built and activated to make these rights a living reality for human beings, especially vulnerable groups, including children, racial and religious minorities, disabled people and long-term unemployed?
• What obligations are placed on governments and their populations by the need to create rights-realizing procedures? What, if anything, should the international community or regional bodies do in response to systematic violations of rights in particular countries?
• Is there a right to work, and if so, is this the same as the right to a job one wants to do and for wages commensurate with one's qualifications and experience?
• How do you realize the right to high-quality education up to university level and high-quality healthcare from the cradle to the grave at a time when received economic wisdom enjoins governments to make spending cuts to reduce national debt?
• Is there a sense in which the rich have an obligation to support the poor?

PROVISIONAL PROGRAMME

• Evangelia Sembou: Welcome on behalf of the Political Thought Specialist Group of the PSA
• Chetan Bhatt: Welcome on behalf of the LSE Centre for the Study of Human Rights

1. Thomas Pogge, Leitner Professor of Philosophy and International Affairs, Yale University: ‘World Poverty: Responses and Responsibilities’.
2. Birgit Schippers, St Mary’s University College Belfast: ‘Who is the human in human rights?’.
3. Joe Hoover, Fellow, Department of International Relations, LSE: ‘Towards a Politics for Human Rights: Ambiguous Humanity and Democratizing Rights’.
4. Jesse Anne Tomalty, Nuffield College, Oxford: ‘Human rights as rights’.
5. Saladin Meckled-Garcia, Joint Director of the UCL Institute for Human Rights: ‘Human rights and social distributive justice: keeping them apart v "muddling through".
6. Anthony J. Langlois, Flinders University: ‘Performing the Practice of Human Rights: The case of the new ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights’.
7. Demin Duan, School of Government, Beijing University: ‘The Democratic Moment of Human Rights: A Lefortian View of Human Rights in China’.
8. Diana Trifu, Ana Constantinescu, Cristian Ducu, Centre for Advanced Research in Management and Applied Ethics, University of Bucharest, Romania: ‘Is there a Moral Obligation of Wealthy Countries towards Protecting Human Rights in Poor Countries?’
9. Janne Mende, International Graduate Centre for the Study of Culture (GCSC), Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen: ‘Universal and regional rights’.
10. Chetan Bhatt, LSE: ‘The Antinomies of Human Rights: Al Qaeda and progressive political movements’.
11.  Parting thoughts by Zenon Stavrinides, Secretary the Political Thought Specialist Group of the PSA

In view of the generous support we have received from the LSE Centre for the Study of Human Rights, the participation fee for everyone is set at £32.00, which includes a sandwich lunch and also coffee/tea and biscuits during breaks in the proceeding.

Participants need to send their fee – normally a cheque for £32.00 drawn on a UK bank  and made out to ‘Political Thought Specialist Group’ – by 1 November to the Secretary and Treasurer on the Political Thought Specialist Group

Dr Zenon Stavrinides

8 Ganners Mount

Leeds LS13 2PE

United Kingdom

Overseas participants may send this sum by inter-bank arrangements to

• IBAN:  GB78 LOYD 7714 1023  5984 60
• BIC (SWIFT):  LOYDGB21N62

For further details please contact: 

Zenon Stavrinides, Secretary and Treasurer, Political Thought Specialist Group of the Political Studies Association ([email protected] & [email protected])