Background materials that are to be browsed in advance of the first lecture 26. January:
- “The International Bill of Human Rights”, comprising Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948), International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights (1966/1976), and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966/1976). These documents are available from University of Minnesota Human Rights Library at Link
- Participants should have access to: The Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (1993) Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at http://www.ohchr.org/english/law/vienna.htm, and Charter of the United Nations (1945) from University of Minnesota Human Rights Library at Link
- The course will discuss two important decisions by international human rights bodies. These are not included in the required readings and will be distributed to course participants as handouts and/or be posted at the course site (4321B) in fronter.
- Handouts and other supplementary readings will be made available as the course proceeds. Also, a detailed teaching plan will be presented Tuesday 26 January. Additional handouts and supplementary readings will be posted in fronter.
- At the first course lecture on 26 January handouts will be available of relevant background information, in particular: excerpts from “Setting International Standards in the Field of Human Rights” (GAR 41/120, 4. Dec. 1986), “Statute of the International Court of Justice” (1945) and “Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties” (1969).
- Beyond the above-mentioned documents course participants who do not have any background in International Human Rights should consult Thomas Buergenthal et al., International Human Rights in a Nutshell, 4th Ed., St Paul, MN: West Publishing Company, 2009; ISBN978-0-314-18480-1 (Recommendation: start by reading chapters 1 through 3 and do not get bogged down by the many references to other literature or to case materials.)
- A Course Compendium will be available in the “Akademika” Bookstore with reproductions of the texts marked “in Comp” below.
Required reading:
Brian Barry, “Liberal States and Illiberal Religions”, in: Culture and Equality, Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press, 2001:155-193; 37 pages; Fronter
Charles E. Beitz, The Idea of Human Rights, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009; 212 pages
Heiner Bielefeldt; “Political Secularism and European Islam: A Challenge to Muslims and Non-Muslims”, [not yet published book chapter] 16 pages Fronter
David P. Forsythe, “The United States and International Criminal Justice”, Human Rights Quarterly, 24, 2002:974-991; 17 pages Link
David P. Forsythe: Human Rights in International Relations, 2nd Edition, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006:57-88, 121-217; 68 pages
Mary Ann Glendon: A World Made New: Eleanor Roosevelt and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, New York: Random House, 2001:99-241; 138 pages
Mohsen Kadivar, “Human rights and intellectual Islam”, in: Kari Vogt et al. eds, New Directions in Islamic Thought, Exploring Reform and Muslim Traditions, London: I. B. Tauris, 2008:47-73; 26 pages; Fronter
Martti Koskenniemi, “International Law and Hegemony: A Reconfiguration”, Cambridge Review of International Affairs 17, 2004, 197- 218, 20 pages Link
Tore Lindholm et al. eds.: Facilitating Freedom of Religion or Belief: A Deskbook, Leiden: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 2004:xxxvii-xlii (“Introduction”), 24-56 (Lindholm),147-172 (Nowak&Vospernik); 63 pages, in Comp
James W. Nickel, Making Sense of Human Rights, Second Edition, Malden MA: Blackwell Publishing, 2007:53-184; 131 pages
Martha C. Nussbaum, “The Role of Religion”, in: Women and Human Development: The Capabilities Approach, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000: 167-240; 73 pages
Total: 801 pages.