Birth Registration in Crisis: Exploring a Rights-Based Approach to Birth Registration through the Experience of Syrian Refugees

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 541-566
Author(s):  
Jazmine Hesham Elmolla
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Birth Registration ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
Syrian Refugees ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract The right to birth registration is protected under international human rights law. While this protection clearly confers an obligation on States to register births, it is less clear how this birth registration process should be carried out in order to ensure that individuals can realize numerous other human rights. For example, how should States register the births of children born to refugees or asylum seekers in order to give effect to the right to a nationality? The question is particularly relevant given the increasing number of people who are fleeing the many contemporary conflicts. The article investigates this question, along with the precise meaning and requirements of the right to birth registration under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child. It argues that the birth registration frameworks established by States often fail to protect the human rights of the child. Using Syrian refugees in Lebanon as a case study, the conclusion reached is that there is an urgent need for States to adopt a rights-based approach to birth registration that reflects the relationship between birth registration and other human rights.

Human Rights and the Arctic

2009 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 233-243
Author(s):  
Gudmundur Alfredsson
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Indigenous Peoples ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
Independent State ◽  
The Status ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Right

Abstract This article surveys some of the many international human rights law issues that come up in connection with the Arctic, such as the rights of indigenous peoples and the formulation of these rights in a draft Nordic Sami Convention. The focus, however, is on recent developments concerning the status of Greenland as a result of an agreement concluded in 2008 between the Danish and Greenlandic authorities. This agreement foresees not only a significant increase in self-government but also opens the door for the Greenlandic people to create an independent State through the exercise of the right to external self-determination as a matter of political decolonisation of an overseas colonial territory.

Human Rights in Germany – A View from Germany's National Human Rights Institution

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 50-58
Author(s):  
Beate Rudolf
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Added Value ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
The Right To Privacy ◽  
National Human ◽  
Human Rights Treaties ◽  
Protection Of Human Rights ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractThis paper discusses the protection of human rights in Germany through the interplay of constitutional law and international human rights law. It also explores the relationship between specialized human rights treaties on the rights of women, children, and persons with disabilities with “general” human rights treaties and their added value. It will highlight current human rights issues, such as the treatment of refugees, the protection against racist discrimination, and the right to privacy in the digital age.

scholarly journals THE RIGHT TO VOTE FOR NON-RESIDENT CITIZENS IN EUROPE

2016 ◽  
Vol 65 (4) ◽  
pp. 859-894 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Lappin
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
Human Right ◽  
European Court ◽  
Civil And Political Rights ◽  
Right To Vote ◽  
The Right ◽  
Political Right

AbstractThe right to vote is the most important political right in international human rights law. Framed within the broader right of political participation, it is the only right in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights not guaranteed as a universal human right but rather as a citizen's right. While limitations on the right to vote are permissible in respect of citizenship and age, residency-based restrictions are not explicitly provided. However, recent judgments of the European Court of Human Rights endorse a view that voting rights may be conditioned on residency on the grounds of an individual's bond to their country-of-origin and the extent to which laws passed by that government would affect them. This article questions this proposition and explores whether disenfranchisement based solely on residency constitutes an unreasonable and discriminatory restriction to the essence of the right.

scholarly journals Conflict over Conflict: The Right to Strike in International Law

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane F Frey
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
International Law ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
International Labour Organisation ◽  
International Human Rights ◽  
Cultural Rights ◽  
Human Rights Treaties ◽  
International Human ◽  
The Right

<p>The existence of a right to strike under international law has been challenged by the International Organization of Employers since the late 1980s. The employer group claims that no such right exists under international law and has been moving to undermine recognition of the right at the International Labour Organisation (ILO). This article examines the right to strike in international human rights law. It considers specifically the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and finds that the right to strike exists in both of these treaties. Further, the article demonstrates that while the ILO employers group may challenge the existence of the right to strike, its government members have overwhelmingly ratified international human rights treaties contradicting the employer group's position that there is no such right.</p>

Part 1 Freedom of Religion or Belief, 1.3 The Right to Manifest One’s Religion or Belief

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bielefeldt Heiner, Prof ◽  
Ghanea Nazila, Dr ◽  
Wiener Michael, Dr
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Freedom Of Religion ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
International Human Rights ◽  
International Human ◽  
Civil And Political Rights ◽  
The Right

This chapter emphasizes that the outer manifestations of freedom of religion or belief (forum externum) are not in any sense less important than the inner nucleus of a person’s religious or belief-related conviction (forum internum), even though only the latter is protected unconditionally under international human rights law. This chapter also discusses the largely overlapping elements of the right to manifest one’s religion or belief ‘in worship, observance, practice and teaching’. Furthermore, it analyses the implications of the religion-related reservations, declarations, and objections made by a number of States when signing, ratifying, or acceding to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

12. Education and work

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Coomans Fons
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
Right To Education ◽  
International Human Rights ◽  
Cultural Rights ◽  
Right To Work ◽  
The Right ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

This chapter discusses two human rights that belong to the category of economic, social, and cultural rights: the right to education and the right to work. It explains how the modern view of the nature of economic, social, and cultural rights can be applied to these rights. The chapter discusses the sources of the rights under international human rights law, their main features, and components; the obligations resulting from each right; and the relationship of each right with other human rights. Both rights are crucial for the ability to live a life in dignity and develop one’s personality.

The Right to Property and Compulsory Land Acquisition in Ghana: A Human Rights Perspective

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 100-125
Author(s):  
Michael Gyan Nyarko
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
International Law ◽  
Land Acquisition ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
Global Level ◽  
Constitutional Protection ◽  
The Right ◽  
Human Rights Based Approach

Using a human rights-based approach and Ghana as a case study, this article examines the scope and content of the right to property in relation to compulsory land acquisition under international law. It argues that while the exact frontiers of the right to property remain quite uncharted at the global level the vacuum has been filled by the regional human rights systems and soft law. In the context of Ghana, the Constitutional protection of the right to property and quite elaborate rules to be followed during compulsory acquisition have not translated into revision of the compulsory acquisition laws, which remain largely incoherent and inconsistent with the requirements of the Constitution and international human rights law.

‘Past’ Violations under International Human Rights Law: The Indigenous ‘Stolen Generation’ in Australia

2005 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 243-272
Author(s):  
Maria O'Sullivan
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Racial Discrimination ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
International Human Rights ◽  
International Convention ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
International Human ◽  
The Government

This article examines the debate relating to reparations for ‘past’ human rights violations, with particular focus on the case of the indigenous ‘Stolen Generation’ in Australia. The ‘Stolen Generation’ is a term used to describe the government-sanctioned practice of forced removals of part-Aboriginal children from their indigenous parents and placement into non-indigenous institutions and homes, which occurred in Australia from approximately 1910–1970. The ‘Stolen Generation’ violations present a unique and difficult legal question for international human rights law because they straddle the divide between ‘historic’ violations and contemporary acts, that is, they were committed by Australia after Australia signed key agreements such as the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, the Declaration on the Rights of the Child and the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, but prior to its ratification of international human rights treaties such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. This means that bringing a claim under international human rights law in relation to the violations raises a number of problems. The object of this article will be to explore whether Australia can be held responsible under international human rights law for the ‘Stolen Generation’ violations and possible avenues of redress. In this regard, the focus of the article will be on the possible claims victims could make to relevant treaty monitoring bodies and the types of obstacles they would face in doing so. These legal questions are also relevant to the wider debate that is taking place in relation to reparations, namely the extent to which a State can be held legally responsible to provide reparations for past violations.

Property Restitution in Eastern Europe: Domestic and International Human Rights Law Responses

2004 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 325-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariana Karadjova
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Political Rights ◽  
European Court ◽  
The Future ◽  
Civil And Political Rights ◽  
The Right ◽  
Past Injustices

AbstractThis article presents an overview of how those East European countries that are members of the Council of Europe have approached the problems of restitution as a means of reparation for past injustices. In doing so, attention will be paid to: the entitled persons and the extent of restitution; the underlying motivations vis-à-vis the form of reparation (restitution in kind or compensation), and attitudes towards minority groups and foreigners as part of the restitution process. Emphasis will also be given to the role played by international instruments (the ECHR and its future Protocol 12, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, various UN resolutions, etc), as well as by judicial institutions (the European Court of Human Rights, the UN Human Rights Committee) in the evolution of the restitution process in Eastern Europe in general, and regarding such issues as equality between foreigners and nationals as well as minority and religious groups and the elaboration of an international standard of restitution as reparation for abuses of human rights in particular. The bodies of the ECHR have managed to avoid problems related to restitution and reparations for past injustices by arguing that the right of restitution is not guaranteed by art.1 of Protocol 1 to the the ECHR. But the entry into force of a new Protocol 12 to the Convention will likely result in changes being made in this thought process, at least as regards the position of foreigners. If measures denying restitution, owing to the claimant's nationality, were taken after ratifi cation of Protocol 12, the way should be opened in the future to foreigners (in addition to procedures before the UN Human Rights Committee) to more effectively defend their rights relative to such restorative measures: notably, the possibility of seizing the Strasbourg Court with claims relating to justifi cation for "unequal treatment". The right to remedy the injustices committed to the victims of violations of human rights and international humanitarian law has appeared with increasing frequency on the agenda of the UN Commission on Human Rights. Furthermore, in its recent case law, the UN Human Rights Committee has evidenced a concern over several questions relating to the respect of possessions; it has already opted for the proposition that any discrimination on the basis of nationality in restitution legislation can be deemed to be a violation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Lastly, after ratifi cation of Protocol 12, we can expect a link to be forged between the vision of the UN Commission on Human Rights and that of the European Court of Human Rights that may—in the future—lead to the elaboration of a common international mechanism regulating restitution as a means for the reparation of abuses of human rights.

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