26 April 2018
Something Rotten in the State of Denmark?
The final version of the Copenhagen Declaration has turned out to be a lot less dramatic than the original draft led many observers to believe. This leaves several questions of why. Why did Denmark, traditionally a frontrunner country, create a draft declaration so regressive it gave rise to harsh critiques from the Council of Europe Assembly, from academia and from civil society? Why was the Danish Minister of Justice glossing over the content of the declaration? Why has the Danish Institute of Human Rights been so relatively quiet throughout the whole debacle? Continue reading >>
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14 February 2018
Konzernmacht und Verantwortung für Menschenrechte und Umwelt: Neue Wege in der Schweiz
In der Schweiz könnten Unternehmen schon bald durch die Verfassung in die Pflicht genommen werden, weltweit für Menschenrechte und Umwelt Verantwortung zu übernehmen. Das ist das Ziel einer Volksinitiative mit dem Titel „Für verantwortungsvolle Unternehmen – zum Schutz von Mensch und Umwelt“, die die schweizerische Bundesverfassung um eine neue Verfassungsbestimmung zur „Verantwortung von Unternehmen” ergänzen soll. Continue reading >>09 August 2017
The French Antiterrorist Bill: A Permanent State of Emergency
In July, a government bill against terrorism was adopted to replace the French state of emergency, which is in force since the terrorist attacks of November 2015. Critics have long complained about the lasting of the etat d'urgence. An analysis of the new bill however reveals that it is still a threat for human rights and in that matter rather a softened version of the state of emergency. Continue reading >>08 March 2017
South Africa’s Withdrawal from the ICC: The High Court Judgment and its Limits
Domestic legal challenges to the South Africa government’s decision to withdraw from the ICC are underway, and while the first instalment has a distinctly Brexit flavor, it also foreshadows more substantive constitutional arguments to come. Continue reading >>31 January 2017
“A Terrible Signal that International Law can be Flaunted without Consequence”
If refugees are detained or turned away for reasons of religion or country of origin, that is a case of discrimination clearly prohibited by international refugee law. In theory any other state party to the Refugee Protocol can take the US to the International Court of Justice. Will Chancellor Merkel or perhaps Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau – each of whom has spoken up for refugees in the current context – have the courage to make that referral? Continue reading >>30 December 2016
Toward Hominid and Other Humanoid Rights: Are We Witnessing a Legal Revolution?
On 3 November 2016, an Argentinian judge granted habeas corpus relief to Cecilia, a person held captive in a small cage. Nothing out of the ordinary – except for the fact that Cecilia is not a battered woman or abused girl, but a chimpanzee kept at Mendoza zoo. This 1 % genetic difference turns this into a landmark judgment of potentially revolutionary proportions. For the first time in legal history, a court explicitly declared an animal other than human a legal person who possesses inherent fundamental rights. This judgment marks a radical breach with the deeply entrenched legal tradition of categorizing animals as rightless things (the person’s antithesis), and demonstrates that the previously impenetrable legal wall between humans and animals can be surmounted. The question seems no longer if, but when. Continue reading >>12 October 2016
Warum ein Opt-out aus der EMRK für britische Streitkräfte eher unwahrscheinlich ist
Die britische Premierministerin Theresa May will die Streitkräfte von den Verpflichtungen der Europäischen Menschenrechtskonvention befreien. Folgt daraus, dass Schadensersatzklagen von Opfern demnächst als unzulässig abgewiesen werden? Oder dass das Vereinigte Königreich nicht mehr an die EMRK gebunden ist, wenn es seine Streitkräfte in den Einsatz schickt? Wohl kaum. Continue reading >>
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26 July 2016
The Principle of Non-Refoulement as a Constitutional Right of Asylum Seekers in Turkey
Refugee migration has always been a phenomenon for many countries in the modern age and Turkey is no exception. Since the 20th Century Turkey hosted hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers and refugees from different countries. Continue reading >>
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27 April 2016
Tax Evasion and Human Rights
The United Nations Covenant should be interpreted to prohibit state mandated bank secrecy, which facilitates tax evasion by wealthy residents of the developing world. In other words, bank secrecy laws of Lichtenstein, Panama, and Switzerland, for example, violate internationally recognized human rights. Continue reading >>
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06 November 2015
The Universal Declaration of the Rights of Humankind: Big Words, Small Effect
The text of a Universal Declaration of the Rights of Humankind was presented on Monday before the french Economic, Social and Environmental Council. France will introduce the declaration in December at the 21st United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris. Is the declaration more than just an empty gesture? Continue reading >>
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