CPHR Exam 1

8/27/24 

Foundations: Human Rights Law 

• Human rights have “vagueness” 

• ***Human right (HR): a claim by someone, on someone, for something essential to human dignity**** 

• HR: the rights necessary for a life with human dignity (Forsythe 2006) [looser definition] 

Legal Tools:  

• 1. Binding international law (“hard” law) 

• 2. Customary law 

• 3. “Soft” law 

Treaty-based law 

• Legally binding international law 

• Treaties (conventions, covenants) = contracts of international law 

• Bilateral and multilateral 

• Optional protocols (added onto treaties) 

Process of treaty “ratification” 

• Representatives of a state SIGN a convention 

• It is then passed to the legislature of that country for RATIFICATION 

• The legislature must be sure that the laws of the country do not conflict with the obligations of the convention 

• Some treaties are ratified with “RESERVATIONS” (opt-out language), “UNDERSTANDINGS”, or “DECLARATIONS”  

• Collective action problem, differences between states 

• Reservations by differing states weaken such 

• If there are “OPTIONAL PROTOCOLS” to a treaty, a country may choose to sign and ratify those separately 

Treaties “come into force” 

• When required number if states ratify them 

• Always a minimum number of states to allow the treaty to go into force 

• Required number differs by treaty (specified by treaty itself) 

Customary Law 

• Achieves binding force of international law over time 

• Distinct from treaty law – states don’t “sign” customary law, they uphold it through “constant and uniform practice” 

• Examples: principle of diplomatic immunity  

 
“Soft” Law 

• Norm: expectation for an actor with a given identity 

• e.g. we support free and fair elections 

• Norms that do not meet the procedural test of law, but influence policymaking, include:  

• UN declarations  

• e.g. declaration on violence against women 

International Bill of Human Rights 

• 1. Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR, 1948) 

• First authoritative interpretation of references to HR in the UN Charter 

• NOT a “theory” of HR 

• Customary law has assumed force if law only over time (i.e., echoed in many post-colonial constitutions) 

• Doesn't have a monitoring body 

• Includes both negative and positive rights (i.e., protections “from” and entitlements “to”) 

• Types of rights include 

• Some rights that parallel natural rights (e.g., life, liberty, security of person) 

• Rights related to rule of law (e.g. to a fair trial) 

• Political rights 

• Economic rights 

• Rights of communities (i.e. self-determination) 

• Nondiscrimination 

• Article 29 

• “Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of the personality is possible” 

• [Rights...] shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order, and the general welfare in a democratic society 

• I.e., uable to retrieve belongings from the Twin Towers after 9/11 --> property rights are trumped by the crime scene 

• 2. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR, 1976) 

• Adopted 1966 

• Entered into force 1976 

• Cold War context – delay in entry into force 

• Monitored by HR Committee (created under term of treaty) 

• Rights are immediately actionable (or remedies must be in place for addressing shortfalls) 

• Nondiscrimination must be guaranteed 

• Part II Article 4 

• “Public emergency” is only condition under which these rights can be suspended 

• But some rights can NEVER be suspended 

• Article 4, para 2, specifies non-derogable rights** 

• “No derogation from articles 6,7,8 (paragraphs 1 and 2), 11, 15, 16, and 18 may be made under this provision 

• Critical Distinction 

• “Derogable” rights: can be suspended under some circumstances (e..g public order, public emergency) 

• **“Non-derogable” rights: cannot be suspended under any circumstances 

• Article 6: life 

• Article 7: torture 

• Article 8: slavery 

• Article 11: imprisonment for failure to meet contractual obligations 

• Article 15: no retroactive justice 

• Article 16: recognition under the law 

• Article 18: thought, conscience, religion 

• 3. International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR, 1976) 

• Rights are to be “progressively realized” over time 

• International development cooperation is essential 

• Nondiscrimination must be immediately guaranteed 

• Minimum obligation for nondiscrimination 

• Minimum obligation to use the maximum extent of their resources to achieve economic rights 

• Key rights in ICESCR: 

• Article 6: the right to work 

• Equal access to work (no discrimination) 

• Article 7: to just and favorable conditions of work 

• Article 8: to trade union rights 

• Article 9: to social security 

• Article 11: to an adequate standard of living 

• Article 12: to health 

• Article 13: to education 

• Mechanics 

• No treaty monitoring body was created in the original wording of the ICESCR 

• It took until 1985 for the Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights to be created 

• States parties to the treaty must report every five years 

• Challenge: setting “baselines” for fulfillment of economic rights 

• Challenge: enforcement 

START OF QUIZ 2 

Foundations : Humanitarian Law 

Humanitarian Law and Criminal Law 

• Humanitarian law: has historically dealt with the protection of rights in times of war, beginning with the Geneva Conventions (1964; 1949), which protect: 

• Wounded/sick combatants 

• Prisoners of war 

• Civilians in times of war 

• International criminal law: challenge of enforcement in absence of an international “police” force 

History 

• UN Charter (1944), Articles 55 and 56: first international treaty to explicitly mention human rights 

• Mentions but does not define or specify types of rights to be protected, promoted 

• Chapter VII of UN Charter specifies UN’s role in addressing “threats to international peace and security” 

• Nuremberg Charter (1945): established the concept of “crimes against humanity” 

• Was the precursor to the Genocide Convention (1948): made individuals responsible for prosecution if they try to destroy a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group 

• Rise of transitions to democracy (i.e., late 1980’s) and inter-ethnic conflicts in the wake of the Cold War (i.e., 1990s) 

Security Council 

• Authorized under UN Charter to create judicial institutions as needed for promotion of peace and security 

• Goal: prosecute individuals who pose a “threat to international peace and security” 

Key Institutions 

• International Criminal Tribunals for: 

• Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) 

• Rwanda (ICTR) 

• “Special courts” for: 

• Sierra Leone 

• East Timor 

• Kosovo 

• Cambodia 

• Iraqi trial of Saddam Hussein 

• Other key institutions 

• Truth and Reconciliation Commissions 

• Created from 1980s to present 

• Non-judicial mandate 

• Created at NATIONAL level, by states 

International Criminal Court (ICC) 

• NOT PART OF THE UNITED NATIONS 

• States sign and ratify the “Rome Statute” (1998) to join the ICC; 100 members to date 

• Prosecutes INDIVIDUAL PEOPLE for the following 

• 1. Crimes against humanity, genocide, serious war crime 

• 2. Crimes that occurred within the territory of a State Party 

• 3. Crimes that were committed by a national of a State Party, where-ever the crime took place 

Key Definitions 

• GENOCIDE: intent to destroy, in whole or part, a national, ethnic, religious, or racial group 

• CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY: widespread, systematic attacks; not random; include rape, murder, torture 

• WAR CRIMES: grave breaches of Geneva Conventions 

• CRIMES OF AGGRESSION: “aggressive war” (definition still under debate) 

Key Principles:  

• Court of last resort: only when national criminal justice systems are unwilling or unable to act would the ICC take up those cases 

• Based on principle of complementarity 

• Members can prosecute people from other member states only 

• Can only prosecute crimes committed AFTER July 2002 (i.e., the date when ICC began operation) 

• Emergency cases can be referred to the ICC by the UN Security Council 

Transitional Justice 

• The pursuit of accountability for mass atrocities or former human rights abuse 

• Linked to quest for institutional reform to address injustices of the past- and prevent future abuses 

• Integral to the transition from authoritarianism to democracy 

Challenges 

• Balancing peace with justice, and stability with punishment (Forsythe 2006: 98) 

• Rejecting impunity (i.e., rejecting freedom from punishment) 

• Balancing truth-telling with prosecution 

• Working out the process of reconciliation- it is a process, and cannot be simply “decreed” 

• Balancing SC Council’s mandate with states’ jealous safeguarding of sovereignty 

Key Human Rights Institutions 

UN System 

• Main tasks:  

• Protection of HR: relates to negative rights (i.e., protections from harm) 

• Promotion of HR: relates to positive rights (i.e., entitlements to things) 

• Many rights have both dimensions 

UN Charter (1945) created: 

• Secretary General 

• General Assembly 

• Security Council 

• **International Court of Justice (settles state-to-state disputes (interstate)) 

• ** NOT THE SAME AS THE ICC (can try individual people with narrow guidelines) 

Other Relevant UN Institutions 

• Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC): receives reports on state enforcement of all treaties 

• HR Council (created in 2006; replaces old HR Commission) 

• Treaty monitoring committees (separate from the Council) 

• **High Commissioner for HR: “public face” of HR (created in 1993) 

• **Not Secretary General 

HR Council 

• Meets 3 times annually, at minimum 

• Monitors human rights via: 

• ECOSOC Res. 1235 (1967): country-level complaints; public debate 

• ECOSOC Res. 1503 (1970): individual complaints (wider pattern of abuse); confidential debate  

Key Requirements for 1503 submission: 

• Consistent pattern of abuse (i.e., more than one person suffers this type of abuse) 

• Gross violations of HR 

• Reliably attested (i.e., supported by evidence) 

• Can only be submitted in one venue (i.e., no simultaneous submissions) 

• Must exhaust all domestic remedies 

HR Council Special Procedures 

• Fact-finding missions: independent experts; gather info for 1503 or 1235 procedures 

• Thematic mechanisms: investigate problems caused by HR violations on a global scale (i.e., in more than one state) by “Working Groups” (i.e. group of experts) or “Special Rapporteurs” 

• Advisory services: offer education, information, and institutional strengthening 

UN Reform 

• Make UN’s power structure more representative 

• Revise Security Council membership 

• Relic of WWII settlement (P5= China, USA, UK, Russia, France- all with veto) 

• Enhance efficiency/coordination across HR institutions 

International Labor Organization (ILO) 

• Oldest UN agency (founded in 1919 by the League of Nations- prior to creation of “modern” UN) 

• Tripartite (i.e., government, business and labor represented) 

• Develops conventions (i.e., binding treaty law) on different aspects of labor rights monitors them 

• Provides technical assistance 

“Core” Labor Rights 

• ILO Declaration (declaration=soft law!!)  on Fundamental Principles & Rights at Work, 1998 

• Freedom of association 

• Right to organize 

• Collective bargaining 

• Abolition of forced labor 

• Equality of access and treatment (non-discrimination to get job and at job) 

• Minimum age 

Regional Systems 

• Europe and the Americas have oldest regional HR systems 

• Africa has newer system 

• Asia does not have a regional system 

Key Regional Institutions 

• European Court of HR (1959): all EU states are members 

• Inter-American Court of HR (1979) 

• African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (1987) 

START OF QUIZ 3 

Conceptual Debates Challenging the Notion of Three “Generations” of Rights 

Traditional 3 Generations 

• 1^st - civil and political rights 

• Ward off state interference 

• 2^nd – economic, social, and cultural rights 

• Rights enjoyed only after sufficient levels of development 

• 3^rd – collective rights 

• Group rights, collectively claimed (not individually claimed); rights enjoyed only if peoples have right to self-determination 

• CHALLENGED by notion of INTERDEPENDENCE: rights cannot be divided neatly into three categories; are indivisible and inter-related 

• RIGHTS AND DUTIES ARE DIRECTLY RELATED (my right does not negate my duties) 

*****States must: ***** IMPORTANTE 

• RESPECT rights: neither the state nor its agents (police, military, et alia) should violate them directly  

• PROTECT rights: ensures that private actors do not violate them 

• FULFILL rights: create an “enabling environment” in which rights can be realized 

Capability Approach 

• Authors: Amartya Sen, Martha Nussbaum 

• Based on assessment of human “functionings” that people have (or should have) the capacity to exercise, on their own or with help 

• Link to HR: we have a right to what we ought to have the capability to do 

Nussbaum’s list of Basic Capabilities 

• Life 

• Bodily health 

• Bodily integrity 

• Senses 

• Imagination and thought 

• Emotions 

• Practical reason 

• Affiliation 

• Relationships with other species 

• Control over one’s own environment 

Key Questions: 

• Which rights can we legitimately have? (If everything is a right, nothing is) 

• Does articulating a right mean we have it in practice? 

Needs & HR 

• Claimants of rights have legal standing- whereas people with needs must wait until someone with power exercises discretion to fulfill their needs 

• Gewirth: frames rights claims as “A has a right to object X against B by virtue of ground  Y” 

• Think about in relation to basic definition of HR (a claim by someone on someone for something essential to human dignity) 

Group Rights 

• Standard framing of rights is in terms of individual claims 

• Group rights are possessed by group as a whole- don't make sense individually 

• Examples: right to self-determination; right to culture 

• Group-differentiated rights: individual people within groups can exercise the rights independently of the group (e.g., trade unionist’s right to non-discrimination) 

• Collective individual rights: can be enjoyed by the individual, but specific policies & provisions granted “collectively” due to history of oppression or marginalization (e.g., women’s rights) 

Key Questions 

• Which groups possess rights? 

• How do we strike a balance between the rights of individual people and the groups to which they belong? 

Conceptual Debates: State Responsibilities for Rights- Respect, Protect, Fulfill Continuum 

Various Mechanisms for Enforcing state accountability 

• General comments (“soft law”) written by treaty monitoring bodies 

• Optional protocols which allow for individual complaints 

• Added (additions) to a treaty after it has been ratified – more hard law 

• Many treaties have such protocols, including key ones the USA has ratified 

• International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) 

• International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) 

• Convention Against Torture or Other Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Treatment or Punishment 

• Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CPRD) 

ICCPR General Comment 31 (Soft law) 

• “General comments” are written by treaty monitoring committee 

• This one (Gen. Comment 31) is by the Human Rights Committee 

• Clarifies state responsibility under the ICCPR; guidance 

Paragraph 2 

• “State party is obligated to every other state party to comply” 

• “To draw attention to possible breaches of Covenant obligations... should, far from being regarded as an unfriendly act, be considered a reflection of legitimate community interest” 

Paragraph 4 

• All branches of government (executive, legislative, judicial) have a role to play 

• At multiple levels- national, regional, or local 

• Extends to all parts of federal states, without limitations or expectations 

Paragraph 6 

• Negative and positive obligations 

• States must demonstrate the necessity of restrictions and take only proportionate measures 

Paragraph 8 

• ICCPR is NOT a substitute for domestic criminal or civil law 

• Individuals are to be protected from violations by state actors 

• AND protected from “acts committed by private persons or entities that would impar the enjoyment of Covenant rights” 

• States have an obligation to “prevent, punish, investigate, or redress the harm caused by such acts by private persons or entities (before, or after) 

• Positive obligations entail providing “effective remedies” for those whose rights are violated by state or private actors 

Paragraph 9 

• Beneficiaries of ICCPR rights are individuals and its Optional Protocol 1 covers individual complaints 

• But some rights can also be enjoyed “in community with others,” including: 

• Freedom of religion (article 18) 

• Freedom of association (article 22) 

• Minority rights (article 27)  

Paragraph 10 

• ICCPR’s protections are “not limited to citizens... must also be available to individuals, regardless of nationality or statelessness... who find themselves in the territory” 

• Also applies to people “within the power or effective control” of a state party’s armed forces (e.g. peacekeepers) 

Other provisions 

• Paragraph 12: covers limits on deportation 

• Paragraph 15: covers special remedies necessary for vulnerable groups, such as children 

Paves the way toward Transitional Justice 

• Paragraph 16: covers reparations to those whose rights are violated (e.g., restitution, rehabilitation, public memorials, changes in laws, bringing perpetrators to justice) 

• Paragraph 18: committee voices concern over continued impunity 

State, Market, and Civil Society- who is Responsible for Rights? 

Needs & HR 

• Claimants of rights have legal standing 

• People with needs must wait until someone with power exercises discretion to fulfill their needs 

Key Terms: 

• State: entity with monopoly on legitimate use of force in a given territorial jurisdiction 

• Market: sector in which products/services are bought and sold; for-profit sector 

• Civil society: social sector separated from state and market 

Khan (2006 p.2) 

• Companies have a responsibility: 

• 1. to “uphold rights...within their area of control and sphere of influence...” 

• 2. “...whether in the context of their operations or in the communities in which they operate” 

UN Global Compact 

• History: launched in 1999, with statement by Sec. Gen. Kofi Annan 

• Ten principles: see UN website 

• 1. do not contribute to abuse 

• 2. do not profit from it 

• 3. be aware of it 

• 4. avoid complicity in it 

• Enforcement issues: “naming and shaming... can be as strong an incentive as legal action” (Khan 2006, p.4) 

Criteria for Distinguishing COMPLICITY from direct ABUSE 

• 1. Proximity: how close is the company to the abuser? To the victim? 

• 2. Knowledge and awareness 

• 3. Benefit 

UN “Expert” on HR Responsibilities of Corporations  

• 2005: expert appointed in July 2005 by Commission on HR (precursor to today’s HR Council) 

• 2005-2011: mandate repeatedly extended to engage in global consultation with states, businesses, and civil society organizations 

• 2011: UN Guiding Principles on Business & HR (aka: “Ruggie Principles”) unanimously endorses by HR Council 

Ruggie Principles (2011) 

• SOFT LAW 

• State has a duty to protect human rights 

• Corporations are responsible to respect human rights [by observing law] 

• Victims of business-related abuses have a right to remedy 

• States and companies are jointly responsible for remedy 

International Law and Standards 

• Soft law:  

• Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) anti-bribery treaty (1997) 

• OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (1976; updated 5 times, most recently in 2000) 

• LIMITS to OECD documents- the organization has only 30 members China is not yet a member 

• Hard law: 

• US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (1977): criminalizes corporate bribery of government officials 

• ILO Conventions (over 200 of them) 

Alien Tort Claims Act (ATCA) 

• Also HARD LAW 

• Statute is part of US law (i.e., Judiciary Act of 1789) 

• Originally aimed at prosecuting piracy; interference with the rights of ambassadors, etc. 

• Provides legal venue for victims who can use US courts to bring charges against other parties, even when neither party is connected to the US 

• Accused must be in USA to be served court papers 

• MODERN USE: 

• 1980: Filartiga v. Pena-Irala 

• Family sues Paraguayan police officer for torture and murder of their son 

• December 2004: Unocal settlement 

• Case brought by Burmese villagers against American energy company, for use of forced labor in construction of gas pipeline in Burma 

• April 2013: US Supreme Court rules to limit ATCA’s reach 

Violence Against Women 

Defining the public/private sphere 

• Public sphere: public institutions, public spaces 

• Private sphere: traditionally, the home 

• The notion that violence against women is “just a private matter” is at the heart of the problem 

• States and other actors in society (NGOs, advocates, and allies) have a key role to play in changing conditions that give rise to violence 

Context 

• VAW occurs in every country 

• Crosses class, race, age, national ties 

• Between 20% and 50% of all women in any given country have experienced domestic violence (Kapoor, 2000) 

• The majority of women killed in homicides are killed by their partner or ex-partner (UN World Health Organization, 1997) 

Key reasons why 

• ... abuses against women have traditionally NOT been considered human rights violations because of: 

• 1. Public v. private debate 

• 2. Non-state actors are often perpetrators 

• 3. Cultural justifications 

• 4. Women’s abuses considered trvial or “natural” 

• 5. Lack of legal protections (or weak protections) 

Relevant international law 

• HARD LAW 

• Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (CEDAW) 

• Passed by the UN general assembly in 1979; entered into force in 1981 

• Ratified by 185 countries/more than 90% of UN member states 

• U.S., Iran, Qatar, Somalia, Sudan, and several Asian Pacific islander states haven’t ratified (as of Feb. 2007) 

General comment 19 to CEDAW explains 

• Explains that violence against women is a form of discrimination against women 

• Is soft law (just as all general comments are) 

Relevant international law 

• SOFT LAW 

• DECLARATION ON THE ELIMINATION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN (DEVAW) 

• Adopted in 1993 

• Definition of violence against women encompassed multiple levels and forms of violence 

• Violence within the family 

• Violence within the community (schools, workplace, police stations, religious institutions, etc.) 

• Violence perpetrated or condoned by the State 

Special rapporteurs on violence against women 

• Have historically argued that CEDAW is sufficient 

• Because they argue it has gained the status of jus cogens (i.e., a fundamental norm that cannot be derogated from) 

• Because regional HR mechanisms on VAW are strong (particularly in Europe) and reinforce CEDAW’s provisions) 

• Rashida Manjoo (former Sp. Rapporteur on VAW) disagreed and pushed for binding treaty on VAW 

• Prof. David Richards (UConn) served as advisor; pushed for analysis of gap between legal aspiration and reality 

State is complicit in violence against women IF: 

• States does not act effectively to end violence against women 

• Formally prohibits violence (in law) but widely tolerates it (in practice) 

• DEVAW: holds states accountable for condoning violence against women in home, community, or perpetrated by the state- but is soft law 

• UN Security Council Resolution #1325 (2000) addresses violence against woman in armed conflict: SC Res. #1820 (2008) addresses sexual violence against women in armed conflict 

Protections in international humanitarian law:  

• ICC can prosecute “sexualized war crimes” 

• Rape 

• Sexual slavery and trafficking 

• Forced pregnancy 

• Enforced prostitution 

• Enforced sterilization 

• Other sexual violence 

Environmental Justice and Human Rights: Whose Responsibility Are They? 

Why do environmental rights matter? 

• Demonstrate the interdependence of all rights: life, food, health, work, culture 

• Have significant implications for duty bearers 

Academic literature 

• Despite being some of the most basic rights for human existence, the right to FOOD, WATER, and ENVIRONMENT are among the most contested in theory and practice 

• See Hiskes (2008) The Human Right to Green Future regarding emergent rights; international rights; reciprocity 

• See Pogge (2002;2005): we all have a moral responsibility for addressing problems rooted in systems from which we derive benefits; our participation in these systems contributes harm to others 

Shrader-Frechette (2007) 

• Establishes a threshold for harm: survival 

• Creates a hierarchy of responsibility 

• 1. Polluters 

• 2. Political leaders and regulators 

• 3. Citizens 

• Democracy is central to protecting and promoting environmental rights 

• Affords citizens the power to participate in creating institutions for governance 

• Those involved in governance are responsible for remedying harm 

Evolution of environmental law 

• Stockholm Conference (1972) declaration asserts: 

• People have a duty to “protect and improve the environment for present and future generations” 

• The environment is “essential to the enjoyment of basic human rights even the right to life itself 

• SOFT LAW!!! 

International environmental law 

• Soft law: 

• Bruntland Commission Report “Our Common Future” (1987): building on 1972 Stockholm Conference, Bruntland Report pioneers the concept of “sustainable development” 

• Agenda 21 (1992): adopted at the UN Conference on Environment and Development (“Earth Summit”) at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; paves the way for a UN program focusing on policy coordination for sustainable development 

• Hard Law: 

• Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal (opened for signature in 1989; came into force in 1992): regulates toxic waste movement across borders 

• Kyoto Protocol of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change: language originally drafted at the “Earth Summit” was later adopted in 1997 as a formal treaty and came into force in 2005; aims at reduction of greenhouse gases globally 

Other relevant HARD LAW: 

• International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) 

• Opened for signature in 1966; came into force in 1976 

• Environmental rights are implicit 

• Article 11: people have a right to “continuous improvements of living conditions” 

• Article 12: and to “highest attainable standard of physical and mental health” 

• International Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) 

• Opened for signature in 1969; US ratified in 1994 

• Article 5 prohibits racial discrimination in economic sphere, housing, and public health 

• American convention on Human Rights (note: US has only signed, not ratified) 

US case studies 

• Mossville, Louisiana (re: community protests petrochemical industrial siting) 

• In 2010, took case to InterAmerican Commission of HR (first time IAC takes environmental racism case within US jurisdiction) 

• Right to racial equity, privacy, and health 

• Western Shoshone of Nevada (re: gold mining) 

• 1993-2003: took case to InterAmerican Commission of Human Rights 

• Focus: right to property; right to equality under law; cultural rights; right to self-determination; right to judicial protection/due process 

• Also used ICERD (mid 2000s) 

Case studies 

• Kanawha Valley, WV (re: industrial chemicals) 

• See linkages between Bhopal (India) community affected by chemical spill (1984) and West Virginia community 

• August 2013 US Executive Order to improve chemical industry safety 

• Most recent West Virginia spill (third spill in five years) Freedom Industries, January 2014 

Key dilemmas 

• A human right is a claim by someone, on someone, for something, essential to human dignity SO: 

• 1. Who makes environmental rights claims and who is responsible for fulfilling them 

• Are we responsible for what we don’t know?