Учебный год 22-23 / presentation_text

The preamble to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted on 1948 emphasises the recognition of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family.

We can distinguish two theories of human rights. Positive rights may be established by government. But those rights that reflect the values of a community will be those with the most chance ofsuccessful implementation. This second approach is connected with the name of John Locke.

From ideological point of view, the content of the principle of respect for human rights in international law, Tunkin wrote, may be expressed in three propositions:

(1) all states have a duty to respect the fimdamental rights and freedoms of all persons within their territories;

(2) states have a duty not to permit discrimination by reason of sex, race, religion or language

(3) states have a duty to promote universal respect for human rights and to co-operate with each other to achieve this objective

An important changes in development of international human rights law occurred with the establishment of the League of Nations in 1919. Different internationals instruments were concluded, like the Covenant of the League and the Treaty of Versailles which guarantee freedom of conscience and religion, promotion of better standards of working conditions.

Applying rules of international law in protection of human rights has some features. They are resorted only after exhaustion of domestic remedies rule.

One more point is that certain rights may not be derogated from in the various human rights instruments even in times of war or other public emergency threatening the nation. Both in the European Convention and in the American Convention they are: life and humane treatment, freedom from slavery and some others.

The protection of the collective rights of groups plays an important role in international law. In recent years, however, more attention has been given to various expressions of the concept of collective rights. Although it is often difficult to maintain a strict differentiation between individual and collective rights. Some rights are purely collective, such as the right to self-determination or the physical protection of the group as such through the prohibition of genocide.

Crime of genocide is a crucial issue in international law. Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide signed in 1948 reaffirmed that genocide, whether committed in time of war or peace, was a crime under international law. In the 1990s, the issue of genocide unfortunately ceased to be an item of primarily historical concern. Events in the former Yugoslavia and in Rwanda stimulated increasing anxiety in this context.

Another case, played an important role, is Akayesu, which emphasizes that rape and sexual violence may amount to genocide when committed with the necessary specific intent to commit genocide. The Rwanda Tribunal has also held that genocide may be committed by omission as well as by act.

The protection of minorities is closely related to prohibition of genocide. Persons belonging to racial, religious or linguistic minorities were to be given the same treatment and the same civil and political rights and security as other nationals in the state in question. The UN Committee underlined that persons belonging to a minority need not be nationals or permanent residents of the state concerned so that migrant workers or even visitors. Whether an ethnic, religious or linguistic minority exists was an objective question, not dependent upon a decision of the state party.

Thereby, in conclusion of my presentation, I would like to emphasize the importance of developing international law in the part of protection human rights. And it’s also necessary to mention one more time, that prohibition of genocide and protection of minorities are really significant part of this branch of law.