Human rights in international law / edited by T.R.Subramanya

The topic of 'human rights' is of universal concern that cuts across major ideological, political and cultural boundaries. Like the ideas of parliamentary democracy or Marxist political theory, like the ideas of science and technology, or of racial equality, the idea of human rights is gaining momentum and is increasingly becoming a master of political priorities throughout the world. But then, the primary question that demands an answer is whether international law recognises funda mental rights of the individual independently of the municipal law of his state? It may be said that prior to the Charter of the United Nations, the existence of such rights in international law was controversial. Rules of international law framed for the protection of human rights against state interference are very largely a post-1945 phenomenon. Four decades have passed, since the United Nations came into existence, but the 'human rights' problem remains largely unsolved. The present study attempts at evaluating the efforts so far made in the protection of human rights and suggesting measures to secure their effective realisation.

The learned authors study in detail the historical background and development of Human Rights, Protection of Human Rights under the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declara tion of Human Rights and its effect on International Protection of Human Rights, Protection of Human Rights under Regional Arrangements, International Conventions on Human Rights, and Realisation of Human Rights under the United Nations Covenants.

This outstanding book will be of great interest to teachers, scholars and students of law and all those individuals and organisations concerned about human rights.