Human Rights

Global Exchange

Founded in 1988 and based in St. Francisco, USA, Global Exchange is a 'non-profit research, education, and action' organisation, 'dedicated to promoting environmental, political, and social justice around the world'. Its colourful website offers information and news about the organisation's activities, including its ongoing Global Exchange campaigns on issues in the USA and various third world countries (especially in South America).

United Nations Human Rights Council

The UN Human Rights Council is the successor to the UN Commission on Human Rights. It is responsible for promoting and protecting human rights around the world. The Council's website gives details of its membership, rules of procedure, advisory committees and working groups, meetings and other events. There is information about the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), whereby the HRC reviews the human rights record of each UN Member States every four years.

Gender equality

Council of Europe factsheet focusing on judgments of the European Court of Human Rights dealing with human rights violations affecting women. It comments on important cases dealing with domestic violence, discrimination against single mothers, the right to keep a maiden name, protection of physical integrity and protection against trafficking in human beings. Links are given to CoE web pages dealing with gender equality and to the judgments mentioned in the factsheet.

Human rights by country

Guide to human rights in UN member states, on the website of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). Human rights documents and news are provided for each country. The documents include Special Procedures reports, reports of UN Treaty Bodies and information about the status of human rights treaties. The site is in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic and Chinese.

Convention on the Rights of the Child

This site, focusing on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), forms part of the UNICEF website. There is background information and a full text copy of the Convention along with FAQs and factsheets. UNICEF's report the State of the World's Children is available to download in full text from the site. The 2009 report celebrates 20 years of the Convention and focuses on children's rights in different countries. Case studies and interviews with experts on children's rights are available as videos on the site.

Australian Human Rights Centre (on AustLII)

This section of the AustLII (Australasian Legal Information Institute) website provides information about the Australian Human Rights Centre (AHRCentre), an inter-disciplinary research and teaching institute based at the University of New South Wales (UNSW). The Centre is engaged in research and teaching on Australian and international human rights law and publishes the Australian Journal of Human Rights and the Human Rights Defender.

Disability Studies Resources Guide: Disability Rights & Policy

Resource guide for disability rights and policy on the website of Syracuse University. The guide is arranged into broad sections providing access to policy websites, United Nations documents and United States organisations and government bodies. Direct links are given to the Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 and to related disabilities laws and regulations.

Doughty Street Chambers

Website of Doughty Street Chambers a UK based chambers specialising in human rights and civil liberties law. The site provides profiles of barristers, academic experts and other staff at the chambers and information on the areas of law covered. A collection of articles and papers and CPD podcasts by Doughty Street Chambers' barristers, associate tenants and academic experts are available to download from the site. Free registration is required to download the podcasts. The site also has a page of links to related human rights websites.

Visiting the Senegalese legal system and legal research: a human rights perspective

Online article about the legal system and human rights law of Senegal written by Horace Sègnonna Adjolohoun, a lawyer and human rights expert. The article was published in 2009 on New York University's Globalex website. It gives an overview of the Senegalese legal system and guidance on researching the law of Senegal. There is a section on the status of international human rights law, covering the ratification and implementation of international agreements and the interpretation of international human rights law in the Senegalese courts.

Scottish Human Rights Commission

The Scottish Human Rights Commission (SHRC) was created by The Scottish Commission for Human Rights Act 2006, and formed in 2008. This followed several years of reports and feasibility studies. Its mandate is to "promote all human rights ¹ civil, political, economic, social and cultural". The website contains details of the Commission's Strategic Plan, and will also include news, publications and events as they become available.

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