International Human Rights Law

Avocats Sans Frontières

Avocats Sans Frontières (ASF) is a Belgium-based international NGO. Its membership mostly consists of lawyers and its aim is to promote justice and the rule of law, and to defend the civil, political and other rights of the most vulnerable people in the world. The group's "Lawyers for Lawyers" project aims to support human rights lawyers whose professional independence is under threat. Press releases, a free newsletter, activity reports and other publications are available on the website, plus details of ASF seminars and training. The site can be viewed in English, French or Dutch.

Open Society Justice Initiative

The Open Society Justice Initiative is a programme of the Open Society Institute, a private foundation established by the philanthropist George Soros in 1993. It is concerned with the promotion of law reform, the protection human rights and the development of international law. The site gives details of current and past activities, covering areas such as national criminal justice reform, international justice, freedom of information and expression, equality and citizenship, anti-corruption and development of legal capacity.

International Criminal Court

Website of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is based at the Hague in the Netherlands. It role is to promote the rule of law and deal with the most serious international crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. The founding Rome Statute is available on the website, together with other basic legal texts, information about ongoing cases and annual reports. Background information about the Court is also provided, including details of its history, organisation and management. The site can be viewed in English or French.

International Commission of Jurists

The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) seeks to promote international human rights standards through the rule of law. Formed in 1952, its membership is made up of sixty lawyers representing different legal systems from around the world. The ICJ's website gives a history of the organisation, details of its activities and profiles of each Commissioner. The ICJ Legal Resource Centre page provides a searchable database of reports, press releases, legal documents and other publications, which are available in full-text form.

Iraq : Research Guide to Legal Documents, Legal News and International Law

Collection of links to online news stories, and other material, relating to legal issues in Iraq. Resources have been compiled by Vincent Moyer at the University of California, Hastings Law Library. Links to Iraq news stories come from sources around the world along with selected online articles discussing international legal issues in Iraq. There are links to information on inspections and sanctions, human rights issues, the treatment of prisoners and resources dealing with the law of war. Links to various document collections and related research websites are also provided.

Humanitarian Law Center

The Humanitarian Law Center (HLC) is a non-governmental human rights and humanitarian law centre established in 1992 following the conflict in former Yugoslavia. It is based in Serbia. The HLC's work includes researching human rights violations, campaigning for justice and institutional reform and gathering documentation on war crimes. The website provides court documentation, reports, press releases and other information. Details of conferences and courses organised by the HLC are also available. The site is in Serbian, English and Albanian

Human Rights and Democracy reports

This site provides access to all the Human Rights and Democracy annual reports published by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office from 1998 onwards. They provide detailed information on the strategy and actions of the British government in promoting human rights abroad. They also include comments on FCO activity by the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Select Comittee and key NGO bodies.

Subscribe to International Human Rights Law