human rights

European Human Rights System

Guide to researching the Council of Europe (CoE) and its regulation of human rights, by James Hart, Associate Senior Reference Librarian in the University of Cincinnati Law Library. The article was published in 2011 (and updated in 2023) on New York University's Globalex website. The guide covers the background, history and structure of the CoE and the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. It explains the roles and functions of the European Commission of Human Rights and the European Court of Human Rights.

Bloody Sunday Inquiry

Bloody Sunday is the name commonly used to describe the incident on 30th January 1972 when a number of protesters were shot and killed by the RUC/armed forces in Northern Ireland. A re-investigation of the events was ordered by the British government in 1998. The Inquiry was chaired by Lord Saville. Its multi-volume report is available here on archived pages of the UK Government website.

Privacy International

Privacy International is a London-based NGO dedicated to protecting the right to privacy worldwide. It carries out research, monitors surveillance technologies and raises awareness of threats to privacy. The organisation's website describes its current projects and makes available its research reports, including detailed reports on privacy and surveillance in more than 40 countries. A blog and a Twitter feed are also available.

African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights

Official website of the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights which was established by a protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights in1998. The African Court is based in Tanzania and started work in 2006. It has jurisdiction over all cases submitted to it regarding the interpretation and application of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and deals with human rights violations perpetrated by African Union Member States. The site has profiles of judges and information on the history and role of the Court.

Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect

The Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect was established in 2008 by the International Crisis Group, Human Rights Watch, Oxfam International, Refugees International and WFM-Institute for Global Policy. The work of the Centre is focused on the new international norm, the Responsibility to Protect (R2P), which refers to protection of populations against genocide and other large-scale atrocities. The work of the Centre includes advocacy, research designed to further understanding of R2P and helping states to build capacity.

United Nations

The United Nations (UN) website provides details of its work in the fields of peace and security, development, human rights, humanitarian affairs and international law. There are sections covering the UN's main bodies: the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice and the Secretariat. Official documents, databases, maps , news and an online bookshop are provided, among other things. The website is available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.

Customary Law Database

The Customary Law Database is an online version of 'Customary International Humanitarian Law', a study by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) which was published by Cambridge University Press in 2005. Available on the ICRC website, the database has two parts: Rules and Practice. The Rules section analyses the 161 customary rules of international humanitarian law identified by the study, while the Practice section covers the underlying practice.

Equal Rights Trust

Website of the Equal Rights Trust (ERT) an international advocacy organisation based in London. The work of the ERT includes human rights advocacy, documentation of abuses, legal and policy research and consultation and training. The site gives free access to the ERT’s Virtual Library on Equality which provides materials on non-discrimination and equality, including case law, policy papers, academic and other articles and ERT publications. Other features include the Equal Rights Review and a Declaration of Principles on Equality.

Human Rights Consortium

The Human Rights Consortium has been created by the School of Advanced Study at the University of London. The aim of the Consortium is to facilitate, promote and disseminate academic and policy work on Human Rights÷ by hosting conferences and establishing a network of Human Rights researchers, policy-makers and practitioners.

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