Women's Human Rights Resources Database

Human rights standards can be introduced into the domestic legal system in a number of ways; by constitutional entrenchment, by legislation, particularly through bills of rights and charters, by interpretation in the courts, and by the activities of various institutions which have a role or responsibility in the promotion and protection of human rights. Human rights are also actively advanced, domestically as well as internationally, by non-governmental organizations. This paper is concerned specifically with those institutions whose specific mandate is defined in terms of the promotion and protection of human rights at the domestic level, and with the interaction of those institutions with the other institutions and contexts mentioned.

This article begins by briefly describing two cases on sexual violence perpetrated by State agents against women that were brought before the Inter-American Court of Human rights (IACHR). The author then provides an in- depth analysis of the 2006 IACHR decision of the Castro-Castro Prison case, where there were allegations of sexual violence and abuse of of female inmates by State authorities. The IACHR's found the violence perpetrated against the female inmates had violated various articles of the American Convention of Human Rights, the Inter-American Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture, and the Inter-American Convention of the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence Against Women (Convention of Belém do Pará). Finally, the author explores the IACHR's use of the Convention of Belém do Pará in the Castro-Castro Prison case and discusses future implications it may have on addressing women's rights abuses. Karla I Quintana Osuna, Recognition of Women's Rights before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (2008) 21:2 Harv Hum Rts J 301.

This article outlines the shortcomings of previous treaties and programs created to address human rights issues, focusing specifically on women's rights in Africa. It examines the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. The author describes the creation of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa . The author argues that the drafters of the Protocol have failed to adequately address labour and land issues that women face in Africa. She then asserts that in order for women in Sub- Saharan Africa to have economic security, their rights as landowners must be affirmed. Finally, the article describes reform measures that have been undertaken in parts of Africa to address women's land and labour rights, and also discusses the likelihood of these measures having an overall positive impact on the economic rights of women. Rachel Rebouché, Labor, Land, and Women's Rights in Africa: Challenges for the New Protocol on the Rights of Women (2006) 19 Harv Hum Rts J 235.

This article addresses the domestic implementation of social and economic rights by means of constitutional articulation and entrenchment. "This Note argues that the new South African bill of rights is the appropriate forum for constitutional entrenchment of social rights, particularly the right to shelter." "At the outset, this Note will present South Africa's vital statistics on race, economic status, land distribution and housing. Second, this Note explores the ANC's conception of economic rights and the right to shelter. Third, it analyzes the justifications for and counter-arguments against recognizing the need for housing as a human right. Finally, this Note examines how the ANC envisions actually implementing the right to shelter." [This article does not focus specifically on women's rights. The right to shelter was litigated at the Constitutional Court of South Africa in the 1999 case of Grootboom v. Oostenberg Municipality, which is included in the Documents section of this site.]

This brief article addresses the process of the NGO Forum on Women in 1995, the purpose of which was to lobby the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women to define agendas for the future of women internationally. The author discusses particular issues affecting Inuit peoples in Canada and the methods by which she and others communicated their concerns regarding these issues at the Forum. The author outlines major issues of concern for Indigenous peoples around the world determined by the Beijing Declaration of Indigenous Women: self-determination, land and territories, health, education, human rights violations, violence against women, intellectual property rights, biodiversity, the Human Genome Biodiversity project, and political participation.

In this article, the author argues that domestic immigration and refugee policies can be interpreted as domestic enforcement of international human rights law obligations. The author focuses on how domestic laws are giving effect to the human rights of women refugees. Women's status as refugees constitutes an international recognition that their country of origin has violated their human rights. The author contends that United States domestic refugee law is beginning to recognize the categories of "woman" and "feminist" as particular social or political groups who can suffer persecution through violations of their rights to physical integrity, freedom from sexual violence, self-expression, and reproductive choice. The article concludes that such domestic recognition is a tool of enforcement for international human rights law because it relieves victims from persecution and draws attention to the violators of human rights. [Descriptors: Key Treaties and Texts, Migration - Refugees and Immigration, International]

"The power to implement treaties to meet international obligations has remained a controversial issue in Canadian constitutional law for over half a century. Despite vigorous debate among distinguished academics and jurists over the merits of the Privy Council's reasoning in the Labour Conventions Case, the Supreme Court of Canada has, for all intents and purposes, remained silent on the matter. In contrast to Canada, Australia's High Court, in a series of judgments spanning fifty years, has clarified the law in a manner that, the authors submit, is both principled and realistic. … The authors conclude that the time is ripe for the Supreme Court of Canada to take the first available opportunity to revisit the Labour Conventions Case. In reassessing the doctrine established by that case, the Supreme Court of Canada should rely on the approach of the Australian High Court to overturn a precedent that is theoretically questionable and, in practical terms, anachronistic." [See also W. Struthers, "Treaty Implementation…Australian Rules": A Rejoinder, 26(2) OTTAWA LAW REVIEW 305, challenging the claim that the Australian High Court has clarified the law in relation to treaty implementation in a principled and realistic manner.]

This article examines whether the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women’s (“CEDAW Committee”) General Recommendation No. 35 fundamentally contributes towards accountability for women’s human rights. Although the General Recommendation No. 35 reaffirms the global commitment towards eliminating gender-based violence, the author emphasizes that the CEDAW Committee lacks in providing a clear and in-depth analysis and in its ability to guide the States on their obligations and how to fulfill them. Nevertheless, General Recommendation No. 35 must be read with General Recommendation No. 19 and some of the other General Recommendations. Even with its flaws, the author concludes that General Recommendation No. 35 is likely to help reduce gender-based violence by directing States on the existing policies, legislation, and practical reforms necessary to support victims and prevent impunity.

The author of this Article was one of the judges who sat on the appeal of the Kadic v. Karadzic case, where a group of Croatian and Muslim citizens of Bosnia brought claims against Radovan Karadzic, president of the self-proclaimed Bosnian-Serb Republic, for the atrocities committed under his direction during the genocide. The Article discusses the adjudication of international human rights violations in the United States, beginning with an overview of the historical reception of international law in United States courts. It then discusses the 1980 case of Filartiga v. Pena-Irala and the development of the doctrine in Tel-Oren v. Libyan Arab Republic and Kadic v. Karadzic. Finally, it presents some unresolved questions with respect to the application of the Alien Tort Statute and offers some conclusions. [This Article does not deal specifically with women's rights violations. Some of the cases discussed in this Article are included in the Documents section of the WHRR.]

One strategy for dealing with the problem of discrimination against women in Africa has been through state ratification and enforcement of treaties that establish internationally applicable standards of performance for the ratifying states and obligate those states to submit regular reports for public scrutiny and expert comment about steps they have taken or should take. This paper addresses the issue of the effectiveness of these agreements and reports in affecting the generally inferior status of women in Africa. In particular, have the establishment and functioning of the African Commission on Human and People's Rights and the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women significantly ameliorated the obstacles African women confront? The answer this paper suggests is "not yet", however, the weaknesses of these international regimes should not lead us to overlook their potential significance as one of the many means of diminishing the sexual inequalities that characterize Africa and, for that matter, the rest of the world.

This article examines the effectiveness of international and local women’s rights legislation on women’s rights in the DPRK.  The DPRK has adopted the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (“CEDAW”), and has domestic legislation such as the Law on Sex Equality, the Socialist Constitution, the Law on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights of Women, the Criminal Law, the Law on Compensation for Damages, the Criminal Procedure Act, the Family Law, and the Law on Socialist Labour Rights. The article notes a discrepancy between these law’s claims and defectors’ reported experiences. The article suggests these abuses are perpetuated due to a lack of awareness, the national institutions for women’s rights focusing on mobilization rather than rights protection, and patriarchal norms. The article ends by recommending changes the DPRK and Human Rights bodies can make to improve protection of women’s rights in the DPRK.