LEGAL ENSHRINEMENT OF HUMAN RIGHTS MAY BE INAPPROPRIATE OR UNNECESSARY
Having come to the conclusion that there may not always be a reason for human rights to be enshrined as legally enforceable entitlements, invites an exploration of whether , indeed doing so could be unduly restrictive, inappropriate or even counter intuitive, I will address these three claims in turn
1. Legal enshrinement of a human right as a legally enforceable right may unduly restrict our contemporary list of human rights
To enshrine a human right as a legally enforceable entitlement requires determination of who bears the relevant duties of that right, and what must be done to realise them. For a human interest to generate a human right it needs to infer a duty …show more content…
In criminal law it is understood that punishment is proportionate to the crime. If we impose a human rights framework within the criminal law, it is questionable whether any such punishment can be proportionate to crimes of such egregious nature. How can a proportionate response address such gross human right violations such as genocide. A person cannot serve 1000 life sentences, or cannot undergo 1000 executions, and if such a sentence was handed down it would only serve to be verbal condemnation than having any actual practical consequence. …show more content…
They also represent what may be the beginning of a more holistic human rights culture that recognises the pluralism of human rights culture. Indeed at the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable an anonymous observer remarked that Ruggies Guiding Principles will likely be the template for an international human rights frame work for the next decade[10].
In summary, it is clear that a solely legalist perspective on human rights discourse is both crude and restrictive in its inability to comprehend the nature, scope and roles human rights play in everyday life across political, moral and social dimensions. There is not always a reason to enshrine a human right as a legally enforceable entitlement , and as has been illustration there may be much more substantials reasons to not make a right legally
Having come to the conclusion that there may not always be a reason for human rights to be enshrined as legally enforceable entitlements, invites an exploration of whether , indeed doing so could be unduly restrictive, inappropriate or even counter intuitive, I will address these three claims in turn
1. Legal enshrinement of a human right as a legally enforceable right may unduly restrict our contemporary list of human rights
To enshrine a human right as a legally enforceable entitlement requires determination of who bears the relevant duties of that right, and what must be done to realise them. For a human interest to generate a human right it needs to infer a duty …show more content…
In criminal law it is understood that punishment is proportionate to the crime. If we impose a human rights framework within the criminal law, it is questionable whether any such punishment can be proportionate to crimes of such egregious nature. How can a proportionate response address such gross human right violations such as genocide. A person cannot serve 1000 life sentences, or cannot undergo 1000 executions, and if such a sentence was handed down it would only serve to be verbal condemnation than having any actual practical consequence. …show more content…
They also represent what may be the beginning of a more holistic human rights culture that recognises the pluralism of human rights culture. Indeed at the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable an anonymous observer remarked that Ruggies Guiding Principles will likely be the template for an international human rights frame work for the next decade[10].
In summary, it is clear that a solely legalist perspective on human rights discourse is both crude and restrictive in its inability to comprehend the nature, scope and roles human rights play in everyday life across political, moral and social dimensions. There is not always a reason to enshrine a human right as a legally enforceable entitlement , and as has been illustration there may be much more substantials reasons to not make a right legally