Global Institute for Human Rights
Penn Law Global Institute for Human Rights W hile the idea of human rights has challenged well-established notions of sovereignty and provoked sharp divisions and controversy, human rights has been defined as the only political and moral idea that has received universal acceptance. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and its progeny have engendered a growing body of international law that has challenged and transformed relations among states, and shaped international institutions that help monitor and enforce the abstract ideas and the grand rhetoric of human rights. The human rights discourse has inspired domestic and transnational movements that have played a role in the creation of important domestic and international human rights norms. Human rights are now a cornerstone of foreign policy, nation building, and good governance. This course examines the theory and practice of human rights - treaties, cases, and institutions - from a comparative law perspective, emphasizing some key issues in contemporary human rights, including women s rights, disability rights, and international criminal justice. Penn Law s two-week immersion course will provide the intellectual framework, analytical rigor, and skills training for the next generation of human rights scholars and practitioners from Europe and the rest of the world. The course will focus on new developments in a cutting-edge discourse and provide participants access to leading human rights scholars and practitioners from Penn Law, the United Nations, and human rights organizations at the forefront of the field. The convening of these networks of academics, global policymakers, and field practitioners is an important part of Penn Law s Global Institute for Human Rights.
Rangita is the Associate Dean for International Programs at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Rangita is an esteemed women s human rights scholar and practitioner with over 25 years of experience working globally in over 25 countries with a vast network of academic institutions, government, and nongovernment entities on women s human rights law and policy making and institutional reform. Prior to joining Penn Law, she was the inaugural director of the Wilson Center s Global Women s Leadership Initiative and the Women in Public Service Project launched by Secretary Hillary Clinton and the Seven Sisters Colleges. She has served as an adviser to UNICEF, UN Women, UNFPA, and UNDP. Rangita has published widely with the World Bank, United Nations, and in various leading law journals. Academic Director Rangita de Silva de Alwis Rangita has a Doctorate in Law (S.J.D.) from Harvard Law School and was a Teaching Fellow with the European Law Research Institute at Harvard Law School, a Research Fellow with the Women and Public Policy Program at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University and a Visiting Fellow at Harvard Law School s Human Rights Program. She was a Fulbright Specialist with the Asian University of Women, a Distinguished Visiting Lecturer at Wellesley College, a Visiting Scholar at Wellesley Centers for Women, and an Honorary Professor of China Women s University. Academic Advisor William Burke-White Burke-White, an expert on international law and global governance, served in the Obama Administration from 2009-2011 on Secretary Clinton s Policy Planning Staff, providing the Secretary direct policy advice on multilateral diplomacy and international institutions. He was principal drafter of the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR), Secretary Clinton s hallmark foreign policy and institutional reform effort. Burke-White has written extensively in the fields of international law and institutions, with focus on international criminal and international economic law. His work has addressed issues of post-conflict justice; the International Criminal Court; international human rights, and international arbitration. His current research explores gaps in the global governance system and the challenges of international legal regulation in a world of rising powers and divergent interests. In 2008 he received the A. Leo Levin Award and in 2007 the Robert A. Gorman award for Excellence in Teaching.
About Penn Law and Philadelphia Penn's 302-acre urban campus is located in the West Philadelphia neighborhood known as University City, just across the Schuylkill River from Center City Philadelphia. Penn Law is located at 3501 Sansom Street. For an interactive campus map, please click here: http://www.facilities.upenn.edu/map.php Penn is a rare blend of an inviting, Ivy League campus in the heart of a great city. Stroll the campus, and you ll find award-winning architecture and green spaces. Enter our academic buildings, and you ll find faculty and students engaged in groundbreaking research and scholarship. Enjoy world-class cultural activities or workout at our premier sports facilities. Leave campus and you re minutes from Center City, Philadelphia where many law students live and, equally importantly, where many students have opportunities to apply the law in many real-world applications through clinics, public interest, student organizations and other activities. It s no wonder that our students graduate surprised at how much they like Philadelphia, the fifth-largest city in the nation. Philly is a very livable city, known for its friendliness, neighborhoods, and restaurant scene and, of course, arts, culture and sports. It is also a historic city that is at the forefront of healthcare, technology and education. Located on an Ivy League campus prolific in groundbreaking research and scholarship within a historic city at the forefront of healthcare, technology and education, Penn Law is an ideal home base for students interested in studying the realworld application of the law across disciplines. Philadelphia is the birthplace of the U.S. Constitution. Millions around the globe are inspired by the decisions made here, which laid the bedrock foundation for the American legal system. James Wilson, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, framer of the Constitution and member of the first U.S. Supreme Court, in 1790 delivered the University of Pennsylvania s first lectures in law to President George Washington and all the members of his Cabinet. Following this auspicious beginning, Penn began offering a full-time program in law in 1850, under the leadership of George Sharswood, an innovator in legal education. Since that time, Penn Law has been at the forefront of legal education in our country.
Global Institute for Human Rights PROGRAM SCHEDULE SUBJECT TO CHANGE JULY 4 JULY 8, 2016 MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY Welcome and Human Rights and Regional July 4th Introduction to Due Diligence and Civil Monitoring Mechanisms Human Rights Holiday Human Rights and and Political Rights Accountability Conventions and Global Governance Processes Global Governance Normative and Women s Rights The Impact of July 4th Theoretical as Human Rights UN Special Human Rights Development Holiday Foundations of and the Rise of Procedures on and the Rule of Law Human Rights LGBT Rights Human Rights JULY 11 JULY 15, 2016 MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY New and Integrating Challenges Transitional Justice Emerging Trip to Human Rights in the Mechanisms Developments in NYC Norms Application of Human Rights Nationally Human Rights ICC and the Responsibility to Constitutional Problems with Rome Statute Protect Trip to Provisions State Accountability NYC Transitional Justice Human Rights Due Role of When Rights Collide: in Practice Diligence Policy Transnational Actors Religion and Personal Laws
Program Curriculum 1. Normative and Theoretical Foundations of Human Rights a. Whose rights are these? Challenges to universality of rights 2. Human Rights in International Law a. Due Diligence and Civil and Political Rights b. Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the Progressive Implementation of Programmatic Rights c. Women s Rights as Human Rights 3. Human Rights and Monitoring Mechanisms/ Accountability Processes What is the Role of Treaty Bodies? a. Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) - monitoring implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) b. Human Rights Committee (HRC) monitoring implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) c. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) monitoring implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) d. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) monitoring implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) e. Committee Against Torture (CAT) monitoring implementation of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) f. Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) g. Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families monitoring implementation of the International convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (CMW)
h. Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) - monitoring the implementation of the i. Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) monitoring the implementation of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance 4. The Impact of UN Special Procedures on Human Rights 5. Regionalizing Human Rights: Regional Human Rights Conventions 6. Human Rights in Development: What is the relationship between human rights and development? 7. Transitional Justice Mechanisms a. ICC and the Rome Statute b. Putting Transitional Justice in Practice: Retributive Justice, Restorative Justice, Reparative Justice 8. New and Emerging Developments in Human Rights a. Responsibility to Protect (R2P) and the erosion of the Westphalian notions of sovereignty b. Human Rights Due Diligence Policy: Accountability of non-state actors c. Human Rights Up Front Policy d. Human Rights and Business 9. Integrating Human Rights Norms Nationally a. Constitutional provisions (South African), Legislation, Case Law, human rights reporting b. National Human Rights Commissions and Action Plans c. Role of transnational actors and social movement building 10. Challenges in the Application of Human Rights 11. Problems with state accountability 12. When rights collide: religion and personal laws
For more information, please visit https://www.law.upenn.edu/academics/legaleducationprograms/