HUMAN RIGHTS AROUND THE WORLD

Course Objectives: This course aims to provide an understanding for students about human rights from an interdisciplinary perspective, including philosophical, historical, and legal issues. Special focus will be on the development of human rights in different regions such as the Americas, Middle – East and Africa, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Australia. Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to;

1. Comment on the current discussions on human rights;
2. Identify key moments and instruments in the establishment of the contemporary human rights regimes; 
3. Develop a solid comprehension of different perceptions and approaches to human rights; 
4. Understand the approaches of States towards human rights from different regions including the Americas, Middle – East and Africa, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Australia; 
5. Obtain extensive knowledge on different States’ policies related to human rights and analyze in a critical way their policy decisions and practices in the Americas, Middle – East and Africa, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Australia.

Course Content: The course will consist of two sections: The first section will be an introductory section for human rights. After discussion of its theoretical and the philosophical foundations, the impact of French and American Revolutions on the advancement of ideas about human rights and the rise of modern human rights movement in general will be elaborated. The second section will include the history of human rights for certain States from different regions, including the Americas, Middle – East and Africa, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Australia. In this section, various issues such as the situation of indigenous people, apartheid, colonialism, slavery will be discussed.