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From Paradox To Subsidiarity: The United States And Human Rights Treaty Bodies, Tara J. Melish

Contributions to Books

Published as Chapter 8 in The Sword and the Scales: The United States and International Courts and Tribunals, Cesare P.R. Romano, ed.

It is frequently said that the United States has a paradoxical human rights policy. This Article takes a closer look at this vision from the perspective of U.S. engagement with international human rights treaty bodies, the quasi-adjudicatory expert committees or commissions that exercise supervisory jurisdiction over the U.S. human rights record. Contrary to popular perception that the U.S. thumbs its nose at these bodies, the U.S. in fact engages quite actively with their human rights procedures.

To untangle …

Overcoming Collective Action Failure In The Security Council: Would Direct Regional Representation Better Protect Universal Human Rights?, Noah Bialostozky

Buffalo Human Rights Law Review

No abstract provided.

Hanging In A Balance: Freedom Of Expression And Religion, Puja Kapai, Anne S Y Cheung

Buffalo Human Rights Law Review

When the liberty to freely express oneself is at odds with another's right to freedom of religion, we are confronted with the classic dilemma of choosing between two equally fundamental, constitutionally and internationally protected rights. The contours of the said two rights however, are far from clear. Whilst freedom of expression is not an absolute right, its limits are controversial. Equally, while it is undisputed that freedom of religion is an internationally protected human right enshrined in various international instruments, there is no comprehensive international treaty which addresses as its subject the content and extent of the right of freedom …

Rights And Duties Of Minorities In A Context Of Post-Colonial Self-Determination: Basques And Catalans In Contemporary Spain, Jorge Martínez Paoletti

Buffalo Human Rights Law Review

No abstract provided.

Power And Cooperation: Understanding The Road Towards A Truth Commission, Ming Zhu

Buffalo Human Rights Law Review

Truth commissions, usually described as a softer transitional justice alternative to trials, gained traction in academic circles following the establishment of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Though they are praised for their value in societal reconciliation and widely recognized for their flexibility; little is understood of their causal factors or requirements. This Article turns to this hole in the research and examines the effects of one potential causal variable, the balance of power between the warring parties. Through an in-depth examination of four case studies, El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru, and East Timor, this Article finds that truth commissions are …

The Detainees' Dilemma: The Virtues And Vices Of Advocacy Strategies In The War On Terror, Peter Margulies

Buffalo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Introductory Note To The Optional Protocol To The International Covenant On Economic, Social And Cultural Rights, Tara J. Melish

Journal Articles

This Introductory Note to the publication in ILM of the newly-adopted Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (OP-ICESCR) seeks to put the primary source document in proper context by briefly explaining its history, content, and significance in international law. The Note is accompanied by the text of the OP-ICESCR, adopted by the U.N. General Assembly on December 10, 2008 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The OP creates an individual complaints procedure for alleged violations of the ICESCR, rectifying a thirty year asymmetry in human rights treaty law.