A number of international conventions impose human rights obligations on States parties. They also assign to the so-called treaty bodies, as well as to regional courts, the task of ensuring compliance with human rights standards. As of 2006, the UN Human Rights Council monitors respect for human rights by member States. Since the 1990s, the human rights regime has been enriched by its encounter with criminal justice while non-state actors, such as NGOs, play an increasingly relevant role. The course, through an illustration of the general framework as well as an analysis of selected issues, is aimed at understanding how human rights have become a part of the legal system of the international community.

*Course content subject to change