Online resources for International Human Rights Law

Outline• Research guides and reference works• Treaties• UN Materials and OHCHR• International courts and tribunals• Regional materials

– Europe– The Americas– Africa

• Journal articles and commentary• Other useful resources• URLs for collections of

– Country Reports– Subject materials

Research guides & reference works

Research guides

• ASIL@ http://www.asil.org/resource/humrts1.htm

• UN Documentation: Research Guide on Human Rights @ http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/spechr.htm

• The George Washington Law School @ http://www.law.gwu.edu/NR/rdonlyres/D07D93EB-A26A-4B40-A2E1-9DDEE95728AE/0/HumRights07.pdf

Max Planck Encyclopaedia of Public International Law

• Connect via Oxlip+• Entries on many human rights topics• Includes select

bibliography/document lists

Browse optionsSearch options

Max Planck Encyclopaedia of

Public International Law

Terms in italics (with arrow) refer to other entries in the encyclopaedia

Citator – to see other entries in the encyclopaedia referred to in this entry

Contents

Select bibliography and key documents

UN Resources for Human Rights

Research guides: UN

• ASIL guide@http://www.asil.org/resource/un1.htm

• Duke Law School UN guide @ http://www.law.duke.edu/lib/researchguides/un.html

• UN Documentation Research Guides @ http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/quick.htm– Guides for subjects (e.g. Human Rights, International Law…), major UN

organs (e.g. General Assembly, Security council etc), document types etc

– General guide explaining document numbers etc @ http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/

• UN topical research guides (compiled by Globalex)@ http://www.nyulawglobal.org/globalex/United_Nations_Research1.htm#topical

United Nations: Useful URLs

• UN web site @ http://www.un.org/• Official Web Locator @ http://www.unsystem.org/

– Index to UN web sites

• UN High Commissioner for Human Rights @ http://www.ohchr.org/– Treaties, subject index, special measures, charter and

treaty bodies

UN Documents

• Official Document System of the UN @ http://documents.un.org/– documents 1993-, resolutions 1946-

• UNBisnet @ http://unbisnet.un.org/– Index to UN documents and sales publications

• Treaty Bodies Database - http://tb.ohchr.org/default.aspx– UN human rights treaty bodiex

• These databases are covered in the UN class

Includes work of 6th committee (legal arm of the GA), International law commission (includes analytical guide), ICJ, ICTR etc

UN documentation centre :•Browse documents from the General Assembly, Security Council, Economic and Social Council & Secretariat by session, year and/or document type•Research guide•UN Pulse – daily update of new UN documents

Human Rights•HR Treaties, ratifications, reservations etc•A-Z of issues•Special country mandates•Information about the HR treaty and charter bodies (and their documents via Treaty bodies database)

Links to web sites of UN bodies

Subject list. For each subject links to main UN bodies involved, events, key documents. Following links to main bodies can be particularly useful.

http://www.un.org/

•Searches UN web site and linked sites (e.g. web sites of UN bodies). Can retrieve documents that are not available on UNBisNet or UNODS.•Google search

Charter Based Bodies

• Human Rights Council – Special procedures (discuss and report on human rights

situations relating to particular countries or themes)

• Commission on Human Rights – No longer exists – predecessor of the Human Rights

Council

• Subcommission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights – Carries out studies on human rights issues and make

recommendations

Treaty Based Bodies• Committee against Torture (CAT)• Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural

Rights (CESCR)• Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination

against Women (CEDAW) • Committee on the Elimination of Racial

Discrimination (CERD) • Committee on Migrant Workers (CMW)• Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC)• Human Rights Committee (CCPR)

• Documents produced by the Treaty Based Bodies are available on the Treaty Bodies Database as well as UN ODS, Unbisnet

A-Z of issues with links to relevant bodies / rapporteurs

Country information for each member including treaty ratification/reservation information, rapporteurships and special procedures relating to the country, news, events, links“Ratifications and reservations” – treaties with signatories, reservations etcCountry mandates – countries subject to HRC special procedures

Links to the charter and treaty based organisations (introductory general information, publications, rules and procedures, events, relevant rapporteurships, relevant treaties and ratification information, links) plus links to Treaty bodies database

Publications including fact sheets/special issues on various topics

International Courts and Tribunals

Research Guides

• Pict – Project on International Courts and Tribuals @ http://www.pict-pcti.org/

• ASIL Guide to Electronic Resources for International Law @ http://www.asil.org/resource/humrts1.htm#SectionD

• UN Research Guide @ http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/specil.htm

• Research guides for individual courts see second half of handout

Where to find judgments & decisions: publications

• International Legal Materials – Key publication including treaties, UN

resolutions and declarations, cases– Internat 300 I 240– Online Westlaw / Lexis / HeinOnline

• International Human Rights Reports – Internat 300 I162

• International Law Reports - Internat 100 I61

Where to find judgments and decisions online

• Web site of the relevant court (also includes indictments, pleadings etc) – URLS later

• Oxford Reports on International Law• Westlaw• Worldlii• Interights - Key human rights cases from

Commonwealth (domestic and international courts and tribunals)

• Netherlands Institute of Human Rights (esp UN committees)

• University of Minnesota Human Rights Library (esp Inter American Court of Human Rights)

Where to find other stuff…

• Basic Court documents – PICT– Web site of the relevant court

• Annual reports etc – Web site of the relevant court or its

parent body – University of Minnesota Human Rights

library

Oxford Reports on International Law

•Includes decision, headnote, cases and instruments cited plus articles citing•Selected cases only (more being added)•ICJ and PCIJ•ICC•ICTY and ICTR•Nuremberg International Military Tribunal•Special Court for Sierra Leone•UN committees: CERD, CAT, CCPR•ECHR •African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights•“International Law in Domestic Courts“ (decisions from domestic courts in 60 jurisdictions relating to international law)•More courts to be added

Judgments selected by broad subject. See “Find out more” for selection criteria

Browse by subject / date Search options. Advanced search also includes keywords thesaurus

Most recent cases added

Choose keywords or jurisdictions from thesaurus

Search terms can be combined with AND – all terms OR – one term or the other or bothNOT – one term but only if the other is not present•to truncate e.g. ethnic* finds ethnic, ethnically•? In place of one letter e.g. organi?ation

Jump to further analysis, cases cited etc

Westlaw :International Legal Materials

International Court of JusticeInternational Criminal Tribunal for the

former YugoslaviaInternational Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda

European Court of Human Rights

Westlaw

• International courts / International Legal Materials are hard to find. To find them:Westlaw International > Directory >All Westlaw Databases > International/Worldwide > Multinational > Court and Tribunal Cases

For materials from beyond the UK/EU choose Westlaw International

To search cases from selected courts

To search International Legal Materials. Includes treaties, UN resolutions and declarations, cases. From Legislation choose “International Legal Materials”

Database selected

Combine terms using connectors

Rape within the same sentence as ethnic

To see all results

To search within results

To jump to your keywords

Print, save, e-mail etc

Worldlii@ http://www.worldlii.org

26 international courts including:ICJ

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda Decisions 2004- International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia 1996- United Nations Committee against Torture Decisions 1993-

United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination 1988-

United Nations Human Rights Committee 1977-European Court of Human Rights

Inter-American Court of Human Rights 1981- (Selected) Interights Commonwealth Human Rights Law 1992-2002 Interights International Human Rights Law 1981-2001

International Courts and Tribunals

1. Choose court(s). Either check the boxes next to the court(s) you want to search OR choose a pre selected group of courts (e.g. All Human Rights Courts).

2. Enter search terms. Use the following connectors:AND, OR, NOTNEAR – within 50 wordsw/n –term 1 within n terms of term 2Pre/n –term 1 must precede term 2 by n terms *truncation symbol

Check when last judgement was added to Worldlii

Sort options

To see results from one particular court (or database) only

InterightsKey human rights cases from

international courts and tribunals and domestic courts in the Commonwealth

http://www.interights.org/database-search/index.htm

Notes for specific courts

International Court of Justice

ICJ: Research Guides & Reference Works

• UN research guide includes a section on the ICJ @ http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/specil.htm#icj

• International Court of Justice Yearbook Internat 725 c 858 j-k

• Summaries of Judgments, Advisory Opinions and Orders of the International Court of Justice Internat 121a

• Bibliography of the International Court of Justice Internat 400 c858

ICJ: Judgments in print• (Reports of) Judgments, Advisory Opinions and

Orders – Internat 121– Annual index

• Pleadings, Oral Arguments, Documents – Internat 122– Documentation relating to each case

(e.g. application, written and oral proceedings, documents submitted to the court, selected correspondence etc)

– Published after the end of the case in the original language

ICJ online

• ICJ web site @ http://www.icj-cij.org– Basic Documents – Cases

• Full text of judgments (contentious cases) /advisory opinions (advisory proceedings)

• Related documents (e.g. application, oral and written proceedings, orders, summaries, press releases)

– Not good for subject searching• Worldlii and Westlaw

– Cases– Preferable for subject searching

Background information – history, how the court works, judges etc

Text of judgments and advisory opinions and related documents

Statute of the Court, rules of procedure etc

Information about the courts’ jurisdiction

THE ICJ website

ICTY, ICTR, ICC

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia

• UN research guide @ http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/specil.htm#ity

• Basic documents, annual reports @http://www.un.org/icty/

Judgments in print • The Judicial Reports/ Recueils judiciaires Internat

580 I63cJudgments online • ITY web site @ http://www.un.org/icty/ • Oxford Reports on International Law• Westlaw • Worldlii (not entirely up to date)

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda

• UN Research Guide @ http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/specil.htm#itr

Online• ICTR website @ http://69.94.11.53/

– Basic documents– Indictments, decisions, judgments – Status of pending cases– Annual reports etc

• Oxford Reports on International Law• Westlaw (indictments, decisions,

judgments)• Worldlii

Other international courts…

• International Criminal Court– UN research guides @ http://

www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/specil.htm#icc

– http://www.icc-cpi.int/ – Oxford Reports on International Law

• Special Court for Sierra Leone @ http://www.sc-sl.org/– Oxford Reports on International Law

• Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation in East Timor @ http://www.cavr-timorleste.org/

Decisions ofUN Treaty Committees

UN Treaty Bodies Decisions

• Information about the treaty bodies at @ http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/icm-mc/docs/hri_mc_2007_4.doc

• Treaty bodies database @ http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf

• Oxford Reports on International Law• Worldlii• Netherlands Institute of Human Rights

http://www.law.uu.nl/english/sim/– Indexed by subject, keyword, state, name

etc– Once connected choose Databases > Case

Law

Click on the > next to the relevant body

The Treaty Bodies Database

Cases before UN committees

Cases before ECHR

Cases before tribunals for Yugoslavia / Rwanda

Comments by treaty bodies in response to country reports

Browse by treaty article, subject, keyword, country etc

Regional: Europe

Council of Europe - http://www.coe.int

• Council of Europe Treaties http://conventions.coe.int• Directorate General of Human Rights @

http://www.coe.int/T/E/Human_rights/ documents and news organised by subject

• Commissioner for Human Rights @ http://www.coe.int/t/commissioner/

• European Court of Human Rights - http://www.echr.coe.int/echr– Judgments and decisions on Westlaw, Justis, HUDOC,

Worldlii

Legal… includes link to the Treaties Office – COE treaties, ratification information, subject index etc

•Directorate General including publications•Drafting legal instruments – information by subject on drafting of instruments, law reform, news, projects, committees etc•Cooperation – information on projects with particular states•Monitoring – information on monitoring agreed standards

European Court of Human Rights: Reports of Judgments

• Official Reports – Before 1 Nov 1998 known as Series A and numbered

consecutively. Citation looks like: Plattform ‘Ärtze für das Leben’ v Austria (App no 10126/82) (1988) Series A no 139

– After 1 Nov 1998 - Renamed Reports of Judgments and Decisions. Citation looks like:Osman v UK (App no 23452/94) ECHR 1998-VIII 3124

– Available online on Justis / in print at Internat 121• European Human Rights Reports (EHRR)

– Reputable publication as an alternative to the official reports

– Citation looks like: Young, James and Webster v UK (App no 7601/76) (1982) 4 EHRR 38

– Available online on Westlaw or in print at Internat 150

ECHR: Transcripts

• Court Transcripts are available on – Court web site (HUDOC) @ http://

www.echr.coe.int/echr– Worldlii– Netherlands Institute of Human Rights

Choose “Advanced Search” for more options

Westlaw “UK Cases” includes European Court of Human Rights Reports (all ECHR judgments and selected commission decisions)

Searches full text of all judgments (use for subject searching)

Searches party names

Searches for cases by legislation considered. E.g. European Convention on Human Rights article 3.

Full text of the case

Related information including:•List of reports of the case•Summary of the issues•Legislation considered in the judgment•Earlier cases considered in the judgment•Later cases which have considered this judgment•Commentary on the judgment

e.g. searching for ECHR cases on the death penalty

ECHR web site

• http://www.echr.coe.int/• Basic Documents and texts of the

court• Database of transcripts of judgments

and commission decisions• To go direct to the transcripts

database http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/

Transcripts database

European Convention on Human Rights and additional protocols

History, organization, composition, procedures etc

To search decisions of the European Commission (ceased 1999) open up decisions box. Note not all commission decisions are available.

Use … to browse a thesaurus of terms

Make sure the “from” field is not filled in when you open up the database

HUDOC - Transcripts

Some judgments are only available on one language

Full text

Analytical information including dates, party names, who the case was referred by, Strasbourg case law cited, keywords, durable URL

Keywords in context – finds your keywords and displays

surrounding text

Links to related information

Inter American Human Rights

Organisation of American States

• OAS - http://www.oas.org/• Charter of the OAS @• Treaties @ http://www.oas.org/DIL/treaties.htm

Treaties, resolutions, declarations etc

Inter American Commission on Human Rights

• Inter American Commission on Human Rights @ http://www.cidh.org/DefaultE.htm– Reports adopted by the Commission @

http://www.wcl.american.edu/pub/humright/digest/index.html

• Finding cases before the Commission– Cases section of the Commission web site– University of Minnesota index to Commission

cases @ http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/cases/commissn.htm

Cases

Background information including relationship of Commission and Court

Reports from special rapporteurs, country reports, cases, work with the court

Treaties, ratification and reservation information

Responses to recommendations by states

Precautionary measures

Duplicates material on Commission web site?

Inter American Court of Human Rights• Reports

– Series A – Judgments and opinions (Advisory cases)– Series B – Pleadings, Oral Arguments and Documents (relating to

series A)– Series C – Decisions and judgments (Contentious cases)– Series D - Pleadings, Oral Arguments and Documents (relating to series

C)– Series E - Provisional measures

• Finding Cases online– Court web site @ http://www.corteidh.or.cr/ (+ related documents)

Spanish versions appear first– University of Minnesota @ http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/iachr/iachr.html

– Worldlii (most recent judgment available 2006)

Statute of the court, rules of procedure, composition, history etc

•Browse judgments chronologically or by country•Decisions and judgments =series c (contentious)•Advisory = series A •Text in word / pdf

Annual reports – includes cases

Search for judgment by keywords or by country/date range

Africa: some key web sites

• African Union – http://www.africa-union.org/

• African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights – http://www.achpr.org/english/_info/charter_en.html

• African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights– http://www.achpr.org/

• Africa Human Rights Resource Centre (University of Minnesota Human Rights Library) – is this still current? @ http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/africa/index.html

Treaties and ratification details, speeches etc

Most recent country reports, and activities reports

Treatieslist of state reports but no full text

Subjects

Treaties, conventions etc

A-Z of Human Rights links (NGOs, governments, charities etc) Constitutive Act of the

AU + documents / information re OAU/AU African summit 2002

Country reports and decisions from the UN Human Rights Committee

Compilations of treaties, books and articles on human rights in Africa. Nothing later than 1994.

Report on NGOs in Africa published 1994.

Journal article by J. Oloka-Onyango (1995)

Other useful web sites

• Eisil @ www.eisil.org– Treaties, conventions etc with related web sites and

research guides

• University of Minnesota Human Rights Library @ http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/

Journals & Commentary• Receuil des cours

– Hague Academy Collected Courses on international human rights

– In print Internat 300 A20– Online via Oxlip+

• Use usual journals indexes– Westlaw– Index to Legal Periodicals– Index to Foreign Legal Periodicals– Social Science Citation Index– Cambridge Scientific Abstracts : Social Sciences– PAIS – Public Affairs Information Institute

• Links to free journals with Human Rights focus– http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/links/journals.html

Click

Ignore buy this book and use contents on the left to access full

text

Country Reports• Collection of links to Country Reports in the ASIL research

guide @ http://www.asil.org/resource/humrts1.htm• Amnesty

– http://web.amnesty.org/library/engindex – Reports organised by country, region, theme

• Human Rights Watch– http://hrw.org/– Reports organised by country and subject

• International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights– Europe (esp E Europe)– For Reports follow the link to “Documents and

publications”– http://www.ihf-hr.org/welcome.php

• US Dept of State Country Reports on Human Rights Practices– Choose Country Reports from the navigation bar– Annual reports submitted to US congress– http://www.state.gov/g/drl/hr/

Subject Approach

• Amnesty http://web.amnesty.org/library/engindex• Human Rights Watch http://hrw.org/ • University of Minnesota Topics Guide

http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/edumat/topicguides.html

– Introduction to main issues– Links to relevant web resources

• University of Minnesota Human Rights Library http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/links/links.htm– Links to document repositories, organisations,

country and subjects

Subject Approach

• Derechos http://www.derechos.org/

– Particularly good for Latin America• Human Rights Internet http://www.hri.ca/• Hurisearch - http://www.hurisearch.org/

– search engine searching multiple human rights web sites

• Worldlii Human Rights Catalog http://www.worldlii.org/catalog/303.html

– Links to document repositories, organisations, country and subjects