1073 | Impact of Human Rights on International Law

The study of the course ‘Impact of Human Rights on International Law’ emphasizes not only on significant development of international human rights law but also its influence in outreaching several other areas of general international law. It is an elective course serving both as a prior course and also standalone course.

The considered opinion that international human rights law was distinct and therefore certain principles of general international law had no application in specified areas gave rise to, what is called, ‘fragmentation approach’ and therefore the system was held to be self-contained regime. On the other hand a more harmonious approach was found to be in a “reconciliation” approach where both the branches would have to be reconciled with each other to the extent possible. In reality it was found that the relationship between the two has to be viewed as a two-way process providing impetus to the growth and development of both. The endeavor in imparting this course is to demonstrate viability of harmonious approach and to justify it by decided cases and other documents. The primary materials are UN documents and cases supported by articles. Both lecture and discussion methods are used.