CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2021
| Author | Baffa, Nicole |
|---|---|
| Title | How Human Rights Were Divided: The "Separate but Equal" Promise of Split Covenants |
| Summary | The Universal Declaration of Human Rights offered protections for both civil, political, social, economic, and cultural rights upon its passage in 1948, followed by two covenants of implementation. However, the original intention was to have a singular means of legal implementation. Despite progress in justiciability, much of the reality of unequal application for social, economic, and cultural rights is attributed to its separation from civil and political rights, a motion which differentiated their nature and enforceability. In my research, I will seek to explore the moment in which rights were divided, exploring the commonly held narratives about the events, influential actors, and the negotiation process. I will assess the events with multiple theoretical frameworks to contribute an updated examination of history and challenge existing literature, assessing the processes for questionable narratives, critical junctures, political opportunity structures, and path dependent outcomes. My research will be conducted using plenary meeting notes and reports from the drafting committee of the Commission on Human Rights, the Economic and Social Council, and the General Assembly of the United Nations. However, I will also engage with government communications and publications by relevant actors to further analyze the context of the events and enhance the findings of the research. Overall, I will assert that the division of rights was a critical juncture, brought on by the recognition of a political opportunity structure. However, I will also assert that a seemingly genuine intent to negotiate existed preceding this moment, refuting commonly held narratives and illuminating contingent factors of influence. |
| Supervisor | Erin Jenne |
| Department | International Relations MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2021/baffa_nicole.pdf |
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