A Magna Carta for All Humanity: Homing in on Human Rights

Cover
Title
Copyright
Dedication
CONTENTS
Copyright information
Preface and acknowledgements
Foreword
List of abbreviations
INTRODUCTION The Magna Carta: marvel or myth?
	A ‘living instrument’
	Universal application
	A ‘sacred text’?
SECTION I Human rights: a time-traveller’s guide
	Introduction
	First stop: in search of ‘British values’
	Next stop: rediscovering ‘Enlightenment values’
	Fast forward to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
	Legal rights or human rights?
		Rights or righteousness?
	Natural rights or human rights?
	Exploring the human rights ethic
	Reason and conscience
		Dignity
	Liberty and equality
		Individualism or mutualism?
		Humans as social beings
		Humans as responsible beings
		The private sphere
		Conflict resolution
	The meaning of ‘universal’
		Universalism or cultural imperialism?
		Global human rights movements
	Conclusion: inspiration or foundation?
		Personal reflections
SECTION I Anthology
	1 Human rights: a common standard for all peoples?
		September 11th
		Communal conflict
		The debate on ‘Britishness’
		Integration into what?
		The Human Rights Act as a statement of values
		Human rights as British values?
		What is the source of human rights values?
		Values to aid social cohesion?
		Conclusion: human rights and citizenship
	2 The Universal Declaration of Human Rights: 60 years on
		Bolstering the protection of individuals by influencing governments throughout the world
		Contributing to the ending of war
		Global recognition of the inherent dignity and worth of all human beings
		Relevance for British bill of rights debate
	3 Human rights: philosophy, politics or law?
		1. Introduction
		2. Human rights as philosophy
		3. Human rights sceptics
		4. Human rights as politics
		5. Human rights as law
		Conclusion
	4 Rights and righteousness: friends or foe?
		Rights and righteousness
		Rights as selfish interests?
		Human rights as secular?
		Human rights as ethical values?
		Rights and duties
		Addressing tensions and conflicts between rights
		Conclusion
	5 Human rights: above politics or a creature of politics?
	6 Freedom of expression must include the licence to offend?
SECTION II When universal human rights hit home
	Introduction
	The disputed parentage of the European Convention on Human Rights
		The mixed marriage of universalism and the common law
		The role of the Empire on British nervousness
		A text that Britain supports
	On the road to the Human Rights Act
		Why a bill of rights?
		Towards a democratic bill of rights?
		Mixed messages
	Principles and values
	Critiques and controversies
		Parental neglect and political wrangles
		Myths and monsters
		The dead hand of the law?
	Back to the future?
		Inflation or interpretation?
		Insanity or humanity?
		Alive or dead?
	Conclusion: human rights – endgame or lit flame?
SECTION II Anthology
	1 The disputed parentage of the European Convention on Human Rights: origins and controversies
		Introduction
		Regional mechanisms
		Background to the ECHR
			Council of Europe and the European Court
				COLONIALISM AND EXTRA-TERRITORIAL APPLICATION
				THE IMPACT OF THE END OF THE COLD WAR
	2 A bill of rights for the United Kingdom: a comparative summary
	3 The Human Rights Act: origins and intentions
		Beginnings
		Seeds of change
		New Labour triangulation
		The British model
		Conclusion
	4 The Human Right Act: basic principles and values
		The evolution of rights
		The ECHR
		The HRA
	5 The press, privacy and the practical values of the human rights act
		Introduction
		Responsibilities
		Media hostility to HRA
		Right to privacy
		Interception of communications
		RIPA and phone hacking
		Protecting sources
		Wakeham and s12 HRA
		Injunctions
		Useful for everyone
		Conclusion
	6 Issues in communicating human rights
Select bibliography
Subject index
Case index