Dictionary of International Human Rights Law

Connie de la Vega, Dictionary of International Human Rights Law (Edward Elgar, 2013)

Univ. of San Francisco Law Research Paper

Posted: 20 Jan 2014

See all articles by Constance de la Vega

Constance de la Vega

University of San Francisco School of Law

Date Written: 2013

Abstract

The aim of this dictionary is to cover comprehensively human rights terminology and human rights instruments.

Prof. Sarah Joseph of Monash University says of the dictionary: "Connie de la Vega's Dictionary of International Human Rights Law is a marvelous new human rights resource. It provides concise definitions and explanations of key human rights phrases, including specific recognized and emerging rights, relevant concepts, institutions and instruments. Human rights law has not grown in a vacuum, so some related concepts, such as from international criminal law and the law of armed conflict, are wisely included, This book will be an important addition to the libraries of human rights scholars, practitioners and advocates throughout the world."

The dictionary includes two major sections; definitions; and an Appendix with short descriptions of the instruments and references on how to locate them.

This project raised various challenges, including the determination of what words to include, how to include them, and how to define them. The decision of how to include the various rights involved whether to list them as the "right to —" or by the name of the right. I made the decision that it would be easier to find each right under its name rather than under a long list of "right to —". However, this determination also involved how to characterize those entitlements that are listed as "freedom of —" or "right to freedom of —". Since there were fewer rights in that category, I have listed them as "freedom of —" without the designation of right, though many do appear in the treaties that way. It might be helpful to note that the distinction between rights and freedoms is not clear or consistently treated in the various human rights instruments, as the definitions of those terms indicate.

Many human rights include sub-categories of concepts. So, for example, criminal justice includes a number of separate rights and freedoms. I had to decide how many to define separately. I based the ultimate decision on whether they are stand-alone concepts and how the treaty bodies have addressed them. This may mean that a particular right being looked for could be included in broader concepts.

I tried to avoid usage of gender based words unless the rights necessarily involve the use of those words. However, since many of the human rights treaties use the male gender in their language, there are some definitions that include that usage.

Keywords: human rights, lexicography, dictonaries

Suggested Citation

de la Vega, Constance, Dictionary of International Human Rights Law (2013). Connie de la Vega, Dictionary of International Human Rights Law (Edward Elgar, 2013), Univ. of San Francisco Law Research Paper, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2381577

Constance De la Vega (Contact Author)

University of San Francisco School of Law ( email )

2130 Fulton Street
San Francisco, CA 94117
United States

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Abstract Views
926
PlumX Metrics