The Human Rights of Migrants in General International Law: From Minimum Standards to Fundamental Rights

16 Pages Posted: 23 Jul 2014

See all articles by Vincent Chetail

Vincent Chetail

Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (HEI)

Date Written: July 22, 2014

Abstract

This article traces back the historical origins of migrants' rights and analyses their contemporary features under general international law. The systemic perspective proposed in the present article recalls that migrants’ rights are anchored in public international law and reflect its broader evolution.

The first part of this article accordingly provides an historical account about the law of state responsibility for injuries committed to aliens. This was a typical question of classical international law which had been crystallised through the notion of international minimum standards at the end of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. The second part demonstrates how this notion has been progressively encapsulated within international human rights law before constituting nowadays the primary source of protection. The last part then focuses on the principle of non-discrimination as the ultimate benchmark of migrants’ rights.

Keywords: migrants, State responsibility, human rights, minimum standard, discrimination, general international law

Suggested Citation

Chetail, Vincent, The Human Rights of Migrants in General International Law: From Minimum Standards to Fundamental Rights (July 22, 2014). Georgetown Immigration Law Journal, Vol. 28, No. 1, 2013, pp. 225-255, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2469785

Vincent Chetail (Contact Author)

Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (HEI) ( email )

PO Box 136
Geneva, CH-1211
Switzerland

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