This course critically examines the universalist aspirations pretensions of international law with specific reference to Asia, which contains 60% of the world’s population and is perhaps the most diverse world region in terms of culture, religion, political systems and standards of economic development. It has its fair share of systemic human rights violators. Is human rights law the new global 'standard of civilisation and if so, is it genuinely 'universal' or a form of neo-colonial moral imperialism, working in tandem with neo-liberal economic policies which advantage some states while injuring others?
Through critical inquiry and specific case studies, the course seeks to make concrete the implications of the application of ‘abstract’ principles of international human right law and to shed light into how human rights may influence notions of domestic governance and whether and to what extent it can genuinely improve the promotion of human dignity and social welfare. Where appropriate, references will be made to global norms as well as regional human rights standards from the Inter-American, European and African systems, as useful comparators.