UNOG Library Talks: “Human Rights as International Constitutional Law”

Your Excellency Ambassador Manor
Dr. Ramcharan
Dr. Stephens
Dear Colleagues
Ladies and Gentlemen:

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the Palais des Nations and to the Library of the UN Office at Geneva for the Shabtai Rosenne Memorial Lecture. It is an honour to host the third edition of this prestigious Lecture Series at the United Nations especially given Dr. Rosenne’s important contributions to the UN and to international law. I would therefore like to thank the Permanent Mission of Israel, Brill/Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, Dr. Ramcharan, Dr. Stephens and the Rosenne family for making this lecture possible.

One of the foremost international lawyers of recent times, Dr. Rosenne’s ties to the United Nations and to Geneva are profound. As a widely acknowledged expert on treaty law, the law of the sea and the International Court of Justice, he was a formative voice in the field of international law. His role in the development of the procedures of the International Court of Justice was particularly significant. As Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva, he participated in many diplomatic conferences and meetings at the United Nations and interacted with the International Committee of the Red Cross. His contributions as a Member of the International Law Commission - to which the UN Office at Geneva provides support - were also remarkable.

As a centre of the international community’s work on key challenges from disarmament, human rights and humanitarian action to global health and intellectual property, the Geneva that Dr. Rosenne experienced in the 1960s and 1970s remains today an important hub for multilateralism.

Especially in the area of human rights, the United Nations in Geneva – most notably the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights - has been instrumental in strengthening the international human rights machinery over the past decades. It has also made important contributions to human rights and international constitutional law – the subject of the lecture this afternoon. In this regard, I am pleased that former Deputy High Commissioner Dr. Ramcharan is here and I look forward to hearing his views on these issues.

From my point of view, there is a clear intersection between human rights and constitutionalism that stems in the first place, from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Over the years, the universal values outlined in the Declaration - universality, interdependence and indivisibility, equality and non-discrimination - have been translated into law through a number of varying forms. Together, these instruments constitute a comprehensive legally binding system for the promotion and protection of human rights, of which constitutional law plays an important part.
I recognize that there are differing perspectives on constitutional law itself and on the existence of constitutionalism at the regional and international levels. However, I would argue that there is a clear relationship between international obligations and domestic law, whether under the United Nations Charter or international treaties, for example. This relationship is also evident in regard to human rights principles. Today, all United Nations Member States have ratified at least one of the nine core international human rights treaties, and 80 per cent have ratified four or more. This sets out a concrete commitment to the universality of international human rights and their standards.

Excellencies
Ladies and Gentlemen:

I believe I have touched only the ‘tip of the iceberg’ with regard to human rights and constitutional law. This afternoon, we have an excellent opportunity to further explore these issues.
I am pleased that we are able to do so through the UNOG Library Talks - a forum for integrating research and expert thinking into the work of the United Nations.

I look forward to a thought-provoking discussion, in honour of Dr. Rosenne.

Thank you very much.