Cultural Rights

Carnegie Council,
12 April 2005, USA

Series 2 No. 12 (Spring 2005) of 'Human Rights Dialogue' focuses on the evolving concept of cultural rights and explores its potential effectiveness both in achieving social justice and advancing the rights claims of ethnic minorities, indigenous peoples and other cultural communities
Since the early 1990s, conflict around the world has been marked by ethnic tensions, and increasingly minorities are calling for political recognition and respect for their cultural identities. Within the area of human rights, the concept of cultural rights has the potential to address the injustices these communities suffer. Yet scholars and practitioners have paid surprisingly little attention to cultural rights, despite the fact that they have been enshrined in international law since 1966 when the United Nations adopted the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Article 27)and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Article 15). This issue of Human Rights Dialogue focuses on the evolving concept of cultural rights and explores its potential effectiveness both in achieving social justice and advancing the rights claims of ethnic minorities, indigenous peoples and other cultural communities. Contributions from scholars and practitioners bring insight to the context of particular claims for cultural rights or cultural rights abuses, as well as the actions being taken to address them.

http://www.cceia.org/resources/publications/dialogue/2_12/index.html