Chapter Four. The Protection of the Right to Education by International Legal Instruments

Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of the protection of the right to education by instruments of international law. The term instrument refers to both treaties, which, as international agreements, legally bind states parties thereto, and to soft-law documents, such as resolutions, declarations or standard rules adopted by international bodies, which, although not binding in a legal sense, often bind in a political sense. The instruments have been divided into the following nine groups: instruments providing protection against discrimination; instruments on the rights of children; instruments addressing the rights of refugee and stateless persons, of internally displaced persons, and of persons caught up in armed conflict; instruments on the rights of migrant workers; instruments on the rights of disabled persons; instruments on the rights of older persons; instruments on the rights of detained persons; instruments on the rights of minorities; and instruments on the rights of indigenous peoples.Keywords: international legal instruments; protection against discrimination; right to education; rights of children; rights of detained persons; rights of disabled persons; rights of indigenous peoples; rights of migrant workers; rights of minorities; rights of older persons