The Development or Crystallization of a New Human Right: A Contentious Journey

Abstract

International human rights law is going through another evolutionary cycle with the development of the new and emerging rights (NER). But the creation of new human rights or shaping of the emerging ones are a very long, tortuous and complex procedure, spanning over decades and involving conflicting interest of different international actors. Most of the time, NERs try to introduce new morale involving national and regional culture and experiences in human rights discourse, challenging the dominant western ideologies and thereby sparking worldwide debate and controversy. Apprehensions over the effectiveness of such rights in particular and an over-inflated IHR mechanism in general add momentum to the contentions. The ever-evolving geopolitical dynamics and emergence of a new world order have direct impact on the process. Some NERs such as right to peace or right to development have already achieved considerable recognition from the international community, especially from the Global South and different international agencies. But with more than half a century on the debate, they still remain poorly defined underdeveloped concepts often fluctuated by the ongoing political and military discourse. The NERs are perhaps better thought of as an awakening. World problems can no longer be solved by the actions of one state alone. The way these emerging rights are debated, defined and stipulated will certainly be important in shaping the future of the world.