Open AccessAn Undemocratic Guardian of Democracy - International Human Rights Complaint Procedures
Author(s) -
Shotaro Hamamoto
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
victoria university of wellington law review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1179-3082
pISSN - 1171-042X
DOI - 10.26686/vuwlr.v38i2.5520
Subject(s) - international covenant on civil and political rights , democracy , guardian , human rights , political science , politics , complaint , law , covenant , civil society , public administration , law and economics , sociology , international human rights law , right to property
This paper discusses the individual complaints procedures established pursuant to international human rights treaties such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It discusses the bases on which these systems have been criticised as undemocratic. After considering how these democratic failings could be ameliorated through greater involvement of domestic parliaments, it questions this narrow view of democracy that looks only to parliamentary involvement, suggesting instead that apparently undemocratic individual complaints procedures can actually have a beneficial "democratising" effect.