Rights preserving the Autonomy of the Person

Teacher(s)

Sarolea Sylvie; Willems Geoffrey;

Language

French

Main themes

The autonomy of the person first presupposes that physical and moral integrity be preserved, that his/her private and family life, as well as the secrecy of his/her communications, be shielded from unjustified external interference, and that the individual's right to property be respected. It also presupposes freedom to manifest one's religion or belief, freedom of expression, freedom of association, as well as certain rights to political participation, through which the individual takes part as a citizen in the life of the community. Finally, personal autonomy may be effective only if the individual has the means to realise it through an education, the guarantee of an adequate standard of living or, more generally, the intervention of the authorities in order to protect the individual from the risks of existence. The need to protect the personal autonomy of the individual thus transcends the distinction between civil and political rights, on the one hand, and economic, social and cultural rights on the other hand. It envisages the individual seeking his/her fulfilment outside collective structures, as well as the citizen investing him- or herself in the life of the polity.

Learning outcomes

At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to :

The students shall be equipped to understand the principles of international human rights law and the jurisprudence of the human rights monitoring bodies.

Content

The course includes a general part and a specialized part.
The general part discusses the sources of human rights law and general principles (including the notion of "jurisdiction" and the conditions of invocability of human rights treaties; restrictions to human rights and the regime of derogations; and the duty of progressive realization).
The specialized part illustrates these general principles in the context of specific human rights such as the right to life, the right to respect for private and family life, freedom of expression or freedom of religion.

Teaching methods

Lecture-based course with an interactive dimension encouraging student participation.
The course runs over a term for a total of 45 teaching hours.
Students are invited to obtain the Code de droit international des droits de l'homme (Larcier, 2019). They will receive the power points used by the teachers.
The course is taught in French. However, some of the documents referred to in the course may only be available in English, so at least a passive knowledge of English is an advantage.

Evaluation methods

The exam is in two parts.
- A written exam via MCQ (with no negative points) in mid-December to check understanding and mastery of basic concepts in the general part of the course (5 points).
- An oral examination during the January session, focusing on the special parts of the course and requiring mastery of the concepts in the general part. This oral examination may, for example, involve solving a case or analysing a decision (15 points)".

Bibliography

Il est fortement recommandé à l'étudiant de s'équiper du Code de droit international des droits humains (De Schutter et al., 5ème édition mise à jour, Larcier, 2019).

Faculty or entity

DRTB