Suchergebnisse

AbstractThis article examines the relationship between the World Heritage Convention and international human rights law. The first part of the article draws on key phrases in Article 1 of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) Constitution, which defines its purpose to elaborate on the role of human rights to UNESCO's mandate and how developments in international human rights law over the last 75 years have been translated into the organization's policies and programs and the implementation of the World Heritage Convention. The second part details how human rights violations related to World Heritage properties expose significant shortcomings in UNESCO's fulfillment of its mandate and states' compliance with international human rights norms. The third part outlines the international responsibility of various actors in respect of serious violations of human rights related to World Heritage properties. The final part identifies possible areas of reform in the operation of the World Heritage Convention that may facilitate its alignment with international human rights law and UNESCO's adherence to its mandate.

Abstract:Indigenous peoples' emphasis on protecting their cultural heritage (including land) through a human rights-based approach reveals the synergies and conflicts between the World Heritage Convention and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). This article focuses on how their insistence on the right to participate effectively in decision-making and centrality of free, prior, and informed consent as defined in the UNDRIP exposes the limitations of existing United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and World Heritage Convention processes effecting Indigenous peoples, cultures, and territories and how these shortcomings can be addressed. By tracking the evolution of the UNDRIP and the World Heritage Convention from their drafting and adoption to their implementation, it examines how the realization of Indigenous peoples' right to self-determination concerning cultural heritage is challenging international law to become more internally consistent in its interpretation and application and international organizations to operate in accordance with their constitutive instruments.