Aims and objectives

The ESRC funded Human Rights Implementation Project (HRLIP) is a collaborative project between four leading academic human rights Centres (Bristol, Essex, Middlesex and Pretoria) and the Open Society Justice Initiative.

The aim of the project is to examine the factors which impact on human rights law implementation by nine states across Europe (Belgium, Czech Republic and Georgia), Africa (Cameroon, Burkina Faso and Zambia) and Americas (Colombia,  Canada, Guatemala), looking at (i) selected decisions deriving from individual complaints to UN treaty bodies; and (ii) selected judgements and decisions of the bodies in the three regional human rights systems.

The Project explores the utility and relevance of human rights law in the 21st century, an issue which is concern to state actors (governments, legislatures and judiciaries); civil society actors; human rights bodies; and victims (and potential) victims of human rights violations.

It is hoped that the research will impact on the actual compliance by the states with selected decisions and thereby result in greater justice for individual victims.