Are global human rights eroding?

What is the role of the state in the context of human rights and the state’s other obligations?

Hanne Sophie Greve is a Norwegian judge with a long history of working in the field of human rights. She is a former judge at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. She has also worked as a Commissioner in the UN War Crimes Commission for the Former Yugoslavia and as an expert witness with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.

Human rights were adopted to protect the individual vis-à-vis the State, and they do not supersede the State’s obligation to regulate the relationship between individuals. Human rights are an essential part of everyday life, but they are not the sole prerequisite for prosperity and happiness. States must also provide a social climate and an atmosphere that allows humans to feel secure, adopt laws permitting human flourishing and social cohesion. How has state responsibility for human rights evolved in the twenty-first century, and what is pressurising the state’s protection of human rights?

In this breakfast seminar, Greve will discuss her work on human rights, legal instruments and reflect on the state of human rights in today’s world. Her presentation will be followed by a discussion with
Lise Rakner (Professor,
Institutt for sammenliknende politikk, UiB
and Chair of the Rafto Foundation for Human Rights
Prize Committee)
Jackie Dugard (
Wits School of Law
, South Africa),
Elin Skaar
(Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI)
and
Siri Gloppen
(Director of LawTransform /Professor, Department of Comparative Politics, UiB).

All are welcome to this interesting and timely breakfast seminar! Coffee, tea and croissants will be served.

Photo: Vegar Valde, Bergens Tidende