(This is an archived extract from the book Patterns of Power: Edition 2)
The law can be used to enforce any of a wide range of rights, as indicated in those Articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which have a legal aspect. [1] Even socio-economic rights can be enforced by law and there are several examples of countries where this has been introduced;[2] it is a contentious use of the law, because it begs the question of who is to pay – but other judicial decisions also have financial consequences.
Legal enforceability can be used as a basis for holding authorities to account, for example to ensure that socio-economic rights are not degraded in different parts of a country as a result of the localisation of government.[3] The enforcement mechanisms could be judicial reviews, injunctions or the use of human rights as a basis for civil actions.
© PatternsofPower.org, 2014
[1] Articles 2 – 20 of the UDHR (Appendix 1) have a particularly legal aspect: they would be expected to have legal protection in most countries.
[2] There are many examples of cases on the International Network for Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ESCR) website at http://www.escr-net.org/caselaw/ which contains a database of jurisprudence, cases and other decisions related to Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. This was available in May 2014.
[3] John Denham, in an article entitled Where next for localism?, described a British Labour Party perspective:
“The aim is to move away from a system based on central direction and targets to one where citizens have enforceable rights and means of redress where these are not delivered.”
The article was published in the RSA Journal of Winter 2009, and was available in December 2012 at http://www.thersa.org/fellowship/journal/archive/winter-2009/features/where-next-for-localism.