131-226 The Struggle for Universal Human Rights

Usually 12.5 points of first-year history.

This course traces the struggle for universal human rights over two centuries, from the theories of the Enlightenment to the Rome Statute on the International Criminal Court (1998). Topics include anti-slavery and Victorian humanitarianism; the campaign against pogroms; the League of Nations and the 'Nansen passport'; the fascist challenge to human rights; the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; the Helsinki Process; the 'disappeared' in Latin America; 'Asian Values'; and truth commissions. The course examines the interaction between governmental structures, including the United Nations, and NGOs like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. It also investigates how dissidents such as Andrei Sakharov, Vaclav Havel, Aung San Suu Kyi, and the Mothers of the Plaza del Mayo resisted persecution and confronted oppressive regimes on the international stage.

• demonstrate research skills through competent use of the library and other information sources;

• show critical thinking and analysis through recommended reading, essay writing and tutorial discussion, and by determining the strength of an argument;

• demonstrate understanding of social, ethical and cultural context through the contextualisation of judgements, developing a critical self-awareness, being open to new ideas and possibilities and by constructing an argument.

A 2000 word argumentative research essay 50% (due mid-semester) and a 2000 word argumentative research essay 50% (due in the examination period).