‘Regional Human Rights: International and Regional Human Rights: Friends or Foe?’ is the first publication out of the Bayreuth International Summer School
‘Regional Human Rights: International and Regional Human Rights: Friends or Foe?’ is the first edited volume emerging the Bayreuth International Summer School. Co-edited by Prof. Dr Bernd Kannowski from the University of Bayreuth and Prof. Dr. Kerstin Steiner from La Trobe University in Melbourne, the volume brings together international voices on regional approaches to human rights. As outlined by Prof. Kannowski in the Foreword to the volume:
‘The volume now in your hands is meant to provide a comprehensive overview of the various regional perspectives on human rights. It presents a snapshot of global human rights, against which different regional human rights systems across five continents are juxtaposed.’ (p.10).
Five experts from five continents are showcasing what regional human rights mean in their geo-political context thereby illustrating the wider theoretical framing with tangible case studies and examples.
Following Bernd Kannowski’s Foreword, Bahame Tom Nyanduga (African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights) looks at The African Human Rights System in chapter 1, followed by a focus on Inter-American protection of economic actors’ human rights by Carolina Olarte-Bácares (Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Colombia) in chapter 2. Chapter 3, by Kerstin Steiner focuses on Malaysia and the challenges for Human Rights in Asia, her colleague Emma Henderson (La Trobe University, Australia) scrutinizes human rights in Australia and the final chapter bookends the volume Olivier Dubos (University of Bordeaux) and Victor Guset (Universtié De Rouen) by focusing European Protection of Human Rights.
I spoke to Prof. Kerstin Steiner as the co-editor of the book and as the author for the chapter entitled ‘The Challenges for Human Rights in Asia: Islam and the Patchwork System for Freedom of Religion in Malaysia’.
Prof. Dr. Steiner has been researching and living in Melbourne for many years, but is originally from Germany, where she also completed her Law Degree. She is an expert in Southeast Asian socio-legal studies researching at the intersection of law, politics, economics and society, especially with regard to Islam. Kerstin has been teaching into the human rights course at the Bayreuth International Summer School and is collaborating closely with the Faculty of Law, Business and Economics.
She explains the theoretical framing of the book, and why human rights – whilst universal – also have to be scrutinized within their particularly regional context. At the heart of the volume stands ‘one of the biggest challenges of human rights nowadays: if they are international or do they have to culturally entrenched?’
Prof. Dr. Steiner’s contribution focuses on Malaysia as a case study for the various roles that religious laws – in the case Malaysia, Islamic Law – means for human rights approaches. In the video below, she provides the example of religious freedom as a human right, which also includes the freedom to leave one’s religion. In her case study, she highlights, that even within one country, different regional approaches to secular and religious law mean that this ‘human right’ can be interpreted in very different ways. In this context, she addresses the question if a regional approach to human rights can be a mediator between global, local and regional human rights discourses. – A question that certainly ties together the volume, which is available directly from its publisher Nomos, Amazon and of course at your University’s library.