Human Rights and the Sovereign State: An Examination of the Compatibility of State Sovereignty with the Humanitarian Necessities of a Global World
Abstract
This thesis looks at the problem of sustaining human rights in a world of sovereign
states. What does it mean for the global human rights movement that the predominant
form of political organization in the world is the individual sovereign state? What
are the tensions between the theories of sovereignty and humanitarianism? I trace
the origin of the modern notion of sovereignty in order to demonstrate the difficulties
posed for the human rights movement by state sovereignty. I argue that the relationship
between the two concepts is antinomic: human rights require the resources and structure
of the state for their actualization, yet are simultaneously put at risk by the unchecked
power of the state. Because the human rights movement relies on state stability, but
the stability of the state does not rely on the provision of human rights, an imbalance
of power exists. Examining notions of sovereignty that antedate our own, I conclude
that the human rights movement must become an international force strong enough to
counterbalance powerful individual states in order to encourage states to adhere to
human rights norms. This involves greater coordination between many elements of the
human rights movement, including individuals, NGOs, regional organizations, multilateral
institutions, and the international justice system.
Description
Honors thesis; Winner of the Elizabeth G. Verville Award
Type
Honors thesisDepartment
Political SciencePermalink
https://hdl.handle.net/10161/7004Citation
Yaffe, Leah (2013). Human Rights and the Sovereign State: An Examination of the Compatibility of State
Sovereignty with the Humanitarian Necessities of a Global World. Honors thesis, Duke University. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/7004.Collections
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