ABSTRACT
As indicated in the previous chapter, the development of an international law of human rights has proceeded apace since 1945. However, these developments on the international plane have coincided with movement on the regional plane. As a broad generalisation, one can note the development of a distinct regional law in Western Europe which then spreads to other parts of the world following decolonisation and the collapse of Marxist Leninist systems in Eastern Europe. It is also important to note that, as the number of states expanded after 1945 and as many written constitutions were withdrawn and redrafted, it became common to include within the basic constitutional documents certain fundamental human rights or civil liberties which were entrenched against interference by the legislative or executive branch of government. In the early years after the Second World War the emphasis was initially upon civil or political rights with the scope widening in subsequent decades.
