ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on core documents and an examination of states’ public diplomacy with respect to reviews of their human rights performance through the UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism. After providing a brief overview of the elements of regional systems, the authors begin with an analysis of key alignments and departures found in the core human rights conventions adopted in each region. This analysis provides a foundational baseline of comparative analysis. It then uses data from the first two rounds of the UPR to examine the extent to which states prioritize regional rather than global norms and mechanisms. The key element of divergence would be states that retreat to more “friendly” (i.e., “weaker”) norms and obligations than they perceive to be held by the UN’s standards. This analysis demonstrates the relationships between global and regional norms and institutions for protecting human rights. The comparison here will focus on core human rights instruments and norms, e.g., at the global level, including “International Bill of Rights,” the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), and the two 1966 Covenants on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). At the regional levels, the focus will shift to core human rights conventions and charters as well.
