ABSTRACT
It is sensible to review the state of human rights law on the international plane. First, there is no doubt that a state that violates human rights will not be able to hide behind assertions of territorial sovereignty or the provisions of Art 2(7) of the United Nations Charter (1945). Secondly, there are a wide range of treaty provisions in force that broadly provide for a threefold method of enforcement,229 namely, state reporting, inter-state complaints and individual applications. Thirdly, it is now widely accepted that the grossest abuses of human rights constitute breaches of customary international law. Fourthly, many of the international instruments have established Committees charged with handling specific cases but also with issuing general guidance as to how the principles are to be observed. Fifthly, there has been some concern as to whether the bodies established under treaty have sufficient funds to discharge their tasks and this concern manifested itself in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action in 1993. Sixthly, there are increasing numbers of NGOs and sympathetic governments ready to draw the attention of the world community to cases of abuse. Seventhly, the system of human rights enforcement has developed considerably on the regional plane and the recent decision to proceed with an International Criminal Court has increased the likelihood of prosecutions in the most serious cases. Eighthly, there are increasing signs that in criminal and civil actions brought before municipal courts such courts are not prepared to accept that a plea of immunity from the jurisdiction can be entered in respect of serious allegations of human rights abuse.
