The Amici’s message to the Court is clear: children’s rights must come first. Procedures should not be so burdensome that they lock children out of the justice system especially when their health, futures, and lives are at stake.

Read the press release here: Kabwe Media Statement 31 October 2025

Dr Michael Lane and Dr Amna Nazir are currently inviting submissions for chapters for an edited collection that will reflect on the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) as it approaches its 20th anniversary. The working title is ‘Charting the Council’s Future: Reflections on the United Nations Human Rights Council at Twenty’.   

The collection will bring together interdisciplinary scholarship to assess the evolution, performance, and future of the UNHRC at this critical juncture. Academics, researchers, civil society representatives, and civil servants (e.g. UN staff) are all welcome to contribute. We are particularly keen to receive contributions from early career researchers and those from the Global South.

Find the details here: Charting the Council’s Future. Reflections on the United Nations Human Rights Council at Twenty CfP

Virtually all constitutions guarantee women’s right to equality, yet, there is a rise in backlash against legal, political, economic, social and cultural efforts to achieve women’s equality.

This podcast series speaks with leading legal scholars from the US, Canada, South Africa and India to explore how constitutions can frustrate efforts to achieve women’s equality, and to imagine a new constitutionalism that places women as equal actors and participants in the constitutional project.

Dr Meghan Campbell is joined by four exceptional women in law – Professor Julie Suk from Fordham University; Dr. Aparna Chandra, an Associate Professor of Law at the National Law School of India University; Professor Jennifer Koshan, from the University of Calgary; and Judge Dhaya Pillay of the High Court in Pietermaritzburg and Durban to discuss women in the US, India, Canada and South Africa’s Constitution.

• The US Constitution with Julie Suk: LINK
• The Indian Constitution with Aparna Chandra: LINK
• The Canadian Constitution with Jennifer Koshan: LINK
• The South African Constitution with Dhaya Pillay: LINK

RightsUp is brought to you by the Oxford Human Rights Hub.
This series, Women in Constitutions, was produced in partnership with the British Academy and the University of Birmingham.
Executive produced and hosted by Megan Campbell.
Produced and edited by Sophie Smith.
Music for the series is by Rosemary Allman.

The Oxford Human Rights Hub (OxHRH) is currently inviting applications for two paid internships jointly organised with ASSEDEL (Strasbourg).

ASSEDEL (L’Association européenne pour la défense des droits et des libertés) is a non-profit organisation, established to disseminate, promote and defend human rights and fundamental freedoms in the spirit of the European Convention on Human Rights, both within the Council of Europe system and at the local, national and international levels. The organization guides and supports victims of human rights violations.

ASSEDEL works with local and international partners, submits reports to worldwide organizations, informs the public and publishes opinion articles about human rights violations and humanitarian issues such as immigration, women’s rights, discrimination, new technologies, environment, children’s rights, education, freedom of speech, rule of law and democracy.

Tasks include:

• Analysis of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and publication of articles on these judgments
• Creating partnerships with the civil society organisations working with the ECtHR
• Following the implementations of the judgments of the Court
• Preparing applications to the Court, in particular on Rule 39 cases
• Creating working relations with relevant structures of the Council of Europe
• Participating in relevant meetings at the Council of Europe and the ECtHR

Duration and starting dates

Duration: min. 3 months (a longer period can be negotiated)

Start dates: September 2024 or February 2025 (please indicate preference in your application letter)

Requirements

Essential

• A strong understanding of human rights law, in particular: knowledge about the human rights bodies in Strasbourg
• Strong editorial skills
• Good communication skills
• Strong research skills

Desirable

• Working knowledge of French
• Ability to use digital tools

Eligibility

These internships are open to current graduate students in (or recent graduates of) the Law Faculty in the University of Oxford.

Stipend

Each intern will receive a stipend of EUR 700 per month (which should be sufficient to cover living costs in Strasbourg).

How to Apply

Applicants are invited to send:

1. A cover letter (2 pages max) outlining how they qualify for the role, their availability and experience;
2. A CV (2 pages max) including their publications;
3. The names of 2 referees (including your supervisor), to oxfordhumanrightshub@law.ox.ac.uk by noon 9 August 2024.

Enquiries about the project are welcome at: oxfordhumanrightshub@law.ox.ac.uk .

In this podcast, we are exploring some of the key themes in Professor Sandra Fredman’s monograph, Discrimination Law – the new, third edition of which was published by Oxford University Press in December 2022. Sandra Fredman FBA KC is Professor of the Laws of the British Commonwealth and the USA at Oxford University, a fellow of Pembroke College Oxford, and Director of the Oxford Human Rights Hub. She is joined in conversation by Rosalie Abella, formerly a Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada; Jayna Kothari, a Senior Advocate in the Supreme Court of India; and Helen Mountfield KC, a barrister practising at Matrix Chambers in the UK and Principal of Mansfield College Oxford.

• Episode 1
• Episode 2
• Episode 3

The 2024 International Human Rights Law Summer School is a 26-day residential programme running from 2 to 27 July. It is offered by the Bonavero Institute for Human Rights and George Washington University Law School, based at the University of Oxford Faculty of Law. It offers participants the opportunity to follow an intensive programme of university-level study in international human rights law within the beautiful surroundings of New College, Oxford.

The programme offers courses focusing on the theory and practice of human rights law, including an introductory course in the fundamentals of international human rights law, an advanced course in human rights lawyering and electives that address important contemporary issues in the field. Courses are taught by an internationally recognised and distinguished faculty combining both academic and practical experience.

The applications are open until all places are filled or 12 noon (UK time) on 1 April 2024, whichever comes first.

Proposals should consist of three to five papers that address a topic of high current interest in the field of international, regional, comparative or national human rights law. Each submission should be in the range of 10,000 to 12,000 words. The guest editors for the Special Issue should, through the extension of invitations to authors, attempt to advance the goal of supporting diversity of authorship and perspectives, including diversity with regard to gender, race, disability, geography and otherwise underrepresented groups.

Proposals should be submitted via email to oxfordhumanrightshub@law.ox.ac.uk and should consist of the following:

1. A outline of 400-800 words explaining which topic the Special Issue addresses, why it is desirable to devote a Special Issue to this topic and how the papers form a coherent collection.
2. A proposed table of contents, listing the preliminary titles of all papers, an abstract (approx. 200 words) for each paper, and a bio (approx. 50 words) for each contributing author.

The deadline for submitting proposals is 12 April 2024. The editorial board endeavours to review all proposals by 15 April and all those that have submitted a proposal will be notified.

The University of Oxford Human Rights Hub Journal (U OxHRH J) is an open-access and peer-reviewed journal on human rights, dedicated to advancing the study of international and comparative human rights law. It publishes the highest levels of scholarship tackling the most pressing and challenging human rights issues and offers critical insights into current issues, debates and global trends.

This report is authored by Prof. Sandra Fredman (Professor Laws of the British Commonwealth and USA), Dr. Aradhana Cherupara Vadekkethil (Lord and Lady McNair Early Career Fellow in Law), Almas Shaikh (DPhil Candidate), Chelsea Wallis (DPhil Candidate), Justin Winchester (DPhil Candidate) at the University of Oxford.

Executive Summary

In the three jurisdictions surveyed (Australia, India, and South Africa), only South Africa has an express constitutional provision on academic freedom. This can be limited under the constitutional limitation clause, and exclusions for propaganda for war, incitement to violence and hate speech. The Indian constitution includes a general right to freedom of speech and expression, and a nonjusticiable ‘fundamental duty’ to develop, inter alia, the ‘spirit of enquiry.’ Although there have been some progressive judicial dicta on academic freedom, the National Education Policy 2020 does not refer to academic freedom. Australia has no national human rights statute, but two states and one territory have human rights acts protecting freedom of opinion, expression, and the right to receive and impart information. Universities are, however, required to maintain an environment upholding freedom of intellectual inquiry.

All three jurisdictions face challenges to academic freedom. In Australia, job insecurity increases pressure to self-censor. In South Africa, decolonising education and academic freedom can conflict. In India, challenges are most acute, including restrictions on institutional autonomy; political appointments; harassment of dissenters, and fear, repression, and self-censorship. Challenges in all these countries are exacerbated by a lack of a clear understanding of academic freedom and effective protection.

In all three jurisdictions, police presence on university campuses is lawful. Only Australia has a Model Code on Freedom of Speech and Academic Freedom, adopted by all
Australian universities. Nevertheless, many universities remain poorly aligned with the substantive protection of academic freedom. A handful of South African universities have academic freedom committees or codes of conduct.

Experience of surveillance varies widely. While in Australia and South Africa, there are strict regulatory guidelines and no noticeable threat to academic freedom; in India, there are many instances, most severely in Kashmir, and India scores low on campus integrity. This is exacerbated by legal provisions allowing surveillance and criminalization of texts alleged to insult religion or encourage separatist feelings.

Read the full submission here: Contribution on Academic Freedom_Oxford Human Rights Hub

Mirjana Spoljaric: From Ukraine to Syria – the challenges of humanitarian action in today’s intractable conflicts
Tuesday 28 November 2023, 5pm, de Jager Auditorium, Levine Building, Trinity College Oxford, Broad Street, OX1 3BH

Millions of people are facing humanitarian crises after years of warfare and instability. As the International Committee of the Red Cross marks its 160th year of humanitarian action, its President Mirjana Spoljaric describes the challenges posed by contemporary armed conflicts. Mandated through the Geneva Conventions, the Committee works to ensure humanitarian protection and assistance, taking action in response to emergencies as a neutral, impartial and independent organisation.

Please join us. There will be plenty of time for Q&A too.

The Levine Café is available for refreshment before and after the talk.

Tickets: £10 / £5 (students)

For more information and booking: www.trinity.ox.ac.uk/events-at-trinity

And while you are here, you will be interested to know about a discussion taking place in the New Year addressing the challenges facing NATO and it’s relevance on the organisations 75th Anniversary…

NATO 75th Anniversary: Time to retire of strengthen?
Wednesday 6 March 2024, 5pm, de Jager Auditorium, Levine Building, Trinity College Oxford, Broad Street, OX1 3BH

April 2024 marks the 75th Anniversary of NATO – the transatlantic alliance as prominent in the Cold War as in the Ukraine conflict today. Its changing political initiatives, military operations, and burgeoning membership from 12 to 31 countries (and counting!) reflect its enduring significance. Helping to explain NATO’s foundations and current role are security studies expert Professor Patrick Porter, scholar and military veteran of NATO missions Seth Johnston, and former senior Army commander and foreign policy expert Jonathan Shaw.

Tickets: £10 / £5 (students)

For more information and booking: www.trinity.ox.ac.uk/events-at-trinity

In addition to Trinity Talks, there are sensational concerts to enjoy as part of Trinity Recitals, and also Garden Tours for visitors to explore the famous gardens of Trinity to celebrate the return of Spring.