On April 22, 2021, a guest lecture in English by Rustam Kypshakbayev, human rights expert, UNAIDS Regional Coordinator for Central Asia, Global Action Against Stigma and Discrimination, MSc Human Rights (London School of Economics and Political Science) was held on the topic «History of Human Rights after Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948-2021».
As part of the lecture, the following issues were considered:
● XXth century and the birth of international human rights law
● UDHR 1948: content and context
● Human Rights from 1948 to 1975: Regional Human Rights Systems, International Covenants, Human Rights Treaties
● Helsinki Final Act 1975
● Human rights from 1991 to 2001
● 2001-2020: Democratic backsliding, Economic Crisis and New Progressivism
● Human rights during a pandemic
Revealing the issue of the birth of international human rights law, the speaker focused on such historical events during which the development of international human rights law took place:
1914-1918 - World War I: Treaty of Versailles, attempted Kaiser tribunal, “crimes against humanity”, League of Nations
1918-1946 - League of Nations: mandates, the right to self-determination, minority rights
1939-1945 - World War II: genocide, Holocaust, mass atrocities.
The audience was particularly interested in the topic of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (context, content). The regional systems for the protection of human rights were also considered, undoubtedly, special attention was drawn to the disclosure of the issue of observance of human rights during the COVID-19 pandemic (restrictions on movement, freedom of speech and freedom of assembly). At the end of the lecture, students asked questions of interest.
