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Course

Int'l Law, Human Rights & Cultural Heritage - JURD7367

Faculty: Faculty of Law

School: Faculty of Law

Course Outline: See below

Campus: Sydney

Career: Postgraduate

Units of Credit: 6

EFTSL: 0.12500 (more info)

Indicative Contact Hours per Week: 2

Enrolment Requirements:

Pre-requisite: 36 UOC of JURD courses for students enrolled prior to 2013. For students enrolled after 2013, pre-requisite: 72 UOC of JURD courses.

Excluded: LAWS8067

CSS Contribution Charge: 3 (more info)

Tuition Fee: See Tuition Fee Schedule

Further Information: See Class Timetable

View course information for previous years.

Description

This course examines the relationships between international law, heritage and identity. It critically examines intersections of domestic and international law, the international/global arena, and the politics of cultural formation and identity. What will be stressed is that these relationships are constitutive and highly politicized. An underlying theme will be that law does not operate in a contextual vacuum, and cultural meanings and values play a significant role in shaping the positive and negative dimensions of international law and its uses as a vocabulary of emancipation as it impacts individuals and communities in localized settings. At the same time, how does culture, heritage and cultural identity get defined in the context of international law, particularly in connection to the production, mobilization and implementation of regimes for the protection and safeguarding of heritage, and their impact on issues such as human rights and development practices? Drawing on a range of theoretical perspectives and recent scholarship in cultural studies, anthropology and sociology, the class will engage in contemporary debates informing the cultural dimensions of the international across different spaces of contestation.


Recommended Prior Knowledge

None specified

Course Objectives

This course examines the relationships between international law, heritage and identity. It critically examines intersections of domestic and international law, the international/global arena, and the politics of cultural formation and identity. What will be stressed is that these relationships are constitutive and highly politicized. An underlying theme will be that law does not operate in a contextual vacuum, and cultural meanings and values play a significant role in shaping the positive and negative dimensions of international law and its uses as a vocabulary of emancipation as it impacts individuals and communities in localized settings. At the same time, how does culture, heritage and cultural identity get defined in the context of international law, particularly in connection to the production, mobilization and implementation of regimes for the protection and safeguarding of heritage, and their impact on issues such as human rights and development practices? Drawing on a range of theoretical perspectives and recent scholarship in cultural studies, anthropology and sociology, the class will engage in contemporary debates informing the cultural dimensions of the international across different spaces of contestation.

Main Topics

  • International heritage law. How is heritage safeguarded in international law? What are the bright and dark sides of those arrangements?
  • How does international law construct and account for cultural identity and cultural difference?
  • How does cultural heritage relate to human rights? And other areas of (international) law?
  • What is the relationship between international heritage law, human rights and development?

Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of this course, students should be able to:
  1. Understand the issues involved in the regulation of heritage affairs beyond a single State
  2. Have a sound knowledge of the main legal concepts and principles of international law and human rights law
  3. Understand the structure of the heritage legal system internationally and its relationship to other disciplines also concerned with heritage protection and safeguarding, particularly human rights
  4. Understand the historical links between cultural constructions of others and practices of law and politics in domestic and international jurisdictions, particularly by the uses of heritage as vehicles for culture, identity and otherness
  5. Have the capacity to articulate his/her knowledge and understanding in oral and written presentations
  6. Integrate recent scholarship in the area of cultural studies within the existing frameworks of international law

Assessment

Research Essay – 6,000 words (60%)
Class Participation (20%)
Class Presentation (20%)

Course Texts

A full up-to date reading list will be provided in the detailed course outline closer to course commencement.

Recommended
Refer to the Course Outline provided by the lecturer prior to the start of the relevant semester.

Resources

Refer to the Course Outline provided by the lecturer prior to the start of the relevant semester.
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Study Levels

Undergraduate Study Postgraudate Study Postgraduate Research Study Non-Award Study

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