GOVT2336 - Gender and Human Rights

Semester 1, 2012  |  Credit Points: 6

Coordinator: Megan Mackenzie
Phone: +61 2 9036 9529 (on maternity leave till October 2013)
Email: megan.mackenzie@sydney.edu.au

Description

This unit offers a gender perspective on the central activists, institutions and issues involved in advancing international human rights norms. It critically analyzes the role of state and international political institutions in shaping human rights, and focuses particularly on the ways in which women's rights have tended to be ignored in this process. Students will consider the role of transnational feminist actors in challenging mainstream conceptions of human rights and in shaping and enforcing international human rights instruments including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the International Criminal Court. Attention will be given to the experiences of women in western and non-western countries in accessing rights and assess the role that religion and culture play in this process. The gender dimensions of specific rights issues relating to war and conflict, refugee status and trafficking will also be discussed.

Assessments

1x2hr exam (40%), 1x2500wd essay (50%) and tutorial participation (10%)

Textbooks

to be advised

Classes

1x2-hr lecture/week, 1x1-hr tutorial/week commencing week 2

Prerequisites

12 junior credit points in Government

Prohibitions

GOVT2306

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