The Oxford Handbook of the UN Human Rights System

Human rights have been embedded in the work of the United Nations since its creation. The very purpose of the United Nations, set forth in the UN Charter, is to "reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights" and "encourag[e] respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms." Creating an efficient and effective machinery to do so, however, has been a persistent challenge. Not only are the human rights functions of the United Nations carried out by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and an array of bodies, agencies, experts, and mechanisms. But the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, which is supposed to drive the core human rights work of the United Nations, receives only some $200 million annually, less than four percent of the UN's regular budget.

The Oxford Handbook of the UN Human Rights System is the first comprehensive and compelling practical account of the human rights work carried out by the United Nations. It explains the various parts of the system, describes the functions, strengths, and weaknesses of each key body, and examines how each of the individual parts of this system and the broader system can be improved to deliver results for the peoples of the world. This book examines these questions over time, looking back at the historical engagement of each UN body with human rights, reviewing what each body is doing now and what it has achieved, and proposing practical and targeted suggestions for reform. Importantly, each chapter is authored by either current or former diplomats who have led each part of the system or by expert practitioners. Taken together, this Oxford Handbook provides a truly unique and first-ever view of the both entire system and its individual parts as they are today and how they can be harnessed going forward for greater impact.

Jared Genser is an international human rights lawyer and Managing Director of Perseus Strategies, a public interest law firm. He has taught courses about the UN Security Council as adjunct faculty at Stanford Law School, Georgetown University Law Center, University of Pennsylvania Law School, and University of Michigan Law School. He holds a BS from Cornell University, an MPP from Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, and a JD cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School.

Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein is President and Chief Executive Officer of the International Peace Institute and Professor of Practice at the University of Pennsylvania. Previously, he served as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights from 2014-2018 after a long career as a Jordanian diplomat, including as his country's Permanent Representative to the UN (2000-2007 and 2010-2014) and Ambassador to the United States (2007-2010). He received his PhD from Cambridge University.