The international protection of human rights in post-war Kosovo

Abstract

The application and incorporation of international instruments for the protection of human rights into national legislation is an advancement and a step forward in the creation of the conditions and favorable environment for ensuring respect, promotion and protection of the human rights according to the international standards set in the treaties. This thesis contributes to the identification of the consequences of the lack of access to international mechanisms for the protection of human rights, despite the inclusion of international instruments and the unilateral will to apply them in national legislation. Throughout this paper and by taking Kosovo as a case study through an evaluation will be showed that the lack of accountability has taken place during the UN Administration in Kosovo, due to the lack of international mechanisms to address human rights violations through individual complaints. After identifying the presence of impunity as a result of non-accountability, this research paper explores the effectiveness of new established national mechanisms in post-independent Kosovo in attempting to provide human rights protection and the challenges for ensuring such protection will be assessed. Kosovo’s membership in the Council of Europe and its mechanisms, in particular its inclusion under the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights and its benefits in improving the situation of human rights protection will be illustrated, leading to the recommendation of the inclusion of the latter in this Human Rights Organization.