Is legal pluralism incompatible with the human rights An analysis of Essay

Is legal pluralism incompatible with the human rights An analysis of the case law of the European Court of Human Rights in relation to Turkey - Essay Example What constitutes an inalienable right on the part of one ethnic group might for example, be repugnant in the context of moral standards that are held to be the ideal by another cultural group. Nowhere is this more evident that Islam, where religious precepts based on Sharia may in some instances, contravene the principles underlying human rights and liberty, as conceived in the Western world. The decision of the European Court of justice in the case of Welfare Party v Turkey1 appears to support the conclusion that the protection of human rights may in some instances, take precedence over the preservation of religious and cultural diversity. The question that rises in this context is whether universal human rights are essentially incompatible with legal pluralism? The concept of universal human rights raises the issue of a controversy in the relationship between (a) institutionalization of religion in the State through religious beliefs or practices versus human rights norms.2 This st udy will examine whether universal human rights could be compatible with maintenance of religious and cultural diversity. Those advocating universality claim that international human rights â€Å"are and must be the same everywhere†, just like the rights to equal protection, physical security, rights to freedom of speech, expression and religion and the right to a fair trial3. As pointed out by Donnelly, human rights on a world wide basis are irrevocably tied to claims of universality4. Human rights, if taken literally, are understood to be the rights one has simply because one is human. On this basis, rights accruing to every individual must of necessity be equal rights, because everyone is human, and these rights would be inalienable, because they are associated with the human state. On this basis, basic human rights can be seen to be