Third Generation Rights: What Islamic Law Can Teach the International Human Rights Movement

Abstract

Debate over the universality of human rights has typically focused on the\nextent to which international human rights law differs from local cultural practices\nand has generally sought to resolve these differences in favor of the international\nparadigm. Less attention, however, has been given to arguments that the\ninternational human rights paradigm may have something to learn from non-\nWestern legal systems. This Article focuses on one such area: the\nconceptualization of individual duties to the community. In conventional human\nrights law, rights are explicit, while corresponding duties are often implicit,\ncontroversial, and poorly theorized. In contrast, the Islamic legal tradition offers a\nsophisticated paradigm of common ideals grounded in individual duties. The\nArticle argues that a reconciliation of the rights-based and duties-based paradigms\nis both possible and necessary to render justiciable third generation "solidarity"\nrights, such as the right to development, the right to a healthy environment, and\nthe right to peace.