No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

LL.M. (Human Rights Law) / The idea of “development” being a legitimate universal human entitlement is not a new phenomenon. The emergence of this concept can be traced back to a number of universal norms which emerged from the United Nations (UN) legal framework since its creation in 1945.These norms include principles such as: greater democracy and representation in international relations; the economic complementarities of independent States; individuals as beneficiaries of social, economic and political development; respect for human rights; and the interrelationship between human rights and development.1 These principles provided the background against which the first UN working group on the Right to Development started elaborating a legal framework aiming at providing a binding solution to the conflict between industrialized States and developing States concerning the distribution of the world’s resources in 1970. At that time, the atmosphere at the UN Commission on Human Rights was highly charged with ideological positioning. Socialist countries pressed for peace and disarmament; developing States for development and an end to apartheid; Western industrialized States for establishing damage control machinery to scrutinize violations of civil and political rights.2 In 1977, the Commission on Human Rights submitted to the U.N Secretary General its first proposal which considered the suggestion of the UN Working group on the Right to Development. The proposal suggested that the “universal entitlement to development” was a prerogative of States on behalf of their populations.3 This proposal was rejected in 1979 by the conservative North American, European members of the U.N, and other committee members.

Thesis (L.L.M. (Faculty of Law))--University of the Western Cape, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 149-166)

This thesis examines the process of approximating EC law that the Czech Republic has undertaken both under the Europe Agreement and in order to fulfill one of the conditions for membership in the European Union. The thesis aims to determine whether the transposition of EC legislation has been undertaken with a view to effective implementation of the acquis communautaire and to assess what implications this process will have for the Czech Republic. To this end, three areas of law which are subject to approximation are examined, namely competition law, environmental law and company law. Accordingly, Chapter I provides a general overview of the process of approximation and the challenges it poses for the Czech Republic. The process of approximation in the field of competition law is examined in Chapter II, followed by environmental law in Chapter III. The area of company law is addressed in Chapter IV. Finally, Chapter V concludes with an analysis of the findings of the previous chapters with a discussion of the implications of approximation for the legal order of the Czech Republic.

No description available.

The WTO is one piece in a complex network of international, regional and domestic legal systems and regulatory frameworks. The influences on the development of WTO law extend far beyond its own Members and institutions: domestic legal instruments have provided the inspiration for numerous WTO obligations while the rights and obligations under the covered agreements are frequently incorporated into the legal systems of the Membership. The WTO is home to numerous committees and working groups that also engage with other international bodies and their domestic counterparts. Transnational actors seek to take advantage of these networks, encouraging WTO law to develop in their favour. The interactions involved, however, are highly complex and unpredictable. By drawing on different models of causal explanation, it is possible to offer a perspective on the development of WTO law that accepts its role as part of a larger globalized process. Three different causal influences are identified: instrumental, systemic and constitutive. Together, they offer a prism through which to examine the development of WTO law as it responds to the behaviour of transnational actors, bridging gaps between international relations and law and, it is hoped, offering a convincing explanatory rationale for the way in which WTO law develops.

LL.M. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Geographical indications assumed prominence in terms of juridical development and economic importance with their inclusion in the TRIPS Agreement. Due to their nexus with place of origin, the importance of agricultural GIs has increased manifold. Pakistan has a strong agriculture-based economy. It has many valuable GIs, like Basmati rice, with significant trade worth billions of dollars. Nevertheless, not a single GI has been registered in Pakistan due to factors such as the inadequacies in the present system of protection of GIs in Pakistan, institutional weaknesses and the absence of an active role of the state. This thesis argues that a sui generis law for the regulation of agricultural GIs will facilitate better protection of GIs and economic development in Pakistan provided that it is also accompanied by the necessary institutional reforms. Pakistan is making efforts to enact a separate GI law for better protection of its GIs. However, there are administrative hurdles and institutional incapacities in Pakistan which need to be reformed. Examples have been taken from the sui generis laws of the EU and India in the discussions on legislative and institutional reforms in Pakistan. The EU and Indian sui generis laws have shown better protection of their GIs resulting in the registration of hundreds of their GIs and economic development. The situation in neighbouring India was the same as is currently found in Pakistan until 2003 when it introduced its sui generis law; it has now registered hundreds of GIs. Besides literature reviews, interviews have been conducted with public and private sector stakeholders to gain an insight into the weaknesses and strengths of the system of protection of GIs in Pakistan, as well as potential reforms. Based on the findings, a sui generis law and institutional reforms for better protection of agricultural GIs and economic development in Pakistan are proposed.