Limits of Human Rights and Liberal Democracy

- Tórshavn - August 19-23, 2024

An international Summer seminar/course will be held in Tórshavn at the University of the Faroe Islands, August 19-23 2024.

Programme: The main purpose of the seminar is to introduce the students to a selection of the criticisms that have been directed at the structures and practices of human rights institutions such as the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and at current conceptions and the implementation of liberal democracy in polities that purport to be based upon its principles.

As a part of this study, students will be introduced to a selection of the literature that advances these criticisms. There is a large critical literature in both of these areas that has been buried under a mountain of literature of a more enthusiastic kind. There is no implication that the seminar should favor the criticisms, only that the selected criticisms, and the reasoning behind them, should be explored rather than ignored.

Classes are scheduled for five days, 9-12 and 13-16 from 19 to 23 of August 2024, the last day will include, (within the same time frame) the written exam mentioned below.

The seminar (counting for 5 ECTS) will conclude with a two-hour examination consisting of 25 short-answer questions, five of which will be contributed from each teacher.

Students opting for the 7,5 ECTS or the 10 ECTS variants of the course will in addition have to compose a directed essay of approximately 8 and 12 pages, respectively, on a pre-approved topic pertaining to a book-length work chosen from a list of such works provided by the five teachers of the seminar, one of whom will serve as the director for each student and will approve of the topic of the essay.

Enrolment: Application deadline is Thursday 20th of June, at 12 o’clock. Maximum number of participants is 30.

Programme Leader: Bárður Larsen, Associate Professor in Law

Contact: bardurl@setur.fo 

Readings: The reading materials will be made available on the Moodle network shortly after application deadline.