INTRODUCTION

Since the general framework of international human rights law has been built in the 1960s to the 1980s, a new generation of questions has arisen, which focuses more on the effectiveness of that framework and, particularly, on its impact at national level. The role of national authorities is vital in this respect. International human rights can only be effective on the ground, where they really matter, if national courts, parliaments, and governments rely on them, and if civil society mobilizes in order to hold authorities accountable on that basis (see, e.g. D. Beyleveld, ‘The Concept of a Human Right and Incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights', (1995) Public Law, 577; C. Heyns and F. Viljoen, The Impact of the United Nations Human Rights Treaties on the Domestic Level (The Hague: Kluwer Law International, 2002); O. Schachter, ‘The Obligation to Implement the Covenant in Domestic Law’ in L. Henkin (ed.), The International Bill of Rights. The Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (New York: Columbia University Press, 1981), p. 311; on the role of national courts in applying international human rights, see B. Conforti and F. Francioni (eds.), Enforcing International Human Rights in Domestic Courts (The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, 1997)).

Pressure from below is especially important since neither foreign governments, nor international actors, can substitute for the role of local actors.