A Practitioners' Guide on Human Rights and Countering Corruption

Completed in December 2021

Corruption has been identified throughout the United Nations (UN) system as one of the main challenges to sustainable development and the realization of human rights.

The UN Human Rights Council (HRC) recognized that ‘transparent, responsible, accountable, open and participatory government, responsive to the needs and aspirations of the people, is the foundation on which good governance rests, and that such a foundation is one of the indispensable conditions for the full realization of human rights’. Additionally, as the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) finds, a number of international documents signed under the auspices of both the UN and regional organizations have acknowledged the negative effects of corruption on the protection of human rights and on development.

This research project, conducted in partnership with OHCHR and the Centre for Civil and Political Rights, aimed at clarifying the conceptual relationship between human rights, good governance and anticorruption, demonstrating the negative impact of corruption on human rights, and providing guidance for effectively using the UN human rights system in anti-corruption efforts.

NEWS

Anti-corruption poster News

A New Guide Outlines the Potential of UN Human Rights Mechanisms in Countering Corruption

15 October 2019

Published by the Geneva Academy and the Centre for Civil and Political Rights, this guide explores how a human rights-based approach can be used to complement and strengthen anti-corruption efforts.

Read more >

OUTPUT

A Practitioners’ Guide on Human Rights and Countering Corruption

Published by the Geneva Academy and the Centre for Civil and Political Rights (CCPR Centre),  the Practitioners’ Guide on Human Rights and Countering Corruption intends to serve as a user-friendly practitioners’ manual and strategic advocacy tool to explore how a human rights-based approach, with its focus on the victims of corruption and state responsibility, can be used to complement and strengthen anti-corruption efforts.

To this end, it focuses primarily on how UN human rights mechanisms can be better used to report on corruption issues, and it provides guidance as well as practical recommendations on effectively integrating human rights into anti-corruption efforts.

This Guide is the outcome of research, several conferences and consultations carried out in partnership with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and is based on a draft initiated by OHCHR. The Guide also received several inputs from legal and corruption experts, academics, NGO representatives and OHCHR staff. Its production has been possible thanks to the continued support by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.

Publications

Anti-corruption poster

Practitioners’ Guide on Human Rights and Countering Corruption

October 2019

Geneva Academy and CCPR Centre

Download >

Past Events

Human rights, gender and corruption: linkages, good practices, potential and limitations

18 December 2019, 13:00-14:00

Read more >

Launch of the Practitioners' Guide on Human Rights and Countering Corruption

17 September 2019, 12:00-13:00

Read more >

MORE ON THIS THEMATIC AREA

View of participants in the training course on UN human rights system News

Geneva Human Rights Platform Expands Training Hub with New Courses in 2023

18 September 2023

The GHRP introduced two innovative courses to enhance its Training Hub offerings, which delved into the realm of international human rights standards and system and into business and human rights.

Read more

New York City Manhattan with view of Un Headquarters Event

2023 Annual Conference: Connecting Geneva and New York for Enhanced Human Rights Protection

21-24 October 2023

The Annual Conference of the Geneva Human Rights Platform will take place in New York to explore the links between Geneva and New York, the relevance of Geneva's outputs in New York debates, and the implications for human rights.

Read more

Closeup of the Meta sign at the entrance to the Meta Platforms headquarters in Menlo Park, California. Event

A New Human Rights Tribunal in Town? The Oversight Board and the Future of Online Freedom of Expression

18 October 2023, 18:00-19:30

This Human Rights Conversation will explore the extent to which an independent mechanism such as the Meta Oversight Board is akin to a human rights tribunal and the risks that could be linked to delegating such powers to a private authority.

Read more

Greece, ylakio, pre-removal center. Short Course

Introduction to International Human Rights Law

5 October - 16 November 2023

This online short course will provide participants with an introduction to substantive human rights law.

Read more

A general view of participants during of the 33nd ordinary session of the Human Rights Council. Training

The Universal Periodic Review and the UN Human Rights System: Raising the Bar on Accountability

13-17 November 2023

This training course will explore the origin and evolution of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and its functioning in Geneva and will focus on the nature of implementation of the UPR recommendations at the national level.

Read more

Neutrotechology Project

Neurotechnology and Human Rights

Started in August 2023

This project addresses the human rights implications stemming from the development of neurotechnology for commercial, non-therapeutic ends, and is based on a partnership between the Geneva Academy, the Geneva University Neurocentre and the UN Human Rights Council Advisory Committee. 

Read more

A session of the UN Human Rights Council Project

IHL Expert Pool

Started in January 2022

The IHL-EP works to strengthen the capacity of human rights mechanisms to incorporate IHL into their work in an efficacious and comprehensive manner. By so doing, it aims to address the normative and practical challenges that human rights bodies encounter when dealing with cases in which IHL applies.

Read more

Cover page of the Working Paper Publication

Exploring Counterterrorism Effectiveness and Human Rights Law

published on September 2023

Gloria Gaggioli, Michael Moncrieff , Ilya Sobol

Read more