Statu Quo of the Right to Development in Theory and Practice. Value unto Norm

Seminar paper from the year 2014 in the subject Law - European and International Law, Intellectual Properties, grade: 2,3, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel (Walther- Schücking- Institute für Internationales Recht), course: Entwicklungsvِlkerrecht, language: English, abstract: This paper offers an evaluation of the legal status of the right to development (RTD). It looks at its material content, practical implementation as well as theoretical basis of validity. (1) The RTD constitutes an ideal of balanced, purposeful development whose material essence can be summarized as follows: The right to development is a human right by virtue of which every human person and all peoples are entitled to participate in and to enjoy economic, social, cultural and political development. Development is an empowering process in which all human rights and fundamental freedoms have to be respected and can be fully realized. States have the primary responsibility for the creation of national and international conditions favorable to the realization of the right to development and the duty to co-operate with each other to this end. (2) The RTD is hence a fusion of a broad set of single values, transmuted into the complex vision of a common, human rights based development standard concerning both process and result. Taking for granted the idea of inalienable human dignity, the moral value of the RTD, concerning the essential connection of human rights and development, seems beyond question. (3) The DRD translates a moral value into a legal norm. First and foremost the RTD claims the realization of an overall empowering societal progress as an inalienable privilege for all human beings and demands the solidary assistance of all relevant actors to this end.