Dignity in International Human Rights Law

International human rights law has at its core a concept that is so paradoxical, illogical and impractical that it renders itself incapable of accepted definition. It is a concept that sits still and silent in human rights legislation and screams at the top of its voice in human rights litigation. Its unwavering presence in the post-Nazism world not only confirms its importance in everything we do and say as human rights lawyers but it also calls into question whether it has indeed passed its use-by-date and fallen into the dark depths of ineptitude. This begs the question: #xE2;#xAC;SDoes the concept of dignity have any meaning in international human rights law?#xE2;#xAC; This study is a critical examination of the role that dignity plays in international human rights law. Sections include: defining dignity; the conceptual development of dignity; dignity in international human rights texts; dignity in judicial discourse; and dignity in legal process.