Universal human rights : origins and development /

James (Law School, Victoria Univ., Australia) has closely read primarily the published literature on the origins and development of internationally recognized human rights. Experts might initially believe there is nothing important left to say on this topic, but James proves otherwise. He argues persuasively that human rights as found in contemporary international law are indeed universal and that non-Western principles and persons had a great deal to do with their codification. He also persuasively shows that certain Western circles, including in the US, were strongly obstructionist in global human rights developments. He pays particular attention to the two core human rights covenants of 1966 that translated the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights into a more specific and presumably binding instrument, believing that too many analysts have focused on the declaration and not enough on the covenants. James takes issue with the nationalistic and libertarian approach to human rights favored by the Reagan and George W. Bush administrations. Early portions of the book present discussions of natural and positivistic law, while the later sections present keen political and legal insights. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate, research, and professional collections. D. P. Forsythe University of Nebraska