Book Review: Social Human Rights of Europe
| DOI | 10.1177/138826271101300208 |
| Author | Asbjørn Eide |
| Published date | 01 June 2011 |
| Date | 01 June 2011 |
| Subject Matter | Book Review |
Book Reviews
290 Intersentia
REFERENCES
L G, J. (2007), e Other Invisible Hand: Delivering Public Services through
Choice and Competition, Prince ton, NJ, Princeton University Press.
G, R. E. (2008), ‘Book Review of J. Le Grand “ e Other Invisible Hand:
Delivering Public Services through Choice and C ompetition”’, Journal of Public
Policy, 28(2), 257–258.
Judith Niehues
SOCLIFE
University of Cologne and IZA
Matti Mik kola Social Human Rights of Europe, Helsinki, Karelac tio, 2010, 694 pp.,
ISBN 978–952–92–8040–7
is is, to my knowledge, the most comprehensive and updated publication on the
common European socia l human rights set out in European treaties. e main
source of these rights is the European Social Charter, which must be seen against the
background of the United Nations Covenant on Economic, Socia l and Cultural R ights
and various ILO conventions, but which must a lso be understood in the wider context
of other human rights, such a s the UN Covenant on Civil and Political R ights and the
European Convention on Human Rig hts and Fundamental Freedoms (ECH R). As
pointed out by the author, all human rights are bui lt on common principles. ere is,
however, much more public awareness of civil and political r ights, including those set
out in the ECHR, in spite of the fact t he civil and political rights constitute only one
half of the rights in t he contemporary normative system of human r ights. is book
by Matti Mikkol a is therefore very much welcomed as a refreshing contribution to the
advancement of the knowledge of the other ha lf of human rights.
e book will be of great use, not only for human rights scholars, teachers and
students, but more generally for everyone concerned w ith social human r ights – within
public administ ration of the European States, trade unions, employers’ associations,
and civil society organisations. C ompared to earlier important works on European
social rights – such as t hose of David Harris – this book deepens the analysis a nd
provides a comprehensive and updated presentation. It takes into account fu lly the
changes that have been brought about by the inclusion of the so-called ‘countries of
transition’ (the Eastern European countries, includi ng the Russian Federation and
other states emerging out of the dissolution of the Soviet Union). It also takes into
account the changes that have ta ken place in Western Europe regarding so cial rights,
including the impact of neoliberal policies during recent decades. e book pursues
the analysis of soci al development, all the way up to the impact of the recent nancia l
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