I Book Review: A Journey to Some Unexplored Sources of Human Rights
| Author | Theo van Boven |
| Date | 01 December 2012 |
| Published date | 01 December 2012 |
| DOI | 10.1177/016934411203000411 |
| Subject Matter | Part D: DocumentationI Book Review |
Netherlands Q uarterly of Human R ights, Vol. 30/4, 518–529, 2012.
518 © Netherlands I nstitute of Human Rig hts (SIM), Printed in the Net herlands.
PART D: DOCUMENTATION
I BOOK REVIEW
Peter Leuprecht, Reason, Justice and Dignity; A Journey to Some Unexplored
Sources of Human Rights, Leiden-Boston, Martinus Nijho Publishers, 2012, 105
p., ISBN 9789004220 430
is is a remarkable book, modest in size but rich in scope and contents. e
author, Peter Leuprecht, served for many years as the Director of Human Rights
of the Council of Europe and therea er as the Deputy Secretary-General of this
Organisation. He is known a s a skilful policy-maker and a commit ted human rights
advocate who, a er he le t he Council of Europe, went into academia in Canada. He
has also demonstrated h is vision and his commitment as the Speci al Representative of
the United Nations Secretary-General for Human Rights in Cambodia. As a scholar
and practitioner Peter Leuprecht is highly awa re of present-day human rights policies
and developments. is makes him an appealing companion to guide the interested
read er on wh at he pr oposes is ‘a jo urney to some unex plored s ource s of hu man ri ghts’.
e journey described in this book is one of leading and learning, as it stretches
over periods of time, cult ures and civilizations and cons titutes a challenge to current
human rights approaches. It is a journey of discoveries into the human quest for a
public and social order that predates by far the well-known early declarations and
statements about human rights proclaimed in the late 18th century. It is a journey to
uncover notions and values that can be regarded as belonging to a common moral
heritage of humankind, across di erent cultures and civilizations, and underlying
the basic assumptions enshrined in present-day universal human rights documents.
Peter Leuprecht has chosen to organize his journey along three successive stages:
encompassing ancient China with a focus on the great teachers Confucius and
Mencius, followed by the golden age of Islam setting fort h three outstanding thi nkers
Avicenna (Ibn Sina), Averroes (Ibn Rushd) and Ibn Khaldun, and he concludes the
journey by drawing attention to what he calls two courageous ‘dissidents’ in 16th
century Spain : Bartolomé de Las Casas and Francisc o de Vitoria.
In the introduction (pp 1–4), the author gives a brief account of the motives w hich
led him to explore the underlyi ng sources of human rights and to publish this book.
He mentions in this respect his long-sta nding active commitment to universal hu man
rights, not only in a professional manner but also as a personal engagement, and in
line with his deep conviction of the urgent need for cultural dialogue. He situates
his undertaking against the background of the Charter of the United Nations and
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