Teaching & Academics Social Science Political Science

Introduction to Human Rights

General introduction to international human rights, as well as an overview of some specific topics in this field.
Free tutorial
Rating: 4.7 out of 5 (1,974 ratings)
29,635 students
Created by José Zalaquett, Juan Francisco Lobo
Enroll now
Introduction to Human Rights
Free tutorial
Rating: 4.7 out of 5 (1,974 ratings)
29,636 students
Buy now
By the end of this course, you should be able to understand basic notions of public ethics and the law, as well as the concept and importance of human rights throughout history and in the current international context. You should also be able to identify and reflex on some specific issues in the human rights agenda, such as the rights of women, of the child, of indigenous peoples; the environment; terrorism and armed conflict; and sexual minorities, among others

Requirements

  • You don't need any background or experience in the area to take the course
  • This is not a legal course, it has some legal concepts, but they are explained in the lessons. Also, for each video we provide a glossary which you may download.
  • The difficulty is similar to an introductory course of 1st year college

Description

        This course is meant to be a general introduction to international human rights, as well as an overview of some specific topics in this field. 

                              The first half of the course consists in: An introduction to basic notions of public ethics, the history of Human Rights, international instruments, categories of rights, Human Rights violations, protection and responsibility thereof. 

                            The second part of the course deals with current issues in the human rights agenda such as: Rights of women, rights of the child, rights of indigenous peoples, armed conflicts and terrorism, the environment, transitional justice, sexual minorities. 

      The course consists of 33 lessons, each one lasting about 10 minutes. There's no time limit to complete it. We estimate that completing the course (watch all classes and answer all quizzes) takes about 7 hours in total. 

                  We have experts from all around the world as visiting professors for some classes.

Since December 31, 2018, we will NOT deliver paid virtual certificates from the Universidad Diego Portales, even if it could say the opposite in the first and last video of the course. We apologize for the inconvenience this may cause.

Who this course is for:

  • Everyone interested in issues related to Human Rights (historical evolution of human rights, main legal documents, rights of women, the rights of children, indigenous rights, armed conflicts, terrorism, the environment, etc.)
  • You don't need any background or experience in the area to take the course

Course content

22 sections • 33 lectures • 5h 47m total length
  • Notions of Public Ethics I
    09:35
  • Notions of Public Ethics I
    2 questions
  • Notions of Public Ethics II
    07:46
  • Notions of Public Ethics II
    2 questions
  • Democracy, Citizenry, International Order and International Law
    08:54
  • Democracy, Citizenry, International Order and International Law
    2 questions

Instructors

José Zalaquett
Lawyer, Human Rights Professor
José Zalaquett
  • 4.5 Instructor Rating
  • 21,245 Reviews
  • 141,243 Students
  • 10 Courses

Head of the MOOC Chile Project. Lawyer, Universidad de Chile. Doctor Honoris Causa, by the Universities of Notre Dame and City University of New York. Professor, International Human Rights and International Law and the Use of Force, Universidad de Chile Law School. Former professor, Ethics and Government, Master's Program on Public Policy, Universidad de Chile. Visiting Professor, Harvard University, Toronto University, New York University, Maryland University, Notre Dame University and Interamerican Institute for Human Rights. Co-founder and former co-director, Human Rights Center, Universidad de Chile Law School (2002-2011). Commissioner, International Commission of Jurist.

Director, Legal Department of the Peace Cooperation Committee for Chile (1973-1976). Former President, Amnesty International Executive Committee (1979-1982). Commissioner, Chilean Truth and Reconciliation Commission (1990-1991). Former Commissioner and President, Interamerican Commission on Human Rights (2003-2004).

Juan Francisco Lobo
  • 4.5 Instructor Rating
  • 21,245 Reviews
  • 141,242 Students
  • 10 Courses

Lawyer, Universidad de Chile. Invited Professor, International Criminal Jurisdiction, University of Chile. Invited Professor, Public International Law and International Criminal Law, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez. Invited Professor, Legal Theory, Universidad Diego Portales.  Former academyc assistant, International Human Rights and International Law and the Use of Force, Universidad de Chile Law School.  

Abogado de la Universidad de Chile. Profesor Invitado, Jurisdicción Penal Internacional, Universidad de Chile. Profesor Invitado, Derecho Internacional Público y Derecho Penal Internacional, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez. Profesor Invitado, Teoría del Derecho, Universidad Diego Portales. Ex ayudante, Derecho Internacional de los Derechos Humanos y Derecho Internacional y Uso de la Fuerza, Facultad de Derecho, Universidad de Chile.