IPSA RESEARCH COMMITTEE 26 ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Interim Conference 2026 · Online
Sixty Years of the International Covenants on Human Rights
Civil and Political Rights · Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966–2026)
Online International Conference
Human Rights Day
16 December 2026
CALL FOR PAPERS
On 16 December 1966 the United Nations General Assembly adopted the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) by resolution 2200 A (XXI). Together with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, they form the International Bill of Human Rights. Their 60th anniversary is a good reason to reflect on what the Covenants have achieved, what remains unfulfilled, and how they should respond to the challenges of our time.
The decision to adopt two separate treaties reflected deep disagreements about the nature of rights. Civil and political rights were seen as immediately enforceable; economic, social and cultural rights, as goals to be realised progressively. United Nations bodies have long defended the universality, indivisibility and interdependence of all human rights, yet these characteristics are still contested in theory and unevenly honoured in practice.
Regarding civil rights, technology raises new problems for freedom of expression, privacy and equality. Some argue that old concepts must be partly redefined, while others call for entirely new approaches. Concerning political rights, citizens’ disaffection with politics is growing, democratic institutions are under strain, and there is a demand for more deliberation, participation and accountability. Political rights must be understood within the framework of a democracy of quality.
With regard to economic and social rights, their entitlement and full enforcement remain controversial: should they be universal or targeted at those in need, how far are they justiciable, and what is the relationship between liberal rights and social rights? In relation to cultural rights, the position of minorities differs across societies but is often framed as a struggle against assimilation, while the recognition of differentiated identities may face criticism from the standpoint of autonomy or gender equality.
The Interim Conference of the IPSA Research Committee 26 on Human Rights invites scholars from political science, law, philosophy, sociology, international relations and related disciplines, as well as practitioners, to discuss these questions. Theoretical, doctrinal, empirical and comparative contributions are equally welcome, as are proposals from early-career researchers and doctoral students.
PANELS
The conference will be organised in six panels. Each panel will have a Chair and a Discussant.
| Panel 1 | Sixty years of the Covenants: history, legacy and indivisibilityThe drafting history and the decision to split the Universal Declaration into two treaties; the Cold War divide between “liberty” and “equality” rights; the doctrine of universality, indivisibility and interdependence from Tehran (1968) and Vienna (1993) to today; and whether the Covenants still provide a shared normative language in a fragmented international order. |
| Panel 2 | Civil rights in the digital ageFreedom of expression, hate speech and disinformation; privacy, data protection and surveillance; artificial intelligence and algorithmic decision-making; freedom of thought, conscience and religion; equality and non-discrimination under the ICCPR and the case law of the Human Rights Committee. |
| Panel 3 | Political rights and the quality of democracyArticle 25 ICCPR and the right to take part in public affairs; democratic backsliding and emergency powers; deliberation, participation and the accountability of political leaders; elections and the digital public sphere; the political rights of migrants and other non-citizens. |
| Panel 4 | Economic and social rights: from aspiration to enforcementProgressive realisation, minimum core obligations and maximum available resources; justiciability and the Optional Protocol to the ICESCR; health, housing, education, work and social security; austerity, poverty and inequality; universal entitlement versus targeting those in need; the costs of rights. |
| Panel 5 | Cultural rights, minorities and identityArticle 27 ICCPR and Article 15 ICESCR; minorities, Indigenous peoples and the right to take part in cultural life; recognition, assimilation and the limits of accommodation; tensions between group rights, individual autonomy and gender equality; language, religion and cultural heritage. |
| Panel 6 | Monitoring, compliance and the future of the human rights treaty systemThe Human Rights Committee and the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; individual communications, state reporting and treaty body reform; regional systems and domestic courts as enforcers of Covenant rights; the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals; climate change, migration and new challenges for the next sixty years. |
SUBMISSION OF ABSTRACTS
- Abstracts of up to 400 words in English, indicating the preferred panel, together with the author’s name, affiliation, e-mail address and a short biographical note (up to 100 words).
- Abstracts and any queries should be sent to humanrights@webphilosophia.com with the subject line “RC26 Interim Conference 2026”.
- Each participant may present one paper as first author. Co-authored papers are welcome.
IMPORTANT DATES
| Deadline for abstracts | 22 November 2026 |
| Notification of acceptance | 27 November 2026 |
| Publication of the programme | 1 December 2026 |
| Online conference | 14–15 December 2026 |
| Deadline for full papers (special issue) | 15 March 2027 |
FORMAT AND PARTICIPATION
The conference will be held entirely online. Each presentation will last about 15 minutes, followed by the Discussant’s comments and an open debate. Sessions will be scheduled in Central European Time (CET, UTC+1), taking into account the time zones of the participants. Connection details will be sent to the speakers and to registered attendees before the conference. Participation is free of charge.
PUBLICATION: SPECIAL ISSUE OF THE JOURNAL OF GLOBAL HUMAN RIGHTS
Selected papers presented at the conference will be considered for publication in a special issue of the Journal of Global Human Rights devoted to the 60th anniversary of the Covenants. Full papers must be submitted through the journal’s online system and will undergo the journal’s ordinary peer review. Presentation at the conference does not guarantee publication.
About the journal. The Journal of Global Human Rights is an international, interdisciplinary journal that publishes original research on human rights from philosophy, law, political science, sociology and related fields. This journal is affiliated with IPSA Research Committee 26 (Human Rights). Its main features are:
- Scope: normative foundations of human rights; democracy, constitutionalism and the rule of law; equality, minorities and vulnerable groups; freedom of expression and the digital public sphere; international and regional human rights systems; and human rights in times of crisis, conflict and technological change.
- Peer review: research articles undergo double-anonymous peer review by at least two independent reviewers.
- Open access, no fees: articles are published in immediate open access under a Creative Commons licence. There are no submission fees and no article processing charges, and authors retain copyright.
- Persistent identifiers and ethics: every article receives a DOI through Crossref, and the journal follows COPE guidelines on publication ethics, including a policy on the disclosure of generative AI use.
- Periodicity and language: biannual, published in English (British or American spelling, used consistently). The first issue (Vol. 1, No. 1) appeared in 2026.
- Author guidelines: research articles of 6,000–12,000 words; abstract of up to 250 words and 5–8 keywords; references in APA 7th edition; anonymised manuscript, title page and biographical note submitted as separate files, using the journal’s templates.
Website: journalglobalhumanrights.webphilosophia.com
ORGANISATION
Research Committee 26 on Human Rights, International Political Science Association (IPSA). Website: rc26.ipsa.org
In collaboration with the Journal of Global Human Rights.
