Neuman elected to Human Rights Committee

Gerald Neuman ’80, the J. Sinclair Armstrong Professor of International, Foreign, and Comparative Law at Harvard Law School (HLS), has been elected to the Human Rights Committee, the premier treaty body in the U.N. human rights system. The committee monitors compliance by 166 states parties with their obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which is part of the International Bill of Rights.

The committee is composed of 18 independent members from 18 different countries with recognized expertise in the field of human rights. Members are elected to four-year terms by states parties.

“After years of study of the global and regional human rights regimes, I am grateful for the opportunity to help increase the persuasiveness and effectiveness of the Human Rights Committee’s work,” said Neuman.

Said HLS Dean Martha Minow: “Gerry Neuman has not only deep expertise in international human rights law but also superb judgment, an impeccable sense of fairness, and remarkable powers of analysis. He will bring these qualities to the critically important responsibility of implementing the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights — protecting the rights of individuals and also advancing into practice the vision of human rights that member nations endorsed on paper. This is a terrific appointment for the Human Rights Committee — and a very proud moment for Harvard Law School.”

To read the full announcement, visit the HLS website.