Human Rights of Older Persons

The project aims at: defining vulnerable persons and discussing whether such persons should enjoy special human rights protection; determining who older persons are and whether they are vulnerable; and analysing and assessing the legal protection of older persons in current human rights law.

The project focuses on human rights of older persons. First, we will propose a legal definition of the concept of vulnerable persons and we will assess, whether these persons should benefit from enhanced protection under human rights law (specific rights, autonomous legal instruments ). Then, we will turn our attention to older persons. We will seek to define older persons, considering to what extent the concept of older age is socially constructed. We will also assess whether older persons meet the definition of vulnerable persons. In the next step, we will provide a legal analysis of the human rights framework applicable to older persons, both domestically and under international law. The analysis should allow us to establish whether the current regulation meets the needs of older persons or whether it should be complemented by new norms designed specifically to meet these needs. We will also consider recent initiatives aimed at adopting a new universal convention for the protection of human rights of older persons.

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Centre for International Law

The CIL conducts research in various areas of International Law with the main emphasis being on human rights, international humanitarian law, international criminal law, the use of force, the fight against terrorism and the theory of international law. The results of the Centre's activities are both professional publications and policy-oriented studies. The studies should help the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic to formulate its legal position. These studies are also intended to provide information on international law to the public and the media.

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