Publication details
Culture Re-introduced: Contestation of Human Rights in Contemporary Russia
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2012 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Review of Central and East European Law |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | https://brill.com/view/journals/rela/37/2-3/article-p173_3.xml |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/092598812X13274154886782 |
| Field | Political sciences |
| Keywords | Russia;human rights;Council of Europe |
| Description | The article explores the current human rights discourse in the Russian federation through its relationship with the Council of Europe, the strongest human rights regime Russia signed for. On the background of the current international relations theories, I argue that human-rights scholarship should re-introduce the concept of culture into its research designs in order to be able to explain the interaction between cultural groupings and globally dominant discourses, such as human rights. The article further argues that human rights ought to be conceptualized as symbolic technologies and studied as discursive variables that enter the cycle of national identity formation. To that end, I use the contestation thesis proposed by A. Tsygankov. I conclude that Russia is currently in the state of active securisation against the dominant and universal human rights discourse which is being perceived as hindering the independent societal development in Russia. The state of said securisation is illustrated on the current debates within the PACE on the topics connected with human rights and Russia. |