rights should be unnecessary if we live in a society committed to values of tolerance
and equality.
Core Content Beyond this, many academics argue that while limitations for
nonabsolute rights are allowed, there is a minimum, an essence of every right that
may not be limited under any circumstance. This essence is usually called the “core
content” of the right.
12.7.4 Exceptions
Where limitations on rights can be seen as a way to push back the range of
application of a right, exceptions are better pictured as “gaps” in the coverage of
a right. Here, no balancing needs to take place, but it is important to determine the
size of the gap and whether the case at hand falls into the gap or not. Some
exceptions are specifically provided for in the law.
Known exceptions in United Nations human rights treaties include:- the death penalty, as an exception to the right to life,
- hate speech, a form of unprotected speech, as an exception to freedom of expression, and
- lawful sanctions which may nevertheless cause severe suffering are an exception to the
prohibition of torture.
Even if these exceptions appear it the law, they call for interpretation. Not all speech that is
critical about a particular minority constitutes hate speech, and the determination of where
to draw the line is an inevitably controversial.
In other cases, exceptions are crafted through interpretation of the right itself.
For instance, thinking about the absolute protection of freedom of speech found in the US
Constitution, one could wonder whether forcibly obstructing the entrance of a shopping
center in order to complain about capitalism is a form of “speech” or a different type of
action.
12.7.5 Derogations in Time of Emergency
The last situation in which the trump card character of human rights is put into
question is in times of emergency. In such situations, the government may be
excused from complying with certain human rights, although some rights may
never be suspended.
Again, some requirements must be met. It is commonly assumed that the
suspension must be proportionate to the emergency, must serve some actual
purpose, and is only allowed for a limited duration. Moreover, what counts as a
legitimate emergency is debatable.
Maybe war with another country is a clear example, but other situations, such as the
so-called “War on Terror” are apt to give rise to disagreement.12 Human Rights 283