General Course Information
1.1 Course details
| Course code: | LLAW6034 / JDOC6034 |
| Course name: | Human Rights in Hong Kong |
| Programme offered under: | LLM Programme / JD Programme |
| Semester: | Second |
| Prerequisites / Co-requisites: | Not applicable |
| Credit point value: | 9 credits / 6 credits |
1.2 Course description
Human Rights is a wide subject and can be approached through several different fields of study. With Hong Kong being the territorial and jurisdictional focus, this course first introduces the concept of human rights and its significance in international and domestic governance before proceeding to the historical and practical implementation of human rights protection in Hong Kong before and after the resumption of Chinese sovereignty over Hong Kong on 1 July 1997. The principal (but not the only) means of implementation of human rights protection to be examined in this course is judicial enforcement of human rights guaranteed by or under the Basic Law of the HKSAR, the Hong Kong Bill of Rights, a collection of anti-discrimination and data privacy legislation, and government policies, practices and commitments. Judgments of Hong Kong courts setting out the prevalent approach on adjudicating human rights related disputes are critically examined and evaluated in their historical, social, legal, cultural and political context. A broad selection of rights, including civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights and rights associated with migration, trafficking and non-refoulement protection are covered. One context that will be of particular consideration is the interplay between the safeguarding of national security and the protection of human rights and their exercise by all.
Students do not need to complete any prerequisites for taking this course. Generally, it is assumed that they have some basic knowledge of Hong Kong legal system, constitutional law and criminal law.
1.3 Course teachers
| Name | E-mail address | Office | Consultation | |
| Course convenor | Dr Pui-yin Lo | pylohk@hku.hk | N/A | By email |
1.4 Course outline (for elective course)
| Please click the link here for the course outline (HKU Portal login required). |
Learning Outcomes
2.1 Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) for this course
CLO 1 Describe and explain the general framework and approach of human rights law, and in particular, the approach to permissible restrictions.
CLO 2 Have a sound understanding of the international and the Hong Kong SAR’s legal framework and approach to the protection of human rights by law or other means in Hong Kong and be able to state their strengths and weaknesses.
CLO 3 Apply the knowledge and understanding of human rights law to resolve issues, problems and disputes in real life situations in Hong Kong and to address and construct sound arguments in applicable situations.
CLO 4 Demonstrate an awareness of the socio-economic-political-cultural dimension of human rights discourse within a comparative context and utilize their knowledge to make an informed consideration human rights situations in Hong Kong or elsewhere with a view for improvement.
2.2 LLM and JD Programme Learning Outcomes (PLOs)
Please refer to the following link:
LLM – https://course.law.hku.hk/llm-plo/
JD – https://course.law.hku.hk/jd-plo/
2.3 Programme Learning Outcomes to be achieved in this course
| PLO A | PLO B | PLO C | PLO D | PLO E | PLO F | |
| CLO 1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 4 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Assessment(s)
3.1 Assessment Summary
| Assessment task | Weighting | Feedback method* | Course learning outcomes |
| Class participation | 15% | 1, 2, 3, 4 | |
| Short esssay | 25% | 1, 2, 3, 4 | |
| Research paper | 60% | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| *Feedback method (to be determined by course teacher) | |
| 1 | A general course report to be disseminated through Moodle |
| 2 | Individual feedback to be disseminated by email / through Moodle |
| 3 | Individual review meeting upon appointment |
| 4 | Group review meeting |
| 5 | In-class verbal feedback |
3.2 Assessment Detail
To be advised by course convenor. See also Course Outline above.
3.3 Grading Criteria
Please refer to the following link: https://www.law.hku.hk/_files/law_programme_grade_descriptors.pdf
Learning Activities
4.1 Learning Activity Plan
| Seminar: | 3 hours / week for 12 teaching weeks |
| Private study time: | 9.5 hours / week for 12 teaching weeks |
Remarks: the normative student study load per credit unit is 25 ± 5 hours (ie. 150 ± 30 hours for a 6-credit course), which includes all learning activities and experiences within and outside of classroom, and any assessment task and examinations and associated preparations.
4.2 Details of Learning Activities
To be advised by course convenor(s).
Learning Resources
5.1 Resources
| Reading materials: | Reading materials are posted on Moodle |
| Core reading list: | TBA |
| Recommended reading list: | TBA |
5.2 Links
Please refer to the following link: http://www.law.hku.hk/course/learning-resources/