The discourses and institutions of human rights are contemporary devices for bringing morality to bear on the harsh realities of political, economic and social life. These attempts to render the conditions of human existence more tolerable and more dignified tend to focus mainly on the role of domestic and international law and the conduct of states and the international institutions that represent them. This is an entirely proper and necessary part of any serious attempt to promote and protect human rights and one that has the full moral endorsement of those who are committed to the cause of human rights
