MEGA-SPORTING EVENTS AND HUMAN RIGHTS ARBITRATION

This chapter considers the use of arbitration to enforce human rights norms in connection with mega-sporting events (MSEs). It is based on the premise that a persistent problem with sports and human rights initiatives is enforceability, which calls for moving away from a reliance on soft power and ad hoc arrangements towards more effective legally enforceable instruments. A model framework fo enforcement has been established with the Hague Principles on Business and Human Rights Arbitration (Hague Principles). The Hague Principles are designed to provide arbitration rules specifically tailored to disputes involving states, business entities and victims of human rights abuses. This chapter not only proposes that human rights initiatives and policies for MSEs can benefit from using arbitration as an enforcement mechanism along lines detailed in the Hague Principles but that international sport might be uniquely suited for doing so.