In a globalised world, the contact between different cultural, religious and social communities has not only increased due to migration, but has to a certain extent always been part of the human experience in different parts of our world. Therefore, a mere one-sided contemplation of normative regimes is no longer appropriate. The complex legal situation that emerges from the coexistence of international and national law – as well as social, religious, cultural and societal norms in various forms depending on local circumstances – is often at the root of social conflicts and human rights violations.

In this four-part book, the authors analyse how normative conflicts influence the implementation and realisation of human rights in different socio-cultural settings and take up a stance on how the tension that typically arises from opposing social rules and legal norms could be eased or even resolved. The authors managed to examine this largely discussed topic from an entirely new point of view by taking an interdisciplinary and non-Eurocentric approach to normative pluralism, with the reoccurring theme of women's rights issues in different parts of the world. The authors also put a significant focus on normative pluralism as it is seen and practised in India, shifting the focus from Europe and at the same time recognising normative pluralism not as a ‘problem’ that is meant to be solved but as an integral part of society that needs to be acknowledged by the legal community.

Part I of the book commences with two chapters considering different methods of preventing conflict. Tommaso Amico Di Meane argues that ‘conflict’ can be studied through comparative law approaches and points out that a new, non-Eurocentric methodology focusing on non-Western legal traditions and diversity is required. In chapter three, Domenico Amirante confirms through a practical example how India manages its socio-cultural plurality, specifically by exploring the role of language in a multicultural society, which in respecting differences and by developing sensibility to pluralism the potential for conflict can be reduced significantly.