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Building A Lifeline: A Proposed Global Platform And Responsibility Sharing Model For The Global Compact On Refugees, Sarnata Reynolds, Juan Pablo Vacatello

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

In 2016, the leaders of 193 governments committed to more equitable and predictable sharing of responsibility for refugees as part of the New York Declaration, to be realized in the Global Compact on Refugees. To encourage debate, this paper presents the first global model to measure the capacity of governments to physically protect and financially support refugees and host communities. The model is based on a new database of indicators covering 193 countries, which assigns a fair share to each country and measures current government contributions to the protection of refugees. The model also proposes a new government-led global platform …

Roman Law And Global Constitutionalism, Rafael Domingo

San Diego International Law Journal

The parallel between contemporary issues and Roman history often fascinates and illuminates. In this Article, I argue how Roman law can serve today as an inspiration toward global constitutionalism given it was one of the several sources of inspiration for the American founders. Looking to Roman law helps reduce certain prejudices derived from the current privileging of the sovereign state and the positivist paradigm as the only genuine and possible models for international law. These prejudices constitute an actual hindrance to the right development of global constitutionalism. Global constitutionalism inherently moves beyond sovereignty, nationalism, and positivism. Roman law enables constitutionalists …

Foreword, James Holmes

New England Journal of Public Policy

The International Communities Organisation (ICO) is a self-determination research and innovation center and a not-for-profit organization based in London. Guided by its vision of self-determination and the values of development and human rights, ICO aims to empower communities. It strives to foster an environment where organizations within these communities can overcome the barriers they face, allowing them to fulfill their potential and develop and create positive change for their local communities through local action, collaboration, and decision making.

To enhance our vision and our credibility as an international organization that works for peoples, we organized the February 2019 London conference …

European Union Integration And National Self-Determination, Mare Ushkovska

New England Journal of Public Policy

Recent demands for secession in several EU member states bring the issue of self-determination to the forefront of the debate about the future of the European Union. This article explores the European Union’s attitudes toward the international right to self-determination in the context of the rising salience of the greater political union between member states. The focus of the European project, in direct contrast to the glorification of nationhood, is on consensual decision-making rather than sovereignty, making self-determination obsolete in a reality of EU integration. This research finds that recognition of, or references to, the right to self-determination of peoples …

Editor’S Note, Padraig O’Malley

New England Journal of Public Policy

The articles in this issue of the New England Journal of Public Policy have their origins in presentations at a Chatham House conference titled “Rethinking Self-Determination,” February 2019, hosted by the International Communities Organization and the journal.

Among the many aspects of self-determination they address: the elasticity of the concept as a human right in the context of “peoples” (Freeman); individual rights versus collective self-determination (Summers); Biafra as an early case of internal self-determination—the territorial integrity of the state and the right of secession when “the right of a people to participate in the decision-making processes of a country is …

The Right Of Peoples To Self-Determination In Article 1 Of The Human Rights Covenants As A Claimable Right, James Summers

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article looks at the potential for individual communications under common article 1 of the Human Rights Covenants, in particular, under the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. It first outlines the problems posed by the drafting of common article 1, in particular, the identity of peoples. It then considers how individuals might be able to claim peoples’ rights through representation and the collectivization of individual rights.

Raising Indigenous Women’S Voices For Equal Rights And Self-Determination, Grazia Redolfi, Nikoletta Pikramenou, Rosario Grimà Algora

New England Journal of Public Policy

The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples states that the right to self-determination for Indigenous peoples involves their having the right to freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social, and cultural development. The implementation of this right is linked to the ability and freedom to participate in any decision making that relates to their development. Current laws and practices are considered “unfair to women,” because they sustain traditional and customary patriarchal attitudes that marginalize Indigenous women and exclude them from decision-making tables and leadership roles. Despite the many challenges Indigenous women face in …

Communicative Justice And Reconciliation In Canada, Alice Neeson

New England Journal of Public Policy

Communicative justice co-exists with other dimensions of justice and emphasizes the importance of fair communicative practices, particularly after periods of direct or structural violence. While intercultural dialogue is often assumed to be a positive, or even necessary, part of reconciliation processes, there are questions to be asked about the ethicality of dialogue when one voice has been silenced, misrepresented, and ignored for decades. This article draws on twelve months of ethnographic research with reconciliation activists and organizations in Canada and considers the potential for communicative flows to help compensate for structural inequalities during processes of reconciliation.

Self-Determination And Psychological Adaptation In Forcibly Displaced People, Numan Turan, Bediha İpekçi, Mehmet Yalçın Yılmaz

New England Journal of Public Policy

According to the UN Refugee Agency, as of 2018 approximately 70 million people were forcibly displaced because of intrastate and interstate conflicts. A majority of those people endured significant hardships, and a consensus is growing among researchers that forcibly displaced people have gone through potentially traumatic experiences that challenge their well-being and health. Consequently, a large amount of research focuses on their mental health concerns, whereas research focusing on their will to normalize their lives and grow after a traumatic migration is scarce. In this article, we highlight the efforts by forcibly displaced people to normalize their lives, pointing out …

Climate Change And Human Rights: Shaping The Narrative For Reflexive Responses From Civilization’S Leadership To Counter And Abate Climate Change And Enhance The Role Of Human Rights In The Rule Of Law, Michael Donlan

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article offers a bold new legal process for enhancing and upgrading the rule of law to enable civilization to cope with and counter the mounting damage and injustice caused by climate change. Climate change, once an unimaginable threat, is now a brutal, ubiquitous game changer that is leading inexorably to the demise of all humanity. Only by enhancing the rule of law and melding international law with domestic law can civilization fashion a coherent, global action plan for survival.

For almost three centuries greenhouse gases have been emitted around the world by the burning of fossil fuel, and—most alarming—these …

Prevention And Protection Interventions For Stateless Non-Refugee And Force Displaced Children, Tanya Herring

New England Journal of Public Policy

This article advances a general theory of law and justice that would expand the Palermo Trafficking and Smuggling Protocols to a wider application in human rights jurisprudence. The aim of the research reported here is to close the gaps in member-state policy and scholarship that addresses prevention measures and protection mechanisms for forcibly displaced children seeking self-determination in states that have not ratified the UN Convention on Refugees and the UN Conventions on Statelessness. The research is based on the premise that a stateless nonrefugee status constructs an extremely vulnerable state for children during forced migration and when they are …

The Right To Self-Determination: Philosophical And Legal Perspectives, Michael Freeman

New England Journal of Public Policy

Why do we need to rethink self-determination? In this article I argue that self-determination is a necessary feature of the human condition and a human right but that it is in part illusory and is potentially dangerous. We need to rethink self-determination because our collective thinking has been very confused, and bad thinking about self-determination costs many lives.

Finding Foreign Friends: National Self-Determination And Related Norms As Strategic Resources During The Biafran War For Independence, 1967–1970, Christopher Brucker

New England Journal of Public Policy

The study analyzes how the government of the Republic of Biafra used international norms to win foreign support during its 1967–1970 campaign to secede from Nigeria. Secession conflicts occur at the intersection of international and domestic politics. For independence movements, support from outside is crucial. But, as Bridget Coggins has asked, how can secession movements find “friends in high places”? International support for unilateral secession attempts is strictly prohibited. Domestic and international asymmetry are limiting secessionist foreign policy instruments to intangible means. Legitimacy is a central concept to illuminate the phenomenon. In international politics, legitimacy depends on the external perception …

Language, Indigenous Peoples, And The Right To Self-Determination, Noelle Higgins, Gerard Maguire

New England Journal of Public Policy

Language has always played a significant role in the colonization of peoples as an instrument of subjugation and homogenization. It has been used to control nondominant groups, including Indigenous peoples, often leading to their exclusion or assimilation. Many Indigenous groups, however, use language as a tool to connect the members of their community, to assert their group identity, and to preserve their culture. Thus, language has been used both as a means of oppression and as a mobilizer of Indigenous groups in their struggles for national recognition. Recognizing the significance of language in the identity and culture of Indigenous peoples, …

The Impact Of Political Decisions Within The Wto Dispute Settlement System: Political Negotiations Within Adjudication, Meaza Haddis Gebeyehu

Indonesian Journal of International Law

It is traditionally contended that politics and law are two separate domains of international relations among the main actors, states. As opposed to this thinking, international relations of the twenty-first century have been characterized by the continuing interaction of law and politics. As the main actors and participants in international law, states played and still play significant roles in this development. The growing sense of nationalism within states and the concomitant consequence of prioritizing their respective national interests led to the use, by these states, of international law as an instrument of justification. When international law is used this way, …

Udhr: Our North Star For Global Social Justice Or An Imperial And Settler-Colonial Tool To Limit Our Conception Of Freedom?, Jeena Shah

Pace International Law Review

On April 5, 2019, PILR held their triennial symposium titled: Revisiting Human Rights: The Universal Declaration at 70. As a reflection of the event, a few panelists composed contribution pieces reflecting on the topic.

Climate Displaced Peoples: Utilizing Regional Approaches To Combat Climate-Induced Displacement In The 21st Century, Oshani Amaratunga

Pace Environmental Law Review

No abstract provided.

Prospects For Justice And Accountability In Syria, Alexis Staubus

Augsburg Honors Review

In recent years, the international community has closely monitored the actions of Syrian president, Bashar-al Assad. Since the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, President Assad has continued to incite widespread violence throughout Syria by committing mass atrocities that violate international laws. There is evidence to provide proof of President Assad’s connection to his crimes and that his crimes have killed and displaced millions of Syrians. However, the legalities of indicting a head of state and the special interests between the members of the United Nations Security Council create obstacles that make prosecuting President Assad near impossible in …

The Singapore Convention On Mediation: A Framework For The Cross-Border Recognition And Enforcement Of Mediated Settlements, Timothy Schnabel

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

This article attempts to provide a definitive overview of the text, structure, history, and purpose of the Singapore Convention on Mediation (also known as the United Nations Convention on International Settlement Agreements Resulting from Mediation), a new multilateral treaty developed by the U.N. Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). The Convention, scheduled to open for signature in August 2019, provides a uniform, efficient framework for the recognition and enforcement of mediated settlement agreements that resolve international, commercial disputes — akin to the framework that the 1958 New York Convention provides for arbitral awards. Unlike the other primary international organizations that …

Businesspersons, Governments, And International Law, Halil Rahman Basaran

Louisiana Law Review

The article sets forth evidence to substantiate the dynamics and tensions among businessperson, governments and international law with particular focus on issues related to controlling the development of cryptocurrencies through taxation, regulation or even prohibition.

Can Bad Law Do Good? A Retrospective On Conflict Minerals Regulation, Karen E. Woody

Maryland Law Review

Section 1502 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (“Dodd-Frank”) created a novel approach to corporate social responsibility (“CSR”) in supply chains by requiring public companies to disclose the presence of conflict minerals in their products. Dodd-Frank, as a whole, has faced a barrage of criticism since its passage, and Section 1502 was not immune from intense critical backlash. As I argued in prior scholarship and congressional testimony, Section 1502 was ill-conceived in substance and form. Its application resulted in the improper use of securities laws to the detriment of its laudable public international law …

Presidential Factfinding, Shalev Roisman

Vanderbilt Law Review

The modern President possesses enormous power. She can use military force abroad without congressional authorization, impose economic sanctions on foreign powers, or enter into trade agreements with foreign states. She can do all this on her own, with little constraint. Or so it seems. In reality, these important powers, along with numerous more mundane ones, are all contingent on the President first making certain factual determinations. For example, to use force abroad, the President must first determine that the use of force is in the "national interest," perhaps that it will preserve "regional stability" or protect American lives. To impose …

Developing The Principle Of Non-Recognition, Adam Saltzman J.D.

Ohio Northern University Law Review

In an attempt to ensure enforcement of law, international bodies have developed a practice of collective non-recognition in response to serious violations of international law. This Article seeks to bring some clarity to the practice of non-recognition. Through analysis of International Court of Justice cases and State practice, the Article demonstrates a legally binding, but not acknowledged shift in the law that governs non-recognition. Then, moving beyond strict legal analysis, the Article expresses policy concerns with the current legal status of the obligation and proposes how States should legally respond.

The Popular But Unlawful Armed Reprisal, Mary Ellen O'Connell

Ohio Northern University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Cost-Benefit Analysis And Human Rights, William J. Aceves

St. John's Law Review

(Excerpt)

This Article considers whether cost-benefit analysis can provide the human rights movement with the answers it seeks. It offers an instrumentalist and empirical approach to complement the normative arguments that are most often used by the human rights movement. If human rights could be fully monetized, states could consider the full range of benefits that arise from protecting rights and the costs that occur when rights are violated. This approach could provide states with a more accurate methodology for making decisions that affect human rights. In fact, protecting human rights may prove to be costeffective, particularly when second order …

An Unfulfilled Promise: The Genocide Convention And The Obligation Of Prevention, Zachary A. Karazsia

Journal of Strategic Security

This article addresses the under-theorized dual-mandate of the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The Convention was drafted in the wake of the Holocaust and other Nazi genocidal atrocities committed during World War II. The primary mission of the Genocide Convention was to establish a uniform definition of this scourge, and insert its prevention and punishment into the list of obligations states hold within the current international legal regime. Based on the past 70 years, it is clear that the international community has overwhelmingly failed to uphold the Genocide Convention’s prevention mandate. The …

The Effectiveness Of Climate Change Litigation As A Venue To Uphold State Climate Change Obligations In Indonesia, Deniza Ariani

Indonesian Journal of International Law

Climate change has increasingly raised concerns regarding the continuity of human life. As a consequence, there are certain obligations upon governments to conduct climate change mitigation and adaptation measures. However, there remains the issue of ensuring States comply with their obligations. Under the Paris Agreement, a recent international legal instrument concerning climate change, compliance is one of the matters addressed. The Agreement introduces a “Compliance Committee”. The Agreement, however, underlines that the Compliance Committee’s actions will be limited to non-adversarial and non-punitive measures. Therefore, it remains unclear whether non-compliant States would indeed adhere to the Compliance Committee. Recently, climate change …

Human Rights Violations Consequent To Transshipment Practices In Fisheries, Chelsey F. Marto

Ocean and Coastal Law Journal

Transshipment, the process of transferring catch from a small fishing vessel onto a larger fishing vessel far off shore, has been used to commit a variety of human rights abuses on the sea. Companies can get away with this because there is little to no oversight over the activities. Yet, there has been little to no incentive to change these practices, because companies are generally not penalized for these actions. The author proposes a variety of tactics be implemented in addressing these concerns. These include imposition of sanctions upon countries who allow for nefarious activities, increased video surveillance on board …

The Trump Administration's Approach To International Law And Courts: Are We Seeing A Turn For The Worse?, John B. Bellinger Iii

Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law

The article focuses on the approach of administration of the U.S. President Donald Trump to international courts and tribunals, to treaties and international agreements, and to international human rights.

International Multiple Derivative Actions, King F. Tsang

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Article explores two choice of law issues in international multiple derivative actions: (1) the choice of substantive law that should govern multiple derivative actions and (2) the characterization of different aspects of the multiple derivative actions between substantive and procedural laws. After a comparison of choice of law approaches among various common law jurisdictions, the author advocates that the first choice of law issue--the substantive law to be applied to the action--should be governed by the law with the closest connections to the multiple derivative actions. This is the only practical choice given the complex nature of international multiple …