International Relations Commons^™

A Coincidental Trip To Cambodia, Rebecca Otis

Human Rights & Human Welfare

In a timely coincidence, Henry Alford’s recent travel article, “Banishing the Ghosts in Cambodia,” recently tantalized this reader with visions of a destination vacation in mind. Written for the travel-inspired readership of the New York Times, Alford’s version of Cambodia as a newly reborn hotspot for far flung Westerners approaches the point of lulling his decidedly non-Cambodian audience into pleasantly myopic vision of a plush Cambodian phoenix fully risen from its mired ashes. Amidst the outcropping of chic resorts and beautiful beaches reincarnated from the elegant, pre-Khmer Rouge moment of Cambodia’s forgotten past, Alford banishes the ghosts of Pol Pot’s …

Stopping The Killing And/Or Stopping Human Rights Violations, Edward Friedman

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The relationship between promoting human rights and stopping wars can be perplexing. The 19th century origins of the Geneva Convention and the International Commissions of the Red Cross (ICRC) are warnings about the moral danger, ambiguities, or tensions of bringing war within the arena of human rights considerations. Human rights and war can be a toxic cocktail. One should not want to make war more likely or legitimate or deadly by seeming to say that the killing machine on one side or the other is acting humanely, as if that makes war okay. War is hell.

Healing From War To End All Wars, Christien Van Den Anker

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The First World War was known as the war to end all wars. After the Second World War, and especially in reference to the Holocaust, the urgent slogan was “Never Again.” Although these hopes to end war and genocide have not yet been fulfilled, they inspired the worldwide moral stance against war and a host of international instruments and bodies contributed to the protection of both civilians and combatants during war.

Proportional To Life, Emma Gilligan

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The Economist piece entitled “Proportional to what?” poses a dangerous question. The notion, as the article suggests, that proportionality in war is a “slippery idea” or that the facts are “nebulous” is the work of either an intentionally provocative or idly cynical author. Whatever the motivation for the words, it is precisely the dismissive tone embodied in such statements that has contributed to and defined the attitude more recently of larger states, like Israel and Russia, to issues of accountability for the death of civilians.

Protecting Human Rights In Conflict, Clair Apodaca

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The Just War Theory of Jus in Bello is the international community’s attempt to ensure respect for human rights and human welfare during armed conflicts. The principle of proportionality and the obligation to distinguish between combatants and civilians in attacks are two related notions that are fundamental to the protection of human rights during conflict. The principle of proportionality limits the amount of violence and destruction that is morally permissible. By contrast, the principle of discrimination (or distinction) discriminates between legitimate targets, such as soldiers and weapons depots, and illegitimate targets, specifically noncombatants such as civilian populations and their property.

Proportionality And Unjust Wars, Sarah Stanlick

Human Rights & Human Welfare

As violence rages in the Middle East, policymakers, academics, and the public alike have been embroiled in debate over the proportional use of force. As The Economist article points out, historical grievances leave both Israelis and Palestinians with compelling arguments for defense and resistance. However, at this point, the cycle of violence has perpetuated blame that goes beyond a simple tally sheet. World leaders remain divided on the rights and wrongs of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but human rights groups internationally are crying out for Israel and Hamas to end attacks that “do not discriminate between civilians and military targets.” While …

February Roundtable: Introduction

Human Rights & Human Welfare

An annotation of:

“Proportional to What?” The Economist. December 30, 2008.

Darfur: In Search Of Peace Exploring Viable Solutions To The Darfur Crisis, George Shepherd, Peter Van Arsdale, Negin Sobhani, Nicole Tanner, Frederick Agyeman-Duah

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The following is a report for the Consultation on Darfur carried out in Nairobi, Kenya by Africa Today Associates, Inc. The event took place June 9‐11, 2008 and was made possible with support from Ford Foundation, Kenya (in collaboration with the Institute of International Education). This report aims to build upon, not replace, the findings of our Consultation in Abuja, Nigeria. It is for this purpose that the findings and points addressed in this report are solely those discussed in Nairobi. Although it is inevitable that the two consultations reflected some overlap on the core issues and discussion points, especially …

Peace From Below: Recent Steps Taken Along The Track-Two Diplomacy Path, Michael Thomas Kuchinsky

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Peacemakers in Action: Profiles of Religion in Conflict Resolution. Edited by David Little. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

and

Peace Out of Reach: Middle Eastern Travels and the Search for Reconciliation. By Stephen Eric Bronner. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2007.

James Pattison On Waging Humanitarian War: The Ethics, Law, And Politics Of Humanitarian Intervention By Eric A. Heinze. Albany: Suny Press, 2009. 224pp., James Pattison

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Waging Humanitarian War: The Ethics, Law, and Politics of Humanitarian Intervention by Eric A. Heinze. Albany: SUNY Press, 2009. 224pp.

Marten Zwanenburg On International Peacekeeping Edited By Boris Kondoch. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2007. 578pp., Marten Zwanenburg

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

International Peacekeeping edited by Boris Kondoch. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2007. 578pp.

Tahira Khan On Women As Weapons Of War: Iraq, Sex And The Media By Kelly Oliver. New York, Ny: Columbia University Press, 2007. 208pp., Tahira Khan

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Women as Weapons of War: Iraq, Sex and the Media by Kelly Oliver. New York, NY: Columbia University Press, 2007. 208pp.

Tibet Under Chinese Rule, Dina Buck

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The struggle between Tibet and China has been a long and intractable one. How China chooses to deal with Tibet, commonly referred to as the “Tibet Question,” is a point of controversy both within China and for the international community at large. The two main points of concern are Tibet’s quest for self-determination and Tibetan quality of life under Chinese rule. While Tibet’s struggle for self-determination can be linked with the questionable treatment Tibetans face under the Chinese government (hereafter referred to as Beijing), the two issues are not exactly the same.

Transforming Children Of War Into Agents Of Change, Brooke Breazeale

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Since the turn of the century, Sub-Saharan Africa has experienced the fastest growing rate of child soldiers. Consider the following statistics:

• An estimated 60 percent of child soldiers in Africa are fourteen years old and under (Singer 2006: 29);
• In Uganda the average age of personnel in armed forces is 12.9 (Singer 2006: 29);
• Since 1990, two million children have been killed in armed conflict, the equivalent of five hundred per day for ten years (Singer 2005).

Nigel Parsons On Israel's Occupation By Neve Gordon. Berkley, Ca: University Of California Press, 2008. 318pp., Nigel Parsons

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Israel's Occupation by Neve Gordon. Berkley, CA: University of California Press, 2008. 318pp.

Reconciliation And The Therapeutic Impulse: What Does It Mean To “Heal”?*, Elizabeth S. Dahl

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Amnesty after Atrocity? Healing Nations after Genocide and War Crimes. By Helena Cobban. Boulder, CO: Paradigm Publishers, 2007.

and

Reconciliation in Divided Societies: Finding Common Ground. By Erin Daly and Jeremy Sarkin. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2007.

Healing is widely seen as an essential component of socio-political reconciliation, helping to promote a more peaceable future after violent conflict. At the same time, however, little is known about what exactly “healing” means to traumatized people and whether particular reconciliation efforts do indeed constitute healing. Instead, social healing is described usually in metaphorical terms, compared to the way …

International Justice And International Politics: Intertwined Paths, David Penna

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

International Justice in Rwanda and the Balkans: Virtual Trials and the Struggle for State Cooperation. By Victor Peskin. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008. 272 pp.

and

Building the International Criminal Court. By Benjamin N. Schiff. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008. 304 pp.

and

The Tokyo War Crimes Trial: The Pursuit of Justice in the Wake of World War II. By Yuma Totani. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Asia Center / Harvard University Press, 2008. 335 pp.

The Limits Of International Humanitarian Law, Melissa Eli

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The goal of international humanitarian law is to humanize war in an effort to minimize human suffering and the long-term negative consequences of war. However, despite the adoption by most countries of the Geneva Conventions and other relevant agreements, crimes of war occur in every conflict around the world on a regular basis. Additionally, as the form of warfare changes, so does the implementation and consequences of various war crimes. Genocide, systematic rape, and the use of child soldiers are three of the most significant war crimes facing sub-Saharan Africa today. Each has consequences so severe that specific international laws …