Law Commons^™

Political Prisoners: The Law And Politics Of Protection, David P. Forsythe

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

In the fall of 1975 the United States, in a much publicized step at the United Nations, introduced an abortive resolution calling for world-wide amnesty for political prisoners. Admittedly, this draft resolution was withdrawn because of crippling amendments, and it may well be that this American initiative was launched more to deflect criticism to others than to help political prisoners. But it seems to be the case--at least from a Western perspective--that political prisoners are becoming a more salient subject in world affairs. The concept of political prisoners has existed for quite awhile. In the last decade and a half, …