Human Rights Law Commons^™

Humanitarian Laws And Human Rights Law-Analysis Of Existing Differences And Similarities?, Roopam Verma

ExpressO

The purpose of this article is to make visible the thin line demarcation between humanitarian law and human rights law, which can only be understood by tracing history of both the concepts and analyze there difference at the nanoscopic level. International law offers to States a great scale of means and measures for the peaceful settlement of disputes with a view to an effective abolition of the recourse to war. War is a rot to humanity and involves most brutal and arbitrary violence. However, as human rights law and humanitarian law have totally different historical origins, the codification of these …

Human Rights And Power: Where Will We Be Next?, Ahmed Ahmed Fouad Helal

Archived Theses and Dissertations

The US Human Rights, as applied by the President George W. Bush, is at a crossroads. Whether it will be accepted and applied by all rations as a uniform standard or it will be defeated and the perception of imposing human rights ideals will prove its failure in promoting human rights. Even more, in case of defeat, it may result on reshaping the norms of Human rights as known today.

The Tragic Foundations Of Human Rights, Louis E. Wolcher

ExpressO

The longing for a theoretical foundation to support the aspiration for universal (international) human rights always precedes the construction of any particular foundation. This essay examines the longing for foundations in its relation to the truth of universal human suffering. Using the phenomenological method, it uncovers a certain moment of distress that shows itself in the form of longing for the constant presence of an authoritative ground that would obscure universal suffering and give focus to the phenomenon of infinite ethical responsibility that attends the I’s encounter with the suffering of others. Thought hungers for a responsibility-relieving warrant (A) for …

On The Legal Construction Of Ethnic Cleansing, Timothy V. Waters

ExpressO

On the Legal Construction of Ethnic Cleansing

Timothy William Waters, Univ. Mississippi School of Law

Abstract

What is the true shape of our commitment to prohibit ethnic cleansing? This Article explores that question by considering a case observers have universally decided does not constitute ethnic cleansing. It examines the recent controversy in the European Union, when Sudeten Germans demanded that the Czech Republic apologize for having expelled them after WWII before being admitted to the EU. Their demands were universally rejected and the legality of the expulsions was reconfirmed by all relevant actors. So what is the consequence for customary …

Torture: Considering A Framework For Limiting Use, Scott J. Goldberg

ExpressO

Abu Graib, Guantanamo, the War on Terror—the debate over the use of torture is still very much alive in the world today. The debate can be divided into two questions: (1) whether there should be an actual absolute ban where torture is never allowed either ethically or legally, and (2) if torture should be allowed under certain circumstances what form of regulation is best able to ensure that it is used only in those most limited circumstances. Currently, there is an absolute ban in place, yet world leaders, applying a case-by-case utilitarian approach, in fact permit the use of torture …

Cambodia At A Crossroads: How Repealing Untac Article 63, Cambodia's Current Defamation Law, Will Lead To A More Vigorous Democracy, Alicia A. Adornato

ExpressO

Cambodia’s current criminal defamation law is an impermissible intrusion of Cambodians’ constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom of expression. The law itself is a remnant of the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia. Moreover it is now being used as a tool to silence the government’s political opposition through a weak judiciary system, leaving in its wake a democracy afraid to exercise its constitutionally guaranteed rights. This law is an unconstitutional violation for several reasons: first, it violates the right to freedom of expression which is guaranteed in Cambodia’s Constitution. Secondly, it is incompatible with Cambodia’s human rights obligations under the …

Christina M. Cerna On The Torture Papers: The Road To Abu Ghraib. Edited By Karen J. Greenberg And Joshua L. Dratel. Cambridge, Ma: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 1249 Pp., Christina M. Cerna

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

The Torture Papers: The Road to Abu Ghraib. Edited by Karen J. Greenberg and Joshua L. Dratel. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 1249 pp.

Gender-Based War Crimes: Incidence And Effectiveness Of International Criminal Prosecution, Andrea R. Phelps

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Modern Day Slavery In Our Own Backyard, Ellen L. Buckwalter, Maria Perinetti, Susan L. Pollet, Meredith S. Salvaggio

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Women In Peacekeeping And Peacemaking: Devising Solutions To The Demand Side Of Trafficking, Connie De La Vega, Chelsea E. Haleynelson

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

No abstract provided.

Bringing Human Rights Abusers To Justice In U.S. Courts: Carrying Forward The Legacy Of The Nuremberg Trials, Sandra Coliver

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Genocide, Crimes Against Humanity, And Darfur: The Commission Of Inquiry's Findings On Genocide, William A. Schabas

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Catch 22 Exclusionary Inclusion: The Palestinian Refugees' Struggle For Protection, Suzanne Taher Shams

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Legal Interpretations Of The Right To Divorce And Polygamy And The Egyptian Feminist Movement, Mozn A Hassan

Archived Theses and Dissertations

This essay aims to analyze the project of the Egyptian feminist movement in the legal arena to achieve equality for women under the Egyptian laws focusing on the right of divorce and polygamy. lt seeks to examine the most liberal interpretations towards these two questions. The essay assesses many of the methodologies used differently from feminist groups and its focal point were the lslamic legal interpretations according to the Egyptian legal system. The essay provides an innovative classification for feminist movement in Egypt. This classification is based on criticism of other available classifications and their legal tools every group have …

No Laughing Matter: The Controversial Danish Cartoons Depicting The Prophet Mohammed, And Their Broader Meaning For The Europe’S Public Square, Ruti G. Teitel

Other Publications

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Reservations And Declarations Before The Inter-American Court Of Human Rights: The Las Hermanas Serrano Cruz Case And The Future Of Inter-American Justice, Jessica L. Tillson

ExpressO

Las Hermanas Serrano Cruz is a landmark case in the jurisprudence of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights because it excludes a large body of arguably valid claims from meaningful adjudication within the inter-American system. In the Las Hermanas Serrano Cruz decision on preliminary objections, the Court upheld El Salvador’s restriction to rationae temporis. Although the State’s restriction was improper both substantively and procedurally, the Court held it to be valid under the American Convention on Human Rights by misclassifying it as a declaration rather than a reservation. This mistake not only proved detrimental to the Las Hermanas Serrano Cruz …

Superstition-Based Injustice In Africa And The United States: The Use Of Provocation As A Defense For Killing Witches And Homosexuals, Jennifer Dumin

ExpressO

This Article examines two different instances where strong cultural and religious beliefs suggest that an individual is justified in taking another’s life. Focusing primarily on South Africa and the United States, it argues that the rationale used to defend those who kill suspected witches and those who kill suspected homosexuals is the same – merely because a criminal holds a belief that the victim is evil, the criminal is somehow entitled to a lesser punishment. In the United States, those who readily recognize the absurdity of the witchcraft defense may have some difficulty in recognizing the same level of absurdity …

What's In A Name?: Cause Lawyers As Conceptual Category, Corey S. Shdaimah

ExpressO

Stuart Scheingold's and Austin Sarat's "Something to Believe In: Politics, Professionalism, and Cause Lawyering," (Stanford University Press, December 2004) draws on a decade of empirical and theoretical work on cause lawyering. Scheingold’s and Sarat’s law and society scholarship contributes to our knowledge of lawyering, the law, work with clients and social movements, and the interplay between what Ewick and Silbey have called "legality" and the social world. Their cross-disciplinary work makes a significant contribution to the social sciences as well as to the field of legal studies. This review examines the utility of cause lawyering as a concept that contributes …

Whose Law Is It Anyway? The Cultural Legitimacy Of International Human Rights In The United States, Elizabeth M. Bruch

Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Between Rogues And Liberals: Towards Value Pluralism As A Theory Of Freedom Of Religion In International Law, Peter G. Danchin

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

What's So Special About Transitional Justice? Prolegomenon For An Excuse-Centered Approach To Transitional Justice, David C. Gray

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Enhancing Human Security: U.S. Policies And Their Health Impact On Women In Sub-Saharan Africa, Tamera Fillinger

University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class

No abstract provided.

Human Rights Enforcement In The Twenty-First Century, Douglas L. Donoho

Faculty Scholarship

The international human rights system enters the twenty-first century facing a profound anomaly. Despite remarkable normative and institutional developments since the system's inception, the world remains mired in widespread violations of human dignity. Genocidal episodes have repeatedly scarred the consciousness of humankind since World War ll. Floods of refugees and simmering ethnic conflicts continually challenge the international community's capacity to respond, and grotesque forms of physical abuse, such as torture and summary execution, remain commonplace Despite a promising trend toward democratic governance around the world, basic civil liberties for countless millions remain only an empty promise.' Most disheartening of all, …

Female Refugees: Re-Victimized By The Material Support To Terrorism Bar, Kara Beth Stein

McGeorge Law Review

No abstract provided.

Sovereignty, Identity, And The Apparatus Of Death, Tawia Baidoe Ansah

Faculty Publications

Ten years after the genocide in Rwanda, the government issued broad new laws outlawing the use of ethnic categories, with a view to uniting all Rwandans under a single Rwandan identity. This self-erasure of ethnic identity is deployed primarily within the borders of the state, to enable reconciliation after the genocide in 1994. Outside the borders, the state deploys ethnic identity as one of the rationales for its cross-border wars (in the Democratic Republic of Congo).

Oil And Gas Exploitation On Arctic Indigenous Peoples’ Territories Human Rights, International Law And Corporate Social Responsibility, Rune S. Fjellheim, John B. Henriksen

Aboriginal Policy Research Consortium International (APRCi)

The Resource Centre for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples’ Gáldu Čála nr 4/2006 con- tains two articles addressing certain core social, legal and economic questions related to oil and gas operations in indigenous areas, written by Mr. Rune Sverre Fjellheim and Mr. John B. Henriksen respectively.

Around the world, including in the Arctic, there are disputes about ownership, utiliza- tion, management and conservation of traditional indigenous lands and resources - often caused by decisions or attempts to use traditional indigenous lands and resources for industrial purposes, including oil and gas exploration. This situation represents an enor- mous challenge, and in …

Practicing What We Preach: Humane Treatment For Detainees In The War On Terror, Jennifer Moore

Faculty Scholarship

This article sets forth both principled and pragmatic arguments for the fair and humane treatment of all individuals detained in the war on terror derived from both U.S. and international law. Section II explores the human dimension of the "war on terror." Section IIA critiques the use of the metaphor of war to characterize counter-terrorism policy. Section IIB examines the experiences of several individuals apprehended by the United States on suspicion of involvement in terrorism, including the response of U.S. courts to their detention without charge as "unlawful combatants." Section III offers possible explanations for the phenomenon by which the …

Fugitive Slaves And Ship-Jumping Sailors: The Enforcement And Survival Of Coerced Labor, Jonathan M. Gutoff

Law Faculty Scholarship

This article explores the relationship between the law of maritime labor and the law of slavery. In the eighteenth century, both sailors and slaves were part of a broad regime of unfree labor relations, with slaves, of course, the most oppressed. In the nineteenth century, an era otherwise supposedly devoted to the ideal of "free" labor, sailors and slaves instead remained unfree, subject to federal laws providing for the forced return to their toils if they deserted - the Merchant Seaman's Act and the Fugitive Slave Act. Both of those statutes were deemed to be within Congress' authority, despite questionable …

United Nations Update, Nicholas Leddy

Human Rights Brief

No abstract provided.

Ngo Update, Lauren Bartlett

Human Rights Brief

No abstract provided.