Human Rights Law Commons^™

Religion, Politics And Human Rights: Understanding The Role Of Christianity In The Promotion Of Human Rights, Barbara Ann Rieffer

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

The Global Face of Public Faith by David Hollenbach. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2003. 259pp.

and

For All Peoples and All Nations by John Nurser. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2005. 209pp.

How To Recapture Human Rights Within The Political: Validating The Discourse Theory Approach, Magdalena Zolkos

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Human Rights and Democracy: Discourse Theory and Global Rights Institutions by Eva Erman. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2005. 243 pp.

In Plain Sight? Human Trafficking And Research Challenges, Austin Choi-Fitzpatrick

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

In Modern Bondage: Sex Trafficking in the Americas. Edited by David E. Guinn and Elissa Steglich. Ardsley, NY: Transnational Publishers, 2003. 475pp.

Learning From Practice: Reframing The Scholarly Dialogue On Children’S Rights And Sexuality, Jean Scandlyn

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Of Innocence and Autonomy: Children, Sex and Human Rights. Edited by Eric Heinze. Aldershot: Ashgate, 2000. 208 pp.

Synthesis V. Purity And Large-N Studies: How Might We Assess The Gap Between Promise And Performance?, Will H. Moore

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Protecting Human Rights: A Comparative Study by Todd Landman. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 2005, 231 pp.

Escaping The Cultural Context Of Human Rights, Andrew Fagan

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

The Liberal Archipelago: A Theory of Diversity and Freedom by Chandran Kukathas. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2003. pp.292

Beyond Power Politics: International Law And Human Rights Discourse In The Post-9/11 World, J. Peter Pham

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Imperialism, Sovereignty and the Making of International Law by Antony Anghie. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 356 pp.

Adolf Eichmann: Understanding Evil In Form And Content, Matthew S. Weinert

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Criminal Case 40/61, the Trial of Adolf Eichmann by Harry Mulisch. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2005.

Human Rights In Latin America: Introduction, Regina Nockerts

Human Rights & Human Welfare

As with many regions of the world, human rights are an issue of enduring concern for Latin America. The essays and bibliographies in this digest chart the recent history of human rights issues in this region, beginning, in most cases, with the wave of military coups that began in the 1970s, highlighting their lasting effects on the governments, civil societies, and economies of the region today. The cases of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Peru are given here; the Organization of American States (OAS) is also covered.

Human Rights In Argentina, Scott Muttersbaugh

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The election of populist Juan Peron in 1946 brought expanded economic and social rights to the working class. Consequently his popularity continued to rise, although the armed forces staged a coup in 1955, resulting in Peron’s nearly twenty-year exile. By 1973 Argentina’s economy had fallen apart and the still popular Peronist party gained the support needed for Peron’s return. With terrorism on the rise, the government granted a special executive authority to the military, allowing Peron to imprison people indefinitely without a trial, signaling a change in the government's priorities towards human rights.

The Organization Of American States, Natalie Knowlton

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The international community focused its attention on protecting human rights in response to horrendous human rights abuses during World War II. Latin and South American states enacted The American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man [Declaration] in 1948, shortly after their creation of the Organization of American States [OAS]. While the Declaration set forth dozens of rights, little was done in the next decade to establish a means for their protection.

Human Rights In Peru, William Osborne

Human Rights & Human Welfare

As many Central and South American nations continue to experience the human rights violations that characterized the twentieth century, Peru has moved forward. The truth and reconciliation process, which officially ended with a final report in August 2003 and corrective legal action by recent governments, created a stable nation where the rule of law applies.

Rights-Based Approaches To Development: Introduction, Sarah Hamilton

Human Rights & Human Welfare

This digest offers a multidimensional, well-chosen, and timely compilation of resources analyzing the myriad relationships between fields devoted to the realization of human rights and human development. I appreciate having the opportunity to introduce the issue for two reasons. First, the contributors perform a tremendous service to both fields. They have created an accessible pathway to works that engage: the normative, substantive, and empirical dimensions of the human rights/development nexus; key debates among theoreticians, policy-makers, and practitioners concerning this nexus; inclusive analysis of institutional frameworks and actors; and attention to both opportunities for, and challenges to, the realization of increasingly …

The African Union, Makaria Green

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The African Union (AU) was established on July 8, 2001. Its predecessor was the Organization for African Unity (OAU)—established in 1963. The charter that created the OAU was the result of several multinational African conferences held in the 1950s and 1960s aimed at supporting Africans who were still under colonial rule to incite change through non-violent means. The OAU had just four organs: the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, the Council of Ministers, the General Secretariat and the Commission of Mediation, and Conciliation and Arbitration. On September 9, 1999, the Assembly of Heads of State and Government issued …

International Monetary Fund, Kris Kirby

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Just as the United Nations (U.N.) was created in direct response to the human atrocities and international conflict of World War II, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) was created to help repair the decimation that was experienced by the developed nations that became involved in the war. While both organizations have seemingly similar objectives (i. e. , post-war reconstruction and creation of an environment for lasting peace), the Articles of Agreement of the IMF, however, contains no explicit mention of human rights.

Office Of The High Commissioner For Human Rights, Robin Richardson

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A rights-based approach to development is a conceptual framework for the process of human development that is normatively based on international human rights standards and operationally directed to promoting and protecting human rights. Essentially, a rights-based approach integrates the norms, standards and principles of the international human rights system into the plans, policies and processes of development (The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights).

United Nations Development Programme, Jason Keeler

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The central goal of Development has and will be the promotion of human well-being. Given that human rights define and defend human well-being, a rights-based approach to development provides both the conceptual and practical framework for the realization of human rights through the development process (United Nations Development Programme: Regional Bureau for Asia & Pacific ).

World Health Organization, Wendy Braun

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Over the past 60 years the World Health Organization (WHO) has succeeded in improving the general standard of health around the world. The WHO is an international agency within the United Nations and is comprised of 192 countries. The World Health Assembly, a 34 member elected board, meets annually to determine new regulations and budgetary needs for the organization. Rights-based policy is integrated throughout the World Health Organization’s programs. The WHO works with several entities, including non-governmental organizations, U.N. agencies and private organizations to achieve goals and implement new programs. Key topics for the WHO include gender rights, policy, and …

World Bank, Adrienne Stohr

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The mission of the World Bank is to aid developing countries stabilize their economies through financial and technical assistance. The five dominant themes that emerge in a review of the World Bank literature are: health, gender, environment, globalization, and global governance. Each of these themes is broadly related to issues that consistently influence the larger issue of how the World Bank incorporates, rejects, or impacts human rights.

Defending Human Rights In The "War" Against Terror, Douglass Cassel

Journal Articles

Safeguarding human rights in our "war" against terrorism is both the right and the smart thing to do. It is right because human rights embody our fundamental values as Americans and as Christians. Our Constitution stands for freedom; our Creator teaches us to respect the God-given dignity of each human soul. Christians are called to cherish human dignity, not only of innocents, and not only of captives in war whose status as combatant or civilian may be uncertain, but also of cardinal sinners, the terrorists themselves. Christ Jesus teaches us to hate the sin, but somehow to bring ourselves to …

Gender Equality And Women's Solidarity Across Religious, Ethnic And Class Difference In The Kenyan Constitutional Review Process, Athena D. Mutua

Journal Articles

This paper examines Kenyan's women's struggle to gain new legal authority for gender equality and women's empowerment in the Kenya Constitutional Review process. Specifically it examines the efforts of the campaign to "safeguard the gains of women in the Draft Constitution," a campaign launched by a coalition of four civil society organizations in Kenya after the release of a new Draft constitution in 2002. Its focus is the 2002 Draft, the Draft's relationship to the current Kenyan Constitution and to recent constitutional proposals, from a gender perspective.

The constitutional review process is part of a larger movement to democratize the …

Rethinking The "Less As More" Thesis: Supranational Litigation Of Economic, Social And Cultural Rights In The Americas, Tara J. Melish

Journal Articles

In their 2005 law review article Less as More: Rethinking Supranational Litigation of Economic and Social Rights in the Americas, James Cavallaro and Emily Schaffer argue for a "rethinking" of strategies to advance economic, social and cultural rights in the Americas. They posit that to achieve higher rates of real-world protection for such rights, social rights advocates should do two things: first, bring less litigation and, second, frame any marginal litigation that is pursued as violations of classic civil and political rights. According to the authors, this recommended course will increase the "legitimacy" of the litigation and lead to higher …

Counter-Rejoinder: Justice Vs. Justiciability?: Normative Neutrality And Technical Precision, The Role Of The Lawyer In Supranational Social Rights Litigation, Tara J. Melish

Journal Articles

An important debate is currently underway in the inter-American human rights system involving the proper approach litigators, adjudicators, and advocates should take to supranational litigation of economic, social and cultural rights. Centered on questions of jurisdiction and the proper characterization and limits of justiciability, its resolution has tremendous implications for the tools available to on-the-ground advocates, their real-world effectiveness and sustainability in adjudicatory and advocacy contexts alike, and the rationalization of the system's developing jurisprudence over the long-term.

This article book-ends a trilogy of pieces appearing in the NYU Journal of International Law and Politics by two sets of authors, …

How Far Is The 'Door Ajar'? Whether Rape As Torture Is Actionable Under The Alien Tort Statute After Sosa, Zachary S. Kahn

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The "War On Terror" And The Erosion Of The Rule Of Law: The U.S. Hearings Of The Icj Eminent Jurist Panel, Mark W. Vorkink, Erin M. Scheick

Human Rights Brief

No abstract provided.

Reinterpreting Torture: Presidential Signing Statements And The Circumvention Of U.S. And International Law, Erin Louise Palmer

Human Rights Brief

No abstract provided.

Israel, Hezbollah And The Conflict In Lebanon: An Act Of Aggression Or Self-Defense?, Victor Kattan

Human Rights Brief

No abstract provided.

An Emerging Uniformity For International Law, David H. Moore

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Peoples' Tribunals: Legitimate Or Rough Justice, Christine M. Chinkin

Articles

The article examines the use of Peoples' Tribunals in seeking access to justice where none has been possible through more formal methods. It uses as illustration the Women's International War Crimes Tribunal that sought justice for the so-called comfort women, the primarily Asian women who were subjected to sexual slavery by the Japanese military before and during World War Two. The article briefly recounts the fate of the comfort women and then considers the legal and practical obstacles they faced in accessing justice at the end of the War. It outlines how towards the end of the 20th century the …

Courts Of Limited Jurisdiction In A Post-Transition Cuba, Matias F. Travieso-Diaz, Armando A. Musa

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Cuba's eventual transition to a free-market society will likely be accompanied by a flood of litigation in areas such as property rights, privatization of state-owned enterprises, and human rights violation claims. Courts of limited jurisdiction should be established to hear these specialized matters and alleviate the burden on regular courts. As the transition unfolds, there will also be a need to create specialized tribunals to handle disputes in areas such as taxation, bankrtupcy, and intellectual property. The creation of the various courts of limited jurisdiction will have to be supported by creative strategies for retraining existing judges, training new ones, …