International and Area Studies Commons^™

Human Rights And Post-War Reconstruction: Introduction, Roberto Belloni

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The expression “post-war reconstruction,” commonly adopted by both practitioners and academics, is somewhat misleading. Reconstruction does not entail rebuilding or return to the pre– war state of affairs as the expression seems to suggest. Rather, reconstruction involves difficult multiple transitions: from war to peace, from a state to a market economy, and from authoritarianism to democracy. Each transition taken by itself would be daunting. Taken together, they can be almost overwhelming.

Sri Lanka, Amanda Donahoe

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Sri Lanka has been entrenched in a civil war for two decades. As in ethnic conflicts in many other post-colonial countries, the different groups of Sri Lanka give loyalty primarily to the group, rather than to the entire country. The Sinhalese majority have slowly populated the government and treated the Tamil minority as a threat to national stability, instead of as candidates for conciliation and power sharing. Consequently, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) has taken up arms against the Sinhalese controlled government to fight for an independent homeland in the north and north-east parts of the country in …

Globalizing Democracy Or Democratizing Globalism?, Matthew S. Weinert

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Transnational Democracy: Political Spaces and Border Crossings edited by James Anderson. London: Routledge, 2002. 224pp.

The Promise And Limitations Of International Human Rights Activism, Rebecca Evans

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Breaking Silence: The Case that Changed the Face of Human Rights by Richard Alan White. Washington D.C.: Georgetown University Press, 2004. 320 pp.

A Life In The Realm Of Rights: A Man And A Movement’S History, Tom J. Farer

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Taking Liberties: Four Decades in the Struggle for Human Rights by Aryeh Neier. New York: PublicAffairs. 400pp.

Democratization In Afghanistan, Chris Rowe

Human Rights & Human Welfare

What determines whether a specific country embarks on the road to democracy, if it completes that voyage successfully, and finally consolidates democratic values, practices, and institutions? Analysts have debated these issues for decades and have identified a number of historical, structural, and cultural variables that help account for the establishment of successful democracies in some countries and its absence in others. Frequently cited prerequisites for democracy include social and economic modernization; a large and vibrant middle class; and cultural norms and values relating to politics.

Democratization In Iraq, Kate Lotz, Tim Melvin

Human Rights & Human Welfare

With the war in Iraq over, Coalition forces are still present as the cultivation of Iraqi democracy is underway. Coalition-led democratization in Iraq will prove to be a lengthy and complex objective, but one which will be pursued until successfully accomplished.

Neotrusteeship In Iraq, Tim Melvin

Human Rights & Human Welfare

This section deals with literature that examines the role and effectiveness of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in administering Iraq from 2003 till 2004. Foreign rule plays an important role in developing failed state’s infrastructure and institutions. By examining critical elements of the CPA’s administration, this section focuses on the overall success and failures of the CPA administrative capacity, and what this means for the future of Iraq’s new government. Since the cessation of the CPA, the Iraqi government has had its ups and downs and is still heavily reliant on the American presence. But some positive elements have been …

State-Building In Iraq, Hafsteinn Hafsteinnsson

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Whether the 2003 invasion of Iraq was principally strategic or humanitarian, the United States’ involvement in Iraq has become a complex state-building mission. While there is agreement within the international community on the importance of rebuilding a democratic Iraq, there are many conflicting viewpoints on how this operation should proceed.

Afghanistan, Greg Sanders

Human Rights & Human Welfare

After September 11, Afghanistan became the first battleground of the War on Terror when the Taliban government refused to turn over Osama Bin Laden and other Al Qaeda members. Human rights concerns about these events fall in two areas. First, did the United States violate human rights when it launched Operation Enduring Freedom to overthrow the Taliban and during the subsequent occupation? Second, have the occupation forces and new regime of under the leadership of Hamid Karzai done enough to improve the previously miserable human rights situation in Afghanistan?

Chechnya, Kelley Laird

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The root of animosity between Russians and Chechens extends for more than a century, beginning when Chechens opposed Russia’s conquest of the Caucasus between 1818 and 1917. Tension reached an apex in the 1940s when Stalin deported thousands of Chechens to Siberia and East Asia in fear that they would collaborate with German Nazis.

Colombia, Travis Ning

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The events of September 11 continued of the pattern of redefinition in the conflict in Colombia. The complex war of today actually began decades ago as a small political struggle, which has gradually developed into a large-scale civil war. The continuation and growth of civil strife in Colombia witnessed the emergence of several organized anti-government guerrilla movements. Some of these groups have since been defeated or have integrated themselves into the recognized political system. Others have continued to violently challenge Colombian government authority. Currently, the two most significant anti-government insurgency groups are the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC) and …

Europe, Victoria Lowdon, Angela Woolliams, Robin Davey

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Both individually and collectively, European countries have vast experience with international and domestic terrorism. Because the point of terrorist attacks is primarily within a particular country (United Kingdom, Turkey and Spain), terrorism has come to be viewed by these states as a domestic problem. At the same time European countries have recognized the value of inter-governmental cooperation, which has been codified in various bilateral and multilateral agreements and conventions dating back to the 1950’s.

Israel, Sydney Fisher

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Israel and Palestine have been in an “interim period” between full scale occupation and a negotiated end to the conflict for a long time. This supposedly intermediate period in the conflict has seen no respite from violations of Palestinians’ human rights or the suicide bombings affecting Israelis. This section will provide resources spanning the issues regarding Israel, Palestine and how the human rights dimensions of this conflict interact with the war on terror. The issue of how both sides will arrive at peace remains a mystery.

Pakistan, Susannah Compton, Toni Panetta

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Following armed hostilities in 1947-1949 between India and Pakistan, the region once known as the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir was divided. The disputed territory continues to split relations between Pakistan and India and the threat of war has been a daunting force as recently as 2002.

Uzbekistan, Chris Maggard

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The Central Asian republics have largely remained hidden from the world attention since they gained independence a decade ago. However, immediately following September 11th the region was brought into focus as a part of the US-led “War on Terror”. Uzbekistan became a full partner in this initiative when the government decided to allow the U.S. military full use of its territory in the invasion against Afghanistan . As Uzbek President Karimov has become willing to work with the West than neighboring countries, the debate in recent years has been how and to what extent, rather than whether or not the …

Lisa Schechtman On Reproductive Health And Human Rights: Integrating Medicine, Ethics, And Law By Rebecca J. Cook, Bernard M. Dickens, And Mahmoud F. Fathalla. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. 554 Pp., Lisa Schechtman

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Reproductive Health and Human Rights: Integrating Medicine, Ethics, and Law by Rebecca J. Cook, Bernard M. Dickens, and Mahmoud F. Fathalla. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. 554 pp.

Kathleen J. Hancock On Human Rights: International Protection, Monitoring, Enforcement By Janusz Symonides. Burlington, Vt: Ashgate Publishing, 2004. 416pp., Kathleen J. Hancock

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Human Rights: International Protection, Monitoring, Enforcement by Janusz Symonides. Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing, 2004. 416pp.

Armed Conflict, Health And Human Rights, Alex Deraney, Hafsteinn Hafsteinsson

Human Rights & Human Welfare

This section highlights resources with information on health concerns that arise from armed conflict. It examines human rights violations as derived from health issues and the humanitarian efforts to alleviate them. The vast majority of available literature approaches conflict-related healthcare shortfalls in terms of intervention. Literature dealing with armed conflict and health as it applies to human rights is much harder to come by, which indicates the need for additional emphasis in this area.

Matthew S. Weinert On Genocide In Cambodia: Documents From The Trial Of Pol Pot And Ieng Sary Edited By Howard Denike, John Quigley, And Kenneth Robinson. Philadelphia: University Of Pennsylvania Press, 2000. 559pp., Matthew S. Weinert

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Genocide in Cambodia: Documents from the Trial of Pol Pot and Ieng Sary edited by Howard Denike, John Quigley, and Kenneth Robinson. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2000. 559pp.

Exploring Children’S Rights In The World Of Work, Jean N. Scandlyn

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Children of Other Worlds: Exploitation in the Global Market by Jeremy Seabrook. London: Pluto, 2001. 166pp.

Appreciating Silence, Ronald C. Slye

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Bearing Witness: Women and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa by Fiona C. Ross. London: Pluto Press, 2003. 240pp.

Pinochet’S Chile: The United States, Human Rights, And International Terrorism, Todd Landman

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

International Human Rights and Authoritarian Rule in Chile by Darren Hawkins. Lincoln and London: University of Nebraska Press, 2002. 259 pp.

and

The Pinochet File: A Declassified Dossier of Atrocity and Accountability by Peter Kornbluh. New York and London: The New Press, 2003. 551 pp.

and

The Condor Years: How Pinochet and His Allies Brought Terrorism to Three Continents by John Dinges. New York: The New Press, 2004. 322 pp.

Global Economic Forces And Individual Labor Rights: An Uneasy Coexistence, Alice De Jonge

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Workers’ Rights as Human Rights edited by James A. Gross. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2003. 272pp.

and

International Labor Standards: Globalization, Trade, and Public Policy edited by Robert J. Flanagan and William B. Gould IV. Palo Alto: Stanford University Press, 2003. 275pp.

Human Rights, Health, And Corporations, Gerald Montgomery

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Unfettered economic policies have had a notable effect on the state of human rights. With the increasing spread of transnational corporations (TNCs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs) play a major role in setting ethical and moral standards for with the quality of life in the developing states where TNCs do business. Many TNCs are trying frantically to implement strategies that would alleviate labor injustices and corrupt practices in order to meet the standards argued for by NGOs.

Matthew S. Weinert On Crimes Against Humanity: The Struggle For Social Justice By Geoffrey Robertson. New York: The New Press, 1999 (Revised 2002). 658pp., Matthew S. Weinert

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Crimes Against Humanity: The Struggle for Social Justice by Geoffrey Robertson. New York: The New Press, 1999 (revised 2002). 658pp.

Eric Munoz On The Geopolitics Of Hunger 2000-2001: Hunger And Power Edited By Action Against Hunger. Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 2000. 354pp., Eric Muñoz

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

The Geopolitics of Hunger 2000-2001: Hunger and Power edited by Action Against Hunger. Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 2000. 354pp.

The “Great Game” For The Twenty-First Century: Islamic Extremism And Central Asia, Ian Sethre

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Reaping the Whirlwind: The Taliban Movement in Afghanistan by Michael Griffin. London: Pluto Press, 2001. 272pp.

and

Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia by Ahmed Rashid. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001. 281pp.

and

Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia by Ahmed Rashid. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2000. 274pp.

Questioning The Universality Of Human Rights, Paul J. Magnarella

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Universal Human Rights? edited by Robert G. Patman. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2000. 244pp.

and

Dealing with Human Rights: Asian and Western Views on the Value of Human Rights edited by Martha Meijer. Bloomfield, CT: Kumarian Press, 2001. 183pp.

and

The Philosophy of Human Rights by Patrick Hayden. St. Paul: Paragon House, 2001. 686pp.

Politics, Pragmatism, And Human Rights, Todd Landman

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Human Rights Horizons: The Pursuit of Justice in a Globalizing World by Richard A. Falk. New York: Routledge, 2000. 288pp.

and

Human Rights as Politics and Idolatry by Michael Ignatieff (edited by Amy Guttman). Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2001. 187pp.