International Law Commons^™

Rights And Rebuilding In El Salvador: A Case Study In Two Parts, Elaine K. Denny, Susan Waltz

Human Rights & Human Welfare

In January 2007, on the 15th anniversary of the signing of the peace accords that ended 12 years of civil war and grave human rights violations in El Salvador, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon praised El Salvador as a model for other countries emerging from conflict: “The groundbreaking accords signed in Mexico City in January 1992 not only set El Salvador on a new course. They also provided precedents and experiences that continue to inspire others who are striving to rebuild their societies following conflict. And they continue to be a point of reference for the United Nations, as we …

Teaching Notes: Rights And Rebuilding In El Salvador, Elaine K. Denny, Susan Waltz

Human Rights & Human Welfare

We have prepared this two-part case study with two pedagogical purposes in mind: (1) To develop an understanding of the concept (and political meaning) of human rights. (2) To facilitate discussion about processes of reconciliation and reconstruction and the importance of holistic conceptions of rights and security for future stability.

© Elaine K. Denny & Susan Waltz. All rights reserved.

This paper may be freely circulated in electronic or hard copy provided it is not modified in any way, the rights of the author not infringed, and the paper is not quoted or cited without express permission of the author. …

In Search Of An “Action Principle”, Patrick J. Glen

Human Rights & Human Welfare

In his seminal work on the history of scientific development, Thomas Kuhn described the structure of that development as revolutionary in nature, occurring at that point in time “in which an older paradigm is replaced in whole or in part by an incompatible one.” The impetus for this paradigm shift is malfunction—“scientific revolutions are inaugurated by a growing sense … that an existing paradigm has ceased to function adequately in the exploration of an aspect of nature to which that paradigm itself had previously led the way…. [T]he sense of malfunction that can lead to crisis is prerequisite to revolution.” …

January Roundtable: Introduction

Human Rights & Human Welfare

An annotation of:

“My compatriots' vote to ban minarets is fuelled by fear” by Tariq Ramadan. The Guardian. November 29, 2009.

Democracy And Flame-Fanning Populists: An Undesirable Yet Inevitable Combination, Richard Burchill

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Tariq Ramadan views the recent referendum in Switzerland inserting a ban against the building of minarets into the Swiss Constitution, as a vote against Muslims not only in Switzerland, but across Europe. Those of a more tolerant sensibility will of course agree with Ramadan on this issue and will easily criticize the Swiss for “getting it wrong” by voting in favor of this constitutional amendment. There is no question that a constitutional vote on what is essentially an issue of local planning permission is, as Ramadan describes it, a silly initiative. However, this is also the nature of democracy as …

Of Minarets, Headscarves, And Cartoons, Kurt Mills

Human Rights & Human Welfare

It is difficult not to agree with Tariq Ramadan. The fear of and discrimination against Muslims in Western societies since 9/11 is clear and worrying. The anti-Muslim populism he cites is real, although it may also be part of a broader anti-immigrant populism. The posters he describes are extremely disturbing, and reminiscent of World War II propaganda. They are an artifact of fear of the misunderstood “other.”

Minarets Vote Compromises Human Rights For Everyone, Anna Talbot

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Minarets, like church steeples, are a physical manifestation of religion. There is little doubt, then, that their recent banning in Switzerland following a referendum constitutes a breach of the right to freedom of religion, with respect to the right to manifest ones religion. This right is protected under a number of instruments, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 18), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) (Article 18), and the European Convention on Human Rights (Article 9). Under these instruments, the right to manifest ones religion can only be limited if such a limitation is necessary …

Sex Representation On The Bench: Legitimacy And International Criminal Courts, Nienke Grossman

All Faculty Scholarship

This essay examines the relationship between legitimacy and the presence of both male and female judges on international criminal court benches. It argues that sex representation – an approximate reflection of the ratio of the sexes in the general population – on the bench is an important contributor to legitimacy of international criminal courts. First, it proposes that sex representation affects normative legitimacy because men and women bring different perspectives to judging. Consequently, without both sexes, adjudication is inherently biased. Second, even if one rejects the proposition that men and women "think differently", sex representation affects sociological legitimacy because sex …

Book Review: The Sword And The Scales: The United States And International Courts And Tribunals, Nienke Grossman

All Faculty Scholarship

This is a book review of "The Sword and the Scales: The United States and International Courts and Tribunals," edited by Cesare P. R. Romano (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2010). The book provides in-depth analysis of the relationship between the United States and various of the world's most important international courts and tribunals. The review was written for a forthcoming issue of Climate Law.

Comparative Perspectives On Specialized Trials For Terrorism, Sudha Setty

Faculty Scholarship

On the campaign trail in 2008, presidential candidate and then-Senator Barack Obama promised to restore America’s place in the world by breaking with many of the national security policies put into effect by President George W. Bush. In January 2009, President Obama made numerous changes to United States foreign policy, including signing an executive order to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and announcing that the United States would not engage in interrogation techniques that constitute torture. In some respects, however, Obama has followed the example of President Bush - for example, in his resuscitation of a specialized military …

Security Council Resolution 1820: An Imperfect But Necessary Resolution To Protect Civilians From Rape In War Zones, Melissa Goldenberg Goldstoff

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note examines the significance and limitations of UN Security Council Resolution 1820, which recognizes rape as a war crime and a threat to international security. While the Resolution is a crucial step forward in protecting women during armed conflicts, it is argued to be imperfect due to its incomplete implementation mechanisms and potential to undermine earlier resolutions like Resolution 1325, which emphasizes women's roles in peace-building.

The Principle Of Complementarity And The International Criminal Court: The Role Of Ne Bis In Idem, Linda Carter

McGeorge School of Law Scholarly Articles

No abstract provided.

Why Do States That Oppose Nuclear Proliferation Resist New Nonproliferation Obligations?: Three Logics Of Nonproliferation Decision-Making, Andrew Grotto

Cardozo Journal of International and Comparative Law

Why do states that oppose nuclear proliferation resist initiatives to strengthen the nonproliferation regime? There is virtually universal support for the basic principle of nonproliferation - all countries but four are states-party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Yet enthusiasm among NPT parties for proposals to strengthen the nonproliferation regime varies widely even as new challenges highlight dangerous gaps in the regime.

There is something approaching consensus among scholars and policy-makers that many states resist proposals to strengthen the nonproliferation end of the NPT bargain largely because America and other nuclear-weapon states haven't made satisfactory progress towards nuclear disarmament. I suggest …

Conference: She Can Do No Wrong: Recent Failures In America's Immigration Courts To Provide Women Asylum From Honor Crimes Abroad, Shira T. Shapiro

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Lawfare: A Rhetorical Analysis, Tawia Baidoe Ansah

Faculty Publications

This Article offers arhetoricalanalysis of the term "lawfare. " It examines the term within the context of its historical genesis, and reviews its evolving definition. Drawing upon insights from non-legal disciplines, the Article argues that rhetorically, "lawfare" indicates alternative and critical ways to think of law in relation to war.

It’S Not A Small World After All: Regulating Obesity Globally, Eloisa Rodriguez-Dod

Faculty Publications

The rate of obesity and overweight among the world population has increased dramatically over the past several years in both adults and children. Childhood obesity is a critical health care concern. There have been well-publicized efforts to regulate children‘s obesity both in the U.S. and abroad through such measures as mandated nutritional school lunch programs.

This article focuses, however, on a less examined area of regulation—the recent worldwide efforts to curb obesity among adults. The regulations discussed in this article include measures proposed or adopted by either administrative agencies or legislative bodies, whether on a local or national level. The …

The Precedent Of Pretrial Release At The Icty: A Road Better Left Less Traveled, Megan A. Fairlie

Faculty Publications

In August 2009 the International Criminal Court (ICC) granted the interim release of the Congolese alleged warlord, Jean-Pierre Bemba, who has been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Central African Republic. This decision left Bemba poised to become the first ICC accused ever to enjoy pre-trial release. Of comparable significance, because the decision draws upon relevant jurisprudence from the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), it highlights the potentially powerful influence of ICTY precedent upon a growing field of international and internationalized criminal justice institutions. The new Bemba release decision is just one in …

A Bittersweet Heritage: Learning From The Making Of South African Legal Culture, Stephen Ellmann

Articles & Chapters

This essay responds to Martin Chanock's argument that race tainted the entire enterprise of South African judging. It seeks to understand how that could have been so, and looks to such driving forces as whites' guilt, denial, identity-building, self-protection, and legitimation for explanations. Then it asks whether an institution so tainted should now be altogether abandoned as part of the rebuilding of post-apartheid South Africa. The essay answers that much should be changed, but that the existence of a judiciary laying claim to a special expertise and responsibility in interpreting law and protecting rights a key heritage of the old …

The Market For Treaties, Natasha Affolder

All Faculty Publications

Corporations are consumers of treaty law. In this article, I empirically examine three biodiversity treaty regimes - the Convention on Biological Diversity, Ramsar Convention, and World Heritage Convention - to demonstrate that corporations implement or internalize treaty norms in a variety of ways that are not captured by the dominant model of treaty implementation – national implementation. As an exegetical model, I explore how corporations use biodiversity treaties as a source of private environmental standards. I focus on the interactions between mining and oil and gas companies and biodiversity treaties, as revealed through transactional documents, corporate reports, security law filings, …

Countering Persistent Contemporary Sea Piracy: Expanding Jurisdictional Regimes, Joseph M. Isanga

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.