Suchergebnisse

Besides providing platforms for dialogues on global art and cultural discourse, biennials are highly conducive to the decentralisation of the art world. It goes without saying that each biennial's context, in other words its specific geopolitical framework conditions, organisational forms and promotional structures as well as local actors, plays a decisive part. This study, by way of example, will focus primarily on recently founded biennials in the so-called "Global South" and, in this respect, particularly on the African continent with the objective of identifying both trends and specific needs. Therefore, the funding of biennials worldwide as, for example, undertaken by the European Union or cultural institutes of European countries will be studied and contextualised in order to delineate current trends as well as possible promotion activities within the scope of Germany's foreign cultural and educational policy as well as international cooperation efforts.

"A breach of fair and equitable treatment is alleged in almost every investor-state dispute. It has therefore become a controversial norm, which touches many questions at the heart of general international law. Roland Klager sheds light on these controversies by exploring the deeper doctrinal foundations of fair and equitable treatment and reviewing its contentious relationship with the international minimum standard. The norm is also discussed in light of the fragmentation of international law, theories of international justice and rational balancing, and the idea of constitutionalism in international law. In this vein, a shift in the way of addressing fair and equitable treatment is proposed by focusing on the process of justificatory reasoning"--

AbstractAlthough informal and traditionally driven practices of mediation have existed for many generations, institutionalized and African-driven mediation became more important following the end of the Cold War. Mediation initiatives undertaken over the past 25 years, partly as a consequence of the increase in intra-state conflicts on the continent, have resulted in the generation of a deep body of knowledge and the evolution of a community of practitioners. This article examines two of the first post-1990 African-driven mediation processes – the Arusha Peace Process for Burundi and the Inter-Congolese Dialogue (icd) for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (drc) – to highlight key lessons that emerged, including the choice of mediator, who to include in the mediation, the impact of regional and international dynamics on the mediation, the importance and challenges of addressing the root causes of the conflict in a mediation process, and the role of non-state actors and Track ii diplomacy.

The activities of the German branch of the International Pro-Falasha Committee before World War I are quite unknown. A twofold document from 1914, a circular letter, asking the German Jewry for assistance for the Falasha, and the attached membership-list are considered. The article tries to explore the reasons, why such a Jewish association was established, and why at that time. It also focusses on the motivations of the German participants, their social and academic backgrounds and their networking. Fitting well into the then vivid "Jewish renaissance", the image of an untouched Jewry, surviving in Ethiopia from pre-rabbinical times on, may then have fulfilled multiple purposes for the Europeans: Rescuing brethren abroad – by the idea of Jewish self-help and Jewish faith, all together combined with a belief in European superiority –, rejection of Christian missionary efforts, self-assertion and resistance against the Christian majority, and the sharpening of an unique Jewish identity.

The recent sudden upsurge of interest in Swiss behavior during and after World War II seems to call for a brief review of the international law issues that were relevant to that country's decisions. Many of them, in particular the law of neutrals, have become obsolete and are obviously not understood by many commentators. Of course, to reach a judgment that the behavior of Switzerland was compatible with the rules of international law then in effect does not dispose of issues of humanity and morality. But it does contribute to explaining Swiss behavior, particularly since the Government in Bern was quite legalistic in its approach to the questions of the time.

A decade ago Professor Henkin remarked that "there has been almost no examination at all of the relation between international human rights and the American Constitutional version of human rights." Since then he has done much to fill this gap in the literature, as has, more recently, a distinguished barrister/scholar from Great Britain. Nevertheless, it may be useful, in this symposium celebrating the bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution, to survey both the contribution it has made to the development of international human rights law and the extent to which the latter has influenced the evolution of U.S. constitutional law.