Suchergebnisse

Explores humanitarian intervention in the Balkans from the perspective of a participant in the action. The focus is on the political ramifications of conflicts/interventions in both Bosnia & Herzegovina (Bosnia) & Serbia & Montenegro (former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia). It is argued that interventions in Bosnia & Kosovo were just as much the consequences of circumstance as they were demonstrations of the international community's commitment to deal with human rights violations. Basic principles underlying humanitarian aid are examined, along with conflicts surrounding the break-up of Yugoslavia; involvement of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees; & the role of the much-criticized UN Protection Force. Similarities & differences between conflicts in Kosovo & Bosnia are pointed out. It is maintained that the Balkan situation illustrates that any international response intended to relieve suffering resulting from human rights violations will lose legitimacy over time. Other lessons learned include the need to engage the UN, preserve the identity of humanitarian operations; & end granting immunity to those who commit human rights violations. J. Lindroth

"The dilemma of how best to protect human rights is one of the most persistent problems facing the international community today. This unique and wide-ranging history of humanitarian intervention examines responses to oppression, persecution and mass atrocities from the emergence of the international state system and international law in the late sixteenth century, to the end of the twentieth century. Leading scholars show how opposition to tyranny and to religious persecution evolved from notions of the common interests of 'Christendom' to ultimately incorporate all people under the concept of 'human rights'. As well as examining specific episodes of intervention, the authors consider how these have been perceived and justified over time, and offer important new insights into ideas of national sovereignty, international relations and law, as well as political thought and the development of current theories of 'international community'"--

Main description: Humanitarian Interventions - that sounds nice; much nicer than wars, battles and use of military force. Foremost, the phrase makes you think of the delivery of sanitary goods, medication, of soup-kitchens. Here we are not supposed to think of interventions of this kind; we have to have humanitarian interventions in mind which are humanitarian intervention-wars. (I) At exactly what point is the use of military force a humanitarian intervention? What is the humanitarian aspect of those interventions? Their occasion? Their motive? Their alleged as well as their actual consequences? (II) At exactly what point are humanitarian intervention-wars morally justifiable? Are they justifiable even if they are wars of aggression breaching international law? And finally: (III) Was the war which was presented to us as the paradigmatic example of a humanitarian-intervention-war, that is: the war in Kosovo in the spring of 1999 (with over 37,000 bombing missions), really justifiable as a humanitarian intervention? Many of us wanted to believe so at the time. Does our ex ante judgement hold today in an ex post reflection? And which lessons for the future should we learn from the success or failure of this humanitarian war? These are the questions proposed in this book; therefore, it is concerned with problems of semantics (part I), problems of moral assessment (part II) and with the moral, legal and political conclusions we draw from our experiences with the war in Kosovo, our primary example of a humanitarian intervention (part III). International experts in the areas of philosophy, international law, sociology and peace studies debated these questions vigorously for several days. This is the resulting volume.

Examines justifications under humanitarian and international law and legality of UN Security Council backed interventions and those which occur without authorization; 2 reviews and a response. Contents: Intervention in law and politics, by Linda S. Bishai; Separating law and politics: a comment, by Jan Klabbers; The politics of legal change, by Svend Aage Christensen and Ole Waever.

The following essay describes the idea of humanitarian intervention in relation to civil-military cooperation. In the first part it presents the definition of the concept, its characteristics as well as the brief history of its development. Second part describes the issues of legality and legitimacy of humanitarian intervention. Third part concentrates on relations between civil and military actors, co-operation of their tasks based on the example of CIMIC, as well as the challenges remaining to make their coexistence successful. For better presentation of the complexity of the issue, in the last part are presented lessons learned from humanitarian intervention in Kosovo. Article ends with short presentation of future prospect for improvement of civil-military cooperation in humanitarian interventions.

Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, and Kosovo. All are examples where humanitarian intervention has been called into action. This timely and important new volume explores the legal and moral issues which emerge when a state uses military force in order to protect innocent people from violence perpetrated or permitted by the government of that state. Humanitarian intervention can be seen as a moral duty to protect but it is also subject to misuse as a front for imperialism without regard to international law.In Humanitarian Intervention, the contributors explore the many questions surrounding the issue. Is humanitarian intervention permitted by international law? If not, is it nevertheless morally permissible or morally required? Realistically, might not the main consequence of the humanitarian intervention principle be that powerful states will coerce weak ones for purposes of their own? The current debate is updated by two innovations in particular, the first being the shift of emphasis from the permissibility of intervening to the responsibility to intervene, and the second an emerging conviction that the response to humanitarian crises needs to be collective, coordinated, and preemptive. The authors shed light on the timely debate of when and how to intervene and when, if ever, not to.Contributors: Carla Bagnoli, Joseph Boyle, Anthony Coates, Thomas Franck, Brian D. Lepard, Catherine Lu, Pratap Bhanu Mehta, Terry Nardin, Thomas Pogge, Melissa S. Williams, and Kok-Chor Tan

THE ARTICLE PROVIDES GUIDANCE IN FORMULATING AND ANALYZING ETHICAL DECISIONS ABOUT HUMANITARIAN INTERVENTION, BOTH THEORETICALLY AND EMPIRICALLY. THE MORAL ASSUMPTIONS OF INTERVENING AGENCIES PREDISPOSE THE TYPE OF INTERVENTION UNDERTAKEN AND CONTRIBUTE TO A FULLER UNDERSTANDING OF THE PROBLEMS OF CO-ORDINATION BOTH WITHIN AND BETWEEN AID AGENCIES AND THE MILITARY. A UNIFIED THEORY OF INTERVENTION MUST THEREFORE ACCOMMODATE THESE CLEAVAGES AND, AT SOME LEVEL, INCORPORATE THEM.

In this piece, Henderson looks to the shadow of Rwanda in terms of the concept of humanitarian intervention, and the evolution of the R2P doctrine. Tracing the re-examination of the conceptualisations of sovereignty and the principle of non-intervention that evolved after Rwanda, Henderson assesses the legal, normative, and institutional challenges that still attend the attainment of its goals. Henderson concludes on a note of cautious optimism: Although it is in no way a panacea, R2P – at the very least – raises the possibility that a greater range of measures may be taken in response to the commission, or anticipation of, atrocity crimes in the future. The legacy of Rwanda is the hope, reflected in R2P, that silence and idleness will never again be the international community's response to genocide.

The question of 'humanitarian intervention' has been a staple of international law for around 200 years, with a renewed interest in the history of the subject emerging in the last twenty years. This book provides a chronological account of the evolution of the discussion and uncovers the fictional narrative provided by international lawyers to support their conclusions on the subject, from justifications and arguments for 'humanitarian intervention', the misrepresentation of great power involvement in the Greek War of Independence in 1827, to the 'humanitarian intervention that never was', India's war with Pakistan in 1971. Relying on a variety of sources, some of them made available in English for the first time, the book provides an undogmatic, alternative history of the fight for the protection of human rights in international law.

Should states use military force for humanitarian purposes? Leading scholars and practitioners provide practical and theoretical answers to this burning question, demonstrating why humanitarian intervention continues to be a controversial issue, not only for the UN, but also for Western states and humanitarian organizations.

A review essay on four reports published as books: (1) Responsibility to Protect: Report of the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty (Ottawa: International Development Research Centre, 2001); (2) Humanitarian Intervention (Netherlands: Advisory Committee Issues Public International Law, 2000); (3) Humanitarian Intervention: Legal and Political Aspects (Danish Instit International Affairs, 1999); & (4) The Report of the Independent International Commission on Kosovo Oxford: Oxford U Press, 2000).