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In 1993, Canada was the first country to formally open its doors to refugees fleeing gender-related persecution. While the timing of Canada's move may have been motivated by domestic politics, it was also tied to an international process through which the human rights of women and gender-related persecution had become politically relevant issues. This article investigates the emergence of an international norm accepting gender- related persecution as a basis for refugee status. It begins with an overview of developments on the matter in other jurisdictions and reveals the role Canada played by taking a first step. The article also reveals the process through which domestic, transnational and international actors converged to put the issue of gender-related persecution on the international agenda. ; En 1993, le Canada a été le premier pays à ouvrir officiellement ses frontières aux réfugiés fuyant une persécution fondée sur le sexage. Le moment choisi pour poser ce geste a certainement été motivé, de la part du Canada, par des considérations domestiques, mais il est aussi lié à un processus international à travers lequel les droits des femmes et la persécution fondée sur le sexage sont devenus des questions politiques d'importance. Le présent article étudie l'émergence d'une norme internationale reconnaissant la persécution fondée sur le sexage comme un critère pour l'obtention du statut de réfugié. Il s'amorce sur un survol des développements sur la question dans d'autres juridictions et révèle le rôle joué par le Canada par le seul fait de faire les premiers pas en la matière. Le présent article révèle aussi le processus ayant amené les intervenants domestiques, supranationaux et internationaux à une convergence de vue sur l'introduction de la question de la persécution fondée sur le sexage à l'ordre du jour international.

This study is concerned with tracing the process of how conflict prevention is moving from the realm of ideas to the field of action. Why is it that, despite historical as well as recent evidence of the infeasibility to prevent wars, the idea of conflict prevention has resurfaced to meet the challenge of the new wars of the post-Cold War era? The study investigates whether the growing interest in preventing the outbreak of violent conflicts marks the coming of age of conflict prevention as an international norm able to induce preventive practices. Adopting a social constructivist perspective, it analyzes the links between ideas, interests, norms and practices. Regarding actors and structures as mutually constitutive, this study advances an analytical framework that draws attention to the pivotal role of the norm entrepreneur in the dynamics of norm evolution. The evolution of a norm pertaining to conflict prevention is traced in the post-Cold War era, and Sweden's activities as an international norm entrepreneur in the EU and the UN are analyzed. It depicts the Swedish efforts to construct, diffuse and institutionalize a norm pertaining to conflict prevention as well as to translate conflict prevention into practice by participating in the preventive UN peacekeeping mission (UNPREDEP) in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The analysis reveals that a social constructivist perspective can assist us in investigating the links between ideas, norms, interests and practices. It shows that interests are defined in the context of internationally held norms, and that the growing interest in preventing violent conflicts may be derived from the emergent norm pertaining to conflict prevention. Norms emerge through the efforts of norm entrepreneurs. Through an analysis of Swedish norm entrepreneurship, this study finds that a small state's ability to advocate norms relies on the powers associated with compelling ideas, on presentation of "good" ideas when the time is ripe, and on the use of persuasive rhetoric to convince potential norm followers. Norm diffusion and socialization are found to be interactive processes involving the norm entrepreneur and the norm followers in a mutual learning process that may, as this study demonstrates, shape and reshape the evolving norm. The analysis illustrates how the evolution of the emergent norm pertaining to conflict prevention is facilitated by the construction of a normative fit with the frame of mind of the norm entrepreneur, the normative convictions of the potential norm followers and the existing normative context. Finally, the study demonstrates the interactiveness of norms and practices by analyzing the preventive UN peacekeeping operation in Macedonia. Although that unique preventive peacekeeping mission has not been replicated, and conflict prevention has clearly not become a regular practice, this study suggests that the mission contributed to spur the process of norm evolution by bridging the gap between idea and practice of conflict prevention.

This article explores an important as peel of peace movements· impact on international relations. It focuses in particular on the articulation and promotion of international legal norms by Anglo-American peace movements in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Social forces, in the form of peace movements, have, since the post-Napoleonic period, attempted with great energy and considerable success to influence norms underpinning international law. Norms promoted by these movements include constraints on stales' right to wage war and the requirement that slates attempt to resolve conflict' peacefully before using force, which over time have been embodied in treaties and agreements such as the Hague Conventions, the Covenant of the League of Nations, the 1928 Pact of Paris and the UN Charter. Additional norms promoted by peace movements include the constitutive principles or universalism (the notion that all political actors should participate in decisions about peace, security, and the improvement of international life) and equality of status (the notion that they should do so on an equal basis, and that rights should be granted to and obligations binding upon all) that provide the foundation for twentieth century global international organisations such as the League or Nations and the United Nations. Social movements have made these attempts as part of a much less successful endeavour to promote law as a means of ensuring international peace.

The fifty years since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights have seen a revolution in the promulgation and universalization of human and labor rights. Human rights conventions have proliferated in the areas of civil and political rights, social and economic rights, and the rights of women, children, minorities, and refugees. Many of these conventions have been ratified by a majority of the nations of the world. International monitoring of human and labor rights compliance is conducted by international institutions such as the U.N. Human Rights Commission and the International Labour Organization (ILO), by regional entities such as the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, and by national governments. Since the end of the Cold War, significant steps toward international judicial enforcement have been made through the development of regional courts such as the European and Inter-American Courts of Human Rights, through the creation of the International Criminal Tribunals for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and Rwanda (ICTR), and through the 1998 agreement to establish a Permanent International Criminal Court. Peacekeeping efforts such as that of the United Nations in East Timor and the military intervention of the North Atlantic Treaty human rights concerns. The ICTY's indictment last year of Slobodan Milosevic, a sitting head of state, was a striking pronouncement of the extent to which international human rights enforcement mechanisms have developed. Despite significant progress in the identification, definition, and promulgation of human and labor rights norms, however, international mechanisms for their enforcement remain underdeveloped. International monitoring bodies lack enforcement authority and rely substantially on the "mobilization of shame" to encourage governments to comply with international norms. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) remains limited in its effectiveness, and the ...

One of the oldest distinctions in philosophical discourse is that between "words about words" and "words about things."' Much scholarship among international lawyers and political scientists, as well as table-talk of diplomats and other practitioners concerning the somewhat airy concept of sovereignty, has suffered all too much from a failure to appreciate the confusion that flows from treating a word as though it were a fact. Now come to the table two pairs of scholars with contrasting interpretations of the central word of international law, sovereinty: at one end, international lawyers Abram and Antonia Handler Chayes; and at the other, political scientists Michael Ross Fowler and Julie Marie Bunck. Ironically, however, the lawyers unveil a "new sovereignty" by employing a variety of social science methodologies to explicate a nonlegal, "managerial" approach to the study of the transfer of state authority to international institutions. In a converse irony, the political scientists have appropriated the international lawyer's interpretive canon, parsing international judicial and arbitral decisions and combing state practice as evidence of customary international law, to advance an essentially traditional conception of sovereignty as state sovereignty.

This contribution examines the mechanisms for inducing compliance with international norms and rules as one major form of institutional effects. More specifically, it tackles the process from norm recognition to norm compliance. Two social logics of institutional impact are distinguished. They share the common assumption that only "inconvenient" rules cause problems of non-compliance, since they either cause material and ideational costs or are not compatible with existing institutions and identities. Rationalist approaches concentrate on positive and negative incentives to induce behavioural changes. International institutions can deploy sanctions but also provide resources for strengthening the capacity necessary to comply. Compliance is further promoted if international norms and rules empower actors that favour domestic change. Constructivist approaches, by contrast, conceive of compliance as a process of norm internalization that affects actors' preferences. The legitimacy of international norms and rules, their internalization in domestic law, and the persuasion of "norm-entrepreneurs" are crucial factors in inducing compliance. Although rationalist and constructivist emphasize different logics of social action, their hypotheses about the impact of institutions are not mutually exclusive but relate to each other. Two case studies on compliance with European environmental law and international human rights norms illustrate how rationalist and constructivist compliance mechanisms may interact. The chapter concludes with some suggestions for future research on the effects of international institutions.

Anti-personnel mines have evolved into the military device of choice in many regional conflicts across the world. The author commences his analysis of this development by considering the impact of anti-personnel mines on civilian populations and the reasons historically articulated for their use. After evaluating their relative costs and benefits, the author proceeds to analyze the problem of anti-personnel mines under the principles of international law. First, the author considers legal principles regarding the permissible use of force by combatants, generally referred to as jus in bello. Next, the author evaluates the use of anti-personnel mines under jus in bello and determines that their use is not justified under that principle. The author then argues that the use of anti-personnel mines violates jus cogens norms of international law. The author concludes that civilized nations of the world should abolish the use of such ordinances as a peremptory norm of international law.

International audience ; Legal islamology has made a great deal of work, though it reveals a lack of concern for the historical setting of normative practices and discourses. It quickly shifts to the construction of an Islamic political and legal specificity, thus backing a type of culturalism which, with regard to sharî'a, makes thinking that its present practice is transhistorically founded. However, a contextualised reading allows referring the constitution of a theoretical body to the embedding of individuals in socio-political games partly determining the problems they have to cope with and their attempts to answer them. This is where the idea of substantialisation of norms comes from. The focus on the work and the trajectory of three Coranic exegetes, Fakhr al-Dîn al-Râzî, Rashîd Ridâ et Sayyid Qutb, who can be considered as archetypes, constitutes the backbone of an attempt to demonstrate the formal nature of Islamic reference and the variability of its practical investment. ; Nous voudrions traiter du fait politique et juridique, en contexte islamique, au départ de pratiques, essentiellement discursives, d'une référence textuelle et de l'élaboration d'une rhétorique prétendant traduire une orthodoxie. Un grand travail islamologique a été accompli dans l'étude de la "Cité de l'islam" et dans l'"Introduction au droit musulman". Il se révèle toutefois souvent peu soucieux des relations qui unissent pratiques et normes, de l'historicité de ces pratiques et discours normatifs. Il verse rapidement dans l'élaboration d'une spécificité politico-juridique islamique, suivi dans cette direction par des travaux historiques plus récents. Or, l'idée d'une spécificité renvoie à ce culturalisme déjà dénoncé qui, pour ne parler que de la sharî'a, laisserait supposer que sa pratique actuelle est fondée de manière transhistorique . Pourtant, une lecture contextualisée permet de renvoyer l'élaboration d'un corpus théorique à l'insertion d'individus dans des jeux socio-politiques déterminant, pour partie au moins, les ...

International audience ; Legal islamology has made a great deal of work, though it reveals a lack of concern for the historical setting of normative practices and discourses. It quickly shifts to the construction of an Islamic political and legal specificity, thus backing a type of culturalism which, with regard to sharî'a, makes thinking that its present practice is transhistorically founded. However, a contextualised reading allows referring the constitution of a theoretical body to the embedding of individuals in socio-political games partly determining the problems they have to cope with and their attempts to answer them. This is where the idea of substantialisation of norms comes from. The focus on the work and the trajectory of three Coranic exegetes, Fakhr al-Dîn al-Râzî, Rashîd Ridâ et Sayyid Qutb, who can be considered as archetypes, constitutes the backbone of an attempt to demonstrate the formal nature of Islamic reference and the variability of its practical investment. ; Nous voudrions traiter du fait politique et juridique, en contexte islamique, au départ de pratiques, essentiellement discursives, d'une référence textuelle et de l'élaboration d'une rhétorique prétendant traduire une orthodoxie. Un grand travail islamologique a été accompli dans l'étude de la "Cité de l'islam" et dans l'"Introduction au droit musulman". Il se révèle toutefois souvent peu soucieux des relations qui unissent pratiques et normes, de l'historicité de ces pratiques et discours normatifs. Il verse rapidement dans l'élaboration d'une spécificité politico-juridique islamique, suivi dans cette direction par des travaux historiques plus récents. Or, l'idée d'une spécificité renvoie à ce culturalisme déjà dénoncé qui, pour ne parler que de la sharî'a, laisserait supposer que sa pratique actuelle est fondée de manière transhistorique . Pourtant, une lecture contextualisée permet de renvoyer l'élaboration d'un corpus théorique à l'insertion d'individus dans des jeux socio-politiques déterminant, pour partie au moins, les ...

International audience ; Legal islamology has made a great deal of work, though it reveals a lack of concern for the historical setting of normative practices and discourses. It quickly shifts to the construction of an Islamic political and legal specificity, thus backing a type of culturalism which, with regard to sharî'a, makes thinking that its present practice is transhistorically founded. However, a contextualised reading allows referring the constitution of a theoretical body to the embedding of individuals in socio-political games partly determining the problems they have to cope with and their attempts to answer them. This is where the idea of substantialisation of norms comes from. The focus on the work and the trajectory of three Coranic exegetes, Fakhr al-Dîn al-Râzî, Rashîd Ridâ et Sayyid Qutb, who can be considered as archetypes, constitutes the backbone of an attempt to demonstrate the formal nature of Islamic reference and the variability of its practical investment. ; Nous voudrions traiter du fait politique et juridique, en contexte islamique, au départ de pratiques, essentiellement discursives, d'une référence textuelle et de l'élaboration d'une rhétorique prétendant traduire une orthodoxie. Un grand travail islamologique a été accompli dans l'étude de la "Cité de l'islam" et dans l'"Introduction au droit musulman". Il se révèle toutefois souvent peu soucieux des relations qui unissent pratiques et normes, de l'historicité de ces pratiques et discours normatifs. Il verse rapidement dans l'élaboration d'une spécificité politico-juridique islamique, suivi dans cette direction par des travaux historiques plus récents. Or, l'idée d'une spécificité renvoie à ce culturalisme déjà dénoncé qui, pour ne parler que de la sharî'a, laisserait supposer que sa pratique actuelle est fondée de manière transhistorique . Pourtant, une lecture contextualisée permet de renvoyer l'élaboration d'un corpus théorique à l'insertion d'individus dans des jeux socio-politiques déterminant, pour partie au moins, les problématiques auxquelles ils sont confrontés et les tentatives de réponse qu'ils leur apportent. C'est ce qui nous amènera à aborder, dans un deuxième temps, la question de la substantialisation de la norme. Il s'agit d'une opération mettant en scène des acteurs, ceux de l'interprétation coranique en l'espèce. On s'efforcera de montrer que la nature contrastée de leurs contextes d'insertion est directement relevante dans l'interprétation de leur travail exégétique. Pour ce faire, on s'appuiera sur trois auteurs dont l'oeuvre et la trajectoire peuvent sans doute être considérés comme archétypiques, mais révèlent surtout -- et ce sera notre conclusion -- la nature formelle de la référence islamique et son investissement pratique différencié.

L'autolimitation des normes de droit matériel doit être distinguée du jeu des mécanismes du droit international privé, spécialement du jeu des règles de conflit. Elle correspond à la définition, par certaines règles de droit matériel, de leur propre champ d'application international et n'intervient qu'à condition que le droit applicable aux termes des règles de conflit de lois soit préalablement connu. La présente contribution examine les cas dans lesquels l'autolimitation d'une norme de droit matériel n'est pas l'effet d'une disposition législative expresse, mais de l'interprétation de la norme par les tribunaux: incidence de la « présomption contre l'extraterritorialité » des normes législatives dans les pays de common law, autolimitation des lois de police, emploi par la norme de notions fermées à toute substitution. On verra ainsi apparaître le phénomène de l'autolimitation des normes comme une illustration, parmi d'autres, de la contribution des normes de droit matériel à la réglementation des situations internationales.

Vers l'île d'Yeu, 19 août 2001. Un chercheur du Centre d'études et de recherches internationales, en mission dans une île fran çaise de l'Atlantique en plein été : pour y faire quoi ? Pour tenter de saisir comment un micro-territoire insulaire perçoit l'interdiction qui lui est faite par l'Union européenne d'une technique de pêche dont vit une partie de sa population. Est-il possible d'entrevoir à cette occasion la réalité d'un espace politique européen, qui n'est souvent concrétisé par les acteurs sociaux qu'en termes catégoriels [1] Marc Abélès, En attente d'Europe, Paris, Hachette,. [1] ? Le choix un peu baroque qui m'a amené à travailler sur les pêcheurs et l'Europe a enrichi ma compréhension générale de l'Union européenne, en y intégrant deux dimensions essentielles à la formation de cette entité : celle des acteurs sociaux et celle des territoires. Àmesure que L'Amiral Bougainvilleaffronte les paquets de mer, je prends conscience que la dernière pêche aux filets maillants dérivants des thoniers de l'île d'Yeu sera peut-être aussi, pour moi, le dernier " terrain " d'une recherche de plusieurs années (.).

Vers l'île d'Yeu, 19 août 2001. Un chercheur du Centre d'études et de recherches internationales, en mission dans une île fran çaise de l'Atlantique en plein été : pour y faire quoi ? Pour tenter de saisir comment un micro-territoire insulaire perçoit l'interdiction qui lui est faite par l'Union européenne d'une technique de pêche dont vit une partie de sa population. Est-il possible d'entrevoir à cette occasion la réalité d'un espace politique européen, qui n'est souvent concrétisé par les acteurs sociaux qu'en termes catégoriels [1] Marc Abélès, En attente d'Europe, Paris, Hachette,. [1] ? Le choix un peu baroque qui m'a amené à travailler sur les pêcheurs et l'Europe a enrichi ma compréhension générale de l'Union européenne, en y intégrant deux dimensions essentielles à la formation de cette entité : celle des acteurs sociaux et celle des territoires. Àmesure que L'Amiral Bougainvilleaffronte les paquets de mer, je prends conscience que la dernière pêche aux filets maillants dérivants des thoniers de l'île d'Yeu sera peut-être aussi, pour moi, le dernier " terrain " d'une recherche de plusieurs années (.).

Private ordering is in vogue in legal scholarship. Nowhere is this clearer than on the Internet. Legal scholars who study the Internet talk freely about new forms of governance tailored to the specific needs of the Net. Only rarely are these "governance" models ones that involve a significant role for government as classically envisioned. Some scholars see international law, with its emphasis on political and moral suasion rather than legal authority, as the appropriate way to govern what is after all an international phenomenon. Many others, though, look to contracts as the preferred model for governing cyberspace. These models generally rely in the final analysis on a supreme legal authority to establish the initial property entitlements and enforce the contracts that govern the Net. The property-contract model is perhaps better thought of, then, as quasi-private ordering. But the common goal of these quasi-private ordering advocates is to decentralize governance and return control to the people, or at least the people who write the contracts. Contemporaneous with the rise of contracts as a mechanism for Internet governance, another group of legal scholars has explored the existence of what might be thought of as true private ordering: the social relationships that individuals and groups form that operate outside of the law. In this essay, I take a skeptical look at the idea that law should give deference to private norms on the Net and suggest a number of reasons why one might prefer public to private ordering on the Net.

International audience ; Cette recherche, de nature exploratoire, s'est intéressée aux politiques comptables en matière d'immatériels de deux entreprises françaises de la nouvelle économie. Les études de cas, conduites essentiellement à partir des états financiers consolidés de 1998 à 2002, soulèvent la question de la justification, dans le cas de la nouvelle économie, de l'activation des immatériels. Il semble que les futures normes IAS/IFRS devraient permettre une comptabilisation plus pertinente des intangibles.