Explaining How Human Rights Protections Change After Internal Armed Conflicts

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 248-264
Author(s):  
Johannes Karreth ◽  
Patricia Lynne Sullivan ◽  
Ghazal Dezfuli
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Human Rights Violations ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Internal Armed Conflicts

Abstract Societies emerging from internal armed conflicts display surprising variation in the degree to which governments protect human rights. Employing new data on civilian victimization by both government and rebel forces, we find that the human rights climate of a post-conflict country is not simply a perpetuation of pre-conflict conditions, or the result of repressive regimes remaining in power. Instead, the treatment of civilians during conflict has an independent impact on post-conflict human rights protections (HRP). Analyses of ninety-six post-conflict periods (1960–2015) show that when governments systematically and extensively target civilians during counterinsurgency campaigns, post-conflict human rights conditions decline substantially compared to pre-conflict levels, even accounting for other predictors of human rights violations, including pre-conflict human rights conditions. This holds regardless of who is in power after conflicts end. These findings have implications for theoretical models of repression and conflict cycles, and for practitioners and policymakers aiming to restore and protect human rights after war.

scholarly journals Towards mass-grave protection guidelines

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie Klinkner
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
International Law ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Human Rights Violations ◽  
Right To Know ◽  
Mass Grave ◽  
Mass Graves ◽  
Legal Obligations ◽  
Legal Guidelines ◽  
Practical Agenda

In the aftermath of conflict and gross human rights violations, victims have a right to know what happened to their loved ones. Such a right is compromised if mass graves are not adequately protected to preserve evidence, facilitate identification and repatriation of the dead and enable a full and effective investigation to be conducted. Despite guidelines for investigations of the missing, and legal obligations under international law, it is not expressly clear how these mass graves are best legally protected and by whom. This article asks why, to date, there are no unified mass-grave protection guidelines that could serve as a model for states, authorities or international bodies when faced with gross human rights violations or armed conflicts resulting in mass graves. The paper suggests a practical agenda for working towards a more comprehensive set of legal guidelines to protect mass graves.

Building respect for the rule of law in violent contexts: The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights' experience and approach

2014 ◽  
Vol 96 (895-896) ◽  
pp. 881-900
Author(s):  
Annyssa Bellal
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Social Rights ◽  
Concerted Action ◽  
Cultural Economic ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Conflict Situations ◽  
High Commissioner

AbstractHow does the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) discharge its mandate of “promoting and protecting the effective enjoyment by all of all civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights”, especially in armed conflicts and other situations of violence? What are its concrete responsibilities, and how does it work to generate respect for the rule of law on the ground? This article aims to provide an overview of OHCHR's activities, and point to some of the challenges associated with its work to generate respect for the rule of law, in particular in violent contexts. It begins with an overview of the unique mandate of OHCHR and situates it within the broader United Nations human rights machinery. It then gives an account of OHCHR's experience and approach in building respect for the rule of law, including in armed conflicts and post-conflict situations, outlining how this informs OHCHR's field setup. Finally, the article summarizes the main challenges that OHCHR faces in the discharge of its mandate. It highlights the need for more concerted action on the part of human rights/humanitarian protection organizations on the ground, despite differences in mandates and constituencies.

Holding to Account the Commission of International Crimes in the Central African Republic: The Establishment of the Special Criminal Court

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-35
Author(s):  
Ignacio Tredici ◽  
Renaud Galand
Keyword(s):  
Central African Republic ◽  
National Court ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
International Crimes ◽  
Political Crises ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
National Reconciliation ◽  
Internal Armed Conflicts

The Special Criminal Court for the Central African Republic (scc) is a national court that has been established with the assistance of the Un Multidimensional Integrated Mission of Stabilization in the Central African Republic (minusca) to bring to justice perpetrators of international crimes committed in car from 2003. The establishment of the scc is a response to the legal obligation to fight impunity for the most serious crimes in a country severely affected by decades of internal armed conflicts, social and political crises: car has been depleted of the resources required to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the commission of international crimes. Taking to justice the perpetrators will help consolidate peace, security and justice and break the cycle of violence. The scc is hence expected to serve as a catalyst for the restoration of the rule of law in car more broadly and to advance national reconciliation and peacebuilding processes. Notwithstanding the challenges that it will face, it is submitted that the scc could be a valid model to be replicated in other post-conflict contexts where impunity for either international crimes or serious organized crime is a fundamental impediment to social peace and progress.

Toward a global ban on landmines

1995 ◽  
Vol 35 (307) ◽  
pp. 391-410 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anita Parlow
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Hague Convention ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Biological Weapons ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
The World ◽  
International Attention ◽  
Chemical And Biological Weapons ◽  
Internal Armed Conflicts

The use of arms, projectiles, or material calculated to cause unnecessary suffering, and more especially of poisoned weapons (chemical and biological weapons), was banned under the conceptual framework of both the 1907 Hague Convention (IV) and the 1925 Geneva Protocol. In the discussions leading to a ban on the use of chemical weapons, diplomats from around the world referred to their use as “barbaric and dishonourable” because of their effect on soldiers or the likely indiscriminate impact on civilians. It is a universal achievement that it is now impossible to conceive of a world that does not show concern for civilians caught up in war. As international attention to the protection of civilians in internal armed conflicts grows, it is accompanied by renewed debate regarding regulation of warring parties' conduct through humanitarian and human rights law.

Intervention by Invitation

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory H. Fox
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
International Law ◽  
Civil Wars ◽  
Security Council ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Democratic Legitimacy ◽  
Un Security Council ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Government ◽  
Internal Armed Conflicts

This chapter examines the debate concerning a state’s intervention in internal armed conflicts based on invitation, either from the government or from a rebel group fighting against the government. It looks at the issues that arise from intervention by invitation, particularly those relating to the territorial integrity of the state, the status of the actors involved, the nature of the consent, and implications for international law in general and for politics and human rights in particular. The chapter first considers the traditional view of intervention by invitation and the recent challenges to that view. It then discusses the negative equality principle as it applies to intervention in civil wars, as well as the link between intervention by invitation and democratic legitimacy. It also analyses the position of the UN Security Council on intervention by invitation.

Dealing with international crimes in post-war Bosnia: A look through the lens of the affected population

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 553-564 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas A. Jones ◽  
Stephan Parmentier ◽  
Elmar G.M. Weitekamp
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Political Transition ◽  
Human Rights Violations ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
International Crimes ◽  
Local Populations ◽  
The Past ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Post War

Debates about serious human rights violations and international crimes committed in the past appear during times of political transition. New political elites are confronted with fundamental questions of how to seek truth, establish accountability for offenders, provide reparation to victims, promote reconciliation, deal with trauma and build trust. ‘Transitional’ or ‘post-conflict justice’ is most often managed by elites, national and international, while the views and expectations of the local populations are rarely taken into account. Population-based research can yield deep insights into strategies and mechanisms for dealing with the crimes of the past. This paper reports on the major findings of a study in Bosnia and on the factors that may contribute to trust and reconciliation in the country.

scholarly journals Collective violence and the culture of peace: researching the social psychology of memory and social reconciliation

2021 ◽  
pp. 11-16
Author(s):  
Nekane Basabe ◽  
Darío Páez
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Political Violence ◽  
Transitional Justice ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Community Intervention ◽  
Human Rights Violations ◽  
Collective Violence ◽  
Psychosocial Effects ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Culture Of Peace

This monograph aims to disseminate the results of various research studies carried out in the field of social and community psychology. The studies focus on efforts to build a culture of peace in post-conflict contexts and societies that have suffered collective and socio-political violence, with multiple and persistent human rights violations. Six studies on the psychosocial effects of transitional justice rituals from Argentina, Colombia, Brazil, Basque country, Chile, and Ecuador compose this issue. This issue presents a series of results regarding the effects of reparation rituals and Truth Commissions, combining different methods and analysis strategies, including general population surveys, newspaper and social media content analysis, community intervention assessments and qualitative documentary analysis. Finally, two review books were included. First, a Peace Psychology Book that explores the implications and difficulties faced by societies that have experienced large-scale collective violence. Second, the problem of human rights violations and how to confront them, socio-political conflicts and the building of a culture of democracy and peace in Latin America are transversal axes of the chapters of this second book.

scholarly journals HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS PERPETRATED BY STATE AGENTS IN MILITARY OCCUPATIONS: ANALYSIS OF THE INCURSION OF INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS LAW TO THE NORMATIVE TERRITORY OF THE ARMED CONFLICTS

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (32) ◽  
pp. 32
Author(s):  
Sidney Cesar Silva Guerra ◽  
Luz E. Nagle ◽  
Ádria Saviano Fabricio da Silva
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Human Rights Violations ◽  
International Human Rights Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
International Human Rights ◽  
International Human ◽  
Military Occupations

This article aims to revisit the interrelationship between International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and International Human Rights Law (IHRL), in honour of their respective normative scopes and in order to carry out an analysis of their complementary or supplementary application, towards the construction of a more appropriate tool for the protection of human beings in extreme situations, as it occurs during armed conflicts. This is because, amid the multifaceted vulnerabilities that accumulate in today's conflicts, it is essential to provide the most effective source of protection - proportional to the demands for protection that are manifested today, particularly in military occupations around the world, whose occurrence will be the focus of this research. As for the method of approach concerning the logical basis of the investigation, the hypothetical-deductive method was selected, insofar as the corroboration or falsification of the main hypothesis about the effective complementary and harmonious application of IHRL will be tested to cases of human rights violations in International Armed Conflicts in the military occupation modality. Given this framework, the core of this work lies in the understanding of the praxis for the complementary application of both aspects in armed conflicts, considering not only International Human Rights Law as lex generalis, but their effective overlap to the detriment of International Humanitarian Law, when it is most beneficial to human protection in the cases of Military Occupations.

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