From Pariah Image to Partner and Back Again: The EU’s Complicated Relationship with Myanmar

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 349-369
Author(s):  
Felix Heiduk
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Political Process ◽  
Political Leadership ◽  
The Other ◽  
Military Junta ◽  
Nelson Mandela ◽  
Aung San Suu Kyi ◽  
The One ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Eu

To make sense of the EU’s rocky relationship with Myanmar, we need to consider how Myanmar’s political leadership is imagined in Europe. For decades, this image was bifurcated: on the one hand a military junta with its disdain for democracy and human rights. On the other hand, Aung San Suu Kyi (ASSK), ‘our’ saint-like Burmese ‘Nelson Mandela’, detained but still fighting for democracy and human rights. As a result, Brussels implemented a tough sanction regime and essentially assigned Myanmar pariah status. When Suu Kyi re-joined the formal political process in 2012 and won the 2015 elections, Myanmar rapidly transitioned from pariah to partner. Fast forward to 2017 and relations between the EU and Myanmar had soured again because of the Rohingya crisis and Suu Kyi’s ‘deafening silence’ on the issue. The article argues that to understand this rollercoaster ride of EU–Myanmar relations one must turn to the imagery of Suu Kyi in Europe. The strong cognitive dissonances, created by the widening gap between the imagined ‘saint’ ASSK and the realpolitik ‘sinner’, have impacted on the EU’s relations with Myanmar and can help us make sense of the recent turbulences in the relationship.

scholarly journals The European Union's policy on human rights and Chinese sovereignism: The case of Xinjiang

2021 ◽  
Vol 73 (1) ◽  
pp. 58-86
Author(s):  
Dragan Trailovic
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Individual Case ◽  
The Other ◽  
Individual Member ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
The One ◽  
Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region ◽  
Rights Issues ◽  
The Eu

The article explores the European Union's approach to human rights issues in China through the processes of bilateral and multilateral dialogue on human rights between the EU and the People's Republic of China, on the one hand. On the other hand, the paper deals with the analysis of the EU's human rights policy in the specific case of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, which is examined through normative and political activities of the EU, its institutions and individual member states. Besides, the paper examines China's response to the European Union's human rights approaches, in general, but also when it comes to the specific case of UAR Xinjiang. ?his is done through a review of China's discourse and behaviour within the EU-China Human Rights Dialogue framework, but also at the UN level and within the framework of bilateral relations with individual member states. The paper aims to show whether and how the characteristics of the EU's general approach to human rights in China are reflected in the individual case of Xinjiang. Particular attention shall be given to the differentiation of member states in terms of their approach to human rights issues in China, which is conditioned by the discrepancy between their political values, normative interests and ideational factors, on the one hand, and material factors and economic interests, on the other. Also, the paper aims to show the important features of the different views of the European Union and the Chinese state on the very role of Human Rights Dialogue, as well as their different understandings of the concept of human rights itself. The study concluded that the characteristics of the Union's general approach to human rights in China, as well as the different perceptions of human rights issues between China and the EU, were manifested in the same way in the case of UAR Xinjiang.

scholarly journals The effect of political trust and trust in European citizens on European identity

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soetkin Verhaegen ◽  
Marc Hooghe ◽  
Ellen Quintelier
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
Political Trust ◽  
The Other ◽  
European Identity ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Institutional Approach ◽  
The One ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Eu

In the literature, two approaches toward the development of a European identity can be distinguished. Society-based approaches assume that the most important foundation for the development of a European identity is trust toward other European citizens as this allows Europeans to identify with the European Union as a community of citizens and values. The institutional approach, on the other hand, assumes that a shared European identity is predominantly based on trust in political institutions. In this paper, we use the results of the IntUne Mass Survey 2009 (n=16,613 in 16 EU member states) to test the relationship between social and political trust on the one hand, and European identity on the other. The results suggest that trust in other European citizens is positively associated with European identity, but trust in the European political institutions has a stronger relation with European identity. This could imply that efforts to strengthen European identity cannot just rely on a bottom-up approach, but should also pay attention to the effectiveness and the visibility of the EU institutions and the way they are being perceived by European citizens.

scholarly journals Companies’ human rights compliance: the EU integrated approach to support the duty to assess and address human rights related risks of business activities

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 57-71
Author(s):  
Marta Gatti
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Corporate Social Responsibility ◽  
National Level ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
The Other ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
The One ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Eu Support ◽  
The Eu

The purpose of this article is, on the one hand, to describe EU support of the adoption of a corporate social responsibility policy by EU undertakings, both within and outside the EU borders. On the other hand, this article will focus on the most recent developments in the field of human rights reporting at national level and, in particular, on the French commitment to implement mechanisms to prevent infringements on human rights across the supply chain.

scholarly journals “Droit européen“ à la liberté religieuse et paradigmes des relations État- religions dans l’Europe contemporaine: une cacophonie épineuse

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Ferrari
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Religious Freedom ◽  
The Other ◽  
Multilevel System ◽  
Rights Protection ◽  
National Models ◽  
Rights Discourse ◽  
The One ◽  
Human Rights Discourse ◽  
The Relationship

SOMMAIRE: 1. Introduction: paradigmes de relations et droit à la liberté religieuse, de l’identité à la tension - 2. Des paradigmes des relations État-Églises au droit à la liberté religieuse - 3. La force attractive des paradigmes dans le scénario européen contemporain - 4. Les paradigmes des relations État-Églises dans la nouvelle arène internationale - 5. Conclusion: une citoyenneté inachevée. The “European Right” to Religious Freedom and Paradigms of State-Religion Relations in Contemporary Europe: a thorny cacophony ABSTRACT: The article examines the dialectic between European national models of religious freedom and the paradigm of religious freedom shaped in the international order and in particular by the human rights discourse. The analysis of the relationship between the modern - national-centered - and the contemporary - individual-centered - paradigm of religious freedom reveals, on the one hand, the difficult but inevitable osmosis between legal systems in a multilevel system of rights protection and, on the other hand, the deep transformation of religious freedom in contemporary Europe.

scholarly journals Reflexões sobre ética e ciência: ensaio no contexto de pandemia Covid-19

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 55-69
Author(s):  
Paulo César Carbonari
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
The Other ◽  
Critical Position ◽  
Alternative Concept ◽  
Critical Elements ◽  
New Science ◽  
Understanding Of Science ◽  
The One ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Understanding Science

Este ensaio apresenta reflexões para tematizar uma certa compreensão de ciência e de ética. O faz recuperando elementos críticos tanto de uma quanto da outra e, particularmente da relação entre elas. As preocupações se situam no contexto dos processos de enfrentamento da pandemia Covid-19. Situa-se numa posição crítica tanto às posições anticientíficas e também aquelas que são adesistas a uma certa forma de entender a ciência como absoluta. Procura escapar do dilema que separa falsamente o debate entre “negacionismo anticientífico” e “cientificismo primário”. Além dos aspectos contextuais, busca apresentar alternativas. Em tom ensaístico, faz uma crítica ao conceito de ciência tradicional, apresenta um conceito alternativo de ciência, discute criticamente ideia de progresso, de procedimentos, entre outros aspectos. Defende a proposta de uma nova ciência e de uma nova ética. O pano de fundo é explicitado pela apresentação da proposta de compreensão de direitos humanos em travessia como parte deste debate entre ética é ciência.    Reflections on ethics and science: essay in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic This essay presents reflections to thematize a certain understanding of science and ethics. It does this by recovering critical elements from both the one and the other, and particularly the relationship between them. The concerns are in the context of the processes of coping with the Covid-19 pandemic. It is in a critical position both to anti-scientific positions and also to those who are adherents to a certain way of understanding science as absolute. It seeks to escape the dilemma that falsely separates the debate between “anti-scientific denialism” and “primary scientism”. In addition to the contextual aspects, it seeks to present alternatives. In an essayistic tone, criticizes the concept of traditional science, presents an alternative concept of science, discusses critically the idea of progress, of procedures, among other aspects. He defends the proposal of a new science and a new ethics. The background is made explicit by the presentation of the proposed understanding of human rights in crossing as part of this debate between ethics and science. Keywords: Science. Ethic. Covid-19. Human rights.  

Contours of Dignity

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suzy Killmister
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Human Dignity ◽  
Specific Form ◽  
The Other ◽  
Moral Significance ◽  
Social Construct ◽  
Recognition Respect ◽  
Personal Dignity ◽  
The One ◽  
The Relationship

Contours of Dignity develops a theory geared towards explaining the complex and varied role dignity plays in our moral lives. This includes the relationship between dignity and respect; the ways in which shame and humiliation can constitute dignity violations; and the relationship between dignity and human rights. Dignity, according to this theory, comes in three strands: personal dignity, social dignity, and status dignity. Each strand involves a specific form of respect. On the one hand, personal dignity involves self-respect while social and status dignity involve the respect of others. On the other hand, personal and social dignity both involve appraisal respect, while status dignity involves recognition respect. With these distinctions in hand, Contours of Dignity then explores the moral significance of dignity, offering a novel explanation of the source and scope of individuals’ claims to have their dignity respected. The book concludes with a discussion of the relationship between dignity and human rights, arguing that we should understand human dignity as a social construct, but one that nonetheless vindicates the human rights project.

Human Rights and Reformist Islam

2020 ◽  
pp. 87-168
Author(s):  
Mohsen Kadivar
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Gender Discrimination ◽  
The Other ◽  
Religious Discrimination ◽  
Islamic Tradition ◽  
The One ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Traditional Islam ◽  
Rational Classification

This chapter takes the form of a transcribed interview and consists of a reflection on the relationship between traditional Islam and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and its related covenants, and provides a solution for making traditional Islam compatible with the idea of human rights. It critiques traditional Islamic approaches to the question of compatibility between human rights and Islam and argues instead for their reconciliation from the perspective of a reformist Islam. The chapter focuses on six controversial case studies: religious discrimination; gender discrimination; slavery; freedom of religion; punishment of apostasy; and arbitrary or harsh punishments. Explaining the strengths of structural ijtihad, the author’s approach is based on the rational classification of Islamic teachings as temporal or permanent on the one hand, and four criteria of being Islamic on the other: reasonableness, justice, morality and efficiency. In the chapter, all of the verses of the Qur’an and the Hadith that are problematic in relation to the notion of human rights are abrogated rationally according to these criteria. The result is a powerful, solutions-based argument based on reformist Islam – providing a scholarly bridge between modernity and Islamic tradition in relation to human rights.

The Juncker Commission

2020 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Damage Control ◽  
Political Leadership ◽  
The Other ◽  
Integration Policy ◽  
Eu Legislation ◽  
Institutional Profile ◽  
The One ◽  
Eu Commission ◽  
The Eu

The primary goal of this book is to trace the European Commission’s strategies of dealing with the politicisation of EU legislation. In a case study on President Jean-Claude Juncker's term of office, the authors of this volume analyse how the EU Commission set and advanced certain political priorities between 2014 and 2019. The analysis focuses on the ten political priorities which the Juncker Commission retained in all of its annual work programmes from its inception onwards, starting with its self-proclaimed role as a ‘political commission’. However, this study’s assessment of the ‘politicisation’ of integration policy is ambiguous: On the one hand, the Juncker Commission deliberately adopted politicised issues and tried to use them as opportunities for political leadership as well as to hone its own institutional profile. On the other hand, controversies and crises repeatedly forced the EU Commission to resort to damage control. With contributions by Matthieu Bertrand, Christoph Bierbrauer, Grigoriani Bougatsa, Sarah Gansen, Sanni Kunnas, Andreas Marchetti, Katarzyna Nowicka, Thomas Panayotopoulos, Dominique Roch, Martin Selmayr, Katherine Simpson, Robert Stüwe, Henri De Waele, Liska Wittenberg.

The Application of Human Rights in African Caribbean and Pacific–European Union Development and Trade Partnership

2005 ◽  
Vol 6 (10) ◽  
pp. 1381-1406 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justice Nwobike
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
The Other ◽  
The World ◽  
African Caribbean ◽  
Partnership Agreement ◽  
The One ◽  
Cooperation Relationship ◽  
The Eu

The Africa Caribbean Pacific–European Union (ACP-EU) Development and Trade Cooperation Relationship is currently regulated by the Cotonou Partnership Agreement. This agreement, which has been described as “the only one of its kind in the world” is based on the three pillars of politics, trade, and development between the EU and its Member States on the one hand and a group of developing countries on the other.

scholarly journals Migration controls in Italy and Hungary

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 391-412
Author(s):  
Umut Korkut ◽  
Andrea Terlizzi ◽  
Daniel Gyollai
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Protection Measures ◽  
The Public ◽  
Border States ◽  
Refugee Protection ◽  
Political Narratives ◽  
The One ◽  
The Eu

Abstract This article analyses the humanitarianism and securitisation nexus in effect to migration controls in Italy and Hungary. Noteworthy for our purposes is how the humanitarian discourse is undervalued as the EU border states emphasise either full securitisation or else securitisation as a condition for humanitarianism when it comes to border management and refugee protection measures. Our goal is to trace, on the one hand, how politicians conceptualise humanitarianism for the self and for the extension of the self; and, on the other, how they subscribe to humanitarianism for the other as long as the other follows what the self demands. Reflecting on the institutional and discursive nexus of humanitarianism and securitization in effect to migration controls, we trace political narratives of Europeanisation geared to affect the public. We refer to how securitisation challenges humanitarianism while undervaluing human rights for the other and foregrounding human rights for the self.

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