Disappearances in Mexico: An Analysis Based on the Northeast Region

2021 ◽  
pp. 73-96
Author(s):  
Karina Ansolabehere ◽  
Alvaro Martos

The research for this chapter focuses on the analysis of the characteristics of disappearances in Mexico through four logics: its clandestine nature, disposable peoples, political economy, and ambiguous loss. Each of these logics describes and explains the subtle meanings behind disappearances in an environment characterised by a convergence of multiple forms of violence. Disappearance in this context is used as a specific repertoire of violent action. The empirical analysis uses an original database containing information on 1364 disappearance cases documented by human rights NGOs in Northeastern México (Tamaulipas, Nuevo León and Coahuila) between 2007 and 2017, in the context of the so-called ‘war on drugs’ as well us document analysis.

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 33
Author(s):  
Vereno Brugiatelli

Man's ethical fulfilment often faces objective obstacles in the deprivation of rights. The negation of the recognition of certain fundamental rights, or worse, the radical misrecognition of man, which translates into different forms of violence, often artfully disguised both on an individual and collective level, produces devastating consequences in the private life of a person upsetting all forms of positive self-esteem. The recognition of human qualities, accompanied by the right to express and extend them, is an integral part of the ethical life of each individual and, at the same time, constitutes a fundamental moment in the construction of a responsible civilized community. In this dissertation, I aim to analyse the connection between ethical life and human rights in order to draw attention to the repercussions that the recognition and misrecognition of liberty produce with regard to man's ethical fulfilment. From this perspective, I intend to highlight the importance of the existence of favourable juridical and institutional conditions to ensure ethical fulfilment. At this level, I will underline that the deprivation of capabilities is often the main cause of the profound sense of discontent affecting individuals in their desperate attempt to realise a type of existence which corresponds to their ambitions.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 324-333
Author(s):  
Tobias Kelly

Abstract This short essay offers a broad and necessarily incomplete review of the current state of the human rights struggle against torture and ill-treatment. It sketches four widespread assumptions in that struggle: 1) that torture is an issue of detention and interrogation; 2) that political or security detainees are archetypal victims of torture; 3) that legal reform is one of the best ways to fight torture; and 4) that human rights monitoring helps to stamp out violence. These four assumptions have all played an important role in the history of the human rights fight against torture, but also resulted in limitations in terms of the interventions that are used, the forms of violence that human rights practitioners respond to, and the types of survivors they seek to protect. Taken together, these four assumptions have created challenges for the human rights community in confronting the multiple forms of torture rooted in the deep and widespread inequality experienced by many poor and marginalized groups. The essay ends by pointing to some emerging themes in the fight against torture, such as a focus on inequality, extra-custodial violence, and the role of corruption.


AJIL Unbound ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 114 ◽  
pp. 291-295
Author(s):  
Antonia Eliason ◽  
Robert Howse

Human rights and the UN drug control regime have long had an uneasy relationship, which is evident today in the tensions that exist between criminal justice reform advocates, the institutions of the UN drug control regime, and economic interests that stand to benefit from decriminalization and legalization efforts. The UN drug control regime's relationship with human rights cannot be properly discussed without acknowledging its colonial and racist roots. From the earliest agreement on drug control in 1909, born out of the crisis of opium dependency caused by the forced opening of China to trade in opium by the British, to the 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, which was a product of America's war on drugs, international efforts to regulate drugs have never been for the benefit of those who have suffered the most from both the supply of drugs and its criminalization. The war on drugs has been a global war from the beginning, arising out of colonial structures that centered white/European racial dominance. The inadequacies of the international drug regime and current efforts to reform it are rooted in this historical legacy. In light of this, we argue that efforts by international bodies to center human rights in the discussion on reforming the UN drug control regime are, so far, insufficient. Only through recognizing the power imbalances at play can we advance the possibility of a system that values individuals and responds to a changing landscape where corporate interests are coming to the table in the context of decriminalization and legalization.


2017 ◽  
Vol 107 (7) ◽  
pp. 1824-1857 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holger Sieg ◽  
Chamna Yoon

This paper shows how to identify and estimate, using standard semi-parametric techniques, a class of dynamic games with perfect monitoring, that have been at the frontier of recent research in political economy. The empirical analysis provides novel quantitative insights into the trade-off that voters face between ideology and ability, the differences in ability and ideology among parties and states, and the differences in preferences between political candidates and voters. We analyze the consequences of term limits and quantify their relative importance. Specifically, we characterize conditions under which term limits improve voters' welfare. (JEL C57, C73, D72)


2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (04) ◽  
pp. 739-746 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna M. Agathangelou

International relations (IR) feminists have significantly impacted the way we analyze the world and power. However, as Cynthia Enloe points out, “there are now signs—worrisome signs—that feminist analysts of international politics might be forgetting what they have shared” and are “making bricks to construct new intellectual barriers. That is not progress” (2015, 436). I agree. The project/process that has led to the separation/specialization of feminist security studies (FSS) and feminist global political economy (FGPE) does not constitute progress but instead ends up embodying forms of violence that erase the materialist bases of our intellectual labor's divisions (Agathangelou 1997), the historical and social constitution of our formations as intellectuals and subjects. This amnesiac approach evades our personal lives and colludes with those forces that allow for the violence that comes with abstraction. These “worrisome signs” should be explained if we are to move FSS and FGPE beyond a “merger” (Allison 2015) that speaks only to some issues and some humans in the global theater.


2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Renat Shaykhutdinov

Abstract How are the human rights pertaining to the freedom of conscience/religion, health, and distinct culture intersect in the context of a global pandemic in the Muslim-minority areas? How do Russia’s Muslims make sense of the challenges to those rights caused or exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic? In this paper, I focus on diverse Muslim Tatar communities, primarily of the Middle Volga region, who have recently witnessed numerous political and socioeconomic challenges infringing on their human rights. Attending on the period of the COVID-19 pandemic, in this paper I gauge the nature of human rights in the areas of health and religion by interrogating how the general Muslim publics and elites understand, justify, and explain those challenges in an environment of creeping authoritarianism. I call for a conceptual shift from the elite-driven traditional security perspectives to those of human rights as quotidian/everyday experiences while considering these vital issues. I use the Tatar-language Internet forums for the empirical analysis, offering and delineating the discursive repertoires and categorizing the areas of public concern in the new pandemic world.


2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Julia Kakoullis

AbstractIn its concluding observations for Cyprus, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) Committee stated that it ‘is concerned about the insufficiency of legal provisions and accessible mechanisms to detect, report, prevent and combat all forms of violence’.1This paper focuses on the independent monitoring obligation Article 16(3) CRPD places on states parties, and discusses the implications of the insufficient implementation of Article 16(3) as it affects adults with intellectual disabilities in Cyprus. It examines the existing monitoring frameworks, explains why they do not meet with Article 16(3) CRPD requirements and explores the relationship of the national human rights institutions (NHRIs) with Article 16(3). This paper enables understanding as to how, despite pre-existing monitoring frameworks in place, no independent monitoring action has been taken since the ratification of the CRPD. It argues that there is an immediate need for measures to achieve the implementation of Article 16(3) and makes recommendations for Cyprus and other states parties.


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