Melissa Labonte – författare

The human rights and humanitarian landscape of the modern era has been littered with acts that have shocked the moral conscience of mankind, and there has been wide variation in whether, how, and to what degree states respond to mass atrocity crimes, even when they share similar characteristics. In many cases concerned states responded, either through moral suasion; gentle or coercive diplomacy; or other non-forcible measures, to prevent or halt the indiscriminate human rights violations that were occurring. In others, states simply turned away and left the vulnerable to their fate. And still yet in other cases, states responded robustly, using military force to stop the atrocities and save lives.

This book seeks to examine the effects of strategic framing in U.S. and UN policy arenas to draw conclusions regarding whether and how the human rights and humanitarian norms embedded within such frames resonated with decision-makers and, in turn, how they shaped variation in levels of political will concerning humanitarian intervention in three cases that today would qualify as Responsibility to Protect (R2P) cases: Somalia, Rwanda, and Sierra Leone. Labonte concludes that in order for humanitarian interventions to stand a higher likelihood of being effective, states advocating in support of such actions must find a way to persuade policymakers by appealing to both the logic of consequences (which rely on material and pragmatic considerations) and logic of appropriateness (which rely on normatively appropriate considerations) – and strategic framing may be one path to achieve this outcome.

Offering a detailed and examination of three key cases and providing some an original and important contribution to the field this work will be of great interest to students and scholars alike.

The human rights and humanitarian landscape of the modern era has been littered with acts that have shocked the moral conscience of mankind, and there has been wide variation in whether, how, and to what degree states respond to mass atrocity crimes, even when they share similar characteristics. In many cases concerned states responded, either through moral suasion; gentle or coercive diplomacy; or other non-forcible measures, to prevent or halt the indiscriminate human rights violations that were occurring. In others, states simply turned away and left the vulnerable to their fate. And still yet in other cases, states responded robustly, using military force to stop the atrocities and save lives.

This book seeks to examine the effects of strategic framing in U.S. and UN policy arenas to draw conclusions regarding whether and how the human rights and humanitarian norms embedded within such frames resonated with decision-makers and, in turn, how they shaped variation in levels of political will concerning humanitarian intervention in three cases that today would qualify as Responsibility to Protect (R2P) cases: Somalia, Rwanda, and Sierra Leone. Labonte concludes that in order for humanitarian interventions to stand a higher likelihood of being effective, states advocating in support of such actions must find a way to persuade policymakers by appealing to both the logic of consequences (which rely on material and pragmatic considerations) and logic of appropriateness (which rely on normatively appropriate considerations) – and strategic framing may be one path to achieve this outcome.

Offering a detailed and examination of three key cases and providing some an original and important contribution to the field this work will be of great interest to students and scholars alike.

The relationship between human rights and justice is significant, deep, and ultimately contested. The two terms themselves – human rights and justice – have experienced both conceptual and operational pushback from many quarters in recent years.

Although an understanding of justice is inherent in broad human rights discourses, there is no clear consensus on how to integrate and reconcile these concepts – both as a means of advancing knowledge and as a mechanism for the development of sound and effective policy at the global, regional, and national levels. Further, expansions of the boundaries of both human rights and justice make any clear and settled understanding of the relation difficult to ascertain. This volume tackles these issues in a coherent and complementary manner. It examines a range of philosophical, economic, and social perspectives that are key to understanding the nature of the linkages between human rights and justice, written by scholars who are at varying stages of their careers, and whose ongoing work has sparked dialogue and exchange within and across these fields.

This work will be of interest to students and scholars of human rights, international relations and ethics.

The relationship between human rights and justice is significant, deep, and ultimately contested. The two terms themselves – human rights and justice – have experienced both conceptual and operational pushback from many quarters in recent years.

Although an understanding of justice is inherent in broad human rights discourses, there is no clear consensus on how to integrate and reconcile these concepts – both as a means of advancing knowledge and as a mechanism for the development of sound and effective policy at the global, regional, and national levels. Further, expansions of the boundaries of both human rights and justice make any clear and settled understanding of the relation difficult to ascertain. This volume tackles these issues in a coherent and complementary manner. It examines a range of philosophical, economic, and social perspectives that are key to understanding the nature of the linkages between human rights and justice, written by scholars who are at varying stages of their careers, and whose ongoing work has sparked dialogue and exchange within and across these fields.

This work will be of interest to students and scholars of human rights, international relations and ethics.

Accessing human rights and justice mechanisms is a pressing issue in global politics. Although an understanding of justice is inherent in broad human rights discourses, there is no clear consensus on how to develop adequate means of accessing them in order to make a difference to people’s lives. Further, expansions of the boundaries of both human rights and justice make any clear and settled understanding of the relation difficult to ascertain.

This volume tackles these issues by focusing on the dilemmas of accessing and implementing human rights and justice across a range of empirical contexts while also investigating a range of conceptual approaches to, and understandings of, justice, including issues of equality, retribution, and restoration, as well as justice as a transnational professional project. The contributors, representing a range of disciplinary backgrounds and diverse voices, offer empirical examples from Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Tunisia, and Uganda to explore the issues of accessing and implementing human rights and justice in conflict, post-conflict, and transitional settings.

This work will be of interest to students and scholars of international relations, human rights, international criminal justice, and conflict response.