The justice cascade offers a sustained endorsement of the value and significance of human rights trials to address the rights violations of prior regimes. When i0 was founded, dominant realist views of politics, while rejecting. The current justice cascade rests on a much firmer legal streambed. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics. The sage library of international relations is a series of major works that brings together the most influential and fielddefining articles, both classical and contemporary, in a number of key areas of research and inquiry in interna. During the talk, she explained the premise, the main points addressed, and some of her findings. Sikkink spoke with chris tenove about the debate on peace versus justice, the decadeslong fight for human rights, and about her new book, the justice cascade. International norm dynamics and political change martha. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, which recently won the robert f. Acclaimed scholar kathryn sikkink examines the important and controversial new trend of holding political leaders criminally accountable for human rights violations. The justice cascade is a vital read for anyone interested in the. The justice cascade is a metaphor that kathryn sikkink used to describe the spread of accountability systems throughout the globe.
Hiol 14 00 forcinito introduction university of minnesota. Kathryn sikkink is the ryan family professor of human rights policy at hks and the carol k. Stopping state agents of violence or promoting political compromise. While transitional justice includes criminal accountability, it is undergirded by a broader understanding of justice that takes into account a range of victim needs and societal priorities. Sikkink credits the justice cascade with the rapid emergence of the torture memorandum from the bush justice department after september 11. The trend toward humanrights activism throughout the 20th century, galvanized especially around opposition to the repressive military dictatorships in argentina and chile, has created what sikkink political scienceuniv. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics the norton series in world politics kindle edition by sikkink, kathryn. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, with kathryn sikkink, department of political science, university of minnesota. Society justice initiative, who was also responsible for the final editing of the translation of excerpts from the trial judgment. After an idyllic family picnic, betsy draper shakes out the familys litterfilled blanket. Pforzheimer professor at the radcliffe institute for advanced study. Shawn roberts, matthew eisenbrandt, kate doyle, and jomarie burt contributed to this publication as part of the rios montt trial monitoring initiative, available at unless otherwise stated. The justice cascade is a rapid and dramatic shiftinthelegitimacyofthenormsofindividual criminal accountability for human rights violations and an increase in actions such as trials. Examples of this justice cascade in the age of human rights include a number of cases and initiatives that have made it to the front pages of the international press.
According to sikkink, the justice cascade is a basic example of norm cascade. The justice cascade refers to a new global trend of holding political leaders criminally accountable for past human rights violations through domestic and international prosecutions. The case of jury duty tells the story of matthew foley, an 18yearold who has been summoned for jury duty on a case that involves underage drinking and driving. John simon guggenheim memorial foundation, fellowship, 20082009. For two decades now kathyrn sikkink has been a leading scholar of human rights in world politics. The african union au adopted the protocol on amendments to the protocol on the statute of the african court of justice and human rights malabo protocol in may 2014, which, if ratified, will create the firstever regional criminal court rcc. Wilson, the politics of truth and reconciliation in south africa. The justice cascade is perhaps her most ambitious work to date. The african experience with justice mechanisms challenges the narrative of a unidirectional cascade. Intd 497 transitional justice fall 2015 mcgill university. The origins and effectiveness of prosecutions of human rights violations kathryn sikkink1 and hun joon kim2 1department of political science, university of minnesota, minneapolis, minnesota 55455. The justice cascade, has inspired a generation of scholars who have followed her efforts to analyze u.
Sikkinks chapter on what works in promoting human rights synthesizes a wide range of. Justice in the making after decades of impunity and seemingly unbreakable amnesties, since the mid2000s criminal prosecutions for past human rights violations have been unfolding in latin america. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics the norton series in world politics sikkink, kathryn on. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the justice cascade. Margaret keck and kathryn sikkink transnational advocacy networks in international politics ch 1 from activists without borders in course. In just three decades, state leaders have gone from being immune to accountability for their human rights violations to becoming the subjects of highly publicized trials in many countries of the world. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Nonetheless, the justice cascade is a thoughtful and thorough account of the evolution of human rights trials against former heads of state and government officials, and fills a significant gap in international law literature. The persistent power of human rights isbn 9781107028937 pdf.
Sikkink curriculum vitae page 6 the justice cascade. Content wise, while the author makes some interesting points, she fails to draw any kind of conclusion, rambles from chapter to chapter on the same few principles, and leaves the reader wondering how this is a final draft. The book is rooted in a combination of quantitative and qualitative inquires combining case studies argentina, greece. The powerful role of transitional justice mechanisms geoff dancy, bridget marchesi, tricia olsen, leigh payne, andrew reiter, and kathryn. Jamesron androlandparis abstract1 at the core of policy debates on the statelevel effects of transitional justice is a series of competing claims about the causal effects of various transitional justice mechanisms.
Rights policy kathryn sikkink tracks an evolving norm she calls the justice cascade, which has increased accountability for human rights offenders, a recent example being the bosnian serb leader radovan karadzic. At its center was a spiral model of human rights change which described the various socialization processes through which international norms were internalized into the domestic practices of various authoritarian states during the cold war years. Kathryn sikkink traces this sea change toward a new norm of human rights law in her groundbreaking book the justice cascade. The common metaphors were all unidirectional and teleological. Amnesty in the age of human rights accountability edited by. The justice norm, as sikkink explains, posits that some basic violations of human rights are crimes committed by individuals who should be held accountable for their misdeeds. Transitional justice is necessary so that the sdgs do not leave behind communities in countries that have experienced massive rights violations. The origins and effectiveness of prosecutions of human rights violations november 20. They both found that transitional justice succeeds in improving human rights and democracy scores. International norm dynamics and political change martha finnemore and kathryn sikkink normative and ideational concerns have always informed the study of international politics and are a consistent thread running through the life of international organi zation. Norms, power, and human rights georgetown university. Review essay on kathryn sikkink s the justice cascade. The power of human rights published in 1999 was an innovative and influential contribution to the study of international human rights.
Yet, the successes of the special court for sierra leonein prosecuting former liberian president charles taylor and in imposing accountability on the leaders of all armed groups regardless of political alignmentwere. During the falldandsmalvinas war of 1982, the british captured argentine. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics by kathryn sikkink. Despite these changes in the international system, there is still little agreement in the comparative politics and international relations literature about the impact of transitional justice trials. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, kathryn sikkink explores the longterm positive effects of prosecutions for violations of international. Norton, 2011 one of the most shocking scenes in mad men, the popular tv series about the harddrinking advertising scene of the 1960s, occurs in the pristine upstate new york countryside. Extending many of the positions developed in her academic publications, it also seeks to communicate the interest and importance of these ideas to the nonacademic reader. These include pinochets arrest in great britain in 1998. Sikkink, kathryn and kim, hun joon, the justice cascade. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics by. John mearsheimer, the tragedy of international politics 2. The african justice cascade and the malabo protocol. Mar 27, 2014 kathryn sikkinks readable and deeply researched 2011 book the justice cascade tells the story.
The emergence and cascading of pope francis norm of social. Kathryn sikkink and carrie booth walling 2006 argentinas contribution to global trends in transitional justice, in naomi rohtarriaza and javier mariecurrena eds. To this end, the role and specific characteristics of civil society groups and the response from the local judicial authority are 4 according to sikkink 2011, p. Faced with this notoriously difficult dual mandate, sikkink succeeds admirably. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics the norton. Sikkink works on international norms and institutions, transnational advocacy networks, the impact of human rights law and policies, and transitional justice.
Although better quality rule of law is neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for transitional justice, developments in the rule of law have contributed to transitional justice, and the success of some transitional justice measures may in turn. Sikkink noted that such prosecutions comprise some of the most effective ways by which occurrences of abuse of power and dictatorship nationally and internationally are negated. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, ww norton, 2011. Kathryn sikkink over the past three decades, hundreds of government officials have gone from being immune to any accountability for their human rights violations. The origins and effectiveness of prosecutions of human rights violations. This lecture will both provide an overview of the main conclusions of sikkinks 2011 book, the justice cascade. Keohane, professor of international affairs, woodrow wilson school of public and international affairs, princeton university. The justice cascade by kathryn sikkink, 9780393079937. She attributes the increase in democracy across the globe to such prosecutions. The metaphor of a cascade rests on the idea that several distinct streams ultimately joined in the negotiation and ratification of the rome statute in 1998 entering into force in 2002.
Their prosecution and punishment, which presented a plan for prosecuting war crimes committed during world war ii. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, by kathryn sikkink new york. The justice cascade sikkinks book has two central objectives. The african justice cascade and the malabo protocol article pdf available in international journal of transitional justice 111 november 2016 with 286 reads how we measure reads. Countries around the world have worked to construct hard law through treaties, ratified by many countries, that include provisions for criminal accountability for human rights violations including the genocide convention, the geneva conventions, and most importantly the convention against torture cat. In the process, her work has contributed to growing awareness of a global reality that makes the possibility of justice a potential. A cogent, thorough historical study of the gathering global momentum in holding state officials accountable for humanrights abuses, from nuremberg to guantanamo.
How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, 2011. The justice cascade last week, i attended a talk given by author kathryn sikkink on her book the justice cascade. Mario einaudi center for 212 international working paper series. The evolution and impact of foreign human rights trials in latin america. They did not agree, however, on when and why transitional justice achieves its desired political goals.
Dec 18, 2014 finnemore and sikkink outline that a norm must reach a tipping point by onethird of the total states in the system adopting the norm which then enables the second stage of the norm life cycle known as the norm cascade finnemore and sikkink, 1998. Author and political science professor kathryn sikkink argues that in the last three decades, leaders in latin america, europe and africa have. The policies of the bush administration made apparent a theoretical gap in the study of norms. The case of the broken controller is a narrative coloring book available to download for free. The justice cascade will become an instantaneous classic that all students of international politics will read and refer to for years to come. Kathryn sikkink is a professor of political science at the university of minnesota and author of the justice cascade. Pdf the african justice cascade and the malabo protocol. Prior to the tribunals creation, glueck had published war criminals.
Krogh associate professor of geopolitics and global justice office. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, and update those conclusions with new research conducted. Scholars have labeled this phenomenon the justice cascade and the age of human rights accountability. Inaf 100 international institutions and human rights. Grawemeyer award winner kathryn sikkink offers a landmark argume. Justice cascade is both a stimulating analysis of an emerging feature of world politics and a contribution toward increasing the odds that todays violators of human rights will one day be. The justice cascade is an immensely engaging account of a scholars own personal journey and of how to combine moral passion with systematic social scientific investigation.
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