Search: Affective Justice: Book Symposium: A Response

[ Steve Charnovitz is an associate professor of law at The George Washington University Law School. He blogs at the International Economic Law and Policy Blog .] On October 31, 2008, I made a presentation at the ASIL’s Tillar House of a proposal for an “International Court of Justice Decisions Implementation Act.” My proposal is an outgrowth of my essay in the Agora of the July 2008 issue of the American Journal of International Law. The Agora focuses on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in “Medellin v. Texas” and includes...

...precarious line of caution and subservience and be relegated to the margins if they are racialised as non-White or are nationals of states considered non-Western. International criminal justice remains one of the most paternalistically unrepresentative ‘branches’ of international law. That these sanctions were imposed in the first place and that they remained in place for so long have changed how the ‘subaltern’ will henceforth interact with international criminal justice in general and the ICC in particular. For instance, those who desire to lend their skills, knowledge, expertise and time in...

...leadership positions. We share a mutual detestation for injustice, and love and belief in supranational organs and human rights bodies to ensure justice for victims of atrocities. She is a feminist and lawyer and an awe-inspiring role model for African women and girls. Bensouda’s leadership of the ICC is also premised and informed by her position as a woman from a small West African country. This insight is essential to how her commitment to ensuring justice for women can be seen in the strategic direction of the Court in challenging...

I want to call readers’ attention to a remarkable new report on international criminal justice authored by Daniel McLaughlin, a former legal officer at the ECCC, for Fordham’s Leitner Center for International Law & Justice. As the introduction states, the report is an attempt — a very successful one — to visualize information about the criminal tribunals: There is wide awareness, though little true understanding, of the work of the international criminal tribunals. International prosecutions of high-ranking civilian and military leaders, including former heads of state, on charges of crimes...

...the somewhat transactional relationship that the USA enjoys with the rest of the world on matters related to justice for the worst atrocities—it appears to act on such atrocities only when it suits its national interests rather than because it is the morally right thing to do. Since George Washington’s infamous 1796 Farewell Address, American foreign policy has prided itself in its ability to maintain the much-needed delicate balance between self-interest and morality. The latter has always been postured as an anchor for the observance of good faith and justice...

...who secured the conviction by smuggling evidence out of Syria, acting as joint plaintiffs and reliving unimaginable horrors in front of their former tormentor, all at considerable risk to their own welfare and that of their families. However, their victory is bittersweet. As victims’ associations stressed: our satisfaction at this verdict is overshadowed by our long and continuing suffering as we seek our missing loved ones and demand justice for the crimes against us. This important conviction is just a first step on the long and arduous path toward justice....

[Darryl Robinson is an Associate Professor at Queen’s University Faculty of Law (Canada), specializing in international criminal justice.] I am deeply grateful to each of the contributors for their excellent additions to the conversation.  One of the themes of Justice in Extreme Cases is the important of deliberation in figuring out a framework for moral principles.  I agree with and welcome the counterpoints and questions advanced by the contributors.  Rather than a typical “response” piece, I will here summarize and celebrate the caveats or concerns that they have raised. Elies van...

managing the potential negative consequences of medical tourism. Cohen gives an overview of canonical accounts of global justice and their implications for state responsibility, helpfully demonstrating that different accounts of justice will provide different answers to questions of responsibility. In this way, Cohen’s article makes the case for continued research on theories of global justice and their implications for global health practices like medical tourism. Cohen’s article faces a limitation shared by others conducting research on the impacts of medical tourism, a global health practice that, while not new, has...

as a whole. She also emphasised that many participating victims (of which there are now 600) believe that justice and accountability for historic crimes in Darfur are central to the creation of lasting peace in Sudan. Therefore, she suggested that the ICC consider continuing gathering evidence during the current conflict for use in future prosecutions, both as a way to deter further violations and to give those affected hope that perpetrators of the current violence will be brought to justice.  Highlights of Testimonies of Participating Victims  Voices of participating victims...

...UN’s World Food Programme cutting their food rations, and with the deteriorating security situation inside the camps, many Rohingya find themselves in a dire situation with impunity being but one of many pressing concerns. Through its offices in Cox’s Bazar, Legal Action Worldwide (LAW) provides legal assistance and support to Rohingya survivors in these refugee camps. Having been deported en masse to Bangladesh, and without a fair legal remedy available within Myanmar, Rohingya survivors are forced to rely on pathways for justice outside of Myanmar. A variety of efforts on...

...petty offences, or placing the children in closed institutions in such a young age. A system which does not allow for diversion based on restorative justice principles, such as settlement or withdrawal of the proceedings is clearly destined to devastate or at least highly negatively impact children’s lives. To reflect the Article 40 of the CRC and the CRC Committee’s  recent General Comment No 24 on children’s rights in the child justice system, the common and ultimate objective for all professionals in the justice system should be to support the...

meaning to the maxim justice delayed is justice denied. I have just returned from visiting the courts of Kenya in Nairobi in conjunction with my training program with IJM Office in Kenya. During my time with IJM, I was briefed on cases in which it took years for criminal defendants to receive basic judicial process. For example, in one disturbing case the defendant was framed by a corrupt policeman. The officer demanded a bribe that the defendant could not pay, so in retaliation the officer falsely accused the defendant of...