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Trump, the Other, and Human Rights in Society

November 30, 2016November 30, 2016 by EditorNo Comments

By Inga Winkler, a lecturer at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights Without downplaying the potential impact of a Trump presidency on foreign policy, renewed acceptance of torture as well as the potential impact on climate change, I fear for society at large. A president-elect who ridicules and denigrates migrants, Muslims, Hispanics, women, persons with disabilities and others sets an example. He gives the impression that such behavior and such attitudes are acceptable. His remarks promote ideas of the superiority of some and inferiority of others, based on a socially constructed divide between “us” and “them”. There is nothing new about racism, sexism and fear of the “other” in US society. It is deeply entrenched. What is new is that the man elected to the highest office institutionalizes and formalizes such attitudes. He legitimizes “othering” and stigmatization. One of the possible explanations for the misleading polls is that voters who declared they were undecided were in fact planning to vote for Trump....

How International Media Outlets are Failing the Peace Movement in Israel and Palestine

October 18, 2016December 13, 2016 by EditorNo Comments

By Rachel Riegelhaupt, a graduate student in human rights. On Tuesday October 4th, the day after the Jewish New Year Rosh Hashanah, approximately 2,000 Israeli and Palestinian women set out on a 200 km peace march across the country, walking from Israel’s border with Lebanon to Jerusalem. This March of Hope will officially culminate on Wednesday October 19th, and is being mirrored across the country with local rallies, treks, and cycle rides. Tens of thousands more women are expected to join the movement on the final day, marching from the Supreme Court, past the Knesset, and towards Prime Minister Netanyahu’s house where they have organized a rally demanding that “[Israeli and Palestinian] leaders work with respect and courage towards a solution to the ongoing violent conflict, with the full participation of women in this process.” The march has been organized by Women Wage Peace, a non-partisan women’s movement founded by Jewish and Arab Israelis after the 2014 Israel-Gaza war, that promotes cooperation between Israeli...

Political Unrest in Brazil: Will Human Rights Policies Endure Mr. Temer’s Government Program?

October 12, 2016December 13, 2016 by Editor2 Comments

By Luiz Henrique Reggi Pecora, an M.A. student in human rights Primeiramente, fora Temer. Firstly, down with Temer. For Brazilians who do not recognize the legitimacy of Michel Temer’s government, this small phrase has gained the weight of a motto. Michel Temer has assumed office since May, when the Brazilian Congress approved the impeachment process of former president Dilma Rousseff, implementing a governmental project bent towards the interests of conservative groups. More progressive sectors of society have reacted energetically, not only opposing his governmental project, but also criticizing the questionable conditions that led to the removal of Mrs. Rousseff from office - for many, the impeachment is no more than an excuse for a coup. After long years of prosperity, how did Brazil come to this critical scenario? The deepening of the economic crisis, combined with the “Lava-Jato” Operation (a series of investigations conducted by the Brazilian Federal Police over a huge corruption scheme involving large Brazilian companies and high-level politicians), contributed to...

A Place for an Unexpected Guest at the Table of the UN Business and Human Rights Working Group

September 27, 2016September 28, 2016 by EditorNo Comments

By Aleydis Nissen, guest blogger and PhD candidate at Cardiff University "Savoir critiquer est bon, savoir créer est mieux." To know how to criticize is good, to know how to create is better. (Henri Poincaré) In May 2016, Hong Kong City University Professor Surya Deva took up his function in the United Nations Human Rights Council as the Asia-Pacific representative of the Working Group on the issue of human rights and transnational corporations and other business enterprises. In this position, he contributes to the mandate of the Working Group in disseminating and implementing the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, a United Nations-endorsed template organized around a three-pillar framework: the State’s duty to protect human rights, the responsibility of corporations to respect human rights, and access to remedy for those whose rights have been violated. Deva’s appointment was not without controversy, according to the President of the Human Rights Council, Choi Kyonglim. Given Deva’s previous, highly critical stance on the Guiding Principles themselves,...

Turkey and the European Human Rights Regime: Is it right to derogate?

September 1, 2016October 3, 2016 by EditorNo Comments

By Marina Kumskova, an MA student in Human Rights Several human rights treaties allow for states to derogate from their obligations to protect certain rights. These adjustments can only take place temporarily, however, and in exceptional circumstances - i.e. in times of public emergency threatening the life of a nation. Yet, despite the professedly innocuous intent of such systems, states of emergency have a dark history of being used in controversial ways to usher in tyrannical regimes, under the facade of confronting a threat to the existence of the nation. Take the example of France. The perceived threat to the life of the nation from terrorist attacks, caused by people only loosely connected by an ideology, is seemingly tremendous. However, France has proven that the introduction of emergency powers, which allow for the derogation of rights, also ushers in a temptation for misuse. France’s state of emergency last December was less than a month old when its emergency powers were used, not in...

Strasbourg delivers a blow to reproductive rights, women’s rights, and Roma rights in one go

March 22, 2016July 1, 2016 by Editor15 Comments

By Judit Geller, Adam Weiss, and Bernard Rorke, guest bloggers from the European Roma Rights Centre On June 9th 2015, the European Court of Human Rights declared an application submitted by the European Roma Rights Center (ERRC) on behalf of a victim of forced sterilization inadmissible. The injustices visited upon the applicant from the moment of being sterilized in Hungary are disturbing – the legal reasoning behind the decision is deeply troubling for anyone interested in reproductive rights, anti-Roma discrimination, women’s rights, or the emerging legal field of intersectionality. The facts (which can be found in an anonymised version of the application on the ERRC website) are as follows: On February 9th 2008, the applicant G.H. was admitted to the hospital, twenty-two weeks pregnant with twins and bleeding heavily. An urgent Caesarean section was ordered. The applicant signed a form consenting to this procedure. It was discovered that the foetuses were dead, and they were removed. During the operation, the applicant’s fallopian tubes...

Kagame’s third term bid and the African Union’s silence

December 1, 2015July 1, 2016 by Editor1 Comment

By Sylvester Uhaa, former Human Rights Advocate at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights, at Columbia University ____________________________________________ I read with concern a report regarding a referendum to amend Article 101 of the Rwandan Constitution to allow President Paul Kagame another seven year term. A few days ago, the Rwandan Senate voted to allow him a third term. Kagame ascended to power in 2003 and was re-elected in 2010. By 2017, he will have spent 14 years in power as President. With the referendum likely to be in his favour, his victory at the polls will allow him to be president for 21 years. It was with great discomfort that I first heard about this on CCTV News last April, at the peak of the political turmoil in Burundi, following President Pierre Nkurunziza’s similar moves for a third term. Nkurunziza succeeded, but not without the bloodshed of thousands of people, with thousands more continuing flee the country for safety. As the crises heightened, the...

A Review of The Act of Killing (2012): Trauma, Memory, and the Power of Filmmaking

April 5, 2014July 1, 2016 by Editor1 Comment

By Daniel Golebiewski, graduate student of human rights at Columbia University ___________________________________________________________________________ On March 8, 2014, Columbia’s School of the Arts, in collaboration with the Institute for the Study of Human Rights (ISHR), screened Joshua Oppenheimer’s 2012 documentary, The Act of Killing. This film was shortlisted for a 2014 Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary. On this evening, the audience had the chance to see the Director’s Cut and ask Oppenheimer questions regarding trauma, memory, and the power of filmmaking. In 1965, Anwar Congo and Adi Zulkadry—Indonesian “gangsters” deriving their label from the English “free men” meaning to live on without punishment from the criminal justice system—accepted their role as leaders of the most well known killing squad in North Sumatra. In The Act of Killing, Oppenheimer invites these two gangsters and their comrades to reenact their assassinations of Chinese communists. They seem eager to create a film that uses humor and romance, as well as inspiration from their favorite movie genres like...

Putin’s Calculus in Ukraine

March 8, 2014July 1, 2016 by EditorNo Comments

By David L. Phillips, Director of the Program on Peace-building and Rights, Columbia University’s Institute for the Study of Human Rights _____________________________________________________________________________ Crimea is more than a flash-point for conflict between Ukraine and Russia. War between Ukraine and Russia has potential regional and global implications. While supporting Ukraine's sovereignty, the Obama administration must be careful not to escalate tensions. It may be possible, however, to change President Vladimir Putin's calculus through a combination of carrots and sticks. Events are fast-moving and volatile. On Friday, Russian Special Forces and helicopter gunships invaded Crimea. They closed the main airport and set-up check-points, seizing key buildings. On Saturday, the Russian Duma authorized the deployment of armed forces to Crimea, which has a majority ethnic Russian population. By Sunday, 6,000 Russian forces established complete control of Crimea. Russia may escalate the conflict by deploying forces in the ethnic Russian belt between Donetsk and Khirkiv. Will Putin take steps to "liberate" other ethnic Russian territories in the so-called near abroad? Pro-Western countries in Baltic...

The Super Bowl: What’s Trafficking Got To Do With It?

January 26, 2014July 1, 2016 by EditorNo Comments

By Caroline Miller, graduate student at Columbia University's School of International and Political Affairs & Mailman School of Public Health _____________________________________________________________________________ Super Bowl Sunday is right around the corner. It’s time for the annual gathering of family and friends to eat large quantities of junk food, watch captivating television commercials, and cheer on the two best NFL teams as they face off. So what does human trafficking have to do with this festive football day? It turns out that the Super Bowl has a dark side associated with a high prevalence of human trafficking activities. And this year, it will be right in our backyard, across the river in East Rutherford, New Jersey (NJ). With the influx of thousands of people to the host city, experts contend that the number of men looking to pay for sex surges and the immense crowds associated with the game make victims fall under the radar.[1] Sex workers are brought in to meet the demand of fans...