The justice cascade is perhaps her most ambitious work to date. Kathryn sikkink born 1955 is an author, human rights academic, and scholar of international relations working primarily through the theoretical strain of constructivism. 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. 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 justice cascade chicago unbound the university of chicago. The icc and the situation in kenya is an indepth analysis of the patterns and predictions revolving around the criminal cases of president uhuru kenyatta, deputy president william. 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.
Looks at the impact of putting former national leaders on trial for massive violations of human rights 2. Review essay on kathryn sikkinks the justice cascade. O o o o o cn o a o o o o o o o o o o o o o o crq o 1 o o o o o o cn o. 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. Keck and kathryn sikkinks activists beyond borders 1998 227pp examines transnational activism and the types of pressure that groups bring to bear across national frontiers. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics new york. The justice cascade sikkinks book has two central objectives.
John simon guggenheim memorial foundation, fellowship, 20082009. Activists beyond borders, margaret e keck and kathryn. When io was founded, dominant realist views of politics, while rejecting. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics written by kathryn sikkink, is an exploration of the need for justice in the political scene. She shows how, in just three decades, state leaders in latin america, europe, and africa have lost. Her books include the justice cascade and activists beyond borders. The justice cascade is a metaphor that kathryn sikkink used to describe the spread of accountability systems throughout the globe. During the falldandsmalvinas war of 1982, the british captured argentine navy captain alfredo astiz.
The icc and the situation in kenya university of washington. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics w. First, that holding former leaders legally accountable strengthens the prospects for successful transitions to. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics the norton series in world politics sikkink, kathryn on. The authors kathryn sikkink, now of the harvard kennedy school, and hun joon kim of. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, provides a personal, historical and empirical. Discover them is style of ppt, kindle, pdf, word, txt, rar, and also zip. Changing world politics, sets out to address three ambitious questions. Kathryn sikkink is the ryan family professor of human rights policy at the harvard kennedy school. Sikkink shows that activists and scholars disagree about the efficacy of human rights because they use different yardsticks to measure progress. But respected human rights expert kathryn sikkink draws on decades of.
Kathryn sikkink is the ryan family professor of human rights policy at hks and the carol k. Pforzheimer professor at the radcliffe institute for advanced study. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, kathryn sikkink calls this trend the justice cascade and argues that it represents a new and surprising development in world politics because it challenges classic understandings of sovereignty and the immunity of state officials from prosecution. Kathryn sikkink has spent thirtyfive years studying how nations hold their leaders to account for such crimes as kidnapping, torture, and extrajudicial execution, which are often committed against the backdrop of civil insurrection, war, or antiterroism campaigns.
While analysts of the punitive turn express critical sentiments toward the trend they analyze, many authors in the human rights. Acclaimed scholar kathryn sikkink examines the important and controversial new trend of holding political leaders criminally accountable for human rights violations. International norm dynamics and political change martha. They argue that since the 1970s, transnational networks have proven to be effective tools for policy change around key issues such as human rights, the environment, equality and womens rights that. Sikkink works on international norms and institutions, transnational advocacy networks, the impact of human rights law and policies, and transitional justice. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, 2011. Kathryn sikkink is the ryan family professor of human rights policy at the harvard kennedy school and the carol k. 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. She shows how, in just three decades, state leaders in latin america, europe, and africa have lost their immunity from any. 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 origins and effectiveness of prosecutions of human rights violations, uses new data to present a crossnational view of trends in human rights prosecutions.
Kathryn sikkinks readable and deeply researched 2011 book the justice cascade tells the story. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics by. The evolution and impact of foreign human rights trials in latin america. Currently, you could get this remarkable book just right here. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, provides a personal, historical and empirical account of human rights. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics by kathryn sikkink. Acclaimed scholar kathryn sikkink examines the important and controversial new trend of holding political leaders criminally accountable for human rights. 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. A discussion of kathryn sikkinks evidence for hope. The impact of human rights trials in latin america. Our conclusions or our assumptions about these is sues condition every form of political analysis.
So in some of the earlier books that melani mentioned, activist beyond borders or the justice cascade, i studied historical and current norms campaigns. On 10 october 1998, former chilean dictator general augusto pinochet was indicted by a spanish court for numerous human rights violations committed during his military rule. The african justice cascade and the malabo protocol. It is an assessment of the significance of accountability among politicians. Review essay on kathryn sikkink s the justice cascade. In the justice cascade, sikkink offers a landmark argument for human rights prosecutions as a powerful political tool. Sikkink is reasonably explicit in evidence for hope about her normative commitments, although she seems to have shifted her position from the justice cascade where she. In search of the economic in transitional justice, international journal of transitional. Evidence for hope makes the case that, yes, human rights work. Yet, much of that project focused on the spread of prosecutions in europe and latin america.
Norms, power, and human rights georgetown university. Kathryn sikkink is the ryan family professor of human rights policy at the harvard kennedy school of government, and the carol k. Remus, a law student at new york university school of law kathryn sikkinks book, the justice cascade. Notice i say we, because as you know from the piece you read, but also i have these great coauthors. The evolution and impact of foreign human rights trials in latin america, 2 chi. Lutz, ellen and sikkink, kathryn 2001 the justice cascade. Comparing the present to the past, she shows that genocide and violence against civilians have declined over time, while access to healthcare and education has increased dramatically. Remus, a law student at new york university school of law kathryn sikkink s book, the justice cascade. For two decades now kathyrn sikkink has been a leading scholar of human rights in world politics. So kerry booth walling, hungju kim, jeff dancy ph, just some of my coauthors who have really helped me do this research. Now, never ever late to read this the justice cascade how human rights prosecutions. The evolution and impact of foreign human rights trials in latin america, chicago journal of international law 21. Defining the justice cascade as a dramatic trend in world politics that holds individual officials, including heads of state, criminally accountable for human rights violations, sikkink traces the ideas origins in the nuremberg tribunals after wwii, its reemergence in the 1970s during the domestic trials in greece and portugal, and the.
Critics may counter that the movement is in serious jeopardy or even a questionable byproduct of western imperialism. Prior to her career at harvard university, sikkink. The evolution and impact of foreign human rights trials in latin america, chicago journal of international law 2. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics, kathryn sikkink explores the longterm positive effects of prosecutions for violations of international. In the justice cascade, kathryn sikkink argues that foreign prosecutions and international tribunals can be costeffective alternatives to military intervention. The african experience with justice mechanisms challenges the narrative of a unidirectional cascade. I went all the way backi have a chapter that looks at the antislavery movement, looks at womens suffrage, it looks atone of my favorite cases was the issue of ending footbinding in. Making human rights work in the 21st century and the justice cascade. Asks whether one can draw general conclusions from surveying all of the cases 1. How human rights prosecutions are changing world politics. Aristotle and plato understood this in the fourth century b. Grawemeyer award winner kathryn sikkink offers a landmark argument for human rights prosecutions as a powerful political tool.
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