International
Studies Journal Vol. 1, No. 4, Spring 2005 Abstracts
The Women’s Convention
Ineke Boerefijn
4 Int'l Stud. J. 1
This contribution focuses on the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). It first provides a brief overview of the protection of the human rights of women in the United Nations framework. CEDAW is a legally binding human rights instruments, which has unique characteristics. The definition of discrimination not only encompasses discrimination in the public sphere, but also discrimination in the private sphere. Article 2 CEDAW describes in detail the type of steps States parties must take to give effect to the substantive provisions of the Convention. Further, article 5 contains an obligation that is not included in any other human rights treaty, namely the obligation to combat traditional roles of men and women and to eliminate stereotypes. The sum of the obligations is that CEDAW requires States parties to ensure to women de jure and de facto equality with men, and also to address the underlying causes of discrimination. The article gives a brief overview of the contents of CEDAW.
The implementation of obligations is monitored by a committee of independent experts, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. This Committee has various means at its disposal. First, under the reporting procedure – which is mandatory for all States parties – States must periodically submit reports on the measures they have taken to give effect to CEDAW. The Committee considers these reports, and gives its views on the compliance with CEDAW in concluding comments. Furthermore, there is an Optional Protocol, containing two supervisory procedures. First, under the individual complaints procedure, women who claim that there rights guaranteed in CEDAW have been violated can submit a complaint to the Committee for its examination. Second, if the Committee receives information that provisions of CEDAW are violated in a grave or systematic way, it can start an inquiry procedure.
Universal Redefining of International Terrorism
Mehdi Zakerian
4 Int'l Stud. J. 41
The concepts like human rights, terrorism, right to development and security, are the issues of gray-area phenomena in international system. This paper is the result of a research programme on the topic of international criminal justice at the Hague Academy of International Law. Regardless of the matter of coming up with an ironclad definition of terrorism, we all need a basic and universal conceptual underpinnings of the Law and criminology of terrorism. The author is looking through the appropriate method to gain a new definition. He examines the sources like doctrine, international and regional contract, Security Council and general assembly’s resolution to answer this question. He believes that redefining international terrorism needs a synthetic definition of political science and international Law which involves all the common and key standards of international community as a whole.
Third World Avoidable Crisis: Mismanaging
National Legitimate Grievances
Houchang Hassan-Yari
4 Int'l Stud. J. 63
The rigid and non-democratic nature of many political systems in the Third World countries plunges societies in a quasi-permanent state of crisis. This in turn threatens the territorial integrity of those states. This paper will demonstrate that violence and insurgency are often chosen as means to solve complex situations. Additionally, it shows how the process of popular alienation takes root and gradually transforms into a call for the independence of minorities or regime change. It traces the passage from a mild call for correction of political system by dissident groups to a complete outbreak of conflict. This paper will illustrate how mistrust polarizes societies and removes any possibility for compromise between dissident groups and government.
The Generations of Human Rights
Raha Lucienne Zohadi
4 Int'l Stud. J. 95
To speak of successive generations of human rights is, of course to use a metaphor, and metaphors are misleading as well as illuminating. This author believes that a new generation is not a new species; the offspring of any species are of the same natural kind as their parents. She concludes that the generational categories in rights thought serve to emphasize an important factor that human rights are in a constant process of developing as the world changes.
Iran’s War Reparations
Davood Hermidas Bavand
4 Int'l Stud. J. 129
After the coming to an end of the Iran-Iraq war, the issue of payment of war reparations by Iraq must have been assessed by the Iranian government. The main outstanding issue in this paper is about the legal and political sides of this problem. A finding by the author, that intentionally continuous breach of international commitments is violation on agreed status quo in international Law today, which he calls it crimes against peace, makes Iraq responsible for the breach of the peace. He provides that restoration of Iran’s right to make up for its damages must be assessed by a specific legal mechanism. He concludes several issues from this review: Iraq is responsible for violating principles of the U.N. charter, committing crime of aggression, grave breach of international humanitarian Law, unilateral breach of the 1975 Algiers Accord, environmental pollution after the attacks on Iranian oil platforms. The procedure of the U.N. announcement, how should the assessment and payment of war reparations be decided.
An Introduction to Recognition of World Order, Cold War,
New World Order with an Emphasize on Middle East Events
Bijan Asadi
4 Int'l Stud. J. 165
What is world order? What is our general understanding of it? What do we mention by concepts like cold war and new world order? What effects has these concepts for policy agenda in Middle East? The author observes that, for the world, there were two separate period time adding dimension of constructing universal system. The first period begins with imperialism system in nineteenth century and the second one with European system which did not have great influence. The first tendency didn’t accepted the universal ethic in other hand the European system that strengthened the mechanism of self-control, did not reflect the issues that were concerned those days. So, in one respect, these two systems were at best misleading as well as illuminating.
Human Rights, a Tool for Policy-Making in Europe
Ali Rahmani
4 Int'l Stud. J. 189
The issue of human rights is the focus of attention in Europe. This essay looks into analysing this importance. It is appropriate to think of this consideration in two predominant field: internal and international. The author has survey the history of germination of human rights in Europe, European system of human rights, European convention of human rights, European social charter and also explored the experience of European council and parliament. He believes that this double-standard policy has reduced the efficiency of human rights. The author has also discussed the matter of relation between Iran and European community in this field.
The Gravity of Globalization Impact on Policy-Driven
Regionalism across South-North Divide
Massoud Aryainia
4 Int'l Stud. J. 215
There are broader cultural, political, and economical dimensions of globalization that have made other actors become important in the international community system. Globalization has become a constant factor, even in internal affairs of the states. At the same time states have found the opportunity to play a vital role in almost every field around the world. This transformation of the role of the state in light of globalization and free exchange of information and has enabled citizens by pass the monopoly of information by governments. This introduction ad revolution has also shrunk the nature of other issues in the south countries. Although scholars worldwide are fascinated by this revolution, but also they are more concerned about setting up programms to bridge this situation. That is why regionalism has taken root.
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