Justice in the North

Justice, finally? Courtesy of Scott Chacon/flickr

A week ago, a landmark case in Finland against a 59-year-old Rwandan preacher concluded with a life sentence for mass murder (the Finnish legal term joukkotuhonta actually roughly translates as ‘mass/group destruction’). The man, Francois Bazaramba, had sought asylum in Finland in 2003 and was arrested in 2007 in Porvoo, Finland, accused by the Rwandan authorities of involvement in the Rwandan genocide in 1994.

Although not unprecedented, Finland’s exercise of the so-called universality principle in public international law, has revived the controversy surrounding the principle which, in theory and if codified in national law, allows national courts to prosecute individuals suspected of involvement in genocide or other grievous and systematic attacks against civilian populations, regardless of the location of the crime or the nationality of the suspect.

More importantly, however, it has marked another step in the torturous road toward justice and reconciliation in Rwanda.

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More than a Game

A footballer atop Montmartre, photo: photolupi, flickr

With the first World Cup hosted on African soil underway, the ISN takes a closer look this week at the impact of sport beyond the headlines – particularly as a tool for development.

This ISN Special Report contains the following content:

  • An Analysis by the Swiss Academy for Development’s Daniela Preti about how sport contributes to youth empowerment and social transformation at the grassroots level.
  • A Podcast interview with SCORE executive director Stefan Howells explores the important role that sport can play in developing countries to bridge the gap between classroom and community.
  • Security Watch articles on the impact of international sporting events from the World Cup to the Olympics.
  • Publications housed in our Digital Library, including the Middle East Institute’s snapshots of sport in the Middle East.
  • Primary Resources, including a UN General Assembly Resolution on ‘Sports as a Means to Promote Education, Health, Development and Peace’.
  • Links to relevant websites, such as UNICEF’s Sport for Development website.
  • Our IR Directory, featuring the Swiss Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport.

Double Standards

Demonstrator at rally for Bhopal victims, courtesy of Ascanio Vitale/Flickr

The ongoing BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and and the 1984 Bhopal disaster have been hot topics in the news as of late. Both events have reproduced a popular debate regarding multinationals using and abusing their host countries, particularly within the environmental context. But rather than analyzing the power of the multinational companies in relation to the state, what appears more noteworthy is the conflicting attitude of the US. This in turn has influenced the hierarchy of states that exists on the world stage.

What I find interesting is how aggressively the US has condemned BP’s activities, even in the face of damaging trans-Atlantic relations. Yet, it has been so passive about the extensive damage done by American Union Carbide Chemicals, now Dow Chemicals, in Bhopal.

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The ISN Quiz: The Rise of the Right

The Rise of the Right in Europe is our focus this week. How much do you know about right-wing politics on the continent?

[QUIZZIN 25]

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New ISN Partner: Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik

SWP LogoWe are proud to announce that the German Institute for International and Security Affairs of the Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP) has joined the ISN partner network.

SWP is an independent academic research center based in Berlin. It advises the German parliament and the federal government on foreign and security policy issues.

As a partner, SWP will share their publications with the ISN.

Welcome to the ISN, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik!