Human Rights, Democracy, and Legitimacy in a World of Disorder brings together respected scholars from diverse disciplines to examine a trio of key concepts that help to stabilize states and the international order. While used pervasively by philosophers, legal scholars, and politicians, the precise content of these concepts is disputed, and they face new challenges in the conditions of disorder brought by the twenty-first century. This volume will explore the interrelationships and possible tensions between human rights, democracy, and legitimacy, from the philosophical, legal, and political perspectives; as well as the role of these concepts in addressing particular problems such as economic inequality, catastrophic risks posed by new technologies, access to health care, regional governance, and responses to mass migration. Made up of essays arising from an interdisciplinary symposium convened at Harvard Law School in 2016, this volume will examine how these trusted concepts may bring order to the global community.

Over a century has passed since the United States Supreme Court decided a series of cases, known as the “Insular Cases,” that limited the applicability of constitutional rights in Puerto Rico and other overseas territories and allowed the United States to hold them indefinitely as subordinated possessions without the promise of representation or statehood. Essays in this volume, which originated in a Harvard Law School conference, reconsider the Insular Cases. Leading legal authorities examine the history and legacy of the cases, which are tinged with outdated notions of race and empire, and explore possible solutions for the dilemmas they created.

Seven years after the end of Nepal’s armed conflict, civilian victims are still struggling in the absence of effective help from the government. This report by the International Human Rights Clinic, in partnership with the advocacy group Center for Civilians in Conflict, documents Nepali victims’ calls for financial and in-kind assistance as well as justice and truth after a decade-long conflict between government and Maoist forces. The report also evaluates the Nepali government’s current programs and proposals in light of victims’ needs and expectations.

Nearly five years after ratifying the International Labor Organization Convention 169 (“ILO 169”), Chile continues to violate indigenous peoples’ right to free, prior, and informed consultation, according to this book by human rights experts in the Consorcio Norte-Sur. The Consorcio is a partnership between Harvard Law School, Stanford Law School, the Universidad Diego Portales (Chile), and the Universidad de Los Andes (Colombia).

The indigenous Bedouin Arab population in the Naqab/Negev desert in Israel has experienced a history of displacement, intense political conflict, and cultural disruption, along with recent rapid modernization, forced urbanization, and migration. This volume of essays highlights international, national, and comparative law perspectives and explores the legal and human rights dimensions of land, planning, and housing issues, as well as the economic, social, and cultural rights of indigenous peoples. Within this context, the essays examine the various dimensions of the “negotiations” between the Bedouin Arab population and the State of Israel. Leading international scholars and professionals, including the current United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women and the former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, are among the contributors to this volume.

This 50-page report outlines concerns about fully autonomous weapons, sometimes called “Killer Robots,” which would be able to choose and fire on targets without human intervention. These weapons would inherently lack the human qualities that provide legal and non-legal checks on the killing of civilians. In addition, the obstacles to holding anyone accountable for harm caused by the weapons would weaken the law’s power to deter future violations.

This report documents the risks posed to civilians from the extensive stockpiling and spread of the former dictator’s munitions following the 2011 armed conflict. Based on in-country investigations, the report calls on Libya to immediately secure or destroy unstable stockpiles of weapons, and with international support, set out to clear munitions, educate the population about risks, and assist victims.

This report, released at the 2012 International AIDS Conference, examines discrimination and neglect that women living with HIV are subjected to in Namibia’s public health care system. In the report, based on interviews conducted in Namibia in 2010, women describe being unable to give their informed consent (or make an informed refusal) to medical treatment either because information was withheld, or categorically denied to them. Area of Focus: Sexual and Reproductive Rights

The last fifteen years have seen a tremendous growth in litigation focused on right-to-health issues, such as access to health services and essential medications. What drives this phenomenon and what is its impact? Litigating Health Rights is the first comprehensive study to examine whether this trend towards judicialization is positive or negative for the advancement of the right to health and whether it can bring more justice to health care. Featuring case studies from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, India, and South Africa, as well as chapters that address cross-cutting themes, this book assesses the systemic impact of health rights litigation and offers as look at who its real winners and losers are.

This book critically reflects on the past fifteen years of international efforts aimed at improving health, alleviating poverty, diminishing gender inequality, and promoting human rights. The volume includes essays by leading scholars and practitioners that are centered on the 1994 United Nations International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) and its resulting Programme of Action. ICPD, an agreement among 179 governments, UN agencies, and NGOs, was intended to shape population and development policy—reinterpreted and redefined as “reproductive health.” More than a decade after the enthusiasm that accompanied ICPD, there is growing concern about its effectiveness in the context of global health and development. Reproductive Health and Human Rights addresses that concern.

In May 2006, a series of coordinated uprisings in 74 detention centers and attacks on police stations and public buildings left 43 state officials and hundreds of civilians dead and brought South America’s largest city and financial capital to a standstill. Five years later, the Clinic and Justiςa Global released this book-length, Portuguese-language report, São Paulo sob Achaque: Corrupção Crime Organizado e Violência Institutional em Maio de 2006, which seeks to answer several questions essential to public security in Brazil: What led to the attacks? Why were state authorities unable or unwilling to prevent them? Why and how did the police lash out violently in revenge killings? Why have the crimes committed by the state not been investigated, and in many cases, apparently covered up?

This book draws on Docherty’s many field investigations to document the burdens cluster munitions impose on civilians, and on her firsthand experience as senior researcher in the arms division of HRW, and an active participant in developing the 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions. It represents the culmination of a decade of research by Human Rights Watch. Meeting the Challenge details the humanitarian toll of cluster munitions, analyzes the international process that resulted in the treaty successfully banning them, and presents the steps that nations that have signed the convention should take to fulfill its promise.

This book-length report offers a unique look at British Columbia’s mining regime—on paper and in practice—through a human rights lens. Both international and domestic laws entitle First Nations to special protections related to their traditional territory, including the right to participate in decision-making about the future of their land and natural resources, and the right to use the land, which is inextricably linked to their culture, spiritual life, and livelihoods. Bearing The Burden analyzes existing mining laws and highlights the troubling situation of Takla Lake First Nation, whose mineral-rich territories have been repeatedly opened to mining without adequate consultation by government and Industry.

Children are increasingly a focus of international and national courts and truth commissions.  This book includes analysis of the recent involvement of children in transitional justice processes in Liberia, Peru, Sierra Leone, and South Africa. It also explores key areas of current debates among legal scholars and child rights advocates, such as international criminal responsibility, traditional and restorative justice, reparations, psychosocial support for child witnesses, and links between education and reconciliation.

Seventeen years after the civil war in El Salvador came to an end, violence and insecurity continue to shape the daily lives of many Salvadorans. This book examines the phenomenon of youth gangs, as well as related police abuse, clandestine violence, and their collective impact on the rule of law. Beginning with an evaluation of the historical legacy of violence in El Salvador and the limitations of postwar efforts to construct functioning democratic and judicial institutions, No Place to Hide analyzes the dynamic evolution of violent street gangs and the Salvadoran state’s responses to gang-related and other forms of violence. The book’s findings are based on primary research conducted in El Salvador between 2006 and 2008.

In this report, Zimbabawe Lawyers for Human Rights, the National Constitutional Assembly and the International Human Rights Clinic at Harvard Law School call for the new Zimbabwean Constitution to include a fully justiciable Bill of Rights with provisions protecting the rights to work, food, housing, adequate standards of health, education, and culture. The report draws on calls from civil society and the Zimbabwean public to incorporate economic, social and cultural rights into the new constitution, noting that enshrining such rights will promote a culture of accountability and responsive governance, and demonstrate Zimbabwe’s commitment to take the expressed aspirations and concerns of its citizens seriously.

This report describes how the Government of Sierra Leone’s failure to address the widespread use of child miners violates its obligations under domestic and international law to protect and promote the rights of children, in particular the rights to health, education and welfare. Specifically, these legal frameworks prohibit children under 18 years of age from performing hazardous mining work that interferes with their education or that is harmful to their health.

This major report was commissioned by five top jurists: Judge Richard Goldstone (South Africa), Judge Patricia Wald (United States), Judge Pedro Nikken (Venezuela), Judge Ganzorig Gombosuren (Mongolia), and Sir Geoffrey Nice (United Kingdom). The report called on the UN Security Council to create a Commission of Inquiry to investigate crimes against humanity and war crimes in the country. Following elections in Burma, the Clinic continues to work with civil society organizations to advocate for accountability in the country and an end to human rights violations, especially in ethnic minority areas.

The involvement of health professionals in human rights and humanitarian law violations has again become a live issue as a consequence of the U.S. prosecution of conflicts with al Qaeda, the Taliban, and Iraq. Health professionals-including MDs trained in psychiatry and PhDs trained in behavioral psychology-have reportedly advised and assisted in coercive interrogation. Health professionals have also been involved in forced feedings. Such practices would not be unique to the United States nor the most extreme forms of abuse in the world. The direct involvement of medical professionals in torture, covering up extrajudicial killings, and other extreme conduct is a phenomenon common to many societies and periods of national crisis. In this volume, a wide range of prominent practitioners and scholars explore these issues. Their insights provide significant potential for reforming institutions to assist health professionals maintain their legal and ethical obligations in times of national crisis.

In December 2005, South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) promulgated a controversial policy on the prosecution of apartheid-era crimes, sparking renewed debate about such prosecutions and their role in the transition to democracy since 1994. This book presents a diverse collection of perspectives on prosecutions in South Africa, including a foreword by playwright and actor John Kani. Other reflections from former Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) commissioners, survivors of apartheid, civil society members, and government officials outline the serious questions facing South Africa as it deals with prosecutions today. The book highlights the important themes related to any post-conflict prosecution scheme including rule-of-law concerns, questions of evenhandedness and moral relativism, competing priorities and resource allocation, the limits of a court-centered approach to justice, and the potential transformative power of prosecutions.

The perception of rising insecurity has plagued Paraguay over the past decade as the country has continued its transition from authoritarian to democratic rule. At the same time, reforms of the penal code and the code of criminal procedure have been implemented, leading many to attribute the rising sense of insecurity to the new, rights-based approach to criminal justice. This book assesses the disparity between the sensation of insecurity and actual levels of urban crime and further analyzes the impact of political actors and the media in heightening public fear of crime. Drawing on comparative case studies and the latest research on criminal justice policy in Latin America, the book situates Paraguay’s experience in a broader regional context and offers recommendations to guide future policymaking.