Dealing with crimes against humanity

‘The United Nations was not created in order to bring us to heaven, but in order to save us from hell.’ These words of the second Secretary-General of the United Nations, Dag Hammarskjöld, remain as valid today as they were half a century ago, shortly before his death in a plane crash in then Northern Rhodesia.

This issue of Development Dialogue is concerned with the continuing efforts to create normative global frameworks and implement them even-handedly. Following earlier volumes (nos. 50 and 53) it is the third in a series dealing with the challenges of how to take appropriate action in the face of genocide, mass violence and crimes against humanity.

It seeks at the same time to explore the relevance of such norms established by the United Nations and their impact on the global order.

Notions of responsibility, conscience and solidarity are among the values that guide the authors contributing to the volume. From various backgrounds they approach related matters of how to deal with the violation of fundamental rights and how best to protect people from forms of organised violence.  They are all thereby seeking to contribute to the noble task of promoting and protecting human rights for all.

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Title of article Author	View Download
Why normative frameworks? An introduction Henning Melber
Scientists in contemporary wars Bengt Gustafsson
Crimes against humanity, humankind and the international community Manuel Fröhlich
War rape, social death and political evil Robin May Schott
How to respond to genocide and others crimes against humanity Jan Axel Nordlander
Insufficient legal protection and access to justice for post-conflict sexual violence Diana Amnéus
Idealism and realism – Negotiating sovereignty in divided nations Francis M. Deng
The Responsibility to Protect – True consensus, false controversy Mónica Serrano
Forging a convention for crimes against humanity Leila Nadya Sadat
Genocide on trial – Normative effects of the Rwanda tribunal’s jurisprudence Alex Obote-Odora
Linking peacebuilding and statebuilding – A new paradigm for UN response to fragile situations Ursula Werther-Pietsch and Anna-Katharina Roithner
Notes on Contributors