Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 The ‘state-building enterprise’: Legal doctrine, progress narratives and managerial governance
- 2 Democratisation, state-building and politics as technology
- 3 International law, human rights and the transformative occupation of Iraq
- 4 Defining democracy in international institutions
- 5 Democracy and legitimation: Challenges in the reconstitution of political processes in Afghanistan
- 6 Impossible expectations? The UN Security Council's promotion of the rule of law after conflict
- 7 Legal pluralism and the challenge of building the rule of law in post-conflict states: A case study of Timor-Leste
- 8 From paper to practice: The role of treaty ratification post-conflict
- 9 Selective universality? Human-rights accountability of the UN in post-conflict operations
- 10 ‘Security starts with the law’: The role of international law in the protection of women's security post-conflict
- 11 Grappling in the Great Lakes: The challenges of international justice in Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda
- Conclusion: Hope and humility for weavers with international law
- Select Bibliography
- Index
9 - Selective universality? Human-rights accountability of the UN in post-conflict operations
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 August 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- 1 The ‘state-building enterprise’: Legal doctrine, progress narratives and managerial governance
- 2 Democratisation, state-building and politics as technology
- 3 International law, human rights and the transformative occupation of Iraq
- 4 Defining democracy in international institutions
- 5 Democracy and legitimation: Challenges in the reconstitution of political processes in Afghanistan
- 6 Impossible expectations? The UN Security Council's promotion of the rule of law after conflict
- 7 Legal pluralism and the challenge of building the rule of law in post-conflict states: A case study of Timor-Leste
- 8 From paper to practice: The role of treaty ratification post-conflict
- 9 Selective universality? Human-rights accountability of the UN in post-conflict operations
- 10 ‘Security starts with the law’: The role of international law in the protection of women's security post-conflict
- 11 Grappling in the Great Lakes: The challenges of international justice in Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda
- Conclusion: Hope and humility for weavers with international law
- Select Bibliography
- Index
Summary
Introduction
The protection and promotion of human rights is one of the primary objectives of the United Nations. Within the field of peacekeeping, the importance of states respecting human rights is emphasised, not only in terms of abiding by international law, but also as a means of building sustainable peace. Mandates of UN peacekeeping missions increasingly include specific human-rights functions. A 2005 report of the UN secretary-general stated with certainty that:
The mandates of United Nations peacekeeping operations now leave no ambiguity about the duties of peacekeepers, within their means, to protect civilians under imminent threat, promote human rights and target essential elements for immediate post-conflict stabilization.
The promotion of human rights is thus a favoured tool in UN interventions in post-conflict states. Yet are human rights universal standards in this context? States are not the only authorities exercising governmental powers in the post-conflict environment. The UN often comes to play a ‘quasi-state’ role: whether in the extreme form of a transitional administration or in assuming responsibility for activities ordinarily conducted by the state, such as policing or military support. If UN personnel do not abide by human-rights standards, their actions can inflict great harm upon individuals within the host community, undermine the development of post-conflict states and damage the credibility of the UN.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Role of International Law in Rebuilding Societies after ConflictGreat Expectations, pp. 198 - 217Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2009