Vol 4 No 1

Dear Reader,

In their last annual report, Human Rights Watch warned that atrocities are the new normal. Across the world, ultranationalists are legitimising hate speech and inflammatory language, which often serve as precursors to hate crimes and act as early warnings of atrocity risks. Discussions on atrocity and conflict prevention, international criminal justice and sexual and reproductive health in conflict zones are becoming harder and harder to place on the agenda of the UN Security Council (UNSC). At the same time, despite the deadlock in the UNSC on ensuring that those responsible for gross human rights violations are brought to justice, some progress is being made in collecting and preserving evidence of crimes committed in Syria and Myanmar through the work of independent international investigative mechanisms established by the UN General Assembly and the Human Rights Council (progress is also made regarding the collection, preservation and storying of evidence of ISIS crimes in Iraq, thanks to the work of the UN Investigative Team for Accountability of Da’esh (UNITAD), established by the UNSC). It is against this background that our fourth volume is published, bringing to the fore six student papers that touch on a variety of subjects: from the developing nature and scope of international fact finding missions to conflict related sexual and gender based violence, and the operationalisation of the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in the Central African Republic, Myanmar, Libya and Syria.

Our issue opens with a letter signed by Dr Jess Gifkins, reviewing the big debates related to the Responsibility to Protect norm and highlighting the recent shift in R2P scholarship toward R2P implementation. The issue continues with an article by Niriksha Sanghvi, analysing the evolution of the International Fact-Finding Mission in armed conflicts – from documenting factual events to investigating, collecting, and preserving evidence of international criminal and humanitarian law violations in conflict areas. Dawn Stevenson’s article examines the gendered structural violence and inequality entrenched in patriarchal societies, as well as the multidimensional consequences of sexual abuse that make sexual violence such an effective weapon of war. Related to this, Jennifer Amy Leigh’s article analyses how gendered experiences shape processes and practices of war and peace. Turning to the implementation of R2P, Claudia Broadhead’s article examines the strengths and limitations of R2P in the Central African Republic crisis, looking at how international, regional and sub-regional organisations have operationalised the norm. Julia Smith reviews the ways in which R2P has been misapplied in Myanmar (2008), applied in Libya and absent in Syria in order to make the case that norms are “constant ‘work in progress’ that are continuously contested and transformed through practice and by a range of actors”, and to show that contestation surrounding R2P has led to the development of important initiatives such as the Responsibility Not to Veto. On the same note, Amy Hart, who also looks into the status of the R2P norm, makes the case that R2P is an established norm and highlights the limitations of norm theory.

The contributions to this issue continue to expand the scope of the R2P Student Journal, making it focus on broader subjects related to understanding the causes and responses to gross human rights violations.

Co-Editors-in-Chief,

Georgiana Epure and Kristin Smette Gulbrandsen

This issue was originally published under our previous title, the Responsibility to Protect Student Journal.

Articles

• The Final Frontier: R2P and Implementation
  Dr Jess Gifkins, University of Manchester, UK Dr Jess Gifkins has worked at the University of Manchester since 2017, having previously worked at universities in the UK and in Australia. Her research is on global governance in relation to questions of peace and security. She studies decision-making practices within the United Nations Security Council, andContinue reading “The Final Frontier: R2P and Implementation”
• The Evolution of the International Fact-Finding Missions in Armed Conflicts – From Collecting Facts to Collecting Evidence
  Niriksha Sanghvi, Leiden Law School, Netherlands Niriksha Sanghvi is a graduate of the Advanced LLM program in Public International Law, with a specialisation in International Criminal Law from Leiden Law School, Netherlands. Abstract The paper explores the development of the International Fact-Finding Missions from the early Maine inquiry in 1898 to the International Humanitarian Fact-Finding Mission establishedContinue reading “The Evolution of the International Fact-Finding Missions in Armed Conflicts – From Collecting Facts to Collecting Evidence”
• Why Is Sexual Violence Such an Effective Weapon of War?
  Dawn Stevenson, University of Leeds, UK Dawn Stevenson studied International Development and Spanish at the University of Leeds. After volunteering with a sustainable development NGO in Nepal for 9 months, Dawn is now working as a Policy Advisor in the Civil Service. Her main areas of interest are human rights, climate change and sustainable agriculture.Continue reading “Why Is Sexual Violence Such an Effective Weapon of War?”
• How Gendered Experiences Shape Processes and Practices of War and Peace
  Jennifer Amy Leigh, The University of Law, UK Jennifer is currently a full-time Civil Servant and part-time Graduate Diploma in Law student at The University of Law. Previously, she graduated from The University of Manchester with a MA in Politics and from the University of Liverpool with a BA Honours in English Language and Literature.Continue reading “How Gendered Experiences Shape Processes and Practices of War and Peace”
• A Critical Analysis of the Strengths and Limitations of the Responsibility to Protect in the Central African Republic Between 2013-2017
  Claudia Broadhead, University of Leeds Claudia Broadhead graduated from Leeds University in 2018 with a First-Class Honours in English and History of Art. She currently works in Refugee Support at the British Red Cross. Abstract This paper will discuss the material implications of the UN Responsibility to Protect in the Central African Republic (CAR), aContinue reading “A Critical Analysis of the Strengths and Limitations of the Responsibility to Protect in the Central African Republic Between 2013-2017”
• The Responsibility to Protect, An Established Norm in International Relations? Misapplication in Myanmar, Application in Libya and Non-Application in Syria
  Julia Smith, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK Julia Smith is a current MSc student at the London School of Economics and Political Science, where she studies Gender, Media and Culture. She previously graduated from the University of Leeds with a BA in International Relations. Abstract R2P is often described as a ‘norm’,Continue reading “The Responsibility to Protect, An Established Norm in International Relations? Misapplication in Myanmar, Application in Libya and Non-Application in Syria”
• Examining the ‘Responsibility to Protect’ Through a Critical Analysis of Norm Theory
  Amy Hart, University of Leeds, UK Amy is a politics graduate from the University of Leeds. During her time at university, Amy took a particular interest in international relations theory, which she continues to pursue in her spare time. She is now pursuing a legal career and has secured a training contract with Shearman andContinue reading “Examining the ‘Responsibility to Protect’ Through a Critical Analysis of Norm Theory”