Human Rights or 'Human Rights Imperialism'? Lessons from the War Against Yugoslavia
Guild Practitioner, Vol. 57, No. 76, 2000
18 Pages Posted: 6 Oct 2010
Date Written: 2000
Abstract
This article discusses the U.S. aerial bombings of Yugoslavia and Kosovo that took place in 1999 in the name of human rights, and what can be learned from them. The bombings killed thousands of civilians, and appear to have had a destabilizing effect on international affairs by undermining the principle of national sovereignty. However, whether this war was really about human rights, or whether it was more akin to the use of human rights claims to justify acts of aggression is less obvious. The answers to three specific questions can help clarify the answer to this dilemma. First, did the bombing accomplish the stated "human rights" or strategic objectives of NATO? Second, are the claimed objectives credible as the real reasons for the bombing? Finally, if the answers to these questions are negative, what are the unstated reasons behind the first post WW II aerial bombing of a European state by the U.S. and its allies? This article explores the answers to these questions.
Keywords: Human Rights, imperialism, International Law, foreign affairs
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