Paper Summary:

The paper discusses humanitarian intervention and its use as a justification for interference in another state's sovereign affairs.
The paper discusses examples of humanitarian intervention such as the United States intervening in the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. The paper concludes that recent examples of humanitarian intervention have highlighted how, no matter the humanitarian outcome, there is political rationale for the intervention that is obscure, but which always justifies the inordinate cost of intervening in the open conflicts of other nations.

From the Paper:

"The concept of universal human rights is deeply rooted in the modern development of Western civilization. As that cultural has expanded globally in the past few centuries, it has taken with it the notion that human rights can be protected through military intervention. But the reality is that humanitarian intervention, whatever its idealized goals, is merely a new justification for open warfare in order to secure political gains that can be had in no other way. Recent examples of humanitarian intervention have highlighted how, no matter the humanitarian outcome, there is invariably another political rationale for the intervention that is transparent or obscure but which always justifies the inordinate cost of intervening in the open conflicts of other nations or violating their national sovereignty"

Sample of Sources Used:

• Charlesworth, H 2002, Writing in Rights: Australia and the Protection of Human Rights, Sydney: UNSW Press.
• Davidson, S 1993, Human Rights, Buckingham, PA: Open University Press.
• Goodman, R 2006, 'Humanitarian intervention and pretexts for war', American Journal of International Law, retrieved November 15, 2007, from http://www.law.harvard.edu/faculty/rgoodman/pdfs/RGoodmanHumanitarianInterventionPretextsforWar.pdf
• Negewo, K, Odyssea, A and Bailey, G n.d., Humanitarian Intervention: Responsibility to Protection: Position of the Syrian Arab Republic, retrieved November 15, 2007, from http://www.unaavictoria.org.au/media/RMIT%20MUNC/Syria%20Position%20Paper%20-%20Grant%20Bailey%20Kassahan%20Negewo%20Angelique%20Odyssea.pdf
• Waal, A 2007, March 21, 'No such thing as humanitarian intervention', Harvard International Reivew, retrieved November 15, 2007, from http://hir.harvard.edu/articles/1482/1/

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