Human Rights

The Ethics of Buying Clothes Produced in Sweatshops
- February 26, 2018
International Development Week (IDW), hosted by undergraduate students of the School of International Development and Global Studies at the University of Ottawa, took place the week of 5 February 2018. Hundreds of Ottawa-area undergraduate students enthusiastically participated in discussions designed …
By Nipa Banerjee
Economy, Health, Human Rights, International Development, International Trade, Women
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Another One Bites the Dust: What Future for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights?
- February 8, 2018
The announcement in December 2017 by Prince Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein of Jordan that he would not seek a second term as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights — leaving the post in the middle of 2018 — came as a …
By David Petrasek
Human Rights, United Nations
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Liberals’ Vague “Values” Talk Undermines Rights Promotion
- February 2, 2018
Canadian governments since the mid-1970s have claimed that promoting human rights around the world is a foreign policy priority. There are solid moral, legal, and practical grounds for doing so. Yet increasingly, the Liberal government, like its Tory predecessor, justifies …
By David Petrasek
Canadian Foreign Policy, Human Rights, International Law, International Trade, United Nations
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“Returned Extremist Travellers”: The Small Numbers Problem for Canada, Part 1
- January 18, 2018
On 21 December, the Public Safety department released the government’s “Terrorist Threat to Canada” report for 2017 to no fanfare and little media attention. If you want something to get no attention, send it out just before the Christmas holidays. …
By Wesley Wark
Defence and Intelligence, Human Rights, International Security, Middle East
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“Returned Extremist Travellers”: The Small Numbers Problem for Canada, Part 2
- January 18, 2018
See Part 1 of this blog here.

The key to a successful response to RETs is knowing who they are and when they will reach your shores. Impossible though this seems, real opportunities for identifying the IS fighter cadre …
By Wesley Wark
Defence and Intelligence, Human Rights, International Security, Middle East
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A Pioneering War Crimes Tribunal Comes to an End
- December 14, 2017
At the end of December, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) closes its doors after 24 years in business.

The United Nations court, situated in The Hague, was established in 1993 with the goal of providing accountability …
By Srdjan Vucetic
Europe, Human Rights, International Law
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Gender, Data, and High-Risk Environments
- December 6, 2017
Collecting reliable data on state and political processes in insecure environments is a necessary first step to understanding and ultimately reducing violence. Gender shapes the data we collect, the ways it is collected, and ultimately the findings we produce and …
By Gabrielle Bardall
Democracy, Gender, Human Rights, Women
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Zimbabwe: A Faustian Bargain with a Crocodile?
- November 28, 2017
After 37 years of rule, Robert Mugabe, the world’s oldest leader and one of Africa’s longest serving presidents, has finally lost power. In an unprecedented, unpredictable, and at times unbelievable series of events, the one-time liberation hero was deposed by …
By Rita Abrahamsen
Africa, Democracy, Human Rights
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The General and the Genocide
- November 26, 2017
General Ratko Mladić has been sentenced to life in prison by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. The court found the former Bosnian Serb military chief guilty of one count of genocide and ten crimes against humanity, plus …
By Srdjan Vucetic
Europe, Human Rights, International Law
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Women in Political Life Say #MeToo: Here’s How Harassment and Violence Limit Their Political Lives Worldwide
- October 23, 2017
In the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal last week, millions of women and men took to social media to speak out against sexual harassment and violence. Facebook alone saw over 12 million posts as more than 4.7 million users …
By Gabrielle Bardall
Democracy, Gender, Human Rights, Women
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No Easy Route to Nuclear Disarmament
- October 11, 2017
Last week, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to a campaign group seeking a global ban on nuclear arms. The award to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) surprised many observers, particularly in a year when the architects …
By Alexandra Gheciu
Cold War, Human Rights, International Law, International Security, United Nations
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Why Taiwan is an International Issue
- September 20, 2017
China works hard to convince the world that any decision about Taiwan is entirely a Chinese domestic affair. This has not, however, always been the official line of the Chinese Communist Party. In 1936, when the Republic of China (ROC) …
By Scott Simon
Asia, Canadian Foreign Policy, China, Democracy, Human Rights
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