United Nations Books - Page 4

The Paradox of Constitutionalism: Constituent Power and Constitutional Form

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Editorial Review:

This book sets out to examine some of the key features of what we describe as the paradox of constitutionalism: whether those who have the authority to make a constitution - the 'constituent power' - can do so without effectively surrendering that authority to the institutional sites of power 'constituted' by the constitutional form they enact. In particular, is the constituent power exhausted in the single constitutive act or does it retain a presence, acting as critical check on the constitutional operating system and/or an alternative source of authority to be invoked in moments of crisis? These questions have been debated both in different national contexts and at the level of constitutional theory, and these debates are acknowledged and developed in the first two sections of the book. Part I includes chapters on how the question of constituent power has been treated in the constitutional histories of USA, France, UK and Germany, while Part II examines at the question of constituent power from the perspective of both liberal and non-liberal theories of the state and legal order. The essays in Part III consider the operation of constitutionalism with respect to a series of contemporary challenges to the state, including those from popular movements below the level of the state and challenges from the supranational and international levels, and they analyse how the puzzles associated with the question of constituent power are played out in these increasingly important settings.

"Complicity with Evil": The United Nations in the Age of Modern Genocide

Adam LeBor

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Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

From the killing fields of Rwanda and Srebrenica a decade ago to those of Darfur today, the United Nations has repeatedly failed to confront genocide. This is evinced, author and journalist Adam LeBor maintains, in a May 1995 document from Yasushi Akashi, the most senior UN official in the field during the Yugoslav wars, in which he refused to authorize air strikes against the Serbs for fear they would “weaken” Milosevic.  More recently, in 2003, urgent reports from UN officials in the Sudan detailing atrocities from Darfur were ignored for a year because they were politically inconvenient.
This book is the first to examine in detail the crucial role of the Secretariat, its relationship with the Security Council, and the failure of UN officials themselves to confront genocide. LeBor argues the UN must return to its founding principles, take a moral stand and set the agenda of the Security Council instead of merely following the lead of the great powers. LeBor draws on dozens of firsthand interviews with UN officials, current and former, and such international diplomats as Madeleine Albright, Richard Holbrooke, Douglas Hurd, and David Owen.

This book will set the terms for discussion when UN Secretary General Kofi Annan steps down to make room for a new head of the world body, and political observers assess Annan’s legacy and look to the future of the world organization.

The UN Security Council: From the Cold War to the 21st Century (Project of the International Peace Academy)

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Good for courses and just for learning more 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I've had to use this book for a course on the UN security council, and I must say that this is one of those books to me that was interesting outside the course purpose as well: it has given me a better insight in the politics and mechanics of the UNSC and it's decidision-making. All chapters have been written by different authors, including some major political figures (not the ones you see in front of the camera all the time, but the guys behind the scenes that do the actual job), and that means it's pretty much impossible to find this book biased in one direction or another, and it has a high information density.

The only problem with an editorial like this is that with so many different writers, there is of course less cohesion to the book as a whole, but sometimes I do prefer an editorial because it gives so many more points of view. And especially in politics that is something I value very high from time to time.

Expect some tech-talk on resolutions as well, but you can skip those parts without too much trouble, or simply scan them to get the picture and it won't affect the your knowledge too much. Only where it is important are they extensilvely reviewed, other than that you can always very easily search for a resolution with a searc engine on the UN website when you have the resolution number and year (always provided).

Good book, chapters have definitely been written for those who seek to learn more about general issues and specific cases within the UNSC. Recommended.

Editorial Review:

The nature and scope of UN Security Council decisions - significantly changed in the post-Cold War era - have enormous implications for the conduct of foreign policy. The UN Security Council offers a comprehensive view of the council both internally and as a key player in world politics. Focusing on the evolution of the council's treatment of key issues, the authors discuss new concerns that must be accommodated in the decisionmaking process, the challenges of enforcement, and shifting personal and institutional factors. Case studies complement the rich thematic chapters. The book sheds much-needed light on the central events and trends of the past decade and their critical importance for the future role of the council and the UN in the sphere of international security.

Act of Creation: The Founding of the United Nations

Stephen C. Schlesinger

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

In Act of Creation, Stephen C. Schlesinger tells a pivotal and little-known story of how Secretary of State Edward Stettinius and the new American President, Harry Truman, picked up the pieces of the faltering campaign initiated by Franklin Roosevelt to create a "United Nations." Using secret agents, financial resources, and their unrivaled position of power, they overcame the intrigues of Stalin, the reservations of wartime allies like Winston Churchill, the discontent of smaller states, and a skeptical press corps to found the United Nations. The author reveals how the UN nearly collapsed several times during the conference over questions of which states should have power, who should be admitted, and how authority should be divided among its branches. By shedding new light on leading participants like John Foster Dulles, John F. Kennedy, Adlai Stevenson, Nelson Rockefeller, and E. B White, Act of Creation provides a fascinating tale of twentieth-century history not to be missed.

Emergency Sex (and Other Desperate Measures): True Stories from a War Zone

Kenneth; Postlewait, Heidi; Thomson, Andrew Cain

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Disconcerting, unsettling and most horribly true 5 out of 5 stars.
7 of 8 people found this review helpful.

The UN tried to punish the three authors of this book after it was published. Unfortunately the wirting was just too close to the bone for them, clearly, it is too much to think of instituting changes to their procedures. And when you read this book you can see why. It is in institutionalised bureaucracy, just like any other large amorphous institution. And its faults are writ large by Heidi, Andrew and Ken.

This is ultimately one of the most disturbing reads I have had all year. It covers these three UN workers through various postings all over the world including places like Cambodia, Mogadishu, Haiti and Rwanda - and the disturbing part is what they have to deal with both externally and internally from the UN. There are blood thirsty riots outside the compound gates, random shootings, sheer inertia, entrenched bureaucracy of endless futile filing and death, constant death and pain.

I didn't really like the style of writing, the story jumps between the three of them who contribute a page or so intermittently following a clear time frame of when they meet in Cambodia in the first free elections. At time the disjointedness of the telling I felt distracted from what was actually happening. This is also a very personal account and the authors don't set out to be personally likeable themselves at all times. It really is a warts and all.

Given the subject they have taken on, it is not surprising. The failure of the UN is very much in the people it uses to do its work, and that is at all levels, inertia and poor judgement stem from them and their implementation of the system. The problem is as deep and as wide as the people.

The shocking failure of the UN has meant terrible consequences for local populations - in Rwanda, and Haiti massacres occured. And while the UN did not cause it, they did not prevent it happening as they were supposed to do. Unfortunately I cannot imagine this bookwill have the effect it is meant to, that is highlight the problems and rally change. Here's hoping.

Disturbing reading

The Law of International Watercourses (Oxford Monographs in International Law)

Stephen McCaffrey

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Editorial Review:

The Law of International Watercourses examines the rules of international law governing the use of international rivers, lakes and groundwater shared by two or more countries. This new edition updates the entire book and adds a new chapter on the law of navigation on international waterways.

Human Security And the UN: A Critical History (United Nations Intellectual History Project)

S. Neil MacFarlane, Yuen Foong Khong

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Editorial Review:

How did the individual human being become the focus of the contemporary discourse on security? What was the role of the United Nations in "securing" the individual? What are the payoffs and costs of this extension of the concept? Neil MacFarlane and Yuen Foong Khong tackle these questions by analyzing historical and contemporary debates about what is to be secured. From Westphalia through the 19th century, the state's claim to be the object of security was sustainable because it offered its subjects some measure of protection. The state's ability to provide security for its citizens came under heavy strain in the 20th century as a result of technological, strategic, and ideological innovations. By the end of World War II, efforts to reclaim the security rights of individuals gathered pace, as seen in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and a host of United Nations covenants and conventions. MacFarlane and Khong highlight the UN's work in promoting human security ideas since the 1940s, giving special emphasis to its role in extending the notion of security to include development, economic, environmental, and other issues in the 1990s.

Documents on the Laws of War

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Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

The best collection of documents on this subjects 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

Renowned Oxford scholar Adam Roberts, once again has been able to put together an outstanding work, in collecting documents on the laws and by-laws of international treaties and pacts, international declarations and conventions, etc. The book is a reference book. However, it is also an extremely interesting and useful tool (for those interested in those matters) to 'browse through' from time to time. It is a book that cannot miss from the library of any international law expert. While it may be needed from time to time for a quick consultation on specific points, it will also provide huge amounts of information on the legal insights of international conflict.

Editorial Review:

This new edition of the popular and authoritative text on the laws of war has been revised and completely updated to take account of the many diplomatic, legal and military developments of the last ten years. Conflicts in the Gulf, Yugoslavia and Rwanda in the 1990s have ensured that the laws of war remain a topic of considerable international relevance.

The Oxford Handbook on the United Nations

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Editorial Review:

The Oxford Handbook on the United Nations is an authoritative, one-volume treatment of sixty years of history of the United Nations written by distinguished scholars, analysts, and practitioners. Citations and suggested readings contain a wealth of primary and secondary references to the history, politics, and law of the world organization. This Handbook includes a clear and penetrating examination of the UN's development since 1945 and the challenges that it faces in the twenty-first century. This key reference work also contains appendices of the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the Stature of the International Court of Justice.
This volume is intended to shape the discipline of UN studies, and to establish itself as the essential point of reference for all those working on, in, or around the world organization. It is substantial in scope, containing contributions from over 40 leading scholars and practitioners--writing sometimes controversially, but always authoritatively--on the key topics and debates that define the institution.

Justice, Legitimacy, and Self-Determination: Moral Foundations for International Law (Oxford Political Theory)

Allen Buchanan

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Editorial Review:

This book articulates a systematic vision of an international legal system grounded in the commitment to justice for all persons. It provides a probing exploration of the moral issues involved in disputes about secession, ethno-national conflict, "the right of self-determination of peoples," human rights, and the legitimacy of the international legal system itself. Buchanan advances vigorous criticisms of the central dogmas of international relations and international law, arguing that the international legal system should make justice, not simply peace among states, a primary goal, and rejecting the view that it is permissible for a state to conduct its foreign policies exclusively according to what is in the "national interest." He also shows that the only alternatives are not rigid adherence to existing international law or lawless chaos in which the world's one superpower pursues its own interests without constraints. This book not only criticizes the existing international legal order, but also offers morally defensible and practicable principles for reforming it. Justice, Legitimacy, and Self-Determination will find a broad readership in political science, international law, and political philosophy.