International Human Rights Law & Crime



International Human Rights Law & State Crime CCJ 4938 [0004]

Fall 2019`

Diffenbaugh 0201

MWF 11:15 AM – 12:05

Terry Coonan, Associate Professor Office: FSU Human Rights Center Office Hours: By appointment 426 W. Jefferson Street

Phone: 644-4550

E-Mail: tcoonan@fsu.edu

Vania Aguilar, Teaching Assistant

E-Mail: vania.aguilar@fsu.edu

*** Please note that due to the professor’s litigation schedule, some dates and assignments on this syllabus may change

Introduction

This course addresses a dilemma that is centuries-old: what can be done when a nation state or society perpetrates crimes against its own citizens? The course will survey the framework of international human rights law that has evolved since 1945 in response to systematic state crimes such as torture, genocide, and forced disappearances, as well as human rights violations such as female genital cutting and human trafficking (that can occur when states turn a blind eye). Required readings include the following books on human rights issues and law:

The Blindfold’s Eyes: My Journey from Torture to Truth (Sister Dianna Ortiz, Orbis, 2002, paperback)

We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families: Stories From Rwanda (Philip Gourevitch, Picador USA, 1998, paperback)

Do They Hear You When You Cry? (Fauziya Kassindja & Layli Miller Bashir, Delta, 1998, paperback)

Girls Like Us (Rachel Lloyd, Harper Perennial, 2011, paperback)

The required readings are journalistic accounts of particular human rights situations—the Ortiz torture case in Guatemala and the United States, genocide in the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, the human rights & asylum issue of female genital cutting as practiced in certain traditional societies of Africa, and human trafficking as encountered on the streets of the United States. Course lectures will provide a broad introduction to the theory and practice of human rights law. There will be three tests over the course of the semester and one reflection paper to be completed.

Section One of the course will examine the case of Sister Dianna Ortiz, an American nun who was detained and tortured by the Guatemalan government in 1989 (The Blindfold’s Eyes). Particular attention will be paid to the forced disappearances and torture that characterized the Latin American military dictatorships of this era. Class lectures include an introduction to international law & the evolution of human rights law, a survey of the U.N. human rights system, and an examination of the role that non-governmental organizations (“NGOs”) play in the human rights field.

Section I Objectives:

1) Understand the historical evolution of international human rights law and the inception of the human rights movement

2) Understand the inter-governmental (United Nations) approach to promoting human rights

3) Understand the non-governmental organization (NGO) approach to protecting human rights

4) Understand evolving U.S. legal remedies for victims of human rights violations

Section Two of the course will address the topic of war crimes, torture, and genocide and attempts under international law to make perpetrators accountable. (We Wish to Inform You). Class lectures will examine the Nuremburg Trials, the Convention Against Genocide, the International Criminal Tribunals for the Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, the International Criminal Court, the Pinochet litigation & the Convention Against Torture, and the role of truth commissions.

Section II Objectives:

1) Understand the legal precedents established by the Nuremberg Trials

2) Understand the ways in which human rights violations can be prosecuted under international law in international criminal tribunals

3) Understand the new legal concept of universal jurisdiction

4) Understand the role of truth commissions in dealing with human rights violations

Section Three of the course will examine two evolving human rights issues in the 21st century: the practice of female genital cutting and the offense of human trafficking. The examination of FGC will also consider its treatment by U.S. asylum law (Do They Hear You When You Cry). Lectures will cover international refugee law, recent trends in U.S. asylum law, and women’s rights as human rights. In addressing human trafficking, course lectures will examine Florida and national trends in trafficking (Girls Like Us), the collaborative response to human trafficking adopted by U.S. policymakers, and controversies surrounding the precise relationship between prostitution and sex trafficking.

Section III Objectives:

1) Understand the eligibility requirements and procedures for receiving asylum under U.S. law

2) Understand the limitations imposed by U.S. law upon asylum-seekers

3) Understand the legal definition of human trafficking (Modern-day slavery and examples of this human rights violation

4) Understand new trends in human trafficking and evolving issues raised by this crime

Tests

There will be three tests throughout the semester that cover each of the three respective sections of the course. No written materials of any kind and no electronic devices are permitted in the classroom on the day of a test. Failure to observe this rule will result in a zero grade for that test.

Quizzes

Student assessments will also include unannounced quizzes that are administered at the beginning of a class period. Typically such quizzes will be four questions with multiple choice answers or may be simply an attendance quiz (1 question: Are you here? Yes = 100%; No = 0%). The quizzes will be administered through the iClicker Cloud App, which students will be required to download on their phones.

Please note that students who are absent or who arrive late for a class receive a zero for any quiz they miss. This is non-negotiable—do not ask for any special consideration if you are absent or arrive late for a quiz.

Grading

There will be three examinations in the class that will correspond to the three sections of course materials. Students will also be given a grade for the average of their quiz scores. A student’s final grade for the course will be weighted as follows:

Test #1 25%

Test #2 25%

Test #3 25%

Attendance/Quizzes 25%

At the discretion of the professor, some points may also be earned by attending human rights events over the course of the semester.

Grading Scale

Excellent: A = 100-93 A- = 92-90

Good (Above Average): B+ = 89-88 B = 87-83 B- = 82-80

Average: C+ = 79-78 C = 77-73 C- = 72-70

Below Average: D+ = 69-68 D = 67-63 D- = 62-60

Unacceptable: F = 59-0

Attendance

Attendance is mandatory and a very important part of the course. Attendance will be tracked though the Iclicker app that students will download. Up to three absences in the class are permitted (though note that if you miss a quiz as a result of absence you receive a zero for it). Students who miss 4-6 classes will be penalized ½ grade on their final grade for the course (i.e., a C will become a C-). Students who miss 7 or more classes will be penalized an entire grade (i.e., a C will become a D, a C- will become a D-etc.). Moral: Do not miss class!

Students are responsible for all lecture materials. Should you miss a lecture, be sure to get the lecture notes from a fellow student (i.e., do not ask the professor to provide this).

Please also note that there is class on Monday, November 25 (the Monday before Thanksgiving). It may be a quiz day.

Honor Code

The Florida State University Honor Code will be adhered to and enforced. Specific honor code violations, both personal and academic, can be found in the University Bulletin. Violations will be prosecuted.

iClicker Reef

This course will utilize the iClicker Cloud polling system for both quizzes and attendance. Participation in the iClicker is required for the course. All students must download the iClicker Reef App on your smartphones and be prepared to both register your attendance as well as take quizzes beginning with class on Wednesday, September 4. If you do not already have an Iclicker Reef account, create one by clicking "Sign Up!" It’s free to create an account. If you already have an account, do not create a new one. Once your account is created, add your iClicker remote ID number to the profile section of your iClicker Reef account.

Purchase an iClicker Reef subscription or enter an access code in order to participate in polling using iClicker Reef. In order to use the iClicker Reef Mobile app, you will need to enter the ISBN for the bookstore: 9781319140175

Upon signing up with iClicker Reef, you will have a two week free-trial period for using the app for polling in class. Before the free trial ends, you need to purchase an iClicker Reef subscription or obtain an access code in order to continue participating with iClicker Reef on your mobile device, tablet, or laptop during polling sessions. iClicker Reef will let you know when your free trial has ended. If your free trial ends without completing this step, you will be unable to participate in polls until you purchase a subscription or enter an access code.

Each time the class meets, make sure you have selected this course from the main screen of your iClicker Reef account. When a class starts, click the Join button that appears on your screen, then answer each question in iClicker Reef. I have turned on a GPS location requirement for iClicker Reef in our class. If you are not physically in class when you try to join with the iClicker Reef app, you will not be counted as present. You will need to allow the device you are using to reveal your location in order to successfully check in. If you have any issues with your device’s geolocation, refer to the Attendance Geolocation Troubleshooting Guide.

Academic Integrity Information

iClicker activities fall under the provisions of the FSU Honor Code. Students must not engage in academic dishonesty while participating in iClicker activities. This includes but is not limited to:

● Checking in while not physically in class

● Having another student check you into class

● Answering polling questions while not physically in class

● Looking at other students' devices while answering quiz questions

Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities needing academic accommodations should:

1. Register with and provide documentation to the Student Disability

Resource Center (SDRC)

2. Bring a letter to the instructor from the SDRC indicating that you need

academic accommodations. This should be done within the first week of class.

This syllabus and other class materials are available in alternative format upon request.

Course Outline & Reading Assignments

August 26: No reading

August 28: Ortiz, pp. 1-64

August 30: Ortiz, pp. 65-116

September 2: No Class—Labor Day

September 4: Ortiz, pp. 117-163

September 6: Ortiz, pp. 164-243

September 9: Ortiz, pp. 244-295

September 11: Ortiz, pp. 296-352

September 13: Ortiz, pp. 353-399

September 16: Ortiz, pp. 400-477

September 18: No Reading

September 20: 1st Exam

September 23: Canvas Reading (Night by Elie Wiesel, pp. 13-54)

September 25: Canvas Reading (Night, pp. 55-119)

September 27: Gourevitch, pp. 1-43

September 30: Gourevitch, pp. 44-81

October 2: Gourevitch, pp. 85-131

October 4: Gourevitch, pp. 132-171

October 7: Gourevitch, pp. 172-208

October 9: Gourevitch, pp. 209-255

October 11: Gourevitch, pp. 256-302

October 14: Gourevitch, pp. 303-353

October 16: Canvas Reading: The Pitfalls of Universal Jurisdiction

The Case for Universal Jurisdiction

October 18: Canvas Reading: Universal Jurisdiction Not So Universal

October 21: No Reading

October 23: 2nd Exam

October 25: No Class--Homecoming—Kassindja, pp. 1-109

October 28: Kassindja, pp. 110-157

October 30: Kassindja, pp. 158-210

November 1: Kassindja, pp. 211-268

November 4: Kassindja, pp. 269-321

November 6: Kassindja, pp. 322-378

November 8: No Class--Kassindja, pp. 379-416

November 11: No Class—Veterans’ Day

November 13: Kassindja, pp.417-478

November 15: Kassindja, pp.479-528

November 18: Lloyd, pp. 1-46

November 20: Loyd, pp. 47-99

November 22: Loyd, pp. 100-147

November 25: Lloyd, pp. 148-184

November 27: No Class--Thanksgiving

November 29: No Class--Thanksgiving

December 2: Lloyd, pp. 185-238

December 4: Lloyd, pp. 239-272

December 6: No Reading

Exam Week: 3rd Exam

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