HARVARD HUMAN RIGHTS JOURNAL

This article examines the implications of forced sterilization for HIV-positive women. The author begins by discussing the physical, psychological and social harm that sterilization has on women and goes on to identify international human rights violations that occur with forced sterilization. The second part of the article focuses on the possibility of using litigation to remedy the related rights abuses. The author discusses two cases, the first is pending before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights regarding the use of forced sterilization of an HIV-positive woman

The article discusses the global human rights movement of comfort women, who suffered serious abuses by the Japan during WWII. The movement demands that Japan publically apologize and provide reparation for the acts committed. The article discusses the human rights strategy used by the movement to advance its claims and focuses on how this strategy can serve as a lesson to other similarly situated groups. The author compares the people-centric paradigm of post-conflict justice put forth by the movement with the state-centric paradigm employed by Japan.

This article begins by briefly describing two cases on sexual violence perpetrated by State agents against women that were brought before the Inter-American Court of Human rights (IACHR). The author then provides an in- depth analysis of the 2006 IACHR decision of the Castro-Castro Prison case, where there were allegations of sexual violence and abuse of of female inmates by State authorities. The IACHR's found the violence perpetrated against the female inmates had violated various articles of the American Convention of Human Rights, the Inter-American

This article provides an in-depth analysis of the use of military humanitarian intervention in response to human rights abuses. The author traces the development of academic discourse, as published in the Harvard Human Rights Journal, regarding women's rights and humanitarian intervention. She then explores the trend of acceptance and justification in using intervention to tackle human rights violations and examines the international law surrounding its use. The debates of the 1990s on whether rape should be classified as genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina are

This article outlines the shortcomings of previous treaties and programs created to address human rights issues, focusing specifically on women's rights in Africa. It examines the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. The author describes the creation of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa . The author argues that the drafters of the Protocol have failed to adequately address labour and land issues that women face in Africa. She then

This article deals with parents who arrive in the U.S. claiming refugee status on the basis of fears of female genital mutilation (FGM) of their daughters. While a woman who fears FGM herself may likely qualify for asylum, the legal status of the parents seeking asylum on this basis has not been treated consistently by the courts. At the root of this inconsistency is the reliance by some U.S. courts on the fact derivative status is only offered to spouses and children of asylees, not the parents. Observers have called for an amendment in the case of

This article discusses the Jessica Gonzales v United States case, heard by the Inter- American Commission on Human Rights (IAHCR) in March 2007. Gonzales was, a domestic violence survivor from Colorado. She fought for justice after her three children were abducted by her husband and killed when police failed to enforce a restraining order against her husband. After seeking redress through the American judicial system and having her claim denied by the U.S. Supreme Court, Gonzales filed a petition with the IAHCR. This author finds this significant

This article discusses the subject of widows' sepulchral rights in sub-Saharan Africa, specifically focusing on a widow's right to determine the time, place and manner of her husband's burial. In customary law in Nigeria, the right of burial belongs to the family as a whole, and it is rare that a widow will be the head of family and have control over burial rights. On the contrary, she is often regarded as chattel. Although customary law is partly to blame, the issue also stems from statutes and common law inherited from England. One remedy is to

This article first outlines international standards preventing discrimination on the basis of sex and provides examples of laws in force around the world that are either facially or de facto discriminatory. Then the author highlights how the CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women) committee has dealt with evasion of obligations under CEDAW, highlighting Algeria and Nepal. Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action is discussed in light of its impact on CEDAW, namely spurring state objections to others states' reservations to CEDAW.

This article asserts that the narrow portrayal of trafficking denies the complexity of the problem by focusing mainly on women and children recruited for the purpose of prostitution. The author provides an overview of the experiences of women who are trafficked or forced into labor/slavery-like practices. She then surveys international anti-trafficking law and proposed changes and ends by analyzing the interaction between international anti-trafficking law, domestic immigration policies and anti-prostitution laws.