1st Edition
Humanitarian Space and International Politics The Creation of Safe Areas
The creation of safe areas poses a number of difficult challenges to the spatial and normative organization of contemporary international politics. As a result, academics, practitioners and NGOs alike will find the case studies in this informative book essential reading. Hikaru Yamashita firstly looks at the case of northern Iraq after the first Iraqi war, where safe areas represented a major departure from the conventional notion. The different understandings of the Srebrenica safe areas, especially with regard to the role of security, are also assessed to ascertain how they eventually destroyed this humanitarian space. A much-needed account of the extent to which humanitarian space, intended as shelter in response to Rwandan genocide, consequently destabilized the area and provided cover for the genocideurs is additionally provided. This well-researched book, through the prism of safe areas, allows a measured assessment to be made of the place of human rights and humanitarianism in the contemporary world.
Biography
Hikaru Yamashita is a Research Associate at the National Institute for Defense Studies, Japan.
'Yamashita's framework provides a useful insight into how the international community attempted to apply structure to its responses in the three main countries of study, and even more importantly: the Yamashita framework proves an indispensable guide to how future humanitarian spaces can successfully be created avoiding many of the consequences of the nineties.' Journal of European Affairs 'Creation of "safe areas" in the contemporary world is relatively a new phenomenon. This book through three case studies provides illuminating material for scholars, those involved with non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and the concerned government and international agencies.' USI Journal '...goes a long way to examining and opening up [key] questions...The relation between socereignty and territory is one that demands renewed attention...Yamashita's important book opens up issues arount that relation in terms of humanitarian intervention...' Geografiska Annaler Series B '...[it] represents an excellent primary investigation into a controversial international issues. In this sense, Humanitarian Space and International Politics represents a good launching pad for further research on the question of safe areas and sovereign space.' Australian Journal of Political Science
