Other News
Prof Chris Hughes featured in The Guardian
Professor Christopher Hughes, Head of Department and Chair of the Faculty of Social Sciences, was recently featured in a 12 December article in The Guardian newspaper entitled 'North Korean rocket launch prompts international condemnation'. Below is an excerpt from the piece:
"The North has played directly into the hands of Japan's conservative rightwing and nationalist forces," Hughes said. "This is very much an 'I told you so' situation for [Liberal Democratic Party leader] [Shinzo] Abe. It's a gift from Kim Jong-un [the North Korean leader] to the Japanese right."
Legal Norms Versus Political Rhetoric: How Human Rights are Politicised in the United Nations
A Pinpoint Politics article by Emanuel Ingold
Human rights norm-setting and the monitoring of their implementation provokes many strong negotiations within the UN. Promoters of human rights such as civil society groups try to push states to increase accountability on an international level. At the same time, alleged violators of legal UN human rights repeatedly try to restrict the influence of various bodies. Within this setting, the state-centred human rights mechanisms within the UN are exposed to a paradox: they are political organs with a normative function. States are criticised by many non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and commentators for focusing on the political side more than the normative one. So, do the mechanisms lose their credibility?
The Hidden Cities of North Korea
A Pinpoint Politics article by Frank Mouritz
This year the fall of the Berlin Wall, which initiated the end of the Cold War, had its 23rd anniversary. Since then many members of the former Warsaw Pact became free and democratic states. Some of them even joined the European Union so that now former enemies of the Cold War are united through one institution that just recently received the Nobel Peace Prize for its inspiring vision to establish peace and friendship among the many diverse nations who call Europe their home. Unaffected by this development, one Cold War conflict survives to the present day and still divides the people of one nation into two countries. I am talking of course about Korea. The liberal democratic south is still officially at war with the communist north.
Launch of URSS Scheme 2012/13
The Undergraduate Research Scholarship Scheme is being launched on Monday, 3rd December 2012. The scheme offers the opportunity for undergraduate students to undertake a short (4 to 10 week) research project with a bursary of up to £1000. Information on the scheme, including past projects, the application forms and related information can be found on the URSS website (www.go.warwick.ac.uk/urss).
Dr Christopher Moran featured in BBC Radio 4 documentary
Dr Christopher Moran, Assistant Professor in US National Security, was recently featured in a BBC Radio 4 documentary entitled 'Great Spy Books: Fact or Fiction?' on 1 December. This feature follows closely on the heels of several other press interviews Dr Moran has participated in recently as a result of his consultancy work for the International Spy Museum in Washington, DC.