The African Group on the United Nations Human Rights Council

Shifting geopolitics and the liberal international order: Table 1

Bibliographic Data

ID6028745
AuthorsEduard Jordaan (0000-0002-5492-0027, corresponding author)
Year2016
Volume115
Issue460
Pages490-515
Publication date2016-07-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAfrican Affairs (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0001-9909 • E-ISSN: 1468-2621
PublisherOxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1093/afraf/adw018
OpenAlexW2464660107
LanguageEN
Citations received5

During the early years of the United Nations Human Rights Council, formed in 2006, the African Group obstructed efforts to scrutinize and improve human rights in specific countries, notably in the cases of Darfur and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. However, in recent years the African Group has become willing to address country-specific human rights violations, particularly in C o ˆ te d'Ivoire, Libya, and Eritrea. This article documents the African Group's shift and asks why it occurred. Against the backdrop of debates about whether the liberal international order can survive a decline in American dominance, the study of the African Group's shift grants us insight into the elements that underpin liberal internationalism. Three explanations for the African Group's shift are considered: an improvement in the domestic human rights profile of African Group members, changes to the internal dynamics of the African Group, and the influence of the United States. The article concludes that American power was decisive, a finding that raises doubt about whether the liberal international order will survive a decline in American power.

Democracy · Development economics · Dominance (genetics) · Economics · Human rights · Internationalism (politics) · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Global Peace and Security Dynamics · Human Rights and Development · International Law and Human Rights · Law

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