Europe, Russia, and Gay Parades 10/22/2010
Better him than the EU
The European Union’s High Court awarded Russian gay-rights activists €29,510 in damages yesterday. According to the ruling, the Moscow city government violated articles eleven (free assembly), thirteen (effective legal remedy), and fourteen (equal protection) of the European Convention on Human Rights by prohibiting the organization of gay pride parades. The judges unequivocally stated that they believed the motivation behind this ban was bigotry, rather than concern for public order as the city had claimed.
The biggest question about this verdict is not whether it is correct, but whether it is enforceable. Although Russian citizens often seek legal redress in the European court system, this represents the first attempt to force the Russian government to allow unsanctioned demonstrations. If the court applied these principles universally, it would mean that other dissident groups could use them as a way to circumvent the Kremlin’s legal monopoly. Yabloko, Other Russia, and the National Bolsheviks would all have to receive permission to stage public rallies and run for office.
That is not likely to happen. As Russia’s long history with the UN demonstrates, the government has no problem flouting international treaties and conventions (think Abkhazia/South Ossetia). Indeed, this same court has already condemned the Kremlin for its handling of the Khodorkovsky case without having any effect. Unless something changes radically in Moscow, the EU is heading for another embarrassing climb-down, which will only serve to remind people of how ineffectual and inconsequential it really is.
The other issue that this decision brings up is the role of international courts in deciding social matters. Given what happened in Belgrade last week, European judges ought to consider whether it is prudent for them to oblige socially conservative countries like Russia and Serbia to adopt the sexual mores of Western Europe. Such well-intentioned decisions can even hurt the gay-rights movement by associating it with outside interference and threats to local culture and customs. To really uphold the EU’s position on human rights, a judge’s motto should always be: ‘first, do no harm.’
The biggest question about this verdict is not whether it is correct, but whether it is enforceable. Although Russian citizens often seek legal redress in the European court system, this represents the first attempt to force the Russian government to allow unsanctioned demonstrations. If the court applied these principles universally, it would mean that other dissident groups could use them as a way to circumvent the Kremlin’s legal monopoly. Yabloko, Other Russia, and the National Bolsheviks would all have to receive permission to stage public rallies and run for office.
That is not likely to happen. As Russia’s long history with the UN demonstrates, the government has no problem flouting international treaties and conventions (think Abkhazia/South Ossetia). Indeed, this same court has already condemned the Kremlin for its handling of the Khodorkovsky case without having any effect. Unless something changes radically in Moscow, the EU is heading for another embarrassing climb-down, which will only serve to remind people of how ineffectual and inconsequential it really is.
The other issue that this decision brings up is the role of international courts in deciding social matters. Given what happened in Belgrade last week, European judges ought to consider whether it is prudent for them to oblige socially conservative countries like Russia and Serbia to adopt the sexual mores of Western Europe. Such well-intentioned decisions can even hurt the gay-rights movement by associating it with outside interference and threats to local culture and customs. To really uphold the EU’s position on human rights, a judge’s motto should always be: ‘first, do no harm.’
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Turkey and the EU 07/27/2010
David Cameron's enthusiastic backing for Turkey's EU bid makes it a good time to discuss a tricky issue.
First, let me be clear on one thing: Cameron's support for Turkey's EU bid doesn't really mean anything. The UK has strongly supported Turkey's EU bid from day one. Majority opinion in the UK sees the EU as, at most, a free trade zone. The Tories in particular love making the EU seem dysfunctional and making France squirm, and this is what the calls for Turkey's accession accomplish.
But should Turkey be allowed into the EU? It depends what the EU means to you. If the purpose of the EU is to develop a meta-state of increasingly "pooled" sovereignty, then the answer is no. The reason is not because Turkey is Muslim, relatively poor, and full of aspiring migrants. It's because Turkey is way too independent.
Click "Read More" to Continue----------->
First, let me be clear on one thing: Cameron's support for Turkey's EU bid doesn't really mean anything. The UK has strongly supported Turkey's EU bid from day one. Majority opinion in the UK sees the EU as, at most, a free trade zone. The Tories in particular love making the EU seem dysfunctional and making France squirm, and this is what the calls for Turkey's accession accomplish.
But should Turkey be allowed into the EU? It depends what the EU means to you. If the purpose of the EU is to develop a meta-state of increasingly "pooled" sovereignty, then the answer is no. The reason is not because Turkey is Muslim, relatively poor, and full of aspiring migrants. It's because Turkey is way too independent.
Click "Read More" to Continue----------->
Read This: April 20, 2010 04/20/2010
The Battle for the Nile (LA Times)
After the recent failure of Nile River nations to agree on water sharing, Egypt has announced it will take whatever steps are necessary to protect its historical rights to billions of gallons of water it needs each year to survive. "Nile water is a matter of national security to Egypt. We won't under any circumstances allow our water rights to be jeopardized," Mohamed Nasreddin Allam, Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, told Parliament this week.
Shocking News Out of Europe: Ashton Fails (Der Spiegel)
Four and a half months after Catherine Ashton took office as the European Union's high representative for foreign affairs, doubts are increasing about her suitability for the post. Ashton has no ideas and no plan, criticizes Inge Grässle, a member of the European Parliament for Germany's center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU). Ashton is "simply out of her depth" when it comes to setting up the EU's new diplomatic service, the European External Action Service (EEAS), Grässle told SPIEGEL. Things are "totally on the wrong track," she added.
After the recent failure of Nile River nations to agree on water sharing, Egypt has announced it will take whatever steps are necessary to protect its historical rights to billions of gallons of water it needs each year to survive. "Nile water is a matter of national security to Egypt. We won't under any circumstances allow our water rights to be jeopardized," Mohamed Nasreddin Allam, Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, told Parliament this week.
Shocking News Out of Europe: Ashton Fails (Der Spiegel)
Four and a half months after Catherine Ashton took office as the European Union's high representative for foreign affairs, doubts are increasing about her suitability for the post. Ashton has no ideas and no plan, criticizes Inge Grässle, a member of the European Parliament for Germany's center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU). Ashton is "simply out of her depth" when it comes to setting up the EU's new diplomatic service, the European External Action Service (EEAS), Grässle told SPIEGEL. Things are "totally on the wrong track," she added.
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