Young, Vulnerable and Voiceless: A Case Study of the Reasons for Child Marriage in the Syrian Refugee Population in Jordan
The Syrian Civil War has been deemed one of the worst humanitarian crises of the twentyfirst century. Since 2011 a large-scale number of Syrian civilians have been displaced and have been forced to seek protection and humanitarian assistance in neighbouring countries. Unprecedented political, social, and economic conditions in Syria have undermined all aspects of human security for the Syrian population. Syrian children, in particular, have been adversely affected as a result of this conflict. Displaced from their homes, and often separated from their families, children are especially vulnerable. With a focus on the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan serving as a host nation for Syrian refugees, this study critically examines one significantly under-reported aspect of violence affecting Syrian refugee children, in particular girls, that has been occurring exponentially since the onset of the Syrian Crisis, that of the practice of forced child marriage in Jordan. By examining international human rights laws and contextualising human rights laws and discourses in relation to Middle Eastern, Islamic and Jordanian understandings of international law and human rights, the aim of this thesis is to critically understand how the practice of child marriage not only continues, globally as well as in the Middle East, but appears to be proliferating. These areas of inquiry are critically examined in relation to conceptualisations of childhood vulnerability, particularly structural and institutional factors, including culture, religion and power relations between adults and children, as each act to subordinate voiceless refugee children.
This thesis finds that in a juxtaposition of human rights definitions and obligations, between the traditional and modern, the religious and the secular, there are mixed implications for the realisation of universal human rights and that this has consequences for the most vulnerable - child refugees. As a result, Syrian children exist in a precarious situation. They are living in a foreign state with an unclear legal status, are largely unidentified and, in effect, stateless. It is in this liminal space that Syrian children are vulnerable and voiceless and highly exposed to forced marriages and the resultant violence and possibly death. While allowed to continue, the practice of child marriage not only severely impedes upon progressive international human rights efforts to eliminate gender-based violence, slavery and discrimination, but significantly impacts on children's physical, mental and emotional health, and their opportunities for growth and development in society.
Disrupting Peace: A Critical Inquiry into Elite Power and the Prevalence of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Conducted by UN Peacekeepers
Peacekeeping is regarded by the United Nations (UN) as integral tool for international peace and security in which peacekeepers are sent to conflict-torn countries to help them navigate and rebuild their society to one of peace and stability. It operates within unique spaces of duality, both physically and discursively, wherein notions of 'peace' interacts with 'conflict'. The body of the peacekeeper may also be seen as a complex, albeit contradictory, figure of duality, in which notions of militarised masculinity are appropriated into 'soldiers for peace'. Concerningly, allegations continue to be reported of UN peacekeepers engaging in behavioural misconduct and human rights violations during missions, most notably, sexual exploitation and abuse against host-peacekeeping women and children. The dominant explanation for this issue is gender inequality. Previous studies examining this issue from a 'bottom-up' perspective have primarily focused on micro factors at either the individual or mission level, such as 'militarised masculinities' and 'hypermasculinity' that cause destructive normative behaviours among peacekeepers against vulnerable identities. Feminist studies also tend to point to UN strategies such as 'gender mainstreaming' as a solution to overcoming and preventing sexual exploitation and abuse through the equal representation and contribution of men and women in peacekeeping. While these factors are plausible, they largely neglect a macro-institutional examination of why sexual exploitation and abuse continues to be prevalent in peacekeeping missions worldwide. This study contributes to current knowledge by using empirical interview data to examine the UN's organisational and institutional power structures through a critical power elite framework. Findings reveal that sexual and gender-based violence at the micro peacekeeping mission level occur because of discrepancies at the macro systemic (institutional) and systematic (organisational)-level of UN peacekeeping. This study significantly demonstrates a discrepancy between discourse and action within UN peacekeeping due to unequal elite power dynamics.
“Holy cow!”: A case study of cow smuggling in India and its relevance for international animal laws
Hinduism is the largest religion in India making up for almost 79 percent of the country’s population. In Hinduism, specifically, the cow is considered sacred, and the consumption of the beef is often entirely avoided and even forbidden by some religious leaders. The limited beef industry in India has, however, led to an underbelly of activities involving dangerous and illegal trade and slaughter of India’s holy cows, including smuggling and theft across the border to its neighbouring countries (Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Nepal). In 2015 it was estimated that around 60,000 cows are smuggled across the border from India to Bangladesh alone. This continues to contribute to a range of historically based geopolitical implications. Using a case study method, this paper explores the issue of cow smuggling in South Asia as a basis for examining and understanding international laws in place for the protection and welfare of animals.
Soldiers for Peace’: semiotic explorations of UN peacekeepers’ uniforms
Most distinctly recognised by their blue headwear – typically a beret or helmet – United Nations peacekeepers “help countries navigate the difficult path from conflict to peace” (United Nations Peacekeeping, n.d.). While peacekeepers themselves represent individuals of ‘peace’, ‘stability’, and ‘protection’, peacekeepers’ uniforms, on the other hand, represent more complex symbols of culture, identity, and of ways of behaving and interacting. More than mere items of clothing, the unique combination of blue headwear with military battledress arguably sees UN peacekeepers as expressions of economic, social, ideological, aesthetic, and symbolic aspects of both colour and material into one complete uniform. With a focus specifically on military peacekeepers, this paper explores the semiosis of UN peacekeepers’ uniforms in which traditional notions of the militarised soldier have been appropriated and reimagined into the figure of the peacekeeper. Evoking what Rubinstein (2008) refers to as ‘symbolic inversion’, this paper seeks to present the contradictory, and sometimes problematic, nature of UN peacekeeping by discussing UN peacekeepers’ uniforms as symbols that have been used by the UN in order to create and sustain institutional power and legitimacy in world politics.