Author: Janne Mende

Janne Mende was a visiting researcher at the WZB until mid-May. She focuses on business responsibility for human rights, and methods of qualitative data analysis when researching the United Nations. Prior to that, she was holding a visiting fellowship at the Bamberg Graduate School of Social Sciences, and she worked as a post-doctoral researcher at the Center for Development and Decent Work at the University of Kassel. Her research topics include human rights, corporate social responsibility, global governance, public and private spheres, and the authority and legitimacy of non-state actors. In June, she will start her DFG-funded project about “Business Actors beyond Public and Private: Authority, Legitimacy and Responsibility in the United Nations Human Rights Regime” at the University of Giessen.

May 18, 2018 by Janne Mende

(Wie) sind transnationale Firmen verantwortlich für Menschenrechte?

In Ihrem Blogeintrag widmet sich Janne Mende dem normativ aufgeladenen Spannungsfeld zwischen globalen Firmen und Menschenrechtspraktiken. So laufen in etlichen Ländern weltweit juristische Verfahren gegen Unternehmen wie Rana Plaza, Shell, Nestlé, Daimler oder KiK für Menschenrechtsverletzungen. Auf internationaler Ebene jedoch, gibt es bisher keine Instanz die systematisch Menschenrechtsverstöße von global agierenden Firmen ahndet.

Dies lässt sich laut Mende mit einem ausgeprägten Dissens innerhalb von Wissenschaft und Politik erklären. Auf der einen Seite stehen dabei Befürworter wie der frühere UN-Sonderbeauftrage für Menschenrechte John Ruggie, die auf globaler Ebene nicht bindende Menschenrechtsinitiativen für Unternehmen fordern. Auf der anderen argumentieren häufig Befürworter für ein stärkeres Völkerrecht, dass global agierende Unternehmen im Einzelfall die Macht der Nationalstaates längst hinter sich gelassen haben und nur internationales Recht weitere systematische Menschenrechtsverletzungen verhindern kann. Für Mende liegt die Lösung in einem möglichen Hybridmodell.

Lesen die den vollständigen Beitrag in Englisch hier.

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May 15, 2018January 7, 2019 by Janne Mende

A New Responsibility in the Making: Business Companies and Human Rights

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There is a global struggle going on, and it is not going to end soon. This struggle concerns the question, to what extent transnational companies are or should be responsible for human rights. In plenty of countries worldwide, lawsuits, civil society campaigns, political and legislative initiatives address companies’ involvement in human rights violations. Rana Plaza, Shell, Nestlé, Daimler or KiK represent just a few out of numerous examples.

Continue reading “A New Responsibility in the Making: Business Companies and Human Rights”

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Alter, Karen. J./Zürn, Michael (2020): “Conceptualising Backlash Politics: Introduction to a Special Issue on Backlash Politics in Comparison”. In: The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, Special Issue Article, 1-22.

Alter, Karen. J./Zürn, Michael (2020): “Theorising Backlash Politics: Conclusion to a Special Issue on Backlash Politics in Comparison”. In: The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, Special Issue Article, 1-14.

Cupać, Jelena/Ebetürk, Irem (2020): “The Personal Is Global Political: The Antifeminist Backlash in the United Nations”. In: The British Journal of Politics and International Relations. Special Issue, 1-13.

Dukalskis, Alexander/Gerschewski, Johannes (2020): “Adapting or Freezing? Ideological Reactions of Communist Regimes in a Post-Communist World” In: Government and Opposition, 55(3): 11–32 (published online Nov. 27, 2018).

Faude, Benjamin/Fuss, Julia (2020): “Coordination or Conflict? The Causes and Consequences of Institutional Overlap in a Disaggregated World Order”. In: Global Constitutionalism, 9(2): 268–89.

Gerschewski, Johannes (2020): “Explanations of Institutional Change: Reflecting on a ‘Missing Diagonal’”. In: American Political Science Review, 1–16.

Kreuder-Sonnen, Christian/Zürn, Michael (2020): “After Fragmentation: Norm Collisions, Interface Conflicts, and Conflict Management”. In: Global Constitutionalism, 9(2): 241-67.

Kreuder-Sonnen, Christian/Zangl, Bernhard (2020): “Zwischen Hoffnung und Bangen: Zum Verhältnis von Autorität, Politisierung und Demokratisierung in internationalen Organisationen”. In: ZIB Zeitschrift für Internationale Beziehungen, 27(1):5–36.

Rauh, Christian/Bes, Bart Joachim/Schoonvelde, Martijn (2020): “Undermining, Defusing or Defending European Integration? Assessing Public Communication of European Executives in Times of EU Politicisation”. In: European Journal of Political Research, 59(2):397–423 (published online July 02, 2019).

Salehi, Mariam (2020): “Designing Transitional Justice. Problems of Planning Political & Institutional Change in Volatile Political Contexts”. In: Project on Middle Eastern Political Science Studies, (37): 41–45.

Tokhi, Alexandros (2020): “Internationale Autorität und Nationale Diktatur“. In: ZIB Zeitschrift für Internationale Beziehungen, 27(1): 121–36.

Zürn, Michael (2020): “Unravelling Multi-Level Governance Systems”. In: The British Journal of Politics and International Relations. Breakthrough Article, 1-8.

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In this episode of our interview series, Lynda Iroulo talks to Prof. Siddharth Mallavarapu from the Department of International Relations and Governance Studies at Shiv Nadar University, Uttar Pradesh, India.

Listen in, as Prof. Mallavarapu shares his thoughts on the current state of International Relations, how global the discipline really is and how IR can profit from incorporating perspectives from the Global South. Find and abridged transcript and the whole audio interview here.

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Alter, Karen. J./Zürn, Michael (2020): “Conceptualising Backlash Politics: Introduction to a Special Issue on Backlash Politics in Comparison”. In: The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, Special Issue Article, 1-22.

Alter, Karen. J./Zürn, Michael (2020): “Theorising Backlash Politics: Conclusion to a Special Issue on Backlash Politics in Comparison”. In: The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, Special Issue Article, 1-14.

Cupać, Jelena/Ebetürk, Irem (2020): “The Personal Is Global Political: The Antifeminist Backlash in the United Nations”. In: The British Journal of Politics and International Relations. Special Issue, 1-13.

Dukalskis, Alexander/Gerschewski, Johannes (2020): “Adapting or Freezing? Ideological Reactions of Communist Regimes in a Post-Communist World” In: Government and Opposition, 55(3): 11–32 (published online Nov. 27, 2018).

Faude, Benjamin/Fuss, Julia (2020): “Coordination or Conflict? The Causes and Consequences of Institutional Overlap in a Disaggregated World Order”. In: Global Constitutionalism, 9(2): 268–89.

Gerschewski, Johannes (2020): “Explanations of Institutional Change: Reflecting on a ‘Missing Diagonal’”. In: American Political Science Review, 1–16.

Kreuder-Sonnen, Christian/Zürn, Michael (2020): “After Fragmentation: Norm Collisions, Interface Conflicts, and Conflict Management”. In: Global Constitutionalism, 9(2): 241-67.

Kreuder-Sonnen, Christian/Zangl, Bernhard (2020): “Zwischen Hoffnung und Bangen: Zum Verhältnis von Autorität, Politisierung und Demokratisierung in internationalen Organisationen”. In: ZIB Zeitschrift für Internationale Beziehungen, 27(1):5–36.

Rauh, Christian/Bes, Bart Joachim/Schoonvelde, Martijn (2020): “Undermining, Defusing or Defending European Integration? Assessing Public Communication of European Executives in Times of EU Politicisation”. In: European Journal of Political Research, 59(2):397–423 (published online July 02, 2019).

Salehi, Mariam (2020): “Designing Transitional Justice. Problems of Planning Political & Institutional Change in Volatile Political Contexts”. In: Project on Middle Eastern Political Science Studies, (37): 41–45.

Tokhi, Alexandros (2020): “Internationale Autorität und Nationale Diktatur“. In: ZIB Zeitschrift für Internationale Beziehungen, 27(1): 121–36.

Zürn, Michael (2020): “Unravelling Multi-Level Governance Systems”. In: The British Journal of Politics and International Relations. Breakthrough Article, 1-8.

Zürn, Michael (2020): “Unknown Effects of Social Innovations”. In: International Theory, 1-10.