Award Abstract # 1260218
Rebel Groups and International Law

NSF Org: SES
Division of Social and Economic Sciences
Recipient: TEXAS A & M UNIVERSITY
Initial Amendment Date: February 6, 2013
Latest Amendment Date: August 15, 2013
Award Number: 1260218
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: scott barclay
SES
 Division of Social and Economic Sciences
SBE
 Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences
Start Date: February 1, 2013
End Date: January 31, 2017 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $74,998.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $83,998.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2013 = $83,998.00
History of Investigator:
  • Hyeran Jo (Principal Investigator)
    hyeranjo@polisci.tamu.edu
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: Texas A&M University
400 HARVEY MITCHELL PKY S STE 300
COLLEGE STATION
TX  US  77845-4375
(979)862-6777
Sponsor Congressional District: 10
Primary Place of Performance: Texas A&M University
4348 TAMU
College Station
TX  US  77843-4348
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
10
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): JF6XLNB4CDJ5
Parent UEI:
NSF Program(s): LSS-Law And Social Sciences
Primary Program Source: 01001314DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s): 0000, 9178, 9251, OTHR, SMET
Program Element Code(s): 137200
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.075

ABSTRACT

The Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army in Sudan has stopped using child soldiers while the Lord's Resistance Army in Uganda continued the practice. Why do some rebel groups in civil wars follow the laws of war while others do not? This question is puzzling because rebel groups are not usually creators of international law. Also, in many cases, their rights and obligations under international law are not clear. Given this legal and political environment and with often-dominating military-strategic imperatives, under what conditions would rebel groups follow the laws of war?

To solve the puzzle, this project proposes to study why rebel groups in civil conflicts abide by international law. Grounded on the theories of compliance and political legitimacy, the researcher hypothesizes that rebel groups abide by laws of war when they have political aims to be recognized as a viable political entity. To test the hypothesis, the researcher will statistically analyze the behaviors of armed opposition groups in civil wars between 1991 and 2010 to examine three compliance behaviors of rebel groups: (1) the use of child soldiers, (2) the killing of civilians, and (3) the treatment of detainees.

The project is important for two reasons. From a scholarly point of view, the project solves a theoretical puzzle as to why rebel groups would follow international rules that they did not initially create. The question has not been fully answered in the existing literature because scholars of international relations have thus far focused on the behavior of nation-states. From a practical point of view, the project has broad impacts for human security. As some seventeen million people have died in civil conflicts over the past half-century, the answer to the proposed research question will advance our understanding about when and how to engage rebel groups and encourage them to comply with international law.

PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH

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Hyeran Jo and Beth Simmons "Can the International Criminal Court Deter Atrocity?" International Organization , v.70 , 2016
Hyeran Jo, Rotem Dvir, and Yvette Isidori "Who Is a Rebel? Typology and Rebel Groups in the Contemporary Middle East" Middle East Topics and Arguments , 2016

PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT

Disclaimer

This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.

Outcome and Finding: The key outcome of the project "Rebel Groups and International Law (SES #1260218)" is publication of a book -- Compliant Rebels: Rebel Groups and International Law in World Politics (Cambridge University Press, 2015). The book finds that legitimacy-seeking rebel groups in civil conflicts (those with political wings, those with state sponsors based on human rights conscious consituencies, and those with secessionist aims) are likely to comply with international humanitarian law -- refraining from civilian killing, using a fewer numbe of child soldiers, and admitting international observers to their detention centers. The project also generated policy suggestions for dealing with rebel groups to attain humanitarian goals in conflict zones around the world. Additionally, the project produced associated journal articles (International Organization, Middle East Topics and Arguments) and book chapters. 

Intellectual Merit: The project generated the new data as well as the Rebel Groups and International Law database. The data connect rebel groups' organizational/political/economic characteristics to their behaviors regarding civilian treatment, management of detention centers, and use of child soldiers. The data will be used to advance the knowledge on the topic and will be used by future researchers.

Broader Impact: The project has generated scholarly impact, interdisciplinary impact, and policy impact. The book won the Chadwick Alger Book Award, the best book in the field of international organization selected by the International Studies Association. The project also generated interests in the field of international law and the author was asked to write related book chapters and journal articles. The policy impact was felt when the author presented her work at the USAID and when the project material was used to train humanitarian workers in Syria and Turkey. The project has broader impact on benefiting the society by suggesting informed international humanitarian policies. 


Last Modified: 02/01/2017
Modified by: Hyeran Jo

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