Issue #17: September, 1998

Air & Space Law	Casebooks	Elections	Human Rights
Sources	Treaties	United Nations	Publisher Information

! R. Goedhart, The Never Ending Dispute: Delimitation of Air Space and Outer Space (Editions Frontiers) [pages: 181] ISBN 2-86332-191-9

This version of Ahow high is up@ is a very useful blend of the airspace delimitation issueCfrom both the scientific and legal perspectives. It delves into the substrata, including the right of innocent passage for spacecraft through outer space, lowest perigee of orbiting satellites, areodynamic theory, effective control, custom/treaty law, and the like.

It is a good primer for those in search of a succinct overview of the related legal regimes involving the legal regime(s), during and since the Cold War, for distinguishing air from outer space.

! D. Harris, Cases and Materials on International Law (5^th ed. Street & Maxwell: 1998) [paper: 1123] ISBN 0-421-53480-X

If one is searching for a text for classroom use, or a tightly-wrapped but authoritative overview of Public International Law written from a non-US perspective, Professor Harris=s volume may be the ideal answer. The 5^th edition, the first since the close of the Cold War, provides sufficient material for a first course with a variety of unit values. It is well-constructed and nicely written.

This casebook proceeds through the usual progression of pedagogical issuesCfrom sources near the outset, through personality, jurisdiction, State responsibility, Law of the Sea, human rights, the use of force, etc. It is written with the English courts in mind, so that foreign researchers can obtain a nutshell of U.K. approaches to the various course subjects, containing a separate Table of Cases for UK offerings.

! K. Kumar (ed.), Post-conflict Elections, Democratization & International Assistance (Rienner: 1998)

This is a rather unique, thirteen-chapter collection of essays focusing on various countries and international assistance with post-conflict democratic elections (El Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Angola, Mozambique, and Liberia). There are several general essays, including an introduction about international assistance and several closing chapters on refugees, the consequences of democratization, and conclusions-priorities for policy research in this somewhat neglected arena.

One may herein examine the importance of international assistance: it encourages credibility, the creation of new governmental institutions, implementation of the presumed negotiated consensus among the formerly warring parties, and supports the evolution of the process which is the centerpiece of intrastate peace accords. This publication presents a thoughtful analysis of the differences between elections under these, and normal, electoral conditions, while intelligently perusing the necessary preconditions for successful elections and voter perceptions.

! E. Lawson, Encyclopedia of Human Rights (2^nd ed. Taylor & Francis: 1996) [pages: 1715] ISBN 1-56032-362-0

This publication is a must for any International Law collection, regardless of the degree of specialization in human rights. It conveniently collates key details about many of the institutions at the heart of International Law courses. It is a veritable research dream, because of its extensive compilation of information about human rights institutions, treaties, and the many entities driving human rights discourse.

It also contains a broad spectrum of research-oriented details, including intelligent bibliographies for most entries. One may also obtain information about the nations of the world, not limited to just human rights detailsCform of government, population composition, resources, and the like. There is a vast array of information about the major individual and organizational players on the human rights scene, including both historical and contemporary data.

! M. Villiger, Customary International Law and Treaties: a Manual on the Theory and Practice of the Interrelation of Sources (2^nd ed. Kluwer: 1997) [pages: 346] ISBN 90-411-0458-5

This is a functional contribution to the literature on sources of International Law. The author has herein penned a very scholarly treatment of the interplay between these respective foundations of any course on International Law, as well as producing an important handbook for decision-makers in need of reliable guidance.

The book succinctly describes these major Asources,@ illustrates how they influence one another (e.g., Chap. 5 on AEffects of a Convention on Pre-Existing Customary International Law@), and treats incremental features of this process which are easily overlooked absent such counsel. Any academic research project, or pragmatic analysis of this otherwise treacherous arena, would be far better-equipped if launched with this work in hand.

! D. Johnston, Consent and Commitment in the World Community: the Classification and Analysis of International Instruments (Transnational: 1997) [pages: 346] ISBN 1-57105-054-X

This publication will be an important addition to any collection, especially one which focuses on treaties or sources of International Law. The author avoids the usual positivist/State-centric orthodoxy which has governed treaty analysis. He opts, instead, for a functional approach for classifying the several dozen forms of international agreementCmany of which are ignored by even the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.

The analysis is richly adorned with supporting footnote detail, as well as frequent textual references to major treaties and treaty-like commitments as they appear in chronological sequenceCboth of which are ideal for the avid researcher in need of a universe of available materials. For one seeking a detailed analysis of nomenclature and classification of international instruments, this work should be a benchmark for some time to come.

! M. Boisard & E. Chossudovsky (ed.), Multilateral Diplomacy: The United Nations System at Geneva Working Guide (2^nd ed. Kluwer: 1998)

This is a collection of several dozen articles addressing components of the UN process, with particular emphasis on Geneva. The first portion of the book collates papers presented by diplomats and academics regarding international organization, conferences, and negotiations. They provide their respective insights on matters like how one might effectively function in these processes. The middle part then covers the institutional culture at Geneva, and the operation of its various UN-related institutions. The final part analyses privileges and immunities, including a paper by the Swiss Department of Foreign Affairs and the complete 1946 UN Convention on Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations.

Given the usual perspective that all things AUN@ are concentrated in New York, this book nicely fills a gap for those seeking guidance regarding the UN=s inner workings undertaken in Geneva.

! S. Bailey & S. Daws, the Procedure of the Un Security Council (3^rd ed. Clarendon: 1998) [pages: 689] ISBN 0-19-828073-4

This is one of the seminal guides to the inner workings of the UN Security Council. A great deal has occurred since its 1987 edition, before the demise of the Cold War. This edition thus covers the increased possibilities for international co-operation in this veto-ridden body. It also provides useful insight about limitations which have retarded the promise.

In addition to a book-full of intriguing analysis about the many phases of the SC=s operations, there are numerous charts which facilitate reader access to the countless details found between these two covers, including lists of the following: non-permanent members by year; vetoes cast in the SC; absences when SC action was taken; non-participation; resolutions adopted by consensus and without a vote; and all Chapter VII resolutions. The last approximately one-third of the book contains appendixes regarding the major SC developments and arrangements since its inception.

! M. Marin-Bosch, Votes in the UN General Assembly (Kluwer: 1998) [paper: 237] ISBN 90-411-0564-6

The UN is, and must be, undergoing great change during an era wherein members are demanding reform. This booklet provides useful analytical detail regarding past and potential voting procedures and results in what may be the most representative forum in the world. State attitudes are herein presented, as the author traces State participation in various debates which have surfaced in this body during its fifty-plus years of existence.

The author, a career UN diplomat, has produced a fascinating analysis of votes cast in the UN General Assembly since 1946, including a Acoincidence index@ assessing how States vote in this international institution. A number of useful charts greatly facilitate access to content.

$ Clarendon: Oxford University Press, Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP, Oxford,

$ Rienner: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1800 30^th Street, Boulder, CO 80301, USA