The Journal, “Feminists of International Law and Their Critics”, by Hilary Charlesworth seeks to address the relationship of women and international human rights law. This journal also tell about feminist critiques of International law. This Journal consists of four parts which are the first part is about Feminist Criticism of International law that in this part according to feminist analysis of International law has divided in to two major roles which are deconstructive and reconstructive. Second part of journal is the incoherent critique. Third part is about the essential critique.
It argues that the oppression of women is the most widespread, the oldest and the most difficult to eradicate. From these ideas of radical feminism, it can be seen that power lies in the structures built into our society, and most importantly that this power is used on behalf of patriarchal values which seek to keep women oppressed and subservient to men. The methodology of radical feminism to eradicate this power would be a complete upheaval of our political and economic institutions. Radical feminism has many contrasts and similarities to other forms of feminisms. In one regard, radical feminism and Marxist feminism resemble each other.
Moreover, gender inequality is subjected to cultural interpretations to justify acts of discrimination, gender-based inequality and violence against women. Thirdly, the implementation of human rights, which has traditionally been undermined by cultural relativism, will be discussed. According to cultural relativists, human rights implementations are different, and should be different, from culture to culture. Universalists maintain that at least the minimum standard of human rights doctrine must be met and reject the implementation of human
The journal entitled “Cultural Relativist and Feminist Critiques of the International Human Rights –Friends or Foes”, written by Oonagh Reitman is a good fully equipped critical journal since the author put the focus on the discussion about the similarity between two branches of international human rights, the cultural relativist and the feminist in term of their critiques towards the international human rights and also present the fact of the clash between these two critiques when talking about women’s human rights. This critical review paper will provide a summary of the journal by Oonagh Reitman and more importantly giving arguments of evaluation, comments as well as suggestions to Reitman’s writings itself. Summary The journal is well organized by the author. Reitman has divided the journal into 3 sections to answer how these critiques from two different branches of the international human rights, the cultural relativism and the feminism, clash each other in term of women’s international human rights. The first section contains the examination of cultural relativism argument related to the human rights of women.
However the consequences of this silencing and also the doable solutions for a modification is essentially divided in associate understanding of essentialist ‘female nature’ and a construction primarily based understanding of gender as a discursive follow. For a feminist theory on peace the analysis of war and conflict is essential. The variety of approaches vary from historical accounts of girls in war to the psychological scrutinizing of gendered upbringing of youngsters. Critical writings by ladies in liberation movements in Latin America, Africa and Asia as well because the critique on western feminism by labor, Black and lesbian scholars have additional formed the discussion. 4 Feminist Peace and Conflict Theory reflects on the need of visibility of girls in conflicts and has crystal rectifier to a broader understanding of security problems.
The article, “Cultural Relativist and Feminist Critiques of International Human Rights – Friends or Foes?” by Oonagh Reitman seeks to address how cultural relativist and feminist sees the existence of the international human rights, specifically women’s human rights. The research problem being addressed is the similarities between these two critiques of international human rights and how these two critiques have come to defy one another when it comes to the term of women’s international human rights. The author has made it clear that this is a debatable issue. The cultural relativist argued on the universality of human rights, which contradicts with the statement that human rights are those held simply by virtue of being human and whose substance, form and interpretation are not subject to variations in culture (Donnelly 1989: 109-110). Cultural relativist uphold that culture is the principle source of any rights or rules, they argued that the existence of women’s human rights cannot be universally applied.
2.4 Related Studies Gender stereotype and Feminism One of the related study is Gender Stereotyping in the Third World by Ishita Mukhopadhyay (2011). She claims that Concentration of female employment in specific job types is the phenomenon associated with construction of gender stereotypes. As well, various professions have also been related to severe gender stereotyping. The current paper tries to build an evaluation of gender stereotyping, whilst setting forth its departure from existing segregation measures. The paper then tries to assess and analyze the extent of stereotyping in some countries.
Oonagh begins her journal by stating that her purpose in writing the journal is to describe how these two critiques have come to against each other in the world of women’s international human rights. At the first section, it discusses the exposition of cultural relativist arguments that created in the term of women’s human rights. It explained through the crossing and disagreement between the feminist and relativist critiques. The first section also discusses about the suggestions over cultural relativism that likely have a negative effect on the implementation of women’s human rights. It discusses that cultural relativism brings bad influence towards feminist.
In the journal, the writer explain that feminism is critique international human rights and fight for women rights while the cultural relativism critique the International Human Rights and fight for the culture. I do agree that in practice International Human rights is not universal especially for women since there is a lot of discrimination towards women. But I am not fully agreed with the writer, that state feminism can cooperate with cultural relativism. If the feminism could cooperate together since there are several things that could not be combine such as human right and culture. For example is the Female Genital Mutilation that known as the culture in some region but it was violating the women rights.
The fact that roles and symbolism associated with femininity together with patriarchal authority and masculine privilege are often made into cultural signifiers, places women’s individual rights in conflict with those seeking to impose ‘traditional’, ‘authentic’, or ‘national’ customs on their people. So, while one should be skeptical in accepting the human rights as formally universal, one should also not place undue reliance on culture which has often placed the burden of tradition solely on the shoulders of women, subjecting to