Promoting Justice Across Borders: The Ethics of Reform Intervention

Global political actors use various means to promote justice in societies beyond their own, raising ethical questions about respecting political institutions and collective self-determination. Lucia M. Rafanelli's book "Promoting Justice Across Borders" develops ethical standards for justice-promoting intervention that challenge traditional notions of politics and provide a model for engaging in political struggles for justice on a global scale.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 280 pages
Publication date: 22 April 2024
Publisher: Oxford University Press Inc

Global political actors, ranging from states and NGOs to activist groups and individuals, exert influence in societies beyond their borders in diverse ways, including through public criticism, consumer boycotts, divestment campaigns, sanctions, and forceful intervention. Often, these actors pursue the goal of promoting justice, believing that their actions can bring about positive change. However, their efforts are not without moral scrutiny, raising important questions about the ethics of justice-promoting intervention.

One key aspect of this ethical debate is the question of how to promote one's own ideas about justice in another society while still treating its members with tolerance and respect. This requires a nuanced approach that considers the cultural, political, and social context of the society being intervened in. It is essential to avoid imposing one's values on others in a manner that undermines their legitimate political institutions or undermines their collective self-determination.

To address these ethical challenges, Lucia M. Rafanelli's book, "Promoting Justice Across Borders," takes a unique approach by moving beyond the traditional focus on states waging wars or employing other conventional tools of coercive foreign policy. Instead, Rafanelli constructs a philosophically grounded and nuanced ethics of intervention to determine when attempts to promote justice in foreign societies are morally permissible.

In "Promoting Justice Across Borders," Rafanelli challenges the conventional notion that politics should primarily take place within the state boundaries. She argues that justice-promoting intervention can be justified in certain circumstances, even when it involves non-state actors. By developing ethical standards for justice-promoting intervention, Rafanelli provides a framework for rethinking received notions about the ordinary bounds of politics and for engaging in political struggles for justice on a global scale.

These ethical standards call on us to abandon the idea that politics should be limited to the interests of states and to recognize the importance of non-state actors in promoting justice. They also provide a model for how to engage in political struggles for justice in the ordinary circumstances of everyday global politics. Rafanelli's book offers a cosmopolitanism that is neither premised upon nor aimed at bringing about the end of politics. Instead, it seeks to establish ethical guidelines for promoting justice in a world that is increasingly interconnected and complex.

Overall, "Promoting Justice Across Borders" is a valuable contribution to the ethical debate about justice-promoting intervention. By challenging traditional notions of politics and providing a nuanced and philosophically grounded framework for determining when such intervention is morally permissible, Rafanelli's book offers a valuable guide for promoting justice in a world that is increasingly interconnected and complex.

Weight: 414g
Dimension: 157 x 235 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780197770566