International Law from Below: Development, Social Movements and Third World Resistance.

• Author: Li, Ji
• Position: Book Review

International Law from Below: Development, Social Movements and Third World Resistance, by Balakrishnan Rajagopal Publisher: Cambridge University Press (2003) Price: 50.00 [pounds sterling]

While many lawyers and legal scholars seek to promote human rights using international law, Rajagopal proposes to revamp the international system by incorporating the concept of third world social movements. He contends that international law has been "too western, elitist, male-centered, and imperial," (1) and that the International Relations theory of liberalism focuses too narrowly on NGOs and therefore does not sufficiently explain most third world social resistance. Meanwhile, recent research reinforces the notion that international human rights law, which is often minimally monitored and enforced, is "not reliably associated with better human rights practices." (2) In International Law from Below, Rajagopal encourages readers to consider how incorporating third world resistance and downplaying the role of the state may strengthen the impact of international law. However, while Rajagopal's efforts are timely and valuable, his analysis is incomplete. He fails to take sufficient account of the political contexts of third world social movements. Nor does he offer a feasible alternative to the extant international law and institutions.

Rajagopal's neglect of domestic political structure may have been intentional, given that traditional categorizations of political Institutions dichotomize the world into democracies and non-democracies--an institutional approach that Rajagopal views as insufficient. More precisely, he views this dichotomization as a western concept that gives too little thought to third world social movements. However, due to his concern with the conceptualization of democracy, Rajagopal neglects to thoroughly analyze underlying domestic political dynamics, which are indispensable for a full comprehension of the relationship between international law and third world movements.

Rather than neglecting domestic political considerations, Rajagopal could have utilized an approach similar to that of Robert Dahl, who demystifies democracy by creating a continuum of political institutions ranging from a "closed hegemony" to a "polyarchy." (3) Each point along the continuum is composed of two factors: public contestation and the right to participate. The former refers to the extent of permissible opposition or political competition, and the...