Hijacked Justice

"""Subotic argues that ... international and national courts and truth commissions ... have been used ... to dispose of political opponents, secure economic assistance, or grease the way into the European Union. How this has happened and what those committed to making the new norms stick should do about it drive this book. Subotic goes about her study in an exceedingly clearheaded fashion; not only is she in full command of the relevant theoretical literature, but she deploys and then extends it in compact, crystal-clear paragraphs. The writing and argumentation are a model of what social science should be.""-Robert Legvold, Foreign Affairs, January/February 2010 ""Jelena Subotic, by showing how and under which circumstances norms of justice are incorporated into domestic politics, does a great service to anyone who is thinking about issues of transitional justice in post-conflict societies. Hijacked Justice is very well conceived, organized, and carried out. Subotic shows clearly how international policies are used as resources by local political elites in the context of domestic contention.""-V. P. Gagnon Jr., Ithaca College, author of The Myth of Ethnic War ""Hijacked Justice is an excellent examination of an important issue. Drawing on a wealth of evidence, Jelena Subotic challenges the conventional wisdom that international litigation is the best means of achieving post-conflict reconciliation in war-torn regions. She makes a compelling case for the argument that such institutions can actually be counterproductive due to the fact that they may be used by domestic political entrepreneurs for political mobilization. The book shows how law and politics are deeply intertwined, and how understanding this relationship is essential for all those interested in establishing a lasting peace.""-Christopher Rudolph, American University, author of National Security and Immigration"