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Criminal law between cosmopolitanism and war : social and philosophical dynamics within a cosmopolitan war crimes law
No full textDefence date: 11 May 2023Examining Board: Prof. Nehal Bhuta, (University of Edinburgh, European University Institute, supervisor); Prof. Neha Jain, (European University Institute); Prof. Claus Kreß, (University of Cologne); Prof. Gerry Simpson, (London School of Economics)Tianying Song received the Antonio Cassese Prize (2024) for the Best Doctoral Thesis in International Law.This thesis starts with an attempt to build cosmopolitan morality into war crimes law. Universalist, individualist and rationalist cosmopolitan principles can provide moral meaning to the law. A cosmopolitan war crimes law embodies a cohesive and concerted cosmopolitan community. Individuals can be bound by universal moral links or certain models of political organisation such as cosmopolitan constitutionalism or cosmopolitan democracy. The community values underlying such a law are universal and homocentric. Social foundations of the cosmopolitan law is linked to certain assumptions of the moral nature of human beings. The cosmopolitan community relies on its rational and autonomous members to achieve consensus on fundamental values and account for war crimes. On the ideational level, cosmopolitan values are inevitably curtailed in the criminalisation process for the law to have any relevance in war. On the experiential level, cosmopolitan legal legitimacy is diluted by the distance between remote strangers, and diminished by the countervailing social environment. The description of effects of war on human institution and agency turns cosmopolitanism against its own premise – the constancy and impartiality of the moral nature of human beings. The confrontation of cosmopolitanism and war is not purely a contestation of wills. The thesis shows that potential challenges of a cosmopolitan war crimes law lie in the subconscious and unconscious mind, not just conscious thinking; in radical emotions, not just rational communications. The moral distance between the embedded person and a cosmopolitan community can undermine a cosmopolitan war crimes law’s effectiveness and relevancy. This thesis suggests a change of perspective: a cosmopolitan war crimes law’s normativity should be seen as relative and conditional, not comprehensive and absolute. It also suggests incorporation of empirical insights into legal reasoning and creation of conducive social and normative environments for a cosmopolitan war crimes law
Sex in times of nationalism : queerness and Poland, 1918-1939
No full textDefence date: 03 November 2023Examining Board: Prof. Pieter M. Judson, (European University Institute, supervisor); Prof. Lucy Riall, (European University Institute); Prof. Dan Healey, (University of Oxford); Prof. Keely Stauter-Halsted, (University of Illinois Chicago)This dissertation is the first historical work attempting to investigate queerness in interwar Poland in a comprehensive, contextualized manner. In doing so, it does not seek to answer Miłosz’s rhetorical question. Instead, it asks how the place and epoch in which the writer lived led him to conceptualize human sexuality in such a fluid way, interpreting literary circles of interwar Warsaw as “gay.” At its most basic level, this dissertation investigates the lives of queer individuals from various classes, social backgrounds, and settings across interwar Poland. Among them are a homosexual male couple from a borderland town, a queer soldier in the Polish army who was a hero of the Polish-Soviet War, a Greek-Catholic girl who fell in love with a Catholic nun, and crossdressing sex workers in the streets of Warsaw. The narrative of the dissertation places these queer microhistories within the broader political and social contexts of the time, illustrating how non-heteronormative sexualities became an increasingly visible topic in the nation’s life, transitioning from medical discourses to political, ideologically charged debates. While the queerness of prominent intellectuals in interwar Poland has been noted before, this dissertation discusses the social context of their sexual dissent. It also views these individuals, though loosely connected, as one of the many queer (or queerly-tinted) social networks of the time, focusing on the group’s class, gender, and politics. In addition to presenting queer life in interwar Poland, the dissertation attends to topics such as the emergence of the term “homosexuality” in the Polish language, the decriminalization of homosexual acts in 1932, and the escalating homophobia in public discourse during the late 1930s. Another focus of this dissertation centers on the issues of homosexual and queer subjectivities and communities. The work balances between microhistories and sources that illuminate the self-identifications of queer individuals and their perceptions of (homo)sexuality, and the formation of social networks based on shared sexual inclinations within which some queer individuals lived in interwar Poland. Lastly, addressing the dimension that inspired the title of this dissertation, it argues that nationalism is vital for comprehending queerness, queer subjectivities, and queer communities in interwar Europe during this period. Nationalist ideologies not only influenced and regulated the lives of individuals and groups, but they also made them think of themselves as homo- or heterosexual by defining social reality in terms of clear-cut, essentializing categories. In other words, the relationship between nationality and sexual identities is not only one of bidirectional influence but also of parallelism, similarity, and mutual constitution. “Sex in the Times of Nationalism” paints a complex, multilayered portrayal of queerness in interwar Poland, where the specter of the nation looms large, influencing the lives of individuals and entire communities, transforming their sexual and romantic opportunities and experiences. It suggests that 20th-century sexuality would be unrecognizable to us if not for interwar nationalism.Chapter 2 '‘Not knowing is not insanity’: queers, mental health, medical ‘philistines’, and patriarchy' of the PhD thesis draws upon an earlier version published as an article ''Call me by my name :' a 'strange and incomprehensible' passion in the Polish Kresy of the 1920s' (2022) in the journal 'Slavic Review'. Chapter 4 '‘A Polish feat’: law and military confront homosexual passions' of the PhD thesis draws upon an earlier version published as an article 'Transnational flows of knowledge and the legalisation of homosexuality in Interwar Poland' (2024) in the journal 'Contemporary European history'
Democratic Greece and the West, 1974-1983 : a difficult relationship
No full textDefence date: 05 May 2023Examining Board: Prof. Federico Romero, (European University Institute, supervisor), Prof. Evanthis Hatzivassiliou, (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens), Prof. N. Piers Ludlow, (The London School of Economics and Political Science), Prof. Corinna Unger, (European University Institute)This study discusses Greece’s tumultuous relationship with the West from 1974 to 1983, and sheds new light on the country’s evolution from a peripheral country of the Western camp to one safely anchored at the heart of the Western world. Emphasis is placed on the multilateral level (EEC, NATO) while bilateral relations with the major Western powers are discussed thoroughly in as far as they contributed to the consolidation of Athens’ external orientation and internal stability. The study argues that Greece’s need to make a definite choice on the fundamental issue of its external orientation and, at the same time, balance and redefine its relationship with the West entailed a difficult transition involving both its adjustment to major international trends and norms as well as attaining narrow national interests, primarily its defense vis-à-vis Turkey. Viewing the developments in the Eastern Mediterranean through the prism of their Cold War strategic priorities, Western governments were going to find it difficult to meet Greek demands. However, both sides’ complementary objectives and their desire to cooperate would lead to a working relationship that would satisfy their basic requirements. The first part of the study prioritizes Western analysis and attitudes to the Greek democratic transition and the considerable stakes that it involved for Western governments. Short-term and long-term Western interests would be reconciled under the strategic concept of “democratic stability” that would eventually guide Western policies towards Greece. Part II delves into the key moments of Greece’s integration into the West including its accession to the European Community and its reintegration into NATO, and explains how the Greek-Turkish dispute was kept under control. Part III examines the tensions between Athens’ need to pursue a “multidimensional” foreign policy and its position within the West. Last but not least, the extended last chapter concludes the story and provides the first evidence-based synthetic analysis of PASOK’s early relations with the West. It is argued that the year 1983, which marked the emergence of a historical consensus on the external orientation of the country, should be seen as a turning point in Greek history. However, this dissertation also contends that the story of Greece’s integration into the West signifies an important and often overlooked event for Cold War history as well.Chapter 11 'Epilogue: PASOK and the West, 1981-1983' of the PhD thesis draws upon an earlier version published as an chapter 'PASOK's changing European policy : the achievement of consensus, 1981-1989' (2022) in the book 'Greece and the EU : 40 years of membership'
Envisioning the mentally iII child : the development of child psychiatric theory and practices in Denmark and England, c. 1900-1960
No full textDefence date: 12 June 2023Examining Board: Prof. Monika Baar, (European University Institute, supervisor); Prof. Lauren Kassell, (European University Institute); Prof. Helle Strandgaard Jensen, (University of Aarhus); Prof. Jesper Vaczy Kragh, (University of Copenhagen)This thesis examines the development of child psychiatric theory and practice in Denmark and England from 1900 to c. 1960. Previous studies of the development of child psychiatry have been few and limited mainly to theoretical developments, specific diagnoses, or institutional developments from the 1950s and onwards. This thesis examines the period leading up to the official constitution of child psychiatry as a medical specialty in the 1950s, focusing on how the medical understanding of mental illness in children developed before, during and immediately after the Second World War. This thesis is structured around four different themes. First, the analysis of influential, medical articles and textbooks published in the period 1900-1960 demonstrates how child psychiatric theories on aetiology shifted markedly around the late 1930s and 1940s, but also reveal that child psychiatric taxonomies remained vague. Second, the analysis of conference publications related to the first, second, third and sixth international child psychiatric conferences reveal how the Second World War played a crucial role in the development of child psychiatry as a fundamental building block of the welfare state. Third, exploring the concerns of child psychiatrists regarding ‘war-damaged children‘, the English case of the Windermere children is investigated and compared to treatment of traumatized children in Denmark. Fourth, child psychiatric practices at the Copenhagen University Clinic and the Tavistock Clinic (London) are examined via clinical material and annual reports revealing differences in the use of psychoanalytic concepts. Compared to the significant theoretical developments of the medical articles and textbooks as well as the international conferences, this thesis demonstrates that changes in the psychiatric practices were less conspicuous and that child psychiatric taxonomies remained vague. Generally, the thesis provides a nuanced understanding of how child psychiatry changed both scientific and socio-political status in the aftermath of the Second World War.Chapter 6 'Treatment of mentally ill children in the clinical practice, c. 1900-1960' of the PhD thesis draws upon an earlier version published as chapter 'Distant voices : treatment of mentally ill children at the Copenhagen University Hospital in Denmark, c. 1935-1976' (2021) in the book 'Voices in the History of Madness : Mental Health in Historical Perspective'
Platformisation of work : challenges beyond employment classification
No full textDefence date: 30 June 2023Examining Board: Prof. Claire Kilpatrick, (European University Institute, supervisor); Prof. Mathias Siems, (European University Institute); Prof. Valerio De Stefano, (Canada Research Chair in Innovation, Law and Society and Professor at Osgoode Hall Law School); Prof. Eva Kocher, (European University Viadrina)Platform work has been among the most researched themes in labour law for approximately eight years now. Globally, the vast bulk of this exponentially growing academic, judicial, and regulatory debate has centred on the employment classification of platform workers. After initial bewilderment and with mixed success, platform workers have been embedded within the standard labour law categories. This thesis is based upon the empirically grounded premise that the dominant approach to improving working conditions of platform workers, i.e., their categorisation as platforms’ employees, is a valid solution only for a fraction of workers operating through transport and delivery platforms. The ‘Uberisation’ of the debate and the overemphasis on the classification puzzle obscure other formidable dogmatic and normative challenges posed by the platform economy. This thesis addresses three such issues that have so far largely escaped legal scholars’ attention. Firstly, it positions platform work within the context of conventional categories of labour market intermediation, showing that it often falls into the grey zone between mere intermediaries and temporary work agencies. Secondly, it examines crowdwork through the lens of global supply chains, arguing for a stronger transnational labour regulation in both cases. Thirdly, it posits that platformisation undermines the genuine autonomy of freelancers as it fundamentally reshapes the labour process and distorts the traditional dynamics between freelancers and their clients. These three issues show that platform work is not only about a sheer regulatory evasion but that it also gives rise to genuine legal ambiguities that cannot be easily accommodated within the existing regulatory paradigms. By examining these under-studied dimensions of platform work, the thesis provides a timely contribution to the ongoing debate on the regulation of platform work. It advocates for alternative models of assigning platforms’ accountability for labour standards irrespective of the employment status of platform workers.Chapter 3 'Platform work and temporary agency work' of the PhD thesis draws upon an earlier version published as chapter 'The Changing nature of labour intermediation : do algorithms redefine temporary agency work?' (2020) in the book 'New forms of employment : current problems and future challenges'. Chapter 4 'Global supply chains and crowdwork platforms' of the PhD thesis draws upon an earlier versions published as an article 'How to regulate 'digital piecework'? : lessons from global supply chains' (2021) in the journal 'Lavoro e diritto' ; article 'Niewidzialni pracownicy, czyli kto stoi za sztuczną inteligencją' (2022) in the journal 'Studia z Zakresu Prawa Pracy i Polityki Społecznej' ; chapter 'Crowdwork and global supply chains : regulating digital piecework' (2022) in the book 'A research agenda for the gig economy and society'
The golden network of the Anglo-Florentines : a study of cultural identity, diplomacy and propaganda, 1915-1922
No full textDefence date: 14 April 2023Examining Board: Prof. Lucy Riall (EUI); Prof. Stéphane Van Damme (EUI/ENS Paris); Prof. Jennifer Burns (University of Warwick); Prof. Peter Mandler (University of Cambridge)The thesis traces the persistent anachronistic characterisation of Anglo-Florentines in the twentieth century, reassessing the relationship of these individuals with the cultural heritage and socio-physical reality of the city. The title of the thesis has been formed in opposition to the post-war mythologisation of a golden ring of Anglo-Florentines, a distinctly disconnected and highly privileged community. This thesis reconsiders the boundedness of Anglo-Florence by drawing behavioural comparisons between Britons in Florence with other those at other sites of colonisation and settlement, and by placing emphasis upon the varying and contested practices of its supposed members. Moreover, through a combination of methodological approaches, including spatial mapping and Social Network Analysis, this study unpacks the physical and cultural presence of Britons in the city, whilst also proposing a more concrete visualisation of prominent Anglo-Florentine actors, defined by their potential for transnational social agency. The thesis carries forward this revised understanding of Anglo-Florentine actors into the context of the First World War as a period in which anxieties over Britain’s insecurity saw Foreign Office officials consider engagement with new modes of propaganda and diplomacy. As a “pernicious spot” for pro-German sentiment, Florence’s British residents were mobilised as key facilitators and mediators of engagement and exchange with Italian counterparts, supported and financed by the British Government. This thesis concludes by exploring the confluence of these local social and broader political pressures through the establishment of the British Institute of Florence. It is shown how polarised opinion over the operation of the institute, and to whom it should cater, ultimately aided in the establishment of a more innovative and robust institution, one which would consequently serve to present and preserve the idea of Anglo-Florence’s homogeneity and its historic cultural significance across the city
The new politics of party signalling : language, positioning, and electoral dynamics
No full textDefence date: 19 September 2023Examining Board: Prof. Ellen Immergut (European University Institute, supervisor); Prof. Simon Hix (European University Institute); Prof. Amy Catalinac (New York University); Prof. Sven-Oliver Proksch (University of Cologne)This dissertation investigates parties’ signalling strategies from various angles. It analyses how language and positioning of political actors affect electoral dynamics and voter decisions. By looking at how different language and positioning patterns interact, it aims to show how populist and non-populist parties and their members behave. Further, it aims to show how these actors can attract voters through different signalling strategies. Setting this in the broader scope of deliberative democracy and the current challenge posed to this system by populism, this thesis also aims to contribute to the discussion of what effect populist actors have on representative democracy. As such, this thesis is comprised of three empirical chapters as well as an introduction and conclusion. As simple language is discussed as one main element of populist discourse, this thesis, first, aims to show whether populist politicians actually use simpler language than their mainstream competitors in parliament. By applying different quantitative measures of language complexity, the thesis shows that language complexity is context and speaker dependent rather than related to populism. To further detect what drives the populist vote choice the thesis then turns towards the voter side. By analysing the interplay of language complexity, blame attributive language and people-centristic rhetoric, the thesis shows through a survey experiment that voters on average respond rather negatively to simpler language. Also, it shows that blame attribution is the most decisive driver of vote choice, especially for populist voters. Surprisingly, the thesis also shows that a “neutral” form of blame attribution attracts all voter groups. Finally, the thesis takes a wider perspective on parties’ signalling strategies. By looking at parties’ strategic positions during the Covid-19 pandemic, the thesis focuses on intra-party dynamics in the federal system of Germany. The thesis shows that elections, as well as the same government/opposition status, lead to cohesion between sub-national party branches and their national parent party. Coalitions consisting of partners with diverse positions, on the other hand, lead sub-national party branches to deviate more from their national parent party. External factors such as Covid-19 cases seem not to affect intra-party cohesion across levels. Concluding with the main findings, the thesis presents normative evaluations and suggestions for the results. It argues that an overall more simplified language in politics can lead to more inclusion among various voter groups which may strengthen representative democracy as more people are able to take part in deliberative democracy. By contrast, it also points out that people’s appreciation of party messages that blame politicians can lead to distrust in politicians’ work. Ultimately, the trends towards the popularity of blame attribution are an alarming signal for the functioning of representative democracies as people seem to trust their representatives less and less
Confidential, secret and prompt : intelligence activities across the Ottoman Empire during the Reign of Abdulhamid II, 1876-1909
No full textDefence date: 21 February 2023Examining Board: Prof. Pieter Judson, (EUI, supervisor); Prof. Giancarlo Casale, (EUI, second Reader); Dr. İlkay Yılmaz, (Freie Universität Berlin, external); Dr. Ozan Özavcı, (Utrecht University, external)This thesis analyzes one of the most disputed subjects of late Ottoman historiography: namely secret intelligence activities and state espionage during the reign of Sultan Abdulhamid II (r.1876- 1909). So far, the topic has been evaluated in terms of contemporary political debates in Turkey. However, this dissertation approaches the topic by focusing on the transformation of Ottoman secret intelligence activities as a consequence of Ottoman modernization, advances in technology and as a response to the internal and external threats that the Ottoman Empire perceived at the turn of nineteenth century. The focus of this thesis lies on Istanbul as the capital of the Empire, and the three extremely volatile frontier regions of Bulgaria (in the Balkans), the Province of Erzurum (in Eastern Anatolia), and Egypt and Sudan (in Northeastern Africa). By concentrating on these geographically separated outposts of the Ottoman Empire, this dissertation reveals the transnational intelligence networks created by the Ottoman imperial administration, and how the Empire crafted different networks for different regions according to its capacities and needs. Furthermore, by following such an approach this dissertation unearths the organizational structure and the operational scheme of intelligence activities during the Hamidian Era. Finally, the thesis focuses on the transformation of state espionage and its institutional character at the end of Abdulhamid II’s reign with the Young Turk Revolution of 1908 and the abolition of spying in the Ottoman Empire.Chapter 2 'An increase in spying in the province of Erzurum during the 1880s and 1890s' of the PhD thesis draws upon an earlier version published as chapter 'Sultan II. Abdülhamid Devrinde Hafiyelik : 1890'larda Erzurum Vilayeti Örneği' (2022) in the book 'Sultan 2. Abdülhamid ve Osmanlı modernleşmesi (Vol. I)'. Chapter 5 'The end of an era: the Young Turk Revolution OF 1908 and the abolition of spying' of the PhD thesis draws upon an earlier version published as an article ''We do not want spies anymore' : the abolition of spying after the Young Turk Revolution' (2022) in the journal 'Journal of the Ottoman and Turkish studies association'
Contributions of victims’ procedural rights to gender justice in international criminal law : the case of the extraordinary chambers in the courts of Cambodia
No full textDefence date: 12 June 2023Examining Board: Prof. Neha Jain, (European University Institute, supervisor); Prof. Julian Fernandez, (Université Paris II Panthéon-Assas, seconded to Galatasaray University (external supervisor)); Judge Catherine Marchi-Uhel, (Head of the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism – Syria); Prof. Sarah Nouwen, (European University Institute)This research lies at the intersection of two topical and debated areas in international criminal law. First, the emergence of victims’ rights in the procedural laws of international and hybrid criminal courts. Second, the challenges in providing accountability for sexual and genderbased violence (‘SGBV’). By connecting these debates, this thesis investigates the contributions of victims’ procedural rights to gender justice in international criminal law. Gender justice refers to the gender-sensitive process through which international and hybrid criminal courts provide accountability for SGBV crimes. This inquiry is both theoretical and empirical in nature. This research first develops a new model of gender justice composed of four branches: the recognition of SGBV crimes, the participation of SGBV victims, the reparation of gendered harms, and court culture. Second, it investigates the validity of this model through an empirical case study of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia’s Case 002/02. On 22 September 2022, the Supreme Court Chamber rendered its appeal judgment in the case and confirmed the criminal character of the Khmer Rouge’s policy of forced marriage. SGBV victims could participate as civil parties – a third party to the proceedings – and exercise numerous procedural rights. Case 002/02 is significant for gender justice, as it is the only international criminal case to date which combines a definitive conviction for SGBV crimes, the participation of SGBV victims in its proceedings, as well as the ordering and implementation of reparations. By associating doctrinal legal research with participant observation, documentary, and archival research, as well as qualitative interviews conducted with professionals and SGBV civil parties, this research confirms that victims’ procedural rights can contribute to the four branches of gender justice. Nevertheless, SGBV victims’ capacity to impact gender justice outcomes and processes is far from unlimited and depends on multiple factors influencing a court’s culture
Financialisation and the vanishing of the rule of law
No full textDefence date: 3 February 2023Examining Board: Prof. Hans-W.Micklitz, (European University Institute, Supervisor); Prof. Katharina Pistor, (Columbia Law Schools); Prof. Mathias Siems, (European University Institute); Prof. Chiara Zilioli, (European Central Bank)How did we end up with an economy that fuels the gap between the privileged and the rest while bypassing the negative externalities that boost financial instability? In the context of escalating wealth inequalities, the role played by law in the construction of markets and its discontents has become a recurrent theme. Building upon qualitative empirical research in the EU banking sector, this thesis describes the role of the law in underpinning an overgrown financial leverage that ultimately nourishes the gap between the rich and the poor. This instrumentalization of the law corresponds with a market thinking paradigm that was unleashed by the Chicago School of Economics in the 1960s. But most notably, the market thinking has provoked two important changes in the law. First, this thesis argues that, in line with a tendency to embrace data-driven methods, EU financial law has adopted a deterministic approach towards complex questions that lie outside the legal system itself. In the post-2007/2008 world, EU law is increasingly evidence-based and responds to technical demands coming from outer systems (in the present case, from economics) rather than to legal principles or ethical customs. Second, this thesis describes how this technocratic turn results in deviations from the rule of law. This rule of emergency does not happen by accident. It benefits wealthy households that, thanks to market thinking, see their companies grow into big oligopolies that have the power to produce sophisticated knowledge with which they seize the responsive governance framework. The thesis concludes that, by revisiting market thinking through legal morality, financial governance can aspire to rebalance the market-society equilibrium, thus restoring the rule of law and dwindling inequalities.Chapter 4 'European supervisory authorities, financial standards and value' of the PhD thesis draws upon an earlier version published as chapter 'Technical standards and CoCo bonds : a new avenue for civil liability' (2020) in the book 'Financial regulation and civil liability in European law'