You're welcome. I was in two minds, even while I was compiling my status updates on the individual sections with references to the relevant ICTY cases; but I began to realize more and more that this was personal for me on a whole range of levels and any review I would write would somehow feel incomplete without sharing some of my personal context complementing Koff's experience (and vice versa, of course).
Thanks for sharing TA; I found your experiences fascinating (the review was good too, of course!); this area of law, as well as constitutional law, has always been a huge intellectual draw for me, Do you miss it at all?
In a sense I do (which probably shows in my post); it's difficult work but can be very rewarding, and I've met some of the nicest people doing it (though also some of the worst -- and I'm not talking about any ICTY defendants). When I moved back to Europe, it was too uncertain an area to make a career of it forever (too many short term contracts and changes of location), but I'm definitely happy to have had the opportunity at all, and probably more extended than many others.
Excellent review, much like your updates. Your personal experience also gives another level of perspective to the book, just as the book was able to give you a different perspective as part of the 'in the field' work done. Thank you for sharing all of your insights with us. And while I still enjoyed the book, and probably didn't love as much as you did, I still feel like this is an extremely worthwhile book to read, and certainly would highly recommend it to anyone interested in this part of history.
Thank you Ani; I'm glad you and Elentarri gave me the impetus to finally read it as part of a buddy read! It had been sitting on my shelves for way too long! (Next to some other books on the Balkans war, as well as Rwanda, the DRC, and the two Tribunals ... some of them read, some unread.)
Btw, one of the best really, really short books on the subject that I'd very much recommend as a follow-up is Louise Arbour's "War Crimes and the Culture of Peace." It's really just the manuscript of a speech she once gave (with some additional contextual bells and whistles), but I felt like shouting "yes, exactly!" with every other word -- and I do also think her own passion for the work in this area and its importance comes through very clearly.
I liked your updates much more than the book. They were more informative and better written. Not to mention the different perspective. You really should write a book (memoir + extras) one day. May I link your review to mine please?
Thank you again. :) And of course you may link to my review.
Thank you also for prodding me into this buddy read in the first place!
My biography is decidedly less exciting than that of a whole number of people I've met on these assignments, I'm afraid, though; particularly those from countries / areas like Sri Lanka, South Africa, various Balkans nations ... or the Scandinavian countries, which have a particularly long-established track record in peacekeeping and humanitarian missions. The sad truth is that the contents hidden under the spoiler tags in my post is the essence of the exciting bits I have to share ... everything else is either detailed legalese or not my own story to share to begin with (like the beginning of my review)! :)
Today I was finally able to set aside some time to read your updates and review of this book, and want to thank you for the detailed review and the insights you shared in your updates. I learned a lot from the personal experiences you shared; sometimes we see these events as simply horrible news from across the world but it is good to hear about the more-or-less on-the-scene experiences of others (in this case both yours and the author's).
And that part about the marbles - I teared up when I first read it and I'm doing so again just thinking about it. I'm always both enraged and bewildered by violence against children. There is something especially evil about it; I can't understand it and I hope I never do. I think it will make me less human if that ever happens.
Btw, one of the best really, really short books on the subject that I'd very much recommend as a follow-up is Louise Arbour's "War Crimes and the Culture of Peace." It's really just the manuscript of a speech she once gave (with some additional contextual bells and whistles), but I felt like shouting "yes, exactly!" with every other word -- and I do also think her own passion for the work in this area and its importance comes through very clearly.
Thank you also for prodding me into this buddy read in the first place!
My biography is decidedly less exciting than that of a whole number of people I've met on these assignments, I'm afraid, though; particularly those from countries / areas like Sri Lanka, South Africa, various Balkans nations ... or the Scandinavian countries, which have a particularly long-established track record in peacekeeping and humanitarian missions. The sad truth is that the contents hidden under the spoiler tags in my post is the essence of the exciting bits I have to share ... everything else is either detailed legalese or not my own story to share to begin with (like the beginning of my review)! :)