Editors' note.

AuthorBarnard, Shannon

The January 2011 uprising in Egypt and the subsequent Arab Spring have focused all eyes on a region that was already featured almost nightly in the news. But this time, the attention is focused on a different aspect of the Middle East: the people's right to democracy. It is for this reason the Stanford Journal of International Law hosted a symposium entitled "The Right to Democracy in the Context of the Arab Spring" at Stanford Law School on January 27, 2012. The five articles published in this volume each deal with issues raised by the Arab Spring, including the right to democracy, the impact of military contractors in the Middle East, the consequences of democratization, and the responsibility to protect in the context of United States intervention in Libya.

There is currently debate in the legal community over whether or not a fight to democracy actually exists, and if it does, in what form and how expansive is it? The symposium provided meaningful coverage on this issue in light of the current events in the Middle East and North Africa, which will have a profound impact on global politics and the legal aspect of these changes could have an equally strong impact on international law and human rights. The symposium had three panels: The Right to Democracy; Democracy in the Middle East and North Africa; and The Effect and Role of the United States in the Middle East and North Africa. Larry Diamond and Joel Beinin were the keynote speakers.

"The Right to Democracy" panel focused on the right to democracy from a human rights perspective and examined whether or not democracy is a human right and how people can seek democracies in their societies. The panel was composed of Brad Roth (Wayne State Law), Sara Mitchell (University of Iowa), and Michael Lister (Penn Law). Brad Roth addressed whether there is a right to democracy in international law. Sara Mitchell discussed the international and political legal consequences of a right to democracy. Finally, Michael Lister discussed when and how liberal states can promote democracy if no such right exists.

The "Democracy in the Middle...

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