From international law to subnational practices: How intermediaries translate the Istanbul Convention

Article Article scientifique Article From international law to subnational practices: How intermediaries translate the Istanbul Convention eng 2023-03-30 2024-01 author Miaz Jonathan 0000-0002-8709-2520 Institute of Political Studies University of Lausanne, Quartier UNIL‐Mouline Building Geopolis 4346 1015 Lausanne Switzerland 828130 author Niederhauser Matthieu 0000-0001-8592-1105 Institute of Political Studies (IEP) University of Lausanne, Quartier UNIL‐Mouline Building Geopolis, Office 4159 1015 Lausanne Switzerland 677748 Département de science politique et relations internationales (SdS) (SPERI) author Maggetti Martino Institute of Political Studies (IEP) University of Lausanne, Quartier UNIL‐Mouline Building Geopolis, Office 4123 1015 Lausanne Switzerland 121-138 10.1111/rego.12523 1748-5983 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/rego.12523 <p>The implementation of international human right treaties is particularly challenging, especially when they entail obligations that apply at the subnational level. In this article, we examine how international law intermediaries translate and use international treaties in subnational policymaking processes. We develop a dedicated analytical framework, and we derive a typology, characterizing different types of intermediaries and systematizing the ways political‐administrative actors use international law at the subnational level. On this basis, our empirical analysis shows how the implementation of a crucial treaty—the Istanbul Convention (IC) on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence—is shaped by subnational actors and eventually used in policy processes in Swiss cantons. International law is seen not only as a constraint but also as an opportunity and a resource that can be mobilized for different purposes by a variety of intermediaries, including local public officials, MPs, and members of civil society organizations, in collaboration and sometimes in competition with each other. Specifically, our findings indicate that international law intermediaries use these treaties through bottom‐up dynamics of engagement according to their agenda and interests and their anticipation of what they can do in their cantonal context, resulting in iterative chains of intermediation. Furthermore, we observe a blurring of the boundaries between rule‐makers, intermediaries, and targets, that is, the same actors may perform different roles in a given policy process.</p> Dewey 320 Swiss National Science Foundation Bypassing the Nation State? How Swiss Cantonal Parliaments Deal with International Obligations 182148 CH 121 Département de science politique et relations internationales T3 false Regulation & governance 18 1 50a48b54-895e-45c1-929a-eea12cd82ddc Article (Published version) Public Miaz_Niederhauser_Maggetti_2023_REG.pdf 422012 application/pdf ae0aae45d45cc88792ebc2704a04b1ab0acd681ad7d7dd951a82b6811ffa0391 openAccess Faculté des sciences de la société / Département de science politique et relations internationales

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From international law to subnational practices: How intermediaries translate the Istanbul Convention	Regulation & governance			2024	2	1

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Miaz, Jonathan