The United States prohibited the imports of five products suspected to be made by forced labor from companies all over the world on 30 September 2019. This article contextualizes these Withhold... Show moreThe United States prohibited the imports of five products suspected to be made by forced labor from companies all over the world on 30 September 2019. This article contextualizes these Withhold Release Orders from the perspective of international law and politics. While the Donald Trump Administration's blunt and protectionist trade policy has been widely criticized, this article argues that it might also create an opening to rethink the multilateral trade regime that prioritizes free trade over the abolishment of forced labor. Show less
The footprints of North Korean influence can be found all over Africa, most clearly in the form of monuments, museums, and government buildings constructed using forced labour. Such prominent... Show moreThe footprints of North Korean influence can be found all over Africa, most clearly in the form of monuments, museums, and government buildings constructed using forced labour. Such prominent projects, which are potent symbols of African nationalism, simultaneously adopt the socialist-realist visual style that is predominant in Pyongyang, the DPRK capital. It makes them highly recognisable markers. Less visible, however, is the forced labour that precedes the joyful opening of a new monument, museum, or government building. The main objective of this chapter is to provoke ideas about a framework to study North Korean forced labour in Africa, and stimulate further work in this field. First, the chapter provides a historical context of North Korean activities in Africa. The seeds of the fruitful cooperation between the DPRK and African countries were sown during the liberation struggles that raged across the continent between the 1960s and 1990s. The subsequent section focuses on a single case study, namely Zimbabwe, to highlight this relationship. Finally, the foundations for a research framework are laid out in the third part, with special attention to methodology and sources. A number of preliminary findings serve as a conclusion. Show less
Based on archival research, this book deals with the mass killings of peoples (particularly Herero and Nama) and conquest of land by German colonial forces between 1904-1908 in what was then known... Show moreBased on archival research, this book deals with the mass killings of peoples (particularly Herero and Nama) and conquest of land by German colonial forces between 1904-1908 in what was then known as German South West Africa (present-day Namibia). Most histories dealing with this Herero-German war at best only make passing reference to concentration camps and the prisoners kept there. The present book retraces the history of the concentration camps, also paying attention to patterns in the way prisoners were treated and what internment in the camps entailed for these people; the history of the Shark Island concentration camp in Lderitz; and the authorities responsible for the concentration camp mortalities. [ASC Leiden abstract] Show less
In January 1904 the 'Onjembo', the Herero-German war, broke out. During the course of seven months the Herero were driven back from their ancestral homes and lands and forced to retreat into the... Show moreIn January 1904 the 'Onjembo', the Herero-German war, broke out. During the course of seven months the Herero were driven back from their ancestral homes and lands and forced to retreat into the northeastern reaches of the then German colony of South West Africa, the present-day Republic of Namibia. Following their defeat at Hamakari in August 1904, the surviving Herero were driven northeastward into the Omaheke region of the Kalahari desert basin. Prior to the battle of Hamakari German commanders had already received requests from settlers for the allocation, for labour purposes, of a number of the prisoners of war which they were expected to make. The German 'Reichskanzler' recommended that missionaries be asked to encourage the Herero to surrender and that those Herero who surrendered were "to be placed in concentration camps in various parts of the country where, under guard, they could then be used for labour". The prisoners were used by both military and civilian enterprises for a wide range of activities. In 1908 the camps were abolished and henceforth the former prisoners of war were subjected to stringent labour and pass laws. Show less
