Aid and Human Rights: The Case of US Aid to Israel

Ali, Murad

doi:10.13169/polipers.15.3.0029

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Policy Perspectives: The Journal of the Institute of Policy Studies

Volume 15, Issue 3

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Aid and Human Rights: The Case of US Aid to Israel

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Author(s): Murad Ali

Publication date (Print): 1 January 2018

Journal: Policy Perspectives: The Journal of the Institute of Policy Studies

Publisher: Pluto Journals

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Abstract

The paper examines the allocation of economic as well as military aid from the United States (US) to Israel and investigates whether the US has ever linked its aid to human rights performance in case of the Jewish State. In doing so, the paper explores US foreign aid policies in the light of US Congressional legislation enacted in 1974, which aimed at linking the provision of US aid to human rights performance of aid recipient governments. An assessment of US foreign aid policies illustrates that the US has rarely acted upon such legislation in letter and spirit to terminate or restrict aid to governments involved in violation of the globally recognized human rights. Focusing on US bilateral aid policies during three distinct periods: the Cold War, the post-Cold War and the ‘war on terror’; this study shows that instead of linking aid to respect for human rights in the case of Israel, the US has rather authorized more aid to the Jewish State despite the latter's dismal record of human rights performance. The paper illustrates that the provision of US aid is not inspired by the promotion of democracy, liberty and human rights in aid-receiving states. The study concludes that when US foreign policy goals including political, security and geo-strategic interests are at stake, human rights are not significant dynamics behind US aid distribution to Israel or any other US strategic partners.

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Author and article information

Journal

Journal ID (doi): 10.2307/j50009730

Journal ID (jcode): polipers

Title: Policy Perspectives: The Journal of the Institute of Policy Studies

Publisher: Pluto Journals

ISSN: 1812-1829

ISSN: 1812-7347

Publication date (Print): 1 January 2018

Volume: 15

Issue: 3 ( doiID: 10.13169/polipers.15.issue-3 )

Pages: 29-46

Affiliations

Dr. Muran Ali is Assistant Professor, University of Malakand, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

Article

Publisher ID: polipers.15.3.0029

DOI: 10.13169/polipers.15.3.0029

SO-VID: 59e9b149-8e60-4bf6-aaa5-520b4f40cdde

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All content is freely available without charge to users or their institutions. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles in this journal without asking prior permission of the publisher or the author. Articles published in the journal are distributed under a http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

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ScienceOpen disciplines: Education,Religious studies & Theology,Social & Behavioral Sciences,Law,Economics

Bibliography

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Ali, M, G Banks, and N. Parsons. “Why Donors Give Aid and to Whom? A Critique of the Historical and Contemporary Aid Allocation Regime.” The Dialogue X, no. 2 (2015): 316-31.
Ali, M. “The Bill of No Rights.” The News International, July 31 2018.
Amnesty International Report. “The State of the World's Human Rights.” London: Amnesty International, 2008.
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Berrigan, F. “Made in the U.S.A.: American Military Aid to Israel.” Journal of Palestine Studies 38, no. 3 (2009): 6-21.
Blanton, S. L. “Promoting Human Rights and Democracy in the Developing World: U.S. Rhetoric Versus U.S. Arms Exports.” American Journal of Political Science 44, no. 1 (2000): 123-31.
Browne, S. Beyond Aid: From Patronage to Partnership. England: Ashgate, 1999.
Carleton, D., and M. Stohl. “The Foreign Policy of Human Rights: Rhetoric and Reality from Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan.” Human Rights Quarterly 7, no. 2 (1985): 205-29.
Chenery, H.B., and A.M. Strout. “Foreign Assistance and Economic Development.” American Economic Review 56 (1966): 679-733.
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Comments

Comment on this article

[1] Alesina, A., and D. Dollar. “Who Gives Foreign Aid to Whom and Why?”. Journal of Economic Growth 5 (2000): 33-63.

[2] Ali, M, G Banks, and N. Parsons. “Why Donors Give Aid and to Whom? A Critique of the Historical and Contemporary Aid Allocation Regime.” The Dialogue X, no. 2 (2015): 316-31.

[3] Ali, M. “The Bill of No Rights.” The News International, July 31 2018.

[4] Amnesty International Report. “The State of the World's Human Rights.” London: Amnesty International, 2008.

[5] Apodaca, C, and M Stohl. “United States Human Rights Policy and Foreign Assistance.” International Studies Quarterly 43 (1999): 185-98.

[6] Baylouny, A. M. “Oslo's Success, a Militarized Resistance: Changing Opposition Tactics in the Palestinian Territories.” In Critical Issues Facing the Middle East, edited by A. J Russell, 77-102. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006.

[7] Berrigan, F. “Made in the U.S.A.: American Military Aid to Israel.” Journal of Palestine Studies 38, no. 3 (2009): 6-21.

[8] Blanton, S. L. “Promoting Human Rights and Democracy in the Developing World: U.S. Rhetoric Versus U.S. Arms Exports.” American Journal of Political Science 44, no. 1 (2000): 123-31.

[9] Browne, S. Beyond Aid: From Patronage to Partnership. England: Ashgate, 1999.

[10] Carleton, D., and M. Stohl. “The Foreign Policy of Human Rights: Rhetoric and Reality from Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan.” Human Rights Quarterly 7, no. 2 (1985): 205-29.

[11] Chenery, H.B., and A.M. Strout. “Foreign Assistance and Economic Development.” American Economic Review 56 (1966): 679-733.

[12] Chomsky, N. Human Rights and American Foreign Policy. Nottingam: Spokesman Books, 1978.

[13] Chomsky, N. Middle East Illusions: Including Peace in the Middle East? Reflections on Justice and Nationhood. New York: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc, 2003.

[14] Cmiel, K. “The Emergence of Human Rights Politics in the United States.” The Journal of American History 86, no. 3 (1999): 1231-50.

[15] Cook, J. Blood and Religion: The Unmasking of the Jewish and Democratic State. London: Pluto Press, 2006.

[16] Dallal, S. J. “The Us Report on Israel: A Commentary.” Third World Quarterly 11, no. 3 (1989): 246-48.

[17] Falk, R. “Slouching Towards a Palestinian Holocaust.” Third World Resurgence, no. 202 (2007): 18-21.

[18] Forsythe, D. P. “Congress and Human Rights in U. S. Foreign Policy: The Fate of General Legislation.” Human Rights Quarterly 9, no. 3 (1987): 382-404.

[19] Freedom House. “Freedom in the Worlds.” New York: Freedom House, 2018.

[20] Friedman, G., and J. L. Shapiro. “70 Years since the Marshall Plan.” https://geopoliticalfutures.com/70-years-since-marshall-plan/.

[21] Gibney, M., L. Cornett, R. Wood, P. Haschke, and D. Arnon. “The Political Terror Scale.” http://www.politicalterrorscale.org/Data/Datatable.html.

[22] Gomez, S. P. “Human Rights and the Allocation of Foreign Aid: A Cross-National Analysis of the Last Years of the Cold War, 1980–1989.” The Social Science Journal 44, no. 2007 (2007): 275-85.

[23] Haschke, P. “The Political Terror Scale (Pts) Codebook.” http://www.politicalterrorscale.org/.

[24] Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “Signing of Memorandum of Understanding between Israel and the United States.” http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/About+the+Ministry/MFA+Spokesman/2007/Signing+of+Memorandum+of+Understanding+between+Israel+and+the+United+States+16-Aug-2007.htm?DisplayMode=print.

[25] Kretzmer, D. “Human Rights.” Israel Affairs 11, no. 1 (2005): 39-64.

[26] Lebovic, J. H, and E Voeten. “The Politics of Shame: The Condemnation of Country Human Rights Practices in the Unchr.” International Studies Quarterly 50 (2006): 861-88.

[27] McGillivray, M. “Descriptive and Prescriptive Analyses of Aid Allocation: Approaches, Issues, and Consequences.” International Review of Economics and Finance 13, no. 3 (2003): 275-92.

[28] McKinlay, R. D, and R Little. “The German Aid Relationship: A Test of the Recipient Need and the Donor Interest Models of the Distribution of German Bilateral Aid, 1961-1970.” European Journal of Political Research 6 (1978): 235-57.

[29] McKinlay, R. D, and R Little. “The Us Aid Relationship: A Test of the Recipient Need and the Donor Interest Models.” Political Studies 27 no. 2 (1979): 236-50.

[30] Monye, S., E. Ansah, and E. Orakwue. “Easy to Declare, Difficult to Implement: The Disconnect between the Aspirations of the Paris Declaration and Donor Practice in Nigeria.” Development Policy Review 28, no. 6 (2010): 749-70.

[31] Neier, A. “The New Double Standard.” Foreign Policy 105 (1996-1997): 91-102.

[32] Neumayer, E. “Do Human Rights Matter in Bilateral Aid Allocation? A Quantitative Analysis of 21 Donor Countries.” Social Science Quarterly 84, no. 3 (2003): 650-66.

[33] Neumayer, E. “Is Respect for Human Rights Rewarded? An Analysis of Total Bilateral and Multilateral Aid Flows.” Human Rights Quarterly 25 (2003): 510-427.

[34] Noyes, J. H. “Does Washington Really Support Israel?”. Foreign Policy 106 (1997): 144-60.

[35] Poe, S. “Human Rights and the Allocation of Us Military Assistance.” Journal of Peace Research 28, no. 2 (1991): 205-16.

[36] Poe, S. “Human Rights and Economic Aid Allocation under Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter.” American Journal of Political Science 36, no. 1 (1992): 147-66.

[37] Raffer, K., and H.W. Singer. The Foreign Aid Business: Economic Assistance and Development Co-Operation. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 1996.

[38] Riddel, R. C. Does Foreign Aid Really Work? New York: Oxford University Press, 2007.

[39] Rist, G. The History of Development: From Western Origins to Global Faith. London, New York: Zed Books, 2002.

[40] Rosentein-Rodan, P.N. “International Aid for Underdeveloped Countries.” Review of Economics and Statistics 43, no. 2 (1961): 107-38.

[41] Said, E. W. From Oslo to Iraq and the Road Map. New York: Pantheon Books, 2004.

[42] Schoultz, L. “U.S. Foreign Policy and Human Rights Violations in Latin America: A Comparative Analysis of Foreign Aid Distributions.” Comparative Politics 13, no. 2 (1981): 149-70.

[43] Stohl, M., D. Carleton, and S. E Johnson. “Human Rights and U. S. Foreign Assistance from Nixon to Carter.” Journal of Peace Research 21, no. 3 (1984): 215-26.

[44] Talbott, S. “Democracy and the National Interest.” Foreign Affairs 75, no. 6 (1996): 47-63.

[45] The White House. “Fact Sheet: Memorandum of Understanding Reached with Israel.” https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2016/09/14/fact-sheet-memorandum-understanding-reached-israel.

[46] Truman, H. “Inaugural Speech.” http://trumanlibrary.org/publicpapers/viewpapers.php?pid=1030

[47] Turner, S. “The Dilemma of Double Standards in U.S. Human Rights Policy.” Peace and Change 28, no. 4 (2003): 524-54.

[48] US Government. “Legislation on Foreign Relations through 2002.” Washington, D.C., 2003.

[49] USAID. “Us Overseas Loans and Grants (Greenbook).” USAID, http://gbk.eads.usaidallnet.gov/query/do.

[50] USAID Democracy & Governance. “Usaid Democracy & Governance: Overview.” 2010.

[51] Zannoti, J. “Israel: Background and U.S. Relations in Brief.” Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 2017.