ABSTRACT
In recent years, the dramatic deterioration in respect for human rights across the globe has led to a proliferation of denial and fatalism. Given that the 'unipolar moment' appears to have been definitively replaced by a new multi-polarity comprising emerging powers with obviously little appetite for prioritising human rights protection above state sovereignty, not only does the contemporary state of human rights protection look bleak, so too does its future. To support the idea of 'protecting' human rights necessitates an understanding of both the theory and practice of 'protection'. In recent years the UN has launched an increasing number of peacekeeping missions with a mandate to engage in the 'protection of civilians' (POC). Unlike R2P, POC has a ready-made institutional home within the UN - the Department of Peacekeeping Operations - and a military infrastructure through which to operationalise the idea. This introduction also presents an overview of key concepts covered in the subsequent chapters of this book.
