The Political Costs of Abusing Human Rights: International Cooperation in Extraordinary Rendition

Abstract

From 2001 to 2005, over a quarter of all countries in the world cooperated in a secret rendition network that enabled the transfer of CIA terrorist suspects to secret detention sites. While governments in some states have not been punished for participating, others have incurred political costs, including electoral defeats. What explains variation in the political costs of participation in the post-9/11 extraordinary rendition program? I argue that left of center governments, particularly those in democracies, suffered greater political costs from being caught because of the perception that they are better at protecting civil liberties in the name of national security. I test the effect of party orientation on electoral defeat at the election following the revelation of participation in extraordinary rendition using a matched sample where the party in office at the time of participation remained the same. The analysis provides empirical support for my theoretical argument.

The Long Arm and the Iron Fist: Authoritarian Crackdowns and Transnational Repression

“…It is important to note that in line with the TR literature, the AAAD captures instances of states repressing their own citizens abroad and is therefore distinct from targeting the citizens of other states. The extraordinary rendition of foreign citizens (Cordell 2021), for example, is not included as TR.…”

Private military and security companies and human rights abuses: The impact of CEOs’ military background

“…Many clients of international PMSCs, defined as legally registered international corporate entities with a clear business structure that deliver military/security services for monetary compensation (Gomez del Prado, 2016; Singer, 2003), value PMSCs’ ethical behavior. For one, democracies are inclined to respect human rights and revelations of abuses by governments can carry political costs (Cordell, 2021). These governments are likely to work with international PMSCs rather than mercenaries owing to the former's reputation for greater accountability rooted in a business structure oriented toward long-term survival in a marketplace.…”