Guns,anthropology, and cultural relativism: A response to Hugh Gusterson's ‘Making a killing’, AT28(1) (Respond to this article at http://www.therai.org.uk/at/debate)

This comment responds to Hugh Gusterson's guest editorial on gun control in the February 2013 issue and applies is to the case of Gambia.     

Ratko Mladić: Relativism,myth and reality (Respond to this article at http://www.therai.org.uk/at/debate)

This editorial explores the context of the arrest and subsequent extradition to the ICTY at the Hague of Ratko Mladi?, former Bosnian Serb Army Commander. As Mladi? acquired an almost mythical status among the Serbs, the issue of dealing with the recent past is important, especially when relativized in relation to recent events. This offers an excellent opportunity for the anthropology of violence and reconciliation processes, as well to re‐examine some of the old debates of the relationship between universalism and relativism when it comes to human rights. Since some of these issues have been present there for a number of years, Serbia offers a unique opportunity to further our understanding of some of these processes.     

‘Saving the Amazon’: Conservation,international covetousness,and the politics of research (Respond to this article at http://www.therai.org.uk/at/debate)

Many justifications have been made for ‘saving the Amazon’ from preserving the ‘lungs of the world’ to protecting unknown botanical wonders that might yield cures to deadly diseases. However, Amazonians have responded to these claims with charges of ‘international covetousness’, interpreting such foreign interest as a thinly‐masked desire to take control of the region's natural resources. In this article I examine some of the counter‐claims that have emerged in Brazil that reflect Amazonians’ uneasiness with such foreign interest in the region. Drawing from my own engagement with rural Amazonians, I share their critiques of the deep global inequalities that they see in conservation efforts and international research in Amazonia. To conclude, I discuss the value of ethnography and anthropological inquiry for encouraging grounded views of Amazonia that challenge abstracted notions of the region, including that of the monolithic rainforest in need of ‘saving’.