Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/222646 
Year of Publication: 
2020
Series/Report no.: 
ILE Working Paper Series No. 37
Publisher: 
University of Hamburg, Institute of Law and Economics (ILE), Hamburg
Abstract: 
We analyze the effect of state visits by the Catholic pope on human rights in the host country to illustrate how a small theocracy like the Vatican can exert significant political influence in international politics. Our theoretical model of the strategic interaction between the Catholic Church and the government shows how the pope uses the threat of shaming to incentivize governments to refrain from violations of human rights. Drawing on a new dataset of papal state visits outside Italy and a novel identification strategy, we test the hypothesis that governments react in anticipation of a papal visit by improving human rights protection. The existence of such a causal effect is supported by the data.
Subjects: 
Catholic Church
human rights
political economy
pope
repression
shaming
JEL: 
D74
D78
F5
K38
P16
P26
P48
Z12
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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