If not sanctions, then at least not sanction If Africa cannot bring itself to sanction its wayward leaders, surely it should at least not sanction them? Perhaps that sentence needs more explanation. Sanction is a peculiar word, with two opposite meanings. In its more familiar meaning, the noun sanction is a military or economic measure taken by a country in order to persuade another to follow a certain course of action (according to Chambers Dictionary). In that sense a sanction is a negative measure designed to punish. But the noun sanction can, of course, mean the opposite: the act of ratifying or giving authority; confirmation; support; permission; countenance. And the verb follows this meaning; to give validity to; to authorise; to countenance. ISS
Posted on: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 12:56:21 +0000