Showing papers on "Public international law published in 1996"

Indigenous Peoples in International Law

Abstract: In Indigenous Peoples in International Law, James Anaya explores the development and contours of international law as it concerns the world's indigenous peoples, culturally distinctive groups that are descended from the original inhabitants of lands now dominated by others. Anaya demonstrates that, while historical trends in international law largely facilitated the colonization of indigenous peoples and their lands, modern international law's human rights program has been responsive to indigenous peoples' aspirations to survive as distinct communities in control of their own destinies. Over the last several years, the international system - particularly as embodied in the United Nations and other international institutions - has exhibited a renewed and increasingly heightened focus on the concerns of indigenous peoples. Anaya discusses the resulting new generation of international treaty and customary norms, while linking the new and emergent norms with previously existing international human rights standards of general applicability. Anaya further identifies and analyses institutions and procedures, at both the domestic and international levels, for implementing international norms concerning indigenous peoples.

International Crimes: Jus Cogens and Obligatio Erga Omnes

Abstract: International crimes that rise to the level of jus cogens constitute obligatio erga omnes which are inderogable. Legal obligations which arise from the higher status of such crimes include the duty to prosecute or extradite, the nonapplicability of statutes of limitations for such crimes, the non-applicability of any immunities up to and including Heads of State, the non-applicability of the defense of “obedience to superior orders” (save as mitigation of sentence), the universal application of these obligations whether in time of peace or war, their non-derogation under “states of emergency,” and universal jurisdiction over perpetrators of such crimes.

Impunity and human rights in international law and practice

Abstract: Roht-Arriaza explores the basis in international law to investigate past human rights violations, to prosecute perpetrators, and to provide redress for victims.

Rethinking the ‘New Regionalism’ in the Context of Globalization

Abstract: Following its decline in theory and practice in the 1970s, regionalism both revived and changed dramatically in the 1980s, and has gained strength in the 1990s. Regionalism today is emerging as a potent force in the global restructuring of power and production.

The Letter of the Law: The Scope of the International Legal Obligation to Prosecute Human Rights Crimes

Abstract: In the past several years, Argentina, Cambodia, Chile, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Uruguay, and South Africa have each granted amnesty to members of the former regime that commanded death squads that tortured and killed thousands of civilians within their respective countries. With respect to four of these countries (Cambodia, El Salvador, Haiti, and South Africa), the United Nations pushed for, helped negotiate, and/or endorsed the granting of amnesty as a means of restoring peace and democratic government. At the preparatory conference for the establishment of a permanent international criminal court in August 1997, the U.S. Delegation circulated a paper suggesting that the proposed permanent court should take into account such amnesties in the interest of international peace and national reconciliation when deciding whether to prosecute. Numerous scholars have made the case against granting amnesty to those who commit violations of international humanitarian law (the laws of war), or who commit other serious human rights crimes (genocide, torture, and crimes

The concept of treaty in international law

Abstract: Introduction. I. Treaty-like Instruments An Overview. II. The 1969 Vienna Convention's Definition. III. On Intent. IV. Several Varying Theses. V. On the Co-existence of Normative Orders. Excursion to Chapter V: The Soft Law Thesis. VI. The World Court. VII. Other Courts and Tribunals. Concluding Remarks. Epilogue: Some Remaining Questions. Appendix. Table of Cases. Bibliographical References. Index.

The law of international organisations

Abstract: Theories of international organization the legal personality of international organizations composition and structure of international organizations the decision-making capacity of international organizations powers and the legal regulation of international organizations universalism, regionalism and decentralization collective security and the United Nations regionalism and collective security the promotion and protection of human rights environmental matters.

Justice, democracy, and impunity in post-genocide Rwanda: Searching for solutions to impossible problems

Abstract: Rwanda's judicial system, however, is not capable of responding to the challenge. Given the number of judges, prosecutors, and courthouses, most suspects now in custody may die of old age before they ever get to court. Rwanda's National Assembly adopted legislation in August 1996 to deal with genocide and crimes against humanity committed between October 1990 and December 1994. The country began to try genocide suspects in late December 1996. Some of the first trials were marred by the absence of defense counsel and impetuous refusals by trial judges to grant adjournments so the accused could find lawyers or otherwise prepare their cases. In cases where defense counsel was present, hearings were more acceptable from a human rights standpoint and provided Rwanda's judicial system with a model on which to base future prosecutions. Some observers from the international media and the diplomatic corps were initially critical of the trials, but much of this dissatisfaction actually resulted from unfamiliarity with the inquisitorial system. Conditions of detention in Rwandan prisons and the International Criminal Tribunal established by the United Nations Security Council for Rwanda are discussed.

The Judiciary, International and National, and the Development of International Law

Abstract: The Annual Digest of Public International Law Cases—the ancestor of the International Law Reports—was first published “under the direction” of the Department of International Studies of the London School of Economics. The “chief inspirers”, to use Fitzmaurice's phrase, were Arnold McNair and Hersch Lauterpacht, the latter then on the teaching staff of the School. There was also an Advisory Committee of Sir Cecil J. B. Hurst, a former President of the Permanent Court of International Justice and later Legal Adviser to the Foreign Office; W. E. Beckett, also of the Foreign Office; A. Hammarksjold, the Registrar of the Permanent Court of International Justice, and Sir John Fischer Williams of Oxford and the Reparation Commission.

Arresting Impunity: The Case for Universal Jurisdiction in Bringing War Criminals to Accountability

Abstract: The war criminal sickens the conscience of civilized society.' War crimes are repulsive, heinous acts. War carried out under the most civilized laws of armed conflict is horrible, but its horrors are greatly exacerbated by those brutal acts of plunder, torture, rape, and murder that humanitarian laws of war forbid. Such vile acts affect not only those against whom they are perpetrated; they appall and offend all of humanity. Since war criminals often operate with the knowledge and assistance of local political and legal authorities, domestic law does little to deter these actors. Prevention and punishment of war crimes thus become legal concerns and moral obligations, not just for those governments in whose territory crimes occurred, but for all states. Indeed, the effective prosecution and punishment of war criminals remain essential to the prevention of such crimes, the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, and the promotion of international peace and security.2 The horrors perpetrated in the former Yugoslavia during 1991-94 furnish a tragic case in point. This civil war left 250,000 persons dead, 2 million displaced, and an entire population scarred for life. But the most grotesque and enduring features of the Bosnian tragedy are the thousands of egregious acts perpetrated as war crimes by all sides against one another, but mainly by

Military Intervention, Regional Organizations, and Host-State Consent

Abstract: The Host-State consent may validate an otherwise wrongful military intervention into the territory of the consenting state is a generally accepted principle. In many cases consent is often a highly controversial justification for military intervention. In a study of state responsibility for wrongful conduct, International Law Commission concluded that consent to intervention acts as a form of bilateral agreement between the consenting and intervening states that suspends the normal operation of legal rules that would otherwise govern their relationship. From a legal standpoint, simplest cases to analyze are those in which a recognized, incumbent government controls the political apparatus and most of the territory of the state. In such cases, the government ordinarily retains full authority to request external assistance, or even military intervention, to assist it in maintaining control of the state. Regional organizations may be in a better position to evaluate and choose among available courses of action than states operating from a greater cultural and political distance.

Access to Ports in International Law

Abstract: This study examines the international law on access to maritime ports, in particular, in relation to the right to deny access to foreign fishing vessels, especially in response to overfishing and the undermining of conservation measures. The first part surveys the general principles of international law, international conventions, state practice, the resolutions of international organizations and diplomatic conferences and the opinions of distinguished legal experts, to come to the determination that coastal states have a sovereign right to regulate and even to deny access to their maritime ports. The second part considers the arguments that have been advanced against such a right, concluding that the objections are unfounded.

Establishing an International Criminal Court and an International Criminal Code Observations from an International Criminal Law Viewpoint

Abstract: The almost total impunity for war crimes and grave human rights violations, be it in the former Yugoslavia or in States of less public interest like Columbia or Peru, Togo or Liberia to mention only a few has led to calls for the further development of mechanisms of international criminal justice. Efforts in this direction, dating from the Nuremberg and Tokyo war crime trials, experienced an unexpected political push with the end of the Cold War and the establishment of the ad hoc tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. Recently, codification efforts

Aggression as a Crime under International Law and the Prosecution of Individuals by the Proposed International Criminal Court

Abstract: For the first time in more than thirty years, no doubt due to a fresh wave of genocidal warfare in Europe, the likelihood of the establishment of a permanent International Criminal Court has re-emerged. One of the crimes with which the proposed jurisdiction of the Court is to be conferred is the international crime of aggression.

International Relations and World Politics: Security, Economy, Identity

Abstract: Part I Overview Chapter 1 Introduction: Trends, Actors, Perspectives and Concepts Trends Globalization interdependence Crises of authority Connections and cautions Actors Perspectives How Realists see the world How Pluralists or Liberals see the world How Globalists-Global Economic Structuralists-see the world How Others see the world-the English School, Social Constructionists, and Feminists International Relations and World Politics: Security, Economy, Identity What is Theory and Why Should You Care? Critical and Postmodern Challenges to Positivist Science Assessing the Challenge to Mainstream Science and Positivism Normative Theory Overview Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Chapter 2 International Relations and World Politics in Historical Perspective International Systems: Definition and Scope Historical International Systems: An Overview The Persian Empire Classical Greece: Independent state and hegemonic systems India: Independent state and imperial systems The Roman Empire Medieval Europe and the feudal system The Rise of the European Independent State System The emergence of collective hegemony The globalization of the European system Twentieth-Century Hegemonic Systems in a Global Context Dual Hegemony During the Cold War: A Closer Look Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Part II STATE SECURITY AND STATECRAFT Chapter 3 Interests, Objectives, and Power of States Framework: Interests, Objectives, Threats, and Opportunities Elements of the framework Policy-making conflicts over interests and objectives Prioritization of objectives Competing domestic and foreign policy objectives States versus other actors Capabilities and Power: Translating Objectives into Realities Political capabilities Social and cultural capabilities Geographic, economic, and technological capabilities Military capabilities Measuring power Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Chapter 4 Diplomacy: Managing Relations Among States Definition and Scope Diplomacy, Private Citizens, and NGOs The Historical Development of Diplomacy Diplomatic Machinery and Processes Recognition of states and governments Diplomatic immunities and protections The organization of diplomatic missions Diplomatic incentives and disincentives The ways and means of diplomatic communications Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Chapter 5 Military Force: War, Just Wars, and Armed Intervention The Rationalities and Irrationalities of Interstate War The Causes of War International system level of analysis Individual and group levels of analysis State and societal levels of analysis National Strategy and the Use of Force Restraining War: Moral and Legal Principles and the Use of Force Pacificism and bellicism Just-war theory Conduct during war Noncombatants Law, Armed Intervention, and World Politics Intervention and civil wars Humanitarian intervention Law, Force, and National Security Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Part III INTERNATIONAL SECURITY Chapter 6 International Cooperation and Security: International Organizations, Alliances, and Coalitions Anarchy, Cooperation, Harmony, and Discord World government Alliances, coalitions, and international organizations Collective security Peacekeeping: Managing and Controlling Conflicts Functional Collaboration in Specialized Agencies, Other International Organizations, and Regimes Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Appendix: The North Atlantic Treaty Appendix: Functional International Organizations as Specialized Agencies and Other United Nations Organs Appendix: The Charter of the United Nations Chapter 7 Controlling Global Armaments Disarmament and Arms Control Arms Control, Verification, and Compliance Alternative Deterrence Doctrines Minimum or finite deterrence Minimum deterrence: India, Pakistan, and other new nuclear weapons states Deterrence through assured (and mutually assured) destruction and defensive efforts to limit damage Defense Warfighting The end of the cold war and implication for arms control, deterrence, defense, and warfighting doctrines Deterrence theory: Some concerns Weapons Proliferation Nuclear weapons and materiel Chemical and biological weapons Ballistic missiles Conventional weapons Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Chapter 8 International Terrorism and Transnational Crime Terrorism Causes of terrorism Extent of terrorism Changing nature of terrorism Responses Transnational Crime and Globalization Case study: The United States, Latin America, and drugs Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Part IV CIVIL SOCIETY AND THE GLOBAL ECONOMY Chapter 9 An Emerging Global Civil Society: International Law, International Organization, and Globalization The Globalization of International Relations and World Politics The Emergence of a State-Centric Global Society International Law and Multilateral Institutions Constructing Global Civil Society: A Multicentury Project Diplomacy and security: Matters of war and peace Economic and commercial matters "Growth areas" in international law: Human rights and the environment Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Chapter 10 Global Economy: Politics and Capitalism Global Political Economy The Emergence and Development of Capitalism as a Worldwide Form of Political Economy Identifying the attributes of capitalist political economy The passing of feudalism and the new politics of capitalism, mercantilism, and liberalism The progressive globalization of capitalism The Twentieth-Century Debate on Global Commerce The North-South Divide A Look Ahead Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Chapter 11 The Political Economy of International Trade, Money, and Regional Integration Classical Trade Theory and Comparative Advantage Neoclassical and Subsequent Economic Thought on How the Global Political Economy Works The impact of technological innovation on free-trade theory Trade and Finance An International Monetary Regime for Financing International Commerce International organizations and international monetary regime maintenance Political choices: How much capital should the IMF have and for what purposes? Political choices: what next for the WTO? Regional Economic Integration and Global Commerce EC and EU enlargement: widening the geographic scope vs. deepening the level of integration Is Europe unique? Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Chapter 12 The Political Economy of Investment and Sustainable Development Optimists and Pessimists Third World Poverty and Capital Formation Aid Loans Direct Foreign Investment Trade Other Constraints: population growth, environment, health, conflicts Globalist Critiques and Perspectives Dependency Theory Capitalist World-System Theory Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Part V IDENTITY AND CIVIL SOCIETY Chapter 13 The Global Environment A Global Perspective Atmosphere Land Forests Biodiversity Freshwater Coastal and Marine Areas The Environment and Security International Organizations and the Environment Transnational Organizations and the Environment Global Population Conclusion Key Terms Additional Readings Chapter 14 Religion, Nationalism and Conflicting Identities Religion Islam Nations, Ethnic Groups, and States Nations and nationalism Binational states Multinational, multitribal, and other multiethnic states Nation-states and nations without states Approaches to Dealing with Nationalism and Ethnicity National self-determination Alternative approaches to maintaining unity in binational, multinational, and multiethnic states Social and Economic Approaches to Intercommunal Peace Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Chapter 15 Humanitarianism: Human Rights and Refugees Human Rights and the Human Condition Justice: The Universality of Human Rights versus State Sovereignty Human rights and the liberal tradition Human rights across cultures Culturally specific rights and values Toward Global Society and Values That Transcend Diverse Cultures From theory to fact Machinery for human rights issues and cases Regional human rights efforts in Europe Other regional human rights efforts NGOs and human rights Refugees An international regime for refugees Conclusion Key Terms Other Concepts Additional Readings Chapter 16 Questions in Lieu of Conclusions

Obligations Erga Omnes and International Crimes:A Theoretical Inquiry into the Implementation and Enforcement of the International Responsibility of States

Abstract: Preface. Introduction. 1. Structures Related to Interests, Rules, Obligations and Rights in International Law and the Legal Interests of States. 2. Obligations Erga Omnes, International Crimes, and the Legal Interests of the International Community and the United Nations. 3. The Obligation of an Author State to Provide Reparation, and the Corresponding Right of (an)Injured State(s)and the United Nations to Demand Such Reparation, in Case of International Crimes. 4. The Right of (an)Injured State(s)and the United Nations to Resort to Non-Military Countermeasures in Response to International Crimes. 5. The Right of (an)Injured State(s)and the United Nations to Resort to Armed Force in Response to International Crimes. 6. The Right of (an)Injured State(s)and the United Nations to Have Recourse to the International Court of Justice in Relation to International Crimes. Final Observations. Appendix. References. Index.

The Formative Years of the American Society of International Law

Abstract: The United States at the dawn of the twentieth century was just beginning to comprehend the influence it could have on the international scene. It had no desire to become involved in the European power politics that had produced, in the lifetimes of many Americans then living, the Crimean War, the Franco-Prussian War and the essentially European Boer War in South Africa. Nevertheless, a distinct strain of expansionism could be found in American foreign policy. The belief was stirring in those concerned to establish a nonviolent world order that the interaction of nation-states would benefit from exposure to American values, American economic dynamism and the lessons to be drawn from the American federal experience. This belief, combined with a deep aversion to what was seen as essentially a European proclivity for settling disputes by resort to war, motivated some of the more influential participants in the American peace movement. That movement, in turn, gave birth to the American Society of International Law.