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31. Just War Theory. SLP(E) Course. Just War Theory. ‘Middle way’ between Deontology and Utilitarianism. Developed over 2000 years. Cicero, St Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Hugo Grotius & Michael Walzer. Guide to the strategic level in the appropriate moral conduct of war.
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31. Just War Theory SLP(E) Course
Just War Theory • ‘Middle way’ between Deontology and Utilitarianism. Developed over 2000 years. • Cicero, St Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Hugo Grotius & Michael Walzer. • Guide to the strategic level in the appropriate moral conduct of war.
Just War | The Middle Way Deontology: Moral Red Lines Just War Theory Rights (Permissions), but also Obligations (Limitations) Realism Pacifism Utilitarianism: Greatest good for greatest number
Jus ad Bellum • Right to go to war. • Just cause. • (Comparative justice). • Legitimate authority. • Probability of success. • Last resort.
Jus in Bello • Right conduct in war. • Discrimination – non-combatant immunity: • Civilians. • Sick & injured. • Military necessity. • Proportionality. • Individual culpability.
Jus post Bellum • Ending a war. • Just cause for termination. • Right intention. • Public declaration & authority. • Proportionality. • Post conflict justice. • Occupation law.
Ethics: Emerging Issues • Links between ethics, Just War Theory & International Law. • Pre-emption vs preventive war. • National Survival. • Moral equality. • Collateral damage.
Ethics: Preventive War ‘Thegravest danger our Nation faces lies at the crossroads of radicalism and technology…. As a matter of common sense and self-defence, America will act against such emerging threats before they are fully formed.’ George W. Bush National Security Strategy But is it Legal? Is it Ethical? Or is it just Realism in the extreme?
Ethics: National Survival • At what point do the Jus in Bello rules become suspended? • Harris & Churchill: the bombing of Germany. • ‘They have sown the wind – now they will reap the whirlwind’. • Reprisals.
Ethics: Moral Equality • Both sides have the same privileges & are subject to the same restrictions • But at what point do you forfeit those rights? • If the conflict is radically asymmetric: terrorists? • If the cause is unjust?
Ethics: Collateral Damage • Bound by: • Necessity. • Proportionality. • System in place that is fit for purpose. • UK National Targeting Directive. • Moral high ground/public support: • Courageous Restraint.
31. Just War Theory SLP(E) Course
Moral Leadership and ChoiceMy country right or wrongSchurz, Carl, remarks in the Senate, February 29, 1872, The Congressional Globe, vol. 45, p. 1287
The Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols The Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols are international treaties that contain the most important rules limiting the barbarity of war. They protect people who do not take part in the fighting http://www.icrc.org/eng/war-and-law/treaties-customary-law/geneva-conventions/index.jsp
Laws of War and Islam • In the early 7th century, the first Caliph, Abu Bakr, whilst instructing his Muslim army, laid down the following rules concerning warfare: • Stop, O people, that I may give you ten rules for your guidance in the battlefield. Do not commit treachery or deviate from the right path. You must not mutilate dead bodies. Neither kill a child, nor a woman, nor an aged man. Bring no harm to the trees, nor burn them with fire, especially those which are fruitful. Slay not any of the enemy's flock, save for your food. You are likely to pass by people who have devoted their lives to monastic services; leave them alone Aboul-Enein, H. Yousuf and Zuhur, Sherifa, Islamic Rulings on Warfare, p. 22, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College, Diane Publishing Co., Darby PA
