1 / 11

Non-State Actors: International Law

Non-State Actors: International Law. PO 325: International Politics. International Law. No Parallel to Domestic Law; No Overarching Enforcement Mechanism No Body of International Law Has Been Passed By a Legislative Body, But It Does Exist and Is Often Observed (Often Based on Norms).

evonne
Download Presentation

Non-State Actors: International Law

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Non-State Actors: International Law PO 325: International Politics

  2. International Law • No Parallel to Domestic Law; No Overarching Enforcement Mechanism • No Body of International Law Has Been Passed By a Legislative Body, But It Does Exist and Is Often Observed (Often Based on Norms)

  3. What are the Sources of International Law? • Treaties (e.g., UN Charter) • Written Conventions Signed by States • Pacta Sunt Servada: Once Signed and Ratified, Must Be Observed; Only Abrogated Over Very Important Matters or When Penalties Light • Binding on Successor Governments

  4. What are the Sources of International Law? • Customs • If States Engage In Certain Behaviors for a Long Time (Shadow of the Future), May Become Generally Accepted Practice – Need for Consent Rather Than Abstract Law

  5. What are the Sources of International Law? • General Principles • Often, What is Recognized as Illegal in Most Domestic Polities (Theft, Murder) is Viewed as Illegal Internationally • Legal Scholarship • Written Arguments of Judges and Lawyers On Particular Issues

  6. The Enforcement of International Law • International Law Obviously Much More Difficult to Enforce Than Domestic Law • Depends Largely on Practical Reciprocity (Following Laws Because You Want Others to do the Same) • Also Followed Because of Costs of Disregard (Sanctions, Ended Reciprocity, Pariah Status)

  7. The Enforcement of International Law • Weakness – Depends Entirely on National Power – But, Even Without Perfect Enforcement, International Law Creates Expectations Regarding the Rules of the Game and Allows for Easy Identification of Transgressors

  8. International Law Enforcement Bodies • World Court (or International Court of Justice) • 15 Elected Judges (Hague) • Only States Can Be Sued, But Not All States Have Subjected Themselves to Court Jurisdiction (Optional Clause – US Has Withdrawn) - Complicates Enforcement • Grievances Made, Impartial Hearing Allowed • Main Purpose Has Become Forum of Arbitration for Issues of Secondary Importance • Most Notable Success: Resolution of Honduras – El Salvador Border Dispute

  9. International Law Enforcement Bodies • International Cases in National Courts • Some Cases, Especially Involving Multinational Corporations (MNCs) and Immigration Issues, Are Addressed By National Courts • State Can Be Chosen Based on Legal System’s Capacity or Favorability • Advantage: Decisions are Binding, Enforced (Extradition)

  10. Other Types of International Law • Diplomatic Law (Recognition, Protocol, Immunity) • Laws in War (Jus in Bello) and Laws of War (Jus ad Bellum) • Just War Doctrine – Distinct From Wars of Aggression, Which Are Outlawed. War is Justified in Protection Against Imminent Aggression – Cannot Be Used to Change Governments or Policies; Must Minimize Civilian Laws • War Crimes Based on Conventions – Recent Establishment of International Criminal Court • Human Rights; International Committee of the Red Cross

  11. MIDTERM REVIEW • Foreign Policy Decision-Making (Domestic and Individual Levels, Approaches, Problems with Assumptions of Rationality) • Interstate Conflict (Theories, “Concrete Grievances”) • Global Conflict Involving Non-State Actors (“Spectrum,” Importance of Capabilities) • Military Force/WMD • International Organizations (IGOs [UN], Collective Action Problem, NGOs) • International Law

More Related