L4 - history 2 Flashcards
(15 cards)
IL and imperialism in the long c19
(long C19 started in C18 and kind of ended with start ww1)
International law’s universalization is inextricably linked with the spread of European empires, both formal and informal, across the world
Non-western entities’ sovereignty was recognised in order for them to be able to conclude agreements which either extinguished or limited their sovereignty
- you were sovereign only for the purpose of accepting your colonial status
- not always true, but esp in Africa and North America (imperialism associated with realities giving up power)
(e.g. Congo example previous classes)
International law regulated not only the conditions for the takeover of new territories, but also mediated conflicts between colonial powers
- IL used to mediate conflicts that arose through colonial conflict/competition between imperial powers
IL and imperialism in the long C19
- a westphalian system?
The 19th century saw the rise of the sovereign state/nation-state on the European model, but semi-sovereign and non-sovereign entitles abounded
- Colonies (Jamaica)
- Protectorates (Trucial States) = entities with some internal autonomy, but gave up some external sovereignty (or autonomy?)) in exchange for military protection (e.g. Qatar)
‘- Congo Free State’ = owned by king of Belgium (personal asset)(horrible form of colonization)(unique case b goes to show how imperialism can take diff forms) - Condominiums (New Hebrides) = territory over two or more powers (equally) share sovereignty
- Suzerain/vassal (UK/South African Republic) = revival feudal ideas (lords with suzerain as highest of lords = hierarchical system))= vocabulary feudalism was revive
- Dominions (Canada, Australia) = internal and eternal autonomy, but not independence, they were attached = opposite end of colonies?
- Leased territories/concession = still exist (e.g. … in Cuba) = pay money in retturn get decree of control over a territory (concession = agree to be controlled by x)
nation states: idea that every nation has its state/homeland
= misleading image: enormous amount of non-Westphalian entities
IL and imperialism in the long C19
- the standard of civilization
putative set of criteria states (usually non-Western) had to meet before being admitted to the Family of Nations
- didn’t call it that back then
- need to be civilized to be admitted to the ‘family of nations’
two perspectives:
was it an objective set of criteria to be achieved (Gong) or a moving goal that could never be achieved (Anghie)
- Anghie: standard of civilization is moving goal, even if you are western and close to meeting it, countries an just change the criteria = it is fraud
- moving goalpost e.g.: it goes slowly, so hard to pin on exact examples
non-western states which retained their legal sovereignty had an ambiguous position within the int’l system (Japan, China, Siam, Abssysinia)
- some argue Japan only admitted bc its war with Russia (able to defeat great power)= debatable
- ambiguous position within int’l system: not fully members of the standard of civilization, family of nations , but sovereignty was recognized = ambiguous
- were seen as second tier
the rise of institutions
C19 marked the beginnings of new types of int’l legal institutions
(today we would call them IOs)
this ran parallel with the shift from natural law to positivism - with more state practice to draw on, the positivist approach became more viable
every IGO is an IO, not every IO is an IGO
intergov organizations (IGOs): first entities other than states to have a distinct legal personality (except like monarchs etc in C17 Germany, but that’s just weird and it ink not important)
first IGO = Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine (1815)
other important IGOs: International Telegraph Union (1865); Universal Postal Union (1874) - the rise of permanent secretariats (UPU the first)
international NGOs too…. the int’l committee of the Red Cross (1863)
*not every international organization is an intergovernmental organization
- quite unique: only GO to have / to be the guardian of treaty (only neutral Swiss people are allowed in) = Geneva Conventions = we will discuss this later on
growth in technology an important impetus for the development of IGOs
the rise of institutions
- codification treaties
(before treaties were more ad hoc)
codification = characteristic C19
Utilitarians like Jeremy Bentham pushed for the codification of international law, in the belief that it would enhance its binding effect:
(would make it more useful/utilitarian)
(+ if you codify it, it becomes easier to understand)
“The happiness of the human race would be fixed, if it were possible to raise these two classes of laws to the rank of complete and organized laws.”
some important codification landmarks:
- Congress of Vienna (1815): law on diplomatic agents and diplomatic missions (being a diplomat was a bigger deal back then, could do stuff without permission gov)
- First Geneva Convention (1864): treatment of wounded combatants and civilians
- Hague Conventions (1899 & 1907): Permanent Court of Arbitration; laws of war; prohibition on use of certain weapons (aerial bombardment, gases)
*aerial bombardement illegal for 10y
WW1 and aftermath
IL didn’t play big role in WW1: it broke out relatively quickly, law was broken, but it fuelled expansion IL
The enormous destruction wrought by the First World War fuelled demands for a new type of international order with the aim to ensure peace
The League of Nations (1920): created by the Treaty of Versailles (1919) to maintain world peace through:
- Disarmament
- Collective security (if one country was recipient of oppression by another country, all other countries had duty to assist)
- Peaceful settlement of international dispute
self-determination became established
= idea that people had the right to their own sovereign states
- in practice it did not extend to non-Western peoples
- bc war was seen as consequence empire within Europe
- but who is a people? how are boundaries to be drawn?
LoN = permanent IGO
LoN
= really elaborate set-up
the League was dealt a blow when the United States Senate declined to ratify the Treaty of Versailles (1919)
- US didn’t want to give up some sovereignty, was a blow bc one of the most powerful countries
Members were mostly sovereign states, though British dominions joined individually, as did British India (wasn’t really a colony, but part of the LoN, or you can see it as a colony until joining LoN?)
With few exceptions (USA, Saudi Arabia, some micro-states), all internationally recognized states were members at some point
German colonies etc were taken under international trusteeship through the LoN
- weren’t civilized enough to become independent, but got on pathway to independence
- codified idea that colonies at some point might become independent (even if they have to be thaught)
mandates and the “sacred trust of civilisation”:
- Syria, Palestine, Namibia, etc.
- came under internatinoal control (British or France mostly) + given independence of some sort
LoN mixed record
On the one hand, it solved a number of international disputes (that otherwise could have escalated to warfare), combatted epidemics and slavery, resettled refugees, strengthened international law, concluded disarmament treaties, etc etc
On the other hand, the collective security mechanisms never fully functioned because of political considerations and it was unable to prevent the outbreak of WW2
Japanese invasion of Manchuria (1931):
- LoN (requested by China) appointed commission of investigation which found against Japan
- In reaction, Japan withdrew from the League = didn’t really work
- was part of China from C17, Japan had railway interests there
Italian invasion of
Abyssinia (1935)
- LoN imposed economic sanctions on Italy
- The sanctions were ineffective (smuggling), enforced half-heartedly, and soon dropped by most powers
- Abyssinia = now Ethiopia
Soviet invasion of Finland
(1939)
- In almost its very last act, the LoN expelled the USSR, but by then it no longer mattered
the rise of int’l criminal justice
Attempts had been made after the First World War to prosecute individuals for war responsibility and war crimes
But it was only after the Second World War that international criminal law really came into being
- WW2 gave rise to idea of international court of justice: for warcrimes, aggression etc.
- before it was only really ad hoc + done by own nations (so could be done half-heartedly, e.g. not much try to capture them)
- rewatch 16.38 (stuff not on the slide)
post-wWW2
Nuremberg and Tokyo
(also rewatch 1940 ong)
what were the crimes committed?
defendants prosecuted for:
- crimes against humanity
- crime of aggression
- war crimes
(genocide was created via the Genocide Convention of 1948)
Nuremberg: following orders according to national law?
in the end most defendants were convicted, most were hanged -> some debate about victor’s trial, but actually probably the most legitimate/just as possible
post-WW2 era and rule-based int’l order
- new treaties
(WW2_> IR scholarship lost faith in IL, but actually there was more IL made)
new int’l treaties included:
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) = influential set of aspirations
- Refugee Convention (1951) = very controversial
- General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (1947) = heavily subsumed under the WTO regime + currently kind of collapse
Regional treaties included:
- Treaty of Paris (1951) creating the European Coal and Steel Community = NL, Belgium, Luxembourg and France (originally) -> made law impossible to wage (no weapons)
legalization of IR?
post-WW2 era and rule-based int’l order
- UN
General Assembly (power to pass non-binding resolutions—soft law)
Security Council (enforcement organ in cases of major breaches of international law)
International Court of Justice (peaceful settlement of international disputes)
International Law Commission (progressive codification of international law) - produces long reports about IL, very slow process = mandate to progressively codify IL
most parties can’t make legally binding decisions (e.g. economic and social council)
principal organs
- GA
- SC
- economic and social council
- secretariat
- ICJ (binding decisions, but depend on states compliance)
- trusteeship council: no trusteeships today
post-WW2 era and rule-based int’l order
- decolonization/self-determination
Much post-war decolonization took place before the emergence of an international norm against colonialism
1960: United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1514 (Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples)
- alliance of post-colonial countries got together enough votes to get independence eventually
- e.g. India big pusher for decolonization
- the more countries became independent, the less colonialism became acceptable
UN then (from the 60s) became a platform for the Third World to delegitimize colonialism—and sovereign states became the only acceptable mode of self-determination
guiding principle = Uti possidites juris (as you possessed)
colonies achieved independence within existing colonial boundaries (with possibility of partition at time of independence)
- was meant to avoid civil wars, but still numerous wars were fought within post-colonial states as a result
post-cold war challenges
The end of the Cold War was supposed to remove the main remaining obstacle to a new, legalized, international system—cf the First Gulf War
But quickly fissures began to emerge
key areas of contention:
- sovereignty/non-interference
- increasingly viewed by many Western countries as an obstacle to the spread of human rights and democracy
- but remains a core principle of IL prized by non-Western countries
- key institutions of the post-War era
- perception that they have not adjusted to the changes in the int’l order since their creation
uti possidetis juris
= as you possessed
= guiding principle decolonization
colonies achieved independence within existing colonial boundaries (with possibility of partition at time of independence)
- was meant to avoid civil wars, but still numerous wars were fought within post-colonial states as a result
- still most boundaries are original
