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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).

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Non-State Actors: International Law

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  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• Only States Can Be Sued, But Not All States Have Subjected Themselves to Court Jurisdiction (Optional Clause – US Has Withdrawn) - Complicates Enforcement • Grievances Made, Impartial Hearing Allowed • Main Purpose Has Become Forum of Arbitration for Issues of Secondary Importance •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

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