International Law and Justice


Book Description

Selected from the papers presented at the twenty-third International Social Philosophy Conference held in July of 2006 at University of Victoria in Victoria, British Columbia --Preface.




Oppenheim's International Law: United Nations


Book Description

The United Nations, whose specialized agencies were the subject of an Appendix to the 1958 edition of Oppenheim's International Law: Peace, has expanded beyond all recognition since its founding in 1945.This volume represents a study that is entirely new, but prepared in the way that has become so familiar over succeeding editions of Oppenheim. An authoritative and comprehensive study of the United Nations' legal practice, this volume covers the formal structures of the UN as it has expanded over the years, and all that this complex organization does. All substantive issues are addressed in separate sections, including among others, the responsibilities of the UN, financing, immunities, human rights, preventing armed conflicts and peacekeeping, and judicial matters. In examining the evolving structures and ever expanding work of the United Nations, this volume follows the long-held tradition of Oppenheim by presenting facts uncoloured by personal opinion, in a succinct text that also offers in the footnotes a wealth of information and ideas to be explored. It is book that, while making all necessary reference to the Charter, the Statute of the International Court of Justice, and other legal instruments, tells of the realities of the legal issues as they arise in the day to day practice of the United Nations. Missions to the UN, Ministries of Foreign Affairs, practitioners of international law, academics, and students will all find this book to be vital in their understanding of the workings of the legal practice of the UN. Research for this publication was made possible by The Balzan Prize, which was awarded to Rosalyn Higgins in 2007 by the International Balzan Foundation.




Charter of the United Nations and Statute of the International Court of Justice


Book Description

The Charter of the United Nations was signed in 1945 by 51 countries representing all continents, paving the way for the creation of the United Nations on 24 October 1945. The Statute of the International Court of Justice forms part of the Charter. The aim of the Charter is to save humanity from war; to reaffirm human rights and the dignity and worth of the human person; to proclaim the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small; and to promote the prosperity of all humankind. The Charter is the foundation of international peace and security.




United Nations Protection of Humanity and Its Habitat


Book Description

This book is a study of the future of international law as well as the future of the United Nations. It is the first study ever bringing together the laws, policies and practices of the UN for the protection of the earth, the oceans, outer space, human rights, victims of armed conflicts and of humanitarian emergencies, the poor, the vulnerable and the disadvantaged world-wide. It reviews unprecedented dangers and challenges facing humanity such as climate change and weapons of mass destruction, and argues that the international law of the future must become an international law of security and of protection. It submits that the concept of international security in the UN Charter can no longer be restricted to situations of armed conflict but must be given its natural meaning: whatever threatens the security of humanity. It calls for the Security Council to perform its role as the guardian of the security of humankind and sees a leadership role for the UN Secretary-General in analysing and presenting challenges of international security and protection to the Security Council for its attention. Written by a seasoned scholar / practitioner of international law and the United Nations, who has served in key policy, peacemaking, peacekeeping and human rights positions in the United Nations, this book offers indispensable new vistas of international law and policy, and the future role of the United Nations.




The United Nations and the Principles of International Law


Book Description

Reconsiders the UN's Declaration of Principles of International Law Governing Friendly Relations Between States in the light of new problems of conflict resolution.




The UN Security Council and International Law


Book Description

Explores the legal powers, limits and potential of the often misunderstood but highly important United Nations Security Council.




The United Nations Charter as the Constitution of the International Community


Book Description

The a oeconstitutionalizationa of international law is one of the most intensely debated issues in contemporary international legal doctrine. The term is used to describe a number of features which distinguish the present international legal order from a oeclassicala international law, in particular its shift from bilateralism to community interest, and from an inter-state system to a global legal order committed to the well-being of the individual person. The author of this book belongs to the leading participants of the constitutionalization debate. He argues that there indeed exists a constitutional law of the international community that is built on and around the Charter of the United Nations. In this book, he explains why the Charter has a constitutional quality and what legal consequences arise from that characterization.




The Oxford Handbook of United Nations Treaties


Book Description

This book brings together world experts on the United Nations and international law, to examine not only the content of that legal regime but how it has been transformed since the second half of the twentieth century.




Law and Practice of the United Nations


Book Description

Law and Practice of the United Nations: Documents and Commentary combines primary materials with expert commentary demonstrating the interaction between law and practice in the UN organization, as well as the possibilities and limitations of multilateral institutions in general. Each chapter begins with a short introductory essay describing how the documents that ensue illustrate a set of legal, institutional, and political issues relevant to the practice of diplomacy and the development of public international law through the United Nations. Each chapter also includes questions to guide discussion of the primary materials, and a brief bibliography to facilitate further research on the subject. This second edition addresses the most challenging issues confronting the United Nations and the global community today, from terrorism to climate change, from poverty to nuclear proliferation. New features include hypothetical fact scenarios to test the understanding of concepts in each chapter. This edition contains expanded author commentary, while maintaining the focus on primary materials. Such materials enable a realistic presentation of the work of international diplomacy: the negotiation, interpretation and application of such texts are an important part of what actually takes place at the United Nations and other international organizations. This work is ideal for courses on the United Nations or International Organizations, taught in both law and international relations programs.




United Nations Sanctions and International Law


Book Description

The reactivation of the Security Council at the beginning of the last decade has resulted, since the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq on August 2, l990, in increasing use of its powers under Chapter VII of the Charter and the adoption of measures against a number of state and non-state entities. The notion of a threat to the peace has now come to encompass violations of fundamental norms of international law such as human rights and humanitarian law, and the wide-ranging measures adopted have included such innovations as the establishment of the UN Compensation Commission or that of the two international criminal tribunals for Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. These measures have not only infringed on the legal rights of the targeted state (sometimes with irreversible effects where they have remained in force over a long period of time) and its population, but also on those of implementing states and of private rights within these states. The current debate over the legitimacy and long-term effects of economic sanctions on states and their populations makes it imperative to re-evaluate this instrument and the broader peace maintenance function of the Security Council in the light of current community concerns. Part One of this book addresses the theoretical issues by focussing on: 1) The place of sanctions in the international legal system; 2) the limits to the powers of the Security Council and the question of accountability; and 3) an assessment of the alternatives to collective economic sanctions. Part Two looks at the relationship between sanctions and humanitarian issues, examining the relationship between: 1) Sanctions and human rights law; 2) sanctions, humanitarian issues and mandates; and 3) sanctions and humanitarian law. Part Three focuses on implementation by states of Security Council sanctions resolutions by examining: 1) Sanctions and private rights; and 2) special problems for implementing states. Part Four addresses the future in reassessing the place and ethics of sanctions in an international legal system which is giving increased importance to the individual. This work is based on papers presented at a colloquium of the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva.